Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC ---- With a one-year population increase of more than 12,000
people, the Myrtle Beach metropolitan statistical area ranked as the
second fastest-growing in the nation from July 1, 2013 to July 1, 2014. The
U.S. Census Bureau, which released the 2014 population estimates
Thursday, said the metro area had 417,668 residents, up nearly 41,000
people since the 2010 census. The MSA includes Horry County and, for the first time, Brunswick County, N.C., which boosted the overall number by 118,836. Georgetown County, which is not in a federally-defined MSA, saw its population rise to 60,693 in the new estimate. The
Beaufort MSA, including Hilton Head Island, was the 13th fastest
growing with a 2.4 percent population increase from 2013 to 2014, the
Census Bureau reported. The Charleston MSA, the only other S.C. area in
the top 20, came in at No. 17 with a 2.2 percent growth rate. The
growth in Horry County alone, about 9,300 new residents in the year,
approached the boom years of 2005 to 2007 when Census numbers show more
than 10,000 new residents a year.
What this means to you:
Roads:
It’s almost impossible to build roads fast enough to keep up with the
kind of growth that Horry County is having, said Mike Barbee, regional
project engineer for SC Department of Transportation. The state doesn’t
have the money, so local road-building initiatives such Horry’s RIDE
program become essential. Barbee said Horry raises more money to build
roads each year than any county in the state. He said drivers can expect
some type road construction, such as that now along U.S. 707 from
Socastee to Murrells Inlet, in their motoring future. Roads, though, are
not make-or-break to future growth. “With the quality of life Horry
County has to offer,” he said, “people are coming anyway.”
Schools: “It’s hard to keep up,” said Joe DeFeo,
Horry County Schools board chairman. He said the system will begin a
$160 million, five-school construction project this year and that all
should be complete in 2017. But with growth stats such as those from
2013 to 2014, he’s thinking the system will need two more new schools
ready for incoming students in 2021 or 2022. The first wave will be
built with some excess capacity, he said, which should help absorb the
growth until the second group comes on line. The first wave of new
schools will accommodate the fast-growing areas of Carolina Forest,
Forestbrook and St. James. He believes Carolina Forest will need a third
elementary school in the second wave of construction.
Business:
All types of businesses will find opportunities from the growth that’s
coming to the Grand Strand, said Brad Dean, CEO of the Myrtle Beach Area
Chamber of Commerce. Airlines and franchisors, in particular, will
definitely take note of the MSA’s surge in residents. Retail businesses
have already taken note of the growth, as evidenced by the new Coastal
North Town Center in North Myrtle Beach, a soon-to-open Gander Mountain
along U.S. 501 at Carolina Forest and a Carolina Pottery that will open
in the old Kmart along Kings Highway in Myrtle Beach.
Quality of life: The growth, said Myrtle Beach Mayor
John Rhodes, challenges area leaders to figure out how to expand
performing arts so that theater and concert offerings meet the
expectations of new residents. The look of the city is also important,
Rhodes said, but he believes the Community Appearance Board does a good
job of guarding it. Horry County Council Chairman Mark Lazarus said the
county requires open space for new developments and added that the
growth could lead to a plan to allow recreation facilities to keep pace.
The 20 fastest-growing metro areas, July 1, 2013 to July 1, 2014
1. The Villages, Fla., 5.4 percent
2. Myrtle Beach, 3.2 percent
3. Austin, Texas, 3 percent
4. Odessa, Texas, 2.9 percent
5. St. George, Utah, 2.9 percent
6. Fort Myers, Fla., 2.7 percent
7. Bend, Ore., 2.7 percent
8. Greeley, Colo., 2.6 percent
9. Midland, Texas, 2.6 percent
10. Naples, Fla., 2.5 percent
11. Houston, Texas, 2.5 percent
12. Fort Collins, Colo., 2.4 percent
13. Beaufort, 2.4 percent
14.Daphne, Ala., 2.4 percent
15. Raleigh, N.C., 2.3 percent
16. Orlando, Fla., 2.2 percent
17. Charleston, 2.2 percent
18. Sarasota, Fla., 2.2 percent
19. Panama City, Fla., 2.2 percent
20. Boise City, Idaho, 2.1 percent
Source | U.S. Census Bureau
