Author: Paul Gable

A Harley Davidson Ordinance?

“It still amazes me that with tourism being one of our state’s best industries city & county councils want to shoot themselves in the foot by running people away from Myrtle Beach. I am a former truck driver and being so I have traveled all over this wonderful country. When I would stop at places from Maine to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to the Gulf Coast all who rode motorcycles would ask after seeing I was from South Carolina ” How do I get to Myrtle Beach”. I can’t tell you how many times this happened. The draw is amazing! The monies this generates for our great state can’t truly be calculated, both for Myrtle Beach & the state in general. Do they realize how many people return to our state after just traveling through it? The “Great State of South Carolina” from the mountains to the sea is beautiful! Why do you want to run off our best commercial asset?”

The above was a comment by “David a. Horta” on our last story about the Harley Davidson Bike Rally. He states the obvious – the bike rallies introduced many tourists to Myrtle Beach and brought a lot of money into the local economy.

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Loftis, Factor Cleared by AG

For those of you who may have missed it over the Easter weekend, SC Attorney General Alan Wilson cleared state Treasurer Curtis Loftis and Mallory Factor of any wrongdoing in an alleged “pay to play” scheme involving the nearly $25 billion state retirement fund.

Loftis has been a critic of the management of the state’s pension fund for much of his 13 months as treasurer. On January 31, 2012, Loftis outlined problems associated with the pension fund during testimony to the Senate Finance Retirement Committee.

Among those problems, Loftis listed the $25 billion pension fund is underfunded by approximately $13 billion dollars (33%) in order to meet its future liabilities; full-time employees of the pension system have risen from three in 2006 to 23 currently; investment management fees have rocketed from $31 million in 2005 to $343 million 2011 and the fund has consistently underperformed with respect to similar pension funds in other states over the past five years.

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Afghanistan War Veteran Takes Fight to 7th Congressional District Race

Katherine Jenerette, a US Army Paratrooper and a former US Congressional Field Representative, who just returned home eleven weeks ago from a combat tour of duty in Afghanistan, announced her bid for the newly formed 7th District Congressional Seat.

“I’m not the kind of person who sits on the sidelines when there’s a fight going on and work to be done for the people of our state, district and our country,” Jenerette said. “I’ve been places where you have to do a lot more than talk tough and whoever the people of this district decide to send to Washington had better be ready to hit the ground running and know when it’s time to dance and when it’s time to play hardball.”

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Another Twist in the Bike Rally Saga

The Horry County Planning and Zoning Commission added the latest twist to the continuing Bike Rally saga last night when it recommended modifications to the proposed county ordinance regarding temporary vendor and special permit modifications to the county zoning ordinance.

The Planning Commission is required by state and local law to review and make a recommendation to county council with respect to any ordinance on zoning or zoning change. The proposed ordinance affecting vendor permits would make changes to Appendix B of the county’s zoning ordinance.

Third reading of the ordinance was on the agenda for the regular meeting of county council this past Tuesday night when it was “discovered” at the eleventh hour that the ordinance had never been referred to the commission for review and recommendation.

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COAST Board Member Blasts Council

Mickey James, President of the Myrtle Beach Chapter of the NAACP and member of the COAST RTA board of directors, blasted Horry County Council Tuesday night for its stinginess toward the transit authority’s funding needs.

“No other agency receives the type of challenge and scrutiny (for funding) from this council,” during a presentation to council Tuesday night. “The bar for COAST is always higher.”

The question of funding from Horry County was supposedly decided in November 2010 when Horry County voters passed an advisory referendum, by an over 60 percent margin, to provide approximately $1 million in county funds to COAST on an annual basis. The referendum question was non-binding, but it was decisive.

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Bike Rally Issue Still Undecided

An eleventh hour discovery that the ordinance amending the vendor and special events permits needed to go to the Planning Commission for a recommendation prior to final consideration from council keeps an issue potentially affecting the May bike rallies undecided.

Third reading of the ordinance was scheduled for county council last night. If the ordinance had been approved in its present form, vendor permits would be allowed for seven days at reduced fees from prior years. Both would be positive results for the bike rallies.

Instead, council chairman Tom Rice announced county attorney Arrigo Carotti had contacted him earlier in the day stating the ordinance must be reviewed and a recommendation received from the Planning Commission prior to final consideration from council.

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Bikes, Guns and County Council

Bikes rallies and gun control, two of the most controversial issues to come before Horry County Council in some time, should be put to rest at tonight’s regular meeting barring any last minute surprises.

Council agenda lists a resolution directing a “more aggressive approach to be taken by the Horry County Police Department in the enforcement of existing laws” with respect to the discharge of firearms in close proximity to residences.

This resolution comes to council instead of an ordinance that would have severely restricted gun use in the county. A presentation by Public Safety Division head Paul Whitten and Horry County Police Chief Saundra Rhodes to the county Public Safety Committee made the case that current state and local law were sufficient to deal with any problems of weapons discharges in the sub-divisions. Both Whitten and Rhodes said there was no need for a new ordinance to address the issue.

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Candidate Filing Closes, Let the Fun Begin

Candidate filing for state and local offices closed at noon Friday with many more challengers to incumbents than Horry County has been used to in recent years.

However, the Independent Republic, known for its nasty political fights as well as zany winners and losers, is getting one up on anything I have ever seen before.

Dick Withington announced months ago that he would be a Republican candidate for the new 7th Congressional District seat. He is continuing in that endeavor, but, in case he doesn’t win that primary, Withington has decided to try for a primary trifecta. He is also filing as a Republican candidate for SC House District 106 and SC Senate District 34.

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SC House Conundrum

With less than a day to go for candidate filing for this year’s election races, the Horry County legislative delegation, especially house members, are in for quite a change.

Thad Viers resigned his seat recently due to his ongoing legal problems and George Hearn has decided not to seek re-election. Incumbents Nelson Hardwick and Liston Barfield will face challenges to re-election. A new House seat will be filled to essentially represent Carolina Forest in the General Assembly.

We are also told that there could be one more surprise, a kind of musical chairs, before filing closes at noon Friday.

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Bennett Drops 7th Congressional Thoughts.

Former Coastal Carolina University football coach David Bennett announced Wednesday afternoon that he would not be a candidate for the new S.C. 7th Congressional District seat. As the clock wound down toward zero hour for filing, all things did not fall in line for a Bennett candidacy.

Bennett said in a phone conversation this morning with Jeffery Sewell of SC Hotline that the whole family needed to be on board with the decision. Bennett said the talk was still ongoing, but his wife was holding out against running.

“My wife told me she believes my place is not in Washington politics,” Bennett said. “You’re a coach, not a congressman she told me.”

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