Georgetown County officials green-light countywide development plan

GEORGETOWN, S.C. (WBTW) — Georgetown County Council passed the third and final reading of a plan Tuesday night that some say would bring more development to areas like Murrells Inlet and Pawleys Island.

The council pushed forward the Land Use Element of the Comprehensive Plan in a 5-2 vote.

Since the plan was brought to the county planning commission in May, dozens of Waccamaw Neck residents said they don’t want to see it become another Market Common. Many at Tuesday night’s meeting said it was disappointing that officials still did not listen to them.

The plan frames the future of development for the next 10 years. The county said it started working on it in 2020 and came up with five revised plans.

Environmental advocacy organizations like Keep It Green claim the plan allows for about a 63% increase in population.

Cindy Person, executive director for Keep It Green, asked officials many times before to defer the plan and bring it back to the drawing board.

“Pushing this plan through tonight just to get something approved or to get on with it would be the worst possible outcome,” Person said.

Holly Richardson, the county’s planning director, said that since the first and second readings of the plan, officials made changes to strengthen environmental protections.

Councilmember Bob Anderson, who represents a part of the Waccamaw Neck in District 2, and District 3 Councilmember Everett Carolina voted against the plan. Anderson said that since 2016, he’s seen a major growth in development and people moving to the area.

“I would really appreciate it if we could defer this reading, this third reading, because this plan is very important to me,” Anderson said. “Like I said earlier, plans are to be followed. They’re not just a plan. So I want to make sure that from my perspective, this plan is good for the people of the Waccamaw Neck and all over the county.”

A Keep It Green official said the group was not surprised by the outcome and will continue to pay close attention to the plan’s goals.

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Adrianna Lawrence is a multimedia journalist at News13. Adrianna is originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia, and joined the News13 team in June 2023 after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University in May 2023. Keep up with Adrianna on Instagram, Facebook , and X, formerly Twitter . You can also read more of her work, here .

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