New baseball and soccer fields are planned for North Myrtle Beach Sports Complex’s expansion
In what is becoming a familiar view for those driving along Carolina Bays Parkway in North Myrtle Beach, heavy machinery and other construction implements work on the large tract of land near Robert Edge Parkway and North Myrtle Beach Park & Sports Complex.
According to Horry County Land Records, the 93-acre property runs along Water Lilly Road, owned by the City of North Myrtle Beach, and will be the site of the sports complex’s expansion. In renderings provided by the City of North Myrtle Beach, the new additions to the complex feature six new baseball and five soccer fields on opposite ends of the facility.
The additions include a splash pad, an arcade, ponds, and natural areas. The City of North Myrtle Beach website set the completion date of the expansion as September 2025.
The additions to the North Myrtle Beach Park & Sports Complex proceed with several new apartment complexes and other projects that have cropped up in the surrounding area. Three new apartment complexes, Encore at North Myrtle Beach, The Lorrel and The Parkway Apartments, have opened or begun vertical construction nearby.
There are also planned new multi-family homes across the street from Valorous Church on Robert Edge Parkway. The Sun News reported in November 2023 that almost 400 new homes would be built on a 25.8-acre tract of land near the church. Construction has already started as of Oct. 8, 2024.
The pace of construction across the Grand Strand is at a six-year high, but the growth rate might have peaked. According to building permit data provided by Horry County in July 2024, the county issued 17,552 permits in the 2023-24 fiscal year, a 1% increase from 2022-23.
However, 2023-2024 marked the third fiscal year that the percentage increase in permits issued declined compared to the previous fiscal period.
This story was originally published October 9, 2024 at 6:00 AM.
