Neighbors warn of flood and traffic risk as commission approves remanded Highway 19 rezoning

A rezoning remanded from County Council for a 70.15‑acre site on Highway 19 in Conway drew extended public comment and technical back‑and‑forth before the commission approved the request.

Staff outlined proposed lot sizes and buffers and noted the site is within an AE flood zone in places; applicant Brady Gantt (G3 Engineering) said "The pond would be, required to meet 100 year, stormwater modeling" and that no lots or infrastructure are proposed within mapped flood zones. Multiple nearby residents urged denial. Michelle Kemp questioned where a 50‑foot undisturbed wetland buffer would appear on plan maps and how pond overflow would be routed, saying approval would "be irresponsible because it goes against Horry County's imagine 20 40 land use." Darwin Todd cited Hurricane Florence (2018) and Hurricane David (1979) as evidence of flood risk; Mike Cruz said the new plan was a repackaged version of a previously denied rezoning and criticized infrastructure capacity on Highway 19.

Stormwater staff described conveyance to ponds designed to mimic predevelopment flow rates and identified the area as more susceptible to flash flooding than backwater riverine flooding in the FEMA mapping. Staff recommended disapproval citing inconsistency with community character and distance from fire service; after commissioner discussion the commission approved the rezoning motion. The approval moves the application forward to development review where stormwater modeling, wetland protections and engineering will be required.