North Myrtle Beach Times Serving our Community and the Grand Strand for over 50 years
By Ruben Lowman
The North Myrtle Beach City Council is tapping the brakes on a plan to bring a new Chick-fil-A to the Gator Hole Plaza shopping center.
In a unanimous 6-0 vote during their meeting earlier this month, city councilmembers opted to table a proposed amendment to the Gator Hole Planned Development District. The project aims to demolish the former TGI Friday’s building, which has been shuttered since October 2024, to make way for the high-volume fast-food chain, which has been operating at a smaller location in the shopping center for decades.
While city leaders expressed a clear desire to see the vacant lot developed and the business succeed, they said they remain skeptical that the current infrastructure can safely accommodate the expected influx of vehicles, particularly during the busier summer months.
The core of the debate centers on the layout of the plaza, which serves major retailers like Walmart and The Home Depot. Local officials are particularly worried about the shopping center’s primary entrance and the potential for gridlock.
North Myrtle Beach Police Chief Dana Crowell was called upon during the meeting to address the safety implications, noting that a massive amount of traffic is already funneling through a single location.
Crowell expressed doubt that simply moving or reconfiguring the entrance would alleviate the pressure, highlighting the risk of frustrated drivers causing accidents while attempting to navigate the busy Highway 17 corridor.
Council members echoed these safety concerns, with some specifically pointing to the danger of T-bone collisions as drivers attempt left-hand turns into or out of the potential congested site.
Despite the developer’s efforts to present technical solutions, the mood in the chamber remained wary.
A staff review from the Public Works department suggested that a dedicated northbound left-turn lane with 200 feet of capacity might help, but even this proposal failed to sway the council. Councilman Trey Skidmore and Mayor J. Baldwin were among those who indicated they could not support the current plan without further mitigation.
Rather than rejecting the proposal outright, however, the council decided to move the discussion into a workshop phase, which is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25.
This decision initiated by Councilwoman Jeri McCumbee allows the city and the developers to study the traffic patterns more closely and search for a design that prevents long drive-thru lines from spilling over into adjacent business driveways. This proactive approach aims to find a balance between economic growth and public safety, ensuring that the expanded restaurant doesn’t create a permanent traffic nightmare for residents and tourists alike.
The upcoming workshop will likely involve a deeper look at the site’s capacity and potential alternative access points. For now, the former TGI Friday’s remains empty as engineers and city staff head back to the drawing board.
As Ocean Drive Councilman Bubba Collins noted during the session, the city wants to find a way to make the project work, but the safety of the thousands of people who shop at Gator Hole Plaza every day remains the top priority.
