Sun News - The stagnant corner at S.C. 544 and U.S. 17 Business near Surfside Beach is set to be rehabilitated, starting with the demolition of an old Kroger grocery store that began last week, the developer said. Construction on a new 10,000 square-foot facility - to house Spencerz Sports Pub and other businesses - will begin around April 1 on the site of the former grocery, said Dennis Wade, president and CEO of the Jackson Companies, which is developing the property as part of a joint venture. Another lot near the corner will be developed in preparation for a major retailer to locate there in 2012, Wade said. The company will also improve street access to the businesses on the corner and has already obtained permits from Horry County and the state Department of Transportation to do so, he said.
"We think with some sprucing up and some new things there it will be more vibrant, and hopefully create traffic and activity," Wade said. Spencerz Sports Pub will relocate from its location on an adjacent lot to one of four available spaces in the new building by August in time for college football season, and its current location will be torn down, owner Bill Spencer said. "Now I'm sitting on a little island by myself. I mean unless you're going to Spencerz you might drive by it without even knowing its there," he said. The new building should bring in business and make it easier to turn off the highway into the bar, he said. Spencer said the bar's current location should stay open up until the new location opens. The Jackson Companies operate the Ocean Lakes Campground and other interests along S.C. 544. The companies' founder, Mary Emily Jackson, established a trust for her children which owns the property on the corner with U.S. 17. Jackson died in December.
"It's a prime corner and a prime intersection and honestly the family was just not happy aesthetically," Wade said. Ocean Lakes Family Campground is across U.S. 17 from property that is being developed. The Kroger building was at least 30 years old, Wade said. The Jackson family trust acquired the property in 2009 after the grocery store had closed. "You can't attract a good tenant to a building that old and expect them to pay market rents," he said. The remaining three spaces in the building to be occupied by Spencerz have yet to be rented out, Wade said. The buildings that house former Baskin Robbins, which closed in January, and a Burger King will also be demolished, Wade said. Three vacant lots on the property will remain open for future development, he said. "Once things start and get underway, once the buildings are gone and everything is built and raised, that will generate some interest from some people," Wade said.
