Sun News - Michael Malone thought he had done something wrong when Myrtle Beach International Airport staff asked to speak with him after his flight landed Thursday afternoon. Instead, the New York resident was given a bag of prizes for being the 839,451st passenger to fly into the airport in 2010, breaking the previous record for most inbound passengers set in 2007. "I didn't know why I was being singled out," Malone said. "It's great. A pleasant surprise. A bonus for New Year's weekend." Malone received two tickets on Spirit Airlines in addition to taffy, postcards and a miniature football. It's an impressive accomplishment, considering national unemployment is roughly 10 percent and consumer confidence is at all time lows, said Michael Boyd, an aviation consultant who has worked with Myrtle Beach in the past to bring new air service. No other airport had growth rates comparable to Myrtle Beach in 2010, Boyd said. Although the airport can't sustain its pace forever, it could continue to see 5 to 10 percent growth in the next couple of years, said Boyd, president of Colorado-based Boyd Group International. The airport is aiming for 1 million passengers in 2011, airport director Michael La Pier said at the event welcoming Malone and others on a flight from LaGuardia. "I think we've got a good shot at it," La Pier said.
Spirit Airlines' plan to introduce flights to five new destinations - Washington, D.C.; Plattsburgh, N.Y.; Niagara Falls, N.Y.; Latrobe, Pa.; and Charleston, W.Va. - next year will go a long way toward accomplishing the goal, he said. Porter Airlines will also expand on the number of seasonal flights it began offering to Toronto in 2010, he said. La Pier said he expects more airlines to announce new routes soon but did not say which airlines or destinations. Breaking the record in 2010 shows that the efforts of the city, Horry County, Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce and Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday to bring new tourists are paying off, La Pier said. Advertising for the Myrtle Beach area has jumped since 2009 when the City Council imposed a 1 cent sales tax, with the proceeds going to the chamber's promotions budget. Since then, the chamber has spent about $17 million promoting the Grand Strand out-of-state, according to chamber leaders. "In a period when the economy is not doing so well and a number of markets throughout the country are seeing downturns in their traffic, we're actually setting a record," La Pier said. The airports expansion will add six new gates and allow the airport to meet the rising demand, he said. The expanded airport will only further Myrtle Beach's reputation as "the Vatican of golf," Boyd said. "What's the key is to have a facility that can handle 'large' airplanes so they can carry golf bags," he said.
Tuesday
Pat Boone Family Theater replaces NASCAR cafe in Myrtle Beach
Sun News - A new theater named for a famous singer could open in Myrtle Beach as early as March, a representative of the entertainment company behind the theater said Thursday. The Pat Boone Family Theater will open this spring in the former NASCAR Cafe at the corner of U.S. 17 and 21st Avenue North in Myrtle Beach, said Glenn W. Milligan, president and chief executive of Liquid Metal Holdings. The theater will open May 1 at the latest for the start of the peak tourist season, Milligan said. The location was chosen because of the high volume of traffic through the intersection, he said. Boone, who rose to fame in the 1950s and '60s and continues to record pop and Christian music, will help book acts for the theater and will also perform several shows each year, Milligan said. Illinois-based Liquid Metal is in the process of applying for permits to renovate the building. Turning the cafe into a 600-seat theater should take two to three months once they begin, Milligan said. The exterior of the building will remain mostly unchanged, except for different signs, he said. The venue will join the tribute artist show Legends in Concert in opening this spring in the Broadway at the Beach area. Jay Lodge, CEO of the nearby Palace Theatre, said he welcomes the competition. "The town is big enough and we bring enough tourists to the town that it's great to give them something else to do," Lodge said. "Our philosophy is it's clearly not going to go away, so if we can't beat it let's join it."
Milligan had first announced the Pat Boone Family Theater would open in spring 2010, before it had a location, but the project was delayed by the weak economy and contract issues, he said. Milligan declined to give further details, but said, "We've resolved what we needed to resolve." A representative of Burroughs & Chapin Co. Inc., which owns the building where the theater will be located, declined to elaborate, saying the company does not comment on pending contractual matters. The theater will be able to offer a more intimate setting than older, larger theaters in Myrtle Beach, Milligan said. "We believe that our 600-seat theater is the prototypical theater of the future," he said. There will be up to 1,400 performance slots at the theater, 500 of which will be filled by resident illusionist Morgan Strebler, Milligan said. Strebler was given the 2011 Merlin Award, one of magic's top awards with past winners including David Copperfield and Siegfried & Roy. For his Myrtle Beach show, called "Inside Your Mind," Strebler says he will read minds, bend metal with his thoughts and perform large stage illusions. "My big show is usually 2,500 seats. This is something smaller," he said. "I can do my magic, and there's not a bad seat in the house." The venue will also be available for local gospel groups and regional singers to use, Milligan said. The theater plans to operate year-round and will hire 30 to 40 staff members, he said. Milligan said the theater will offer better prices than competitors, a claim Lodge said he doubts is possible. With only 600 seats, the Pat Boone Family Theater would be hard-pressed to offer lower ticket prices and still put on a good show compared to The Palace Theatre, which has 2,500 seats, Lodge said. A new theater will push others to produce better shows and give Myrtle Beach theater a better reputation in general, he said. "It will keep everybody on their toes," Lodge said.
Milligan had first announced the Pat Boone Family Theater would open in spring 2010, before it had a location, but the project was delayed by the weak economy and contract issues, he said. Milligan declined to give further details, but said, "We've resolved what we needed to resolve." A representative of Burroughs & Chapin Co. Inc., which owns the building where the theater will be located, declined to elaborate, saying the company does not comment on pending contractual matters. The theater will be able to offer a more intimate setting than older, larger theaters in Myrtle Beach, Milligan said. "We believe that our 600-seat theater is the prototypical theater of the future," he said. There will be up to 1,400 performance slots at the theater, 500 of which will be filled by resident illusionist Morgan Strebler, Milligan said. Strebler was given the 2011 Merlin Award, one of magic's top awards with past winners including David Copperfield and Siegfried & Roy. For his Myrtle Beach show, called "Inside Your Mind," Strebler says he will read minds, bend metal with his thoughts and perform large stage illusions. "My big show is usually 2,500 seats. This is something smaller," he said. "I can do my magic, and there's not a bad seat in the house." The venue will also be available for local gospel groups and regional singers to use, Milligan said. The theater plans to operate year-round and will hire 30 to 40 staff members, he said. Milligan said the theater will offer better prices than competitors, a claim Lodge said he doubts is possible. With only 600 seats, the Pat Boone Family Theater would be hard-pressed to offer lower ticket prices and still put on a good show compared to The Palace Theatre, which has 2,500 seats, Lodge said. A new theater will push others to produce better shows and give Myrtle Beach theater a better reputation in general, he said. "It will keep everybody on their toes," Lodge said.
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