Horry County finds gem in 'average' man

A full-time musician with no experience in real estate or development may not seem like the ideal person to ask to sit on the Horry County Planning Commission.

But that's just what officials were looking for when they tapped Herbert Riley.

"I had no qualms that he could do a good job, but he started behind the running curve, and it took him a while to understand how the process works," said Horry County District 3 Councilman Marion Foxworth, who asked Riley to sit on the commission eight years ago.

He may have sat quiet the first few months on the job, but Riley said he was immersing himself in the language of zoning classifications and land development regulations, as well as all the facts about Horry County.

Two years ago, Riley was appointed chairman of the planning commission, a title he held until his departure from the group last month.

Now, he's back to making music with his bandmate, Tamir Mubarak, and earning money doing something he loves.

Serving on the commission, he enjoyed not only the big-money projects it helped to develop, but also the differences it made in the lives of the average person.

"Because that's all I am. I'm just an average person. I'm just Herbert, you know," Riley said.

Commission in transition

Foxworth said Riley's appointment came at a time when the commission tried to move away from the at-large appointments of real estate professionals who sat on the board for many years and often dominated the planning practices.

It wanted the input of those who didn't have that background, like Riley.

"Mr. Riley brought a different perspective ... of an ordinary citizen," said Janet Carter of Horry County Planning and Zoning. "He won the respect of his peers."

Riley didn't have that development background, but he did have experience dealing with Myrtle Beach City Council members in helping to facilitate more representation for the Booker T. Washington neighborhood, where he lived.

"It was a struggle and a half to get any type of representation for this community," Riley said. He didn't want to elaborate any further on the issue.

Riley took to the planning commission the same as a person would if he or she moved to another country; he immersed himself in the language of real estate and development.

Reading has always been one of Riley's passions. If he was on a break at work, he'd be found with a book in his hand. This was step one to becoming an effective commissioner, he said.

Step two was learning facts about Horry County, all 1,133 square miles of it.

"Horry County's intriguing," Riley said. "It's larger than Rhode Island."

Learning the zoning districts was next, which required driving out to different areas and seeing them with his own eyes.

"You get a good feeling of what they're talking about, and then you make decisions," Riley said.

He credits several past and present commissioners, including the late Peggy Graham, with helping get a better grasp on the issues and regulations.

Riley and Graham talked a lot on the phone and he credits her with making things very simple to him. One of her lasting lessons was if engineers can't present their plans in a simple way, it's probably flawed to begin with.

This theory was put to the test when an engineer presented a project that looked great on paper. The problem was, a fellow commissioner knew the county like the back of his hand and said a creek running through the project would require a bridge, Riley recalled.

The engineer apparently balked at the notion that a creek ran through the project. So, Riley drove to the site and discovered the commissioner was correct.

District 8 Planning Commissioner Eddie Dyer said this was indicative of Riley's work ethic; anything he doesn't understand, he's eager to get all the facts and make a comprehensive judgment.

Silent but effective

That may explain why Riley kept his mouth shut for his first four months on the commission.

He didn't want any mistake to be levied against someone who could be crushed by it.

"He was quieter in the early days and he observed and listened and learned," Carter said. "I think that was a proper course of action."

As Riley learned, sometimes the right decision would leave a bad taste in his mouth, he said.

Such was the case with Bay Tree Golf Plantation. For lots of retirees, Riley said, buying land in a golfing community includes the assumption that the property will remain as it is from then on out.

"It's their piece of paradise," Riley said.

In 2004, officials announced that the 54-hole, 529-acre Bay Tree Plantation was going to be redeveloped to include nearly 1,500 housing units, a retirement center, a village center, an amphitheater, and commercial and retail businesses. The courses closed in May 2006, and Centex Homes was to start construction in January 2007.

Citing market pressures, Centex sold to Wakefield Development Co. in spring 2007.

Riley said that type of work changes the aesthetics and the value of a person's home. For a retiree who has invested a large percentage of the money they have left to live on, decisions like allowing for Bay Tree's rezoning hurt, and emotions come into play.

"Leaders have to make tough decisions," Riley said. The commission, including himself, approved the rezoning. He said the developers had the legal right to develop their property in the way they saw fit. Still, he didn't necessarily like it.

It was a decision that represents what Dyer called Riley's caring attitude toward the human element of each application the commission considers.

"It's very easy to fall into just looking at maps and zoning districts and all of that. Herbert always focused on whether or not this was good for the people involved," Dyer said.

The chairmanship

Two years ago, Riley's fellow commissioners elected him chairman.

He said the key to that role is holding back from the aggressiveness you'd use as a commissioner and remain neutral.

"You're like a traffic cop," Riley said. "You keep it flowing."

After getting over the initial nervousness, he said the chairmanship ran smoothly. His answer was to tell people what direction you're going in so they don't have a problem of going through the process.

A person can only serve on the planning commission for eight years due to a restructuring of the commission. Riley's tenure came to an end last month. At the June 21 Horry County Council meeting, Foxworth acknowledged Riley's accomplishments.

Since then, Riley has gotten back to what he loves - music. He and Mubarak, who play an eclectic mix of jazz, calypso and reggae, have spent their days entertaining crowds at the Giant Crab restaurant on Restaurant Row, the House of Blues and the Island Vista Resort.

But it doesn't look like Riley's days as a public servant are over.

Foxworth said he's going to appoint Riley to the county's Affordable Workforce Housing Commission at the County Council meeting July 12.

It's fallen perfectly in plan with Riley's belief that as one door shuts, another usually opens.

"I'm going to serve people as long as I can," he said.