Myrtle Beach proposes nightly 40-mile loop during Memorial Day weekend to ‘regain control of the streets’

One-way traffic on Ocean Boulevard, a 40-mile traffic loop and moving the Military Appreciation Days parade all are plans proposed to deal with crime and congestion in Myrtle Beach on Memorial Day weekend.

City manager Tom Leath told Myrtle Beach City Council on Tuesday that a main priority of the Memorial Day weekend plans – which are estimated to cost about $1.7 million – is to get control of the crowded roadways.

“This is mainly a traffic event so our focus is on traffic and regaining control,” Leath said.

He said that one way to regain that control is to impose a traffic circle for drivers on Ocean Boulevard between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. on Memorial Day weekend that would require them to travel south to S.C. 544, west to S.C. 31, north to S.C. 22 and east to U.S. 17 before they could deviate from the route – an hour drive.

“This will make a way for smoother traffic flow during peak hours,” Leath said.

This is the first time Myrtle Beach officials have unveiled publicly the safety plans for Memorial Day weekend after discussing it in at least five closed meetings since the violent holiday weekend that left three people dead and injured seven others.

North Myrtle Beach spokesman Pat Dowling said an original proposed loop took traffic up to S.C. 9 and brought festival-goers through the city and back down to Myrtle Beach.

“That did not sit well with us,” Dowling said. “We already have a full house here with [Atlantic Beach] Bikefest traffic. We did not want to also take on their festival traffic.”

Officials from Horry County could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Leath said the city could pay for the plan using accommodations tax money.

The S.C. General Assembly approved a last-minute budget amendment in June that allows up to one third of accommodations taxes be returned to Horry County – or municipalities in Horry County – to be set aside to pay for public safety during events held in May.

That could result in up to $2.3 million available specifically to Myrtle Beach to pay for additional law enforcement next year.

Several thousand people come to town during Memorial Day weekend for Atlantic Beach Bikefest, Military Appreciation Days or to take advantage of a three-day weekend at the beach.

Three people died and seven were injured in eight shootings on Ocean Boulevard in Myrtle Beach during Memorial Day weekend.

For months, Grand Strand officials have been working to create a safety plan so the area doesn’t have the same crime and violence next year.

Leath said the plans will require the city to move the Military Appreciation Days parade from Memorial Day to another weekend in May. Since 2009, the city has celebrated Military Appreciation Days with a parade the Saturday before Memorial Day.

“There will be no parade on Memorial Day weekend,” Leath said. “We may try to move it a week or two earlier.”

Sinclair Swan, a Vietnam veteran who serves on the Military Appreciation Days committee, said it won’t matter what day the parade is held.

“Memorial Day is Memorial Day,” he said, pointing out that the group sponsors events in the city throughout May. “If they feel that for safety the parade needs to be held on a different weekend, I don’t think that deters from the significance after all.”

Leath said the city needed to address five issues going into next year: re-establish the emergency lane, keep pedestrians and cars separate, increase law enforcement visibility, increase litter pick-up, and to encourage business owners to manage crowds on their property.

To re-establish the emergency lane on Ocean Boulevard, traffic will have to be restricted to one-way heading south, which will begin at 29th Avenue North and be in place beginning Thursday afternoon and go into Monday.

Residents expressed concerns during a May City Council meeting, citing gridlock on Ocean Boulevard that turned into a block party caught on video and posted to YouTube where hundreds of people could be seen dancing in the street.

“The pedestrians need to remain separate from the traffic,” Leath said. “As traffic stalled, pedestrians came out into the street.”

The city plans to place about 10,000 rented metal dividers along five miles of Ocean Boulevard on both sides from 29th Avenue North south to where it meets with Kings Highway.

The dividers will be used to keep pedestrians on the sidewalks and to separate traffic from the emergency lane, he said.

The violence that occurred in May caused Gov. Nikki Haley to call for an end to Bikefest though Atlantic Beach town officials say they have no plans to do so. Myrtle Beach officials traveled to Columbia on Sept. 3 to meet with Haley.

“We’re working together to see what participation the state will have next year,” Mayor John Rhodes said.

The state sent nearly 273 officers to the Grand Strand to help with policing during Memorial Day weekend.

“They’re going to increase that number,” Rhodes said.

There were about 400 police officers on duty in Myrtle Beach. Rhodes said he hopes to be able to have 600 in town next year.

Leath said the plans are preliminary and expects that they will change between now and Memorial Day, though the emergency lane and one-way traffic plan likely are set.

He said officials expect changes will be made as they begin to seek community input and hear from law enforcement agencies across the country during a special events summit being held later this month.

“We may say we’re thinking about trying one thing, but four other agencies could say, ‘we tried that and it didn’t work at all,’” Leath said of the summit. “Or they may say they’ve done something that we hadn’t thought about [that could work].”

He said city officials will meet with various “interested parties” – including motorcyclists, the NAACP, the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, business owners and other stakeholders – to hear their input and possibly tweak the plan as the city moves forward.

“There are things that won’t change,” he said. “The emergency lane isn’t going to change. One-way traffic isn’t going to change. And the major loop probably won’t change much either. But there will be some minor changes on some things and maybe some major changes as well.”

Leath said plans also could change when a new city manager is hired later this year. Leath plans to retire by December and the city is in the process of hiring his replacement.

This story was originally published September 9, 2014 at 9:29 PM with the headline "Myrtle Beach proposes nightly 40-mile loop during Memorial Day weekend to ‘regain control of the streets’."