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Commission rejects Ashley Circle development agreement after residents warn of flooding, traffic
Summary
Residents told the Horry County Planning Commission that new homes on Ashley Circle would worsen chronic flooding and create hazardous traffic on a single-access road; after lengthy public comment the commission voted and the motion to approve the DA and rezoning failed.
The Horry County Planning Commission on June 5 failed to approve a development agreement and rezoning for Ashley Circle, a proposal that would have allowed up to 43 single-family homes on about 33.69 acres in Conway.
Staff presented the development agreement, which limited the project to a maximum of 43 homes with a 35-foot height cap and described site conditions including an on-site cemetery and a wetland delineation. Shep Guyton, representing the property owner, told the commission the revised plan reduced density compared with earlier proposals and included buffers and traffic improvements intended to lessen impacts.
Multiple neighbors urged the commission to keep existing one-acre zoning. "Nobody everyone's opposed to this development... Abide by the zoning," said Robin Siago, a property owner on Ashley Circle, who described petitions and previous large community meetings opposing the project. Michelle Smith, another Ashley Circle resident, showed photos and said, "This is my home that's flooded," urging commissioners to reconsider adding more impervious surface where drainage already fails.
Staff and engineers described two major drainage runs in the area — Alligator Swamp and Camp Swamp — and said both runs have drainage problems and beaver dams. Staff said they had tried to secure drainage easements in 2018 but were unable to do so. Despite those concerns, a commissioner moved to approve the DA and rezoning; after a voice vote the motion failed.
The meeting record does not include a roll-call tally for the failed motion; minutes show the motion was defeated and the item will not move forward as presented. The developer and staff had said the DA included planned buffers and traffic improvements, but residents pressed for preservation of the existing one-house-per-acre zoning and for more clarity on drainage solutions before any rezoning.
Next steps were not announced at the hearing; the failure of the motion means the proposal, as presented, does not advance.
