Burroughs & Chapin seeks to annex, rezone former helicopter tour company site into Myrtle Beach

Editor’s note: This story has been corrected to show that the annexation request was made by the property owner and that Helicopter Adventures will not resume operations at the site.

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — A parcel of Grand Strand land that served for years as the home base of a now-closed helicopter tour company is in the process of being annexed into Myrtle Beach and zoned for a different use, officials said Tuesday.

Helicopter Adventures formerly operated at the property since 2012 but closed earlier this year after a county-imposed deadline to relocate to a public airport passed on Jan. 1. Horry County leaders approved an ordinance in 2016 that required future helicopter tourism companies to operate only from public airports, but a grandfather clause gave Helicopter Adventures until Jan. 1 of this year to relocate.

The city’s planning commission on Tuesday recommended approving a rezoning request by property owner Burroughs & Chapin. The request involves annexing the 3.76-acre parcel at 21st Ave. N and then designating it as part of the city’s light manufacturing zone.

The city council will ultimately have to decide whether the proposal should move forward.

County leaders sued Helicopter Adventures in 2022 after owner Freddie Rick said he intended to keep running the business as a nonconforming use unless the county provided it a place to operate at the airport. The lawsuit was dismissed and Rick’s lease expired in August 2023.

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Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12 . See more of his work here .

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