According to Horry County Land Records, Paramount Development purchased Inlet Square Mall for six million dollars in February 2023.
According to Paramount Development Corporation vice president David Harner, demolition of all mall properties except Belk and former J.C. Penney and KMart locations could begin in June 2024.
KMart closed all stores nation-wide, and J.C. Penney’s Inlet Square Mall location closed in March 2015.
Inlet Square Investments LLC, a Paramount Development-controlled company that owns much of the former mall site, received a demolition permit from Horry County on May 16, 2024.
It is estimated that the plot of land approved for demolition is more than 33 acres in size, and construction equipment was present at the site as of May 20, 2024.
This demolition paves the way for Paramount Development’s planned revitalization of the property, which has sat mostly empty in recent years due to controversy over unpaid bills.
Additionally, Paramount Development’s plan involves transforming the current 500,000-square-foot property into a smaller 250,000-square-foot complex. The proposed development by Paramount Development envisions the addition of multi-family parcels, retail spaces, a hotel, and other amenities. This multi-family area would occupy approximately 13.5 acres and include a pool, clubhouse, and dog park. According to their proposal, the project is estimated to be completed around 2025. Harner also mentioned that Paramount Development is in talks with potential hotel brands and future occupants for their anchor properties, with lease agreements expected to be finalized by early summer of 2024.
Before work could begin on the multi-family residential component of the plan, Harner said Horry County had to approve it.
A proposal to make the project a joint industrial and business park between Horry and Georgetown counties was already approved by Horry County Council on Jan. 16, 2024.
Paramount Development Corporation Real Estate Manager K. Neal Bowers told local media that the company had been working on redeveloping the Inlet Square Mall site since 2020.
“We hope to make it awesome again,” he said.
In addition, Harner said the project is part of a trend away from large, enclosed shopping malls.
He said, “The market has just changed.”.