Myrtle Beach green-lights sale of campgrounds. Will an Horry County lawsuit follow?
The city of Myrtle Beach will follow through with a deal to sell more than 140 acres of city-owned campground properties despite threats from Horry County to sue over the sale.
Two plots of land south of city limits, housing Pirateland Family Camping Resort and Lakewood Camping Resort, were conveyed to the city by the federal government in 1948 and began being used as campgrounds in 1990. Now, the city will sell one to Ponderosa, Inc., which runs Pirateland. The Lakewood property will be purchased by the campground’s business owner.
City council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve the sale, totaling $60 million between the two properties. The city currently leases the land to the respective campground owners, an agreement which was set to last until the end of February 2025.
Horry County lawsuit looms
According to court documents, Horry County officials are preparing to sue the city over the agreement, alleging the sale would hurt the area’s airport. Under the current lease agreement, between 75% and 85% of the property’s lease revenue is used to support the airport.
Gary Loftus, an Horry County council member who represents district four, said the county is planning to go through with the lawsuit, asking questions about the financial ramifications of this deal, specifically for the airport.
“They have to live within their damn budget,” he said about Myrtle Beach. “Why we have so darn many airlines coming in here is our landing fees are reasonable, in addition to tourists and so forth, we have reasonable landing fees. What do they want us to do? How are we going to absorb $2.5-3 million dollars in airport operations? Are they going to pay for that? If they want to pay it, we don’t care.”
County councilman Johnny Vaught, who represents district eight, said if the sale goes through, the county must be involved in the process and ensure funds go toward the airport following the sale.
“Right now we’re insisting that they follow the lease, the way the thing is written and that we continue to go ahead, if they’re going to sell it, then we’re going to have to be involved in that process, and see that the proceeds go to the [airport].”
What if the sale fails?
City council members discussed the potential outcomes of the case, and said if a judge rules the sale cannot go through, they will discuss extending the campgrounds’ lease with the same terms for another 25 years. Council member Gregg Smith supported the sale despite the threat of legal action, saying the city shouldn’t own land that isn’t intended for city use.
“I’ll point out that I don’t think that the city should be in the business of owning a property that’s leased to a campground,” Smith said at Tuesday’s council meeting, adding that he brought up selling the property years ago. “I’m still on the side of selling this.”
Council member John Kracj raised some concerns about the situation, but ultimately voted in favor.
“My concern is this I understand that we have some curveballs because of our friends on the other side of the waterway but a real estate transaction of any kind has risks,” he said.
Before the county filed paperwork with the intention to sue, the sale was set to close at the end of the year. But the probable legal action could delay the closing by a year or more.
This story was originally published December 8, 2020 at 12:33 PM.