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Horry County council authorizes notice for up to $7.1 million in bonds to buy land near Coastal Carolina University
Summary
Council voted to authorize publication of notice for up to $7.1 million in general obligation bonds for the Horry County Higher Education Commission to acquire land adjacent to Coastal Carolina University; the commission chair said a contract exists for roughly 13 acres and agreed to seek an appraisal if council wishes.
Council members voted to authorize publication of notice that would allow the Horry County Higher Education Commission (HCHEC) to issue up to $7,100,000 in general obligation bonds to acquire land adjacent to Coastal Carolina University.
The council’s action followed presentations by HCHEC bond counsel Gary Pope and commission chair Melissa Welch. Pope said the bonds would be issued under the commission’s current millage and that maturities are expected to range from five to 15 years, with 10 years used as the planning assumption. “The process is exactly as you said,” Pope said, describing the required notices, a public hearing and subsequent ordinance if council chooses to proceed.
Welch described a contract for multiple contiguous parcels totaling about 49 acres with roughly 13 acres directly bordering Coastal; the commission is seeking the back portion to provide expansion capacity. Welch said Coastal exceeded 11,300 students this past year and has about 5,300 student beds, creating pressure for future campus expansion. She said the commission did not include an appraisal contingency in the contract but added, “we will be more than happy to seek one for the council.”
The council moved and approved the finding and authorization by voice vote. The vote authorizes publication of notice and steps toward a public hearing; it does not by itself issue the bonds. Council members and HCHEC representatives discussed due diligence tasks such as a phase‑1 environmental review and other studies; Welch said the bond request includes a roughly $200,000 contingency for preliminary costs.
What happens next: the authorization allows the commission to publish statutorily required notices and schedule a public hearing; any subsequent ordinance to actually issue bonds would return to council for additional votes and approvals.
Speakers quoted in this article are those who appear in the meeting transcript and spoke on the issue: Gary Pope, bond counsel for the Horry County Higher Education Commission, and Melissa Welch, chair, Horry County Higher Education Commission.
