Myrtle Beach Economic Development: Strategy & Policy
This paper examines the economic development challenges and opportunities facing Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States. Drawing on community development plans and regional economic data, it profiles the city's infrastructure deficits, zoning problems, and over-reliance on tourism. The paper surveys relevant state and federal public policies—including South Carolina's tax-friendly codes, FEMA disaster response, FHA housing funds, and controversial social legislation—before proposing a set of Community Economic Development (CED) intervention strategies. These strategies center on profile enhancement, business attraction through tax incentives, zoning reform, infrastructure investment, and blighted-neighborhood revitalization, with the goal of creating a diversified, sustainable local economy.
- Executive Summary: Overview of Myrtle Beach's development needs and strategies
- Community Profile: Growth trends, demographics, and MBREDC mission
- The Specific Problem: Infrastructure deficits, zoning conflicts, and economic over-reliance on tourism
- State and Federal Public Policy: Tax law, FEMA, FHA, and controversial social legislation
- CED Intervention Strategies: Tax incentives, zoning reform, housing, and profile enhancement
- Expected Outcomes and Conclusion: Projected investment cycle and sustainable diversified economy
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What makes this paper effective
- Follows a clear policy-brief structure — executive summary, problem identification, policy context, strategies, and outcomes — making it easy for readers to track the argument from diagnosis to prescription.
- Grounds recommendations in specific local documents (the Myrtle Beach Consolidated Plans and MBREDC mission), giving the analysis an evidence-based foundation rather than relying on generalities.
- Connects micro-level interventions (zoning separation, FHA funding for blighted neighborhoods) to macro-level goals (sustainable economic diversification), demonstrating how individual strategies are mutually reinforcing.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates applied policy analysis: it identifies a real community's development gaps, surveys the policy environment (state tax law, federal emergency and housing programs, controversial social legislation), and designs targeted interventions aligned with that environment. This technique — situating strategic recommendations within an existing policy framework — is central to urban planning and public administration coursework.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with an executive summary that previews all major findings, then moves through a community profile, a problem statement, a two-level policy survey (state and federal), a bulleted intervention strategy section, an expected-outcomes section that traces the causal chain from enhanced profile to infrastructure funding, and a brief integrating conclusion. The result is a cohesive, report-style document appropriate for undergraduate public administration or urban planning courses.
Executive Summary
Myrtle Beach is a seaside resort community, a destination city that provides tourism services year-round. It has grown exponentially in recent years and is among the fastest-growing cities in the country. It is in need of economic diversification, infrastructure updating and expansion, and job development.
The city has benefitted from state tax-friendly codes, though conservative politics could be an issue in enhancing its profile and its appeal to diverse populations. It has also benefited from federal policies such as FEMA and FHA, which provide emergency response and affordable housing funds respectively.
A strategy to address its economic development needs includes: 1) keeping taxes low, 2) offering tax-based incentives to attract business, 3) addressing zoning issues to separate commercial and industrial facilities in the downtown area, 4) applying FHA funds to provide affordable housing for residents in blighted areas, rehabilitating that blight, and attracting more investment, and 5) increasing city revenues to update and expand infrastructure.
The expected outcomes of these interventions are that the city will be able to meet its development objectives and create a sustainable economic environment that allows diverse businesses to establish themselves locally. By augmenting its tourism revenues with other economic opportunities through profile enhancement and investment, the city can adequately address its infrastructure needs.
Community Profile
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina was ranked among the 13th fastest-growing cities in the United States according to 2000 Census figures (Myrtle Beach Housing and Community Development Consolidated Plan: Part 3, 2005, p. 1). With a growth rate of over 36%, Myrtle Beach has far outpaced the national average. Growth, however, has meant that land is in high demand and that housing and infrastructure needs are also expanding rapidly. As more members of the elderly population seek to settle in Myrtle Beach — attracted by its beachside scenery, pleasant climate, and year-round tourism — the city has experienced a corresponding increase in housing and land costs.
Myrtle Beach is home to nearly 30,000 residents, who welcome tourists to their city year-round, offering a full-service resort experience to those seeking a warmer climate and a beach setting in which to relax and enjoy themselves (City of Myrtle Beach Comprehensive Plan, 2011).
In order to build on this foundation and achieve the city's full potential, the Myrtle Beach Regional Economic Development Corporation (MBREDC) was founded. Its mission is to facilitate economic development by attracting investment to the region, enhancing the community's profile as a "prime business location," bringing entities and organizations together to strengthen business ties, accelerating economic growth, and diversifying the city's economy so as to achieve long-term sustainability (MBREDC, 2017).
References
City of Myrtle Beach Comprehensive Plan. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.cityofmyrtlebeach.com/PDF%20Forms/ComprehensivePlan2011.pdf
Gigante, S. (2013). Taxes: The most and least friendly states for retirees. Retrieved from https://www.today.com/money/taxes-most-least-friendly-states-retirees-8C10990277
MBREDC. (2017). Critical importance. Retrieved from
Myrtle Beach Housing and Community Development Consolidated Plan: Part 3. (2005). Retrieved from http://www.cityofmyrtlebeach.com/PDF%20Forms/Myrtle%20Beach%20Consolidated%20Plan%203.pdf
Myrtle Beach Housing and Community Development Consolidated Plan: Part 5. (2005). Retrieved from http://www.cityofmyrtlebeach.com/PDF%20Forms/Myrtle%20Beach%20Consolidated%20Plan%205.pdf
Wilson, R. (2016). South Carolina's new anti-transgender bill faces bipartisan criticism. Retrieved from
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