Attorney fees in Myrtle Beach Air Force base lawsuit surpass $500,000
While Horry County, Myrtle Beach and Horry County Schools continue arguing over tax dollars spent redeveloping the former Air Force base, the public agencies have spent more than half a million dollars combined in legal fees.
The school district and county jointly filed the lawsuit in December 2018 alleging that the city and Myrtle Beach Air Force Base Redevelopment Authority are misusing tax increment financing and taxpayer funds on a project the county and school district argue has already been completed.
Tax revenues have been frozen on properties within the former Air Force base area, which includes The Market Common, since 2004 while the assessed value of the land has increased from about $4.2 million to more than $38.2 million, according to court documents.
The lawsuit was filed shortly after the city had entered into an agreement with Wells Fargo for the sale of $12.6 million in bonds for further improvements to the area, but failed to close the deal due to the suit, which the city argued could cost it more than $42 million in losses, according to court documents.
The two sides have gone back and forth in court documents, with the school district alleging the city is obstructing its discovery period by limiting its access to requested documents and the city arguing that the allegations are “frivolous” and a “transparent (effort) to delay the inevitable dismissal of this meritless lawsuit,” pointing to Dec. 13, 2020, as the city’s deadline to issue additional debt for redevelopment of the TIF district under its statutory authority.
According to billing statements acquired via Freedom of Information Act, the city spent $209.266.52 on attorney fees related to the lawsuit between January and September 2019. The school district spent $208,538.79 between August 2018 and November 2019, and the county has spent $104,383.84 on attorney fees related to the lawsuit.
Documents provided by the county were completely redacted aside from the total amounts due and name of its contracted attorney firm, Harrison White, PC.
The Sun News also requested a copy of a contract from the county and school district with auditing firm, McAbee, Schwartz, Halliday and Co., which they hired to audit financial records related to the TIF project, according to court documents.
The county and district both responded that they don’t have a contract with the firm, with the district adding that the auditing work was coordinated by its contracted attorney firm, Womble Bond Dickinson. A district spokeswoman did not immediately respond to whether any fees paid to the auditing firm were included in the costs paid to attorneys.
The lawsuit remains ongoing with no court date set. In August the judge denied the plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary injunction, which would have required the city and authority to stop using the TIF fund beyond what was necessary to pay debt service on the 2016 bond. The judge also is still considering the defendants’ motion to dismiss the case.
Horry County and Myrtle Beach are engaged in a separate lawsuit regarding a hospitality fee. The governments are believed to have spent over $1 million in attorneys’ fees for that lawsuit.
This story was originally published January 7, 2020 at 6:19 AM.
