Old Presbyterian Church redevelopment effort based on ROAR themed attraction

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David Hucks
David Huckshttps://myrtlebeachsc.com
David Hucks is a 12th generation descendant of the area we now call Myrtle Beach, S.C. David attended Coastal Carolina University and like most of his family, has never left the area. David is the lead journalist at MyrtleBeachSC.com

The First Presbyterian Church has long since moved onto Bob Grissom Parkway, leaving the Highway 17 location abandoned. The church building stands vacant since 2019. The property has since been leased by the City of Myrtle Beach.

1930 Myrtle Beach First Presbyterian Original Church

The property is now foremost among a bevvy of ever changing efforts by the City of Myrtle Beach towards downtown redevelopment.

Located just west of the Myrtle Beach Skywheel downtown, the old church building is in need of new paint. Its outer structure needs new sanding.

The building has a broken window on the east side. Birds are also now nesting over the rear entrance.

Myrtle Beach City Council officially declared the church abandoned last Fall. This allowed developers a chance to get tax breaks of up to 25 percent both on property value and income spread over eight and three years, respectively.

Mayfair Properties, out of Atlanta Georgia, is looking to buy the building and reconstruct it into a theme based restaurant/attraction similar to “Roar”, a 1920’s site on Park Street in Winston-Salem, N.C.

When the issue was presented to Myrtle Beach City Council, Myrtle Beach Mayor Brenda Bethune recused herself from the discussion. Her husband, Brown Bethune, of Tidelands Commercial Real Estate represents the purchaser. 

Tidelands Commercial Real Estate

There’s a concept out of Winston-Salem called Roar,” said Brown Bethune, explaining the concept of Roar. “It’s a food hall, jazz, interactive golf, putt-putt and a multi-use entertainment complex.” 

Brown Bethune said he was put in contact with Mayfair Properties through a third party. The third party said he knew Mayfair was looking to do something in Myrtle Beach. 

They were looking for a property to do something down here,” Brown Bethune said. “When we pitched the guys on the location and they came down and took a look at it, they saw the value. And where they are in Winston[-Salem] is a historic district; I think it’s an older warehouse that they rehabbed, so I think they liked doing the abandoned building for the credits and some of the other stuff.” 

I actually think this is exactly what we’re looking for in the area in trying to bring people downtown,” said Myrtle Beach Planning Commission member Zeb Thomas III on Nov. 15 when the issue was brought forward. To be eligible, developers must put at least $250,000 worth of investment into the site. The Church is currently under contract with Golf Ventures LLC for a sale.

The “Roar” concept in Winston-Salem invites visitors to shop at a Ronnie’s, a pop-up country market. They can also get lunch at the Blue Crab Seafood Bar or Joey Correll’s American Street Food.

HOW WE GOT HERE

At first, the building was discussed to become city office space. Then the city considered purchasing the property in 2018 for $2.8 million with plans to move housing authority employees into the space, but that deal never panned out. The City of Myrtle Beach chose instead to lease the church in a long term lease arrangement. A new charter school was then announced as part of a collaboration with Coastal Carolina University. Now, the concept with Mayfair seems to be the city’s preferred direction.

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