Tag: Grand Strand Humane Society

Grand Strand Humane Society Cleared for Construction of Waterside Drive Animal Shelter

The Grand Strand Humane Society is cleared to begin construction of its animal shelter and associated businesses, according to a briefing of the Horry County Infrastructure and Regulation Committee yesterday.
According to the details of that briefing, the property on Waterside Drive to which the Humane Society was given a 40-year gratis lease by owner Santee Cooper, the property was zoned LI (Limited Industrial) in 1987 and one of the approved uses since that time is animal services.
According to the briefing, the text amendment to the LI zoning classification, which was approved by county council in December 2023, had nothing to do with the Humane Society’s use of the property.
Despite the legal clearance, the residents of the Waterside Drive community are unhappy about the potential impacts the animal shelter and associated businesses will have on their neighborhood.
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Below the Radar with the Santee Cooper/Grand Strand Humane Society Land Deal

After the Grand Strand Humane Society withdrew a rezoning request for a plot of land off River Oaks Drive in Carolina Forest last June, due to strong opposition from neighborhood residents, its search for a new plot of land on which to locate its proposed new animal shelter complex went under the radar until it could be presented as a fait accompli.
As noted in a January 12, 2024, letter from Waterside Drive resident Rose Marie Johnson to Santee Cooper, after the withdrawal of the rezoning request, “County Council made a clear statement to the (humane) society that they should not try to place their Dog Pound close to a residential location.”
Early on, Santee Cooper executives were involved in the search for a new location for the animal shelter. According to documents received through Freedom of Information Act requests, on June 20, 2023, Santee Cooper Board of Directors Vice Chairman and Horry County seat appointee David Singleton contacted Santee Cooper Senior Director of Real Estate Dan Camp questioning whether Santee Cooper had “8-10 acres near Myrtle Beach that could be used for the humane society.”
The next day, Camp emailed Santee Cooper Chief Power Supply Officer Marty Watson to apprise him of the Singleton conversation. Camp told Singleton he (Camp) and Watson had briefly discussed the matter on June 20, 2023, and Camp and Watson would “see what was available.”
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