SURFSIDE BEACH -- The residents of Surfside Beach were supposed to be able to enjoy the town's entertainment deck at its July Fourth celebration. But five months later, the deck remains a wooden skeleton.
The town and the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control's Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management are engaged in a discussion about the classification and regulation of the deck, and it could mean that the town will have to dismantle the skeleton and reconfigure the plans.
"The town had applied for, but did not receive, the necessary permit for the deck construction," when it began work this summer, said Dan Burger, DHEC spokesman.
He said the proposed deck is much larger than the 144 square feet allowed.
Surfside Mayor Allen Deaton said the town is now working with DHEC to figure out a way to build its approximately 1,000-square-foot entertainment deck. One of the ways under discussion, he said, would be to classify it as an "other structure," similar to the way the Myrtle Beach Boardwalk is classified.
Deaton said he does not know how much had been spent on the entertainment deck so far, noting that the project has been done and approved in pieces and that town officials originally thought the materials to build it were already in the town's possession.
According to the town's online financial records, it has paid $14,942 to A.P. Reale & Sons, which had a sign posted on the deck saying that it built it.
"We disagree on the type of structure that it is," Deaton said of DHEC. "They've pigeonholed into this section pertaining to decks."
Deaton said the town just wants "the same protection that the city of Myrtle Beach has."
"There is a section for other structures," he said. "And this could end up being part of a boardwalk eventually."
Deaton said town officials and DHEC are discussing an "expanded" project that could satisfy both entities.
He said that the expanded project will be presented to the Town Council soon for its consideration.
Deaton said the pier is "our gateway," he said. "We want it to say, 'You have arrived in Surfside Beach.'"
He said the town and DHEC met earlier this week and are close to an agreement.
"We're probably going to have this resolved in the next couple weeks," he said, noting that no fines have been levied against the town.
He said he has had face-to-face meetings with Earl Hunter, DHEC commissioner, to resolve the issues and has appealed for help from S.C. Rep. Nelson Hardwick, R-Surfside Beach. Hardwick is chairman of the House Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs Committee, which oversees DHEC.
But Burger said the town's permit for the construction of the deck has been put on hold until enforcement issues are resolved related to the town's early construction and oversize plans.
He said to resolve the enforcement problems the town will have to show that "the deck has either been removed or is in compliance with the regulation." Once that happens he said DHEC can restart the permit application review and "apply special conditions as necessary to ensure compliance with the regulations," or Surfside Beach can also withdraw its current permit application and resubmit it.
Deaton said DHEC previously suggested that the town move the proposed deck farther from the pier so it would not be subject to these regulations.
"But then it would be in the parking lot," he said, noting that the town has enough problems with parking in that area without taking away more of it.
He said the entertainment deck would actually protect the beach dunes from beachgoers.
"The dunes could flourish underneath that structure," he said. "We're good stewards of our beach ... and we feel that we have the right to develop that area."
DHEC regulations say that "Emergency Vehicle Access Ways, Small Wooden Decks, Gazebos and Other Structures which enhance beach access" are allowed in the beach area so long as they follow certain regulations.
One of the allowed uses that would fall under "other structures" are "non-water dependent structures." According to regulations, those structures, which include hotels, residences and parking facilities, have been allowed in the past but no new ones are allowed within the beach/dune area without a special permit.
Deaton said once the permitting is figured out, the deck construction as it is currently planned could be finished in about two weeks.
Deaton said the town has the proper permitting in place from DHEC for repairs to the pier itself, including replacing rotting pilings and deck boards, and Deaton said that part of the construction project should be under way soon.
He said because the entertainment deck is a new structure the regulations are different. He said he is hopeful that the issues will be resolved "sooner rather than later."
"It was supposed to be a quick project," he said.
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured site: So, Why is Wikileaks a Good Thing Again?.
No comments:
Post a Comment