Snowbirds contribute key revenue to Myrtle Beach economy

Re: March 19 letter from Dorothy Deitz, “We didn’t ask ya’ll to come South”

I feel compelled to reply to the letter from Dorothy Deitz. She apparently feels that people from more northern states and Canada are invading her area and making her life more difficult.

I suggest to her that life would not be as comfortable for her if the billions of dollars brought into Myrtle Beach by snowbirds were to be taken away.

She mentions only the purchase by northerners of the newspaper for the sole purpose of finding our where the bargains are. She failed however to mention all of the goods and services that are purchased on a daily basis, not to mention the condo and hotel room revenues. Thousands of people are employed in the Myrtle Beach area because of our presence.

I suggest that the complainer and all permanent residents of this area would be coughing up far more taxes or would have less services if our presence were to go away as Deitz suggests. I suggest also to her that if the snowbirds did spread their wings and go to another destination, there would be no return after they find out that the weather, (especially in recent years) is far warmer south of here.

I fail to see the continued operation of the SkyWheel, Carolina Opry, Alabama Theatre and all the other venues if the revenue generated by (snowbirds) were to fly away. Is there enough use of these venues by locals to make them viable? I think not.

Which brings me to the topic of discrimination by some local venues toward the visitors they depend on for their survival. I cannot think of any other region that has two prices for a lot of their services, one for locals and a much higher one for visitors. That in my estimation is discrimination at its worst.

Maybe the thousands of visitors like myself who come here annually should refrain from going to venues that use such discrimination. I don’t think the Wal-Marts and the J.C. Penney’s and the Belks will agree with the opinion of Deitz. Places south of here such as Florida would love nothing better than to see the thousands of snowbirds who are here in Myrtle Beach as I write this, as Ann Murray (another snowbird) would say “spread our tiny wings and fly away.”

This story was originally published April 5, 2015 at 8:00 AM with the headline "Snowbirds contribute key revenue to Myrtle Beach economy."