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Developers trim density, remove commercial and convert multifamily to townhomes in Preserve PDD; council agrees to send revisions to planning commission
Summary
At a North Myrtle Beach workshop developers for the Preserve PDD described substantial changes: removing a planned commercial parcel, replacing 5-story multifamily with townhomes, and reducing overall PDD units from an originally approved 804 to 613 under the new proposal. Council members favored the reduction and asked that the consolidated subm
Developers of the Preserve Planned Development District (PDD) told the North Myrtle Beach City Council at a workshop that they are eliminating a planned commercial area, converting a previously approved five-story multifamily zone to townhomes, and substantially reducing total units in the remaining project.
Josh, a developer representative, told the council the team had combined pending submittals so members could see all remaining phases at once. He said the commercial track being removed was set back far from main corridors and the market for neighborhood retail has softened. “Yes, ma'am. Remove the commercial,” Josh said when asked directly whether the commercial parcel would be removed. He added the team planned to replace the approved five-story multifamily with townhomes to lower density and better fit surrounding development.
Developers said the original PDD approval contained about 804 units for the remaining phases; with the new proposals the developer stated the remaining plan would total about 613 units. Josh said the team is also proposing additional internal connectivity by extending a 50-foot right-of-way to provide more connections to adjacent, undeveloped parcels.
City planning staff explained that, when considered in isolation, removing commercial in one pod had created a small unit increase locally, but the conversion of multifamily to townhomes produced a much larger net reduction in units across the PDD. Planning staff and councilors discussed a handful of design changes the developer showed on the exhibit maps: replacing an inefficient single-loaded cul-de-sac area with townhomes, creating more contiguous green space, and adding a public road stub to facilitate future connections for adjacent properties.
Council members expressed support for removing high-rise multifamily near low-rise neighborhoods and for increasing green space and connectivity. One councilor said the changes made the project “a much better project” and suggested taking the consolidated submittal to the Planning Commission for a full review; council members agreed. Planning staff and the developer indicated the plan should proceed through the Planning Commission before returning to council for formal action.
Developers also discussed market realities: the team said neighborhood-serving retail is difficult to support without significant traffic and that the commercial track was likely to remain undeveloped in the near term. Josh and other presenters said they hoped the reduced density and a mix of products (one-story cottages, townhomes, and premium lakefront homes) would better match buyer demand.
No formal zoning action or PDD amendment was adopted at the workshop. Council and staff asked the developer to submit the consolidated revised plans to staff and to present them to the Planning Commission; the council indicated it would then consider the Planning Commission's recommendation at a future meeting.
