Here are the two candidates in the North Myrtle Beach city council runoff and their plans

North Myrtle Beach will soon have a new council member serving in the at-large position.

A runoff election will be held on Tuesday to determine who will fill the council seat left vacant by Bob Cavanaugh, who announced his resignation in September. He spent nearly 20 years on council.

Earlier this month, the city had a special election with 10 candidates. Candidates Trey Skidmore and Ronnie Nichols received the most votes with 961 votes and 514 votes, respectfully.

A candidate needed to receive 50% of the total votes cast plus one to win the election, according to the city.

The Sun News reached out to the two candidate with a list of questions for them to answer in their own words. Answers have been edited for grammar and clarity.

Question: What do you think are the biggest challenges facing NMB related to COVID-19? How would you respond to those concerns on council?

Nichols: Our biggest challenge is to safely open our city. City council needs to be a leader in demonstrating how technology can enable this process. Far-UVC lighting systems have proven effective at inactivating airborne human coronaviruses. Exploration of this system, its costs and potential trial installation in a few key public places can show the community what may be possible to progressively re-open and to possibly protect us as well from future infections.

I would establish a COVID public/private research committee to investigate comprehensive options for safely opening the city as quickly as possible, which may include far-reaching ultraviolet light systems; governments, businesses and residents working together to implement appropriate and timely local guidelines; and encouraging our residents, businesses and visitors to continue to practice current COVID-protocol measures and recommended new ones.

I support ongoing vaccinations, assisting everyone to access a vaccine conveniently and with geographic ease from a state/local-coordinated information team. Our residents should not have to spend weeks searching the web, to go to another state or to drive hours for a vaccine. More than 41% of North Myrtle Beach’s population is between the ages 55-74; and this percentage is predicted to increase, putting our citizens at higher risk and in need of even more pro-active planning and communication now and in the future.

Skidmore: Re-opening businesses. Many people have suffered greatly this past year as businesses were forced to close or operate at a reduced capacity. We CANNOT face another spring and summer season under the same conditions. With the now widespread availability of the vaccine and shrinking virus spread, it’s time to get back to business and life as usual.

Question: What are your priorities for the tourism season?

Nichols: North Myrtle Beach is the safest city in the Carolinas. We need to re-embrace and enhance that designation as we work to re-open as a recognized COVID-safer city!

North Myrtle Beach is a well-run city with the lowest tax rate of any full-service municipality in South Carolina. Tourism drives the economy and supports the tax base, so it must be thoughtfully grown by attractive infrastructure, beach renourishment, continued storm water outfall and diversified housing to lodge the local business workforce, along with its young families and that increasing senior population.

But we need change. Hearing and acting on the needs and sincere concerns of our small business community is tantamount to these local companies, while providing the lodging, services, dining, shopping, recreation and entertainment that healing our visitor-base now dictates. City council should also be positive in its approach to healing the hurt its businesses have suffered since early 2020 and act accordingly and compassionately.

It is all about the beach, and the people who live, work and visit here.

Skidmore: I would echo once again, this year, the first order of business is getting back to normal. Prior to COVID-19, our area was experiencing a long period of prosperity and a strong economy. Together, we can get back there again.

Question: How do you aim to balance efforts to bring in tourism revenue and making sure locals are not left behind?

Nichols: As a member of city council, I will never leave our local citizens behind. Every attempt should be made to diversify North Myrtle Beach’s economy with tax incentives. Tourism will always drive the economy, but the impact of COVID 19 illustrates the need to diversify. Moreover, North Myrtle Beach is positioned to continue to grow — 15,000 houses are in the pipeline for the North Myrtle Beach area — but growth must be managed to minimize traffic, noise, overcrowding and parking, particularly beach-access parking. Growth should also provide new opportunities for entertainment and recreation such as bike and walking paths. Residential development should favor mixed-use communities and new parks such as on the 25-acre city-owned tract on Little River Neck Rd. Public safety services such as police and fire and others will also need to be an important part of our planned balanced expansion. I will work directly with residents, businesses and county and state governments to improve communication on these issues and more.

Skidmore: The revenue generated by tourism is important to our economy and for the city to be able to provide the services city residents expect. Tourists need to follow the same rules that we do, so we can all enjoy the family-friendly, safe beach town we love.

Question: In what ways do you think the city can improve?

Nichols: We can be more open to our citizens and their needs by improving our communications and the time we make available to listen to their needs and issues. My platform calls strongly for resident and business inclusiveness and better communications among constituents, as well as among government entities. During the early weeks of my campaign, several of my constituents and I visited and opened a line of direct communication respectively to each of the departments of city government, including the city manager. We asked the tough questions and feel that we now have a more personal, in-depth knowledge of the current state of the city. My platform was first formulated on those face-to-face meetings and on my direct discussion with voters. I am a trained negotiator and arbitrator, skills that will be valuable to me as a city council member. That was noted by both Horry County Commission Chairman Johnny Gardner and Horry County School Superintendent Ken Richardson when we met personally and as we talked recently on the radio about improving much-needed dialogue between the city and Horry County. Involving residents and government officials in my important platform process is indicative of my pledge to maintain transparent leadership.

Skidmore: Our biggest challenge is a byproduct of all our success. This is a great place to live, and every year more people want to call North Myrtle Beach home. All that growth has put a tremendous amount of stress on our infrastructure. We need to revisit the city’s comprehensive growth plan and find ways to limit the impact on existing residents. We need to work to add more roads and improve existing ones to reduce traffic and congestion.

Question: If elected, what will be your main goals?

Nichols: Stop, look and listen. Be open and inclusive. My six-point platform includes: supporting city government; growing a balanced economy; diversifying affordable housing for seniors, young families and seasonal employees with entertainment and recreational opportunities; developing the 25-acre city-owned tract on Little River Neck Rd. into a park; enhancing communication and parking; working better with the county and state on critical issues; and opening up the city with a new Corona-safe Task Force to explore technologies such as UVC lightening which clean and protect public areas.

Skidmore: Repave U.S. Highway 17 to help traffic flow, add sidewalks to secondary roads to keep our pedestrians safe, add new storm-water outfalls to reduce flooding and holding the line on tax increases so families and businesses can keep more of their hard-earned dollars.

The following polling locations will be open at 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday.

- Windy Hill 1 Precinct- Windy Hill Fire Station # 3 (33rd Avenue South)

- Windy Hill 2 Precinct –Fire Station # 5 (Barefoot Resort)

- Crescent Beach Precinct- J. Bryan Floyd Community Center (Possum Trot Road)

- Ocean Drive 1 Precinct- Fire Station # 1 (2nd Avenue South)

- Ocean Drive 2 Precinct - St. Stephens Episcopal Church- (11th Avenue North)

- Cherry Grove 1 Precinct- Chapel by the Sea Church (Sea Mountain Highway)

-Cherry Grove 2 Precinct - Fire Station # 4 (Little River Neck Road)

- Wampee Precinct (Park Pointe residents only) - Riverside Elementary School (1283 Highway 57 South, Little River)

- Nixons 1 Precinct (Grande Harbour residents only) - North Myrtle Beach High School (3750 Sea Mountain Highway, Little River)