Patrons, bar owners get one chance to comment on late-night bar rules

Bar owners and patrons will get their say Tuesday night on whether late-night clubs should adhere to new rules and pay annual fees to continue night-owl hours.

The Horry County Council will hold the only hearing on the new ordinance before casting the final vote to pass the regulations during their regular meeting in Conway at 6 p.m.

The rules require that business owners pay a $250 annual fee, undergo extensive background checks and file safety plans that detail how the bar will deter crime.

County councilmen say this is the answer to preventing some late-night crime, and it’s their alternative to forcing all bars in unincorporated Horry County to close by 2 a.m.

That proposal was objected to by some businesses owners and patrons, who argued that not all bars are magnets for crime, and that many cater to locals who work late-night shifts in the service industry.

Public hearings for new ordinances are typically held during the second reading, weeks before the council takes the final vote after the third reading.

However, the holiday schedule and additional questions by councilmen delayed previous votes and pushed the hearing into January.

The regulations are directed at new businesses, but if existing bars become a problem they too could be required to undergo the process and pay an annual fee.

This story was originally published January 9, 2017 at 1:05 PM with the headline "Patrons, bar owners get one chance to comment on late-night bar rules."