Interstate 73 could be expanding into South Carolina, near Myrtle Beach

CONWAY, S.C. (WBTW) — Horry County leaders next week will back away from approving a major development ban along the proposed Interstate 73 corridor until federal and state funding for the controversial project is secured.

“This is a highway that may or may not get constructed,” county councilman Al Allen said at a Tuesday infrastructure and regulation subcommittee meeting. “Where it is now, we’ve got landowners who are being denied permits in order or enhance or build upon their property because of that.”

County leaders in July gave preliminary approval adding I-73 to official maps, essentially limiting development on nearly 400 parcels along the corridor. Officials at the time said doing so could prevent future financial losses for investors.

David Gilreath, an assistant county administrator, said in July there’s an advantage to adding I-73 onto official maps now.

“No matter how we talk about this and no matter what we do, it’s not a pleasant situation when you have to take someone’s property to improve it for the public,” he told the county council. “That said, what this ordinance does is it tries to protect the interests of the public in reducing or eliminating improvements to a property the public is anticipating to acquire.”

If it ever gets built, the roughly 80-mile, $2 billion highway would be South Carolina’s sixth interstate, linking the state’s tourism hub directly to the North Carolina border through rural areas of the Pee Dee, running from Rockingham, North Carolina through Marlboro and Dillon counties.

It would then cross Interstate 95 and feed onto Highway 22 in Horry County.

The state Department of Transportation has $15 million to purchase rights-of-way in Horry County in preparation for I-73.

A third and final vote is needed to put I-73 onto the county’s map, which is expected to take place Sept. 17.

Allen, whose District 11 includes the entirety of the interstate’s South Carolina portion, said development in the area should be allowed to continue until there’s a guarantee that funding is in place.

“You’re talking about elderly people that may have children that want to build a house on their farm out there, and they’ve always dreamed of that,” Allen said. “You may have a younger couple out there that can’t afford to buy a house on this side of the county, but they’ve got their small half acre or acre of land out there. Even though we’ve tried to work this ordinance through, I don’t think it’s fair.”

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