August 3, 2026 — Regular Meeting
At its August 3, 2026 regular meeting, the council approved a subdivision survey for the old Loris High School property (Resolution 07-26), an off-duty work agreement for the police department, and an engineering contract for the Upper Pleasant Meadow drainage project. It also authorized a survey and design proposal for a joint police and fire training facility on Highway 701 South, with the mayor opposed. On second reading of the Highway 45 rezoning (Ordinance 06-26), the roll call was evenly divided and no result was announced on the video. Outcomes here are from the city's meeting video, pending the approved minutes.
At a glance
- Approval of minutes — July 6, 2026 Regular City Council Meeting
- Second reading of Ordinance 06-26: an ordinance to amend the Official Zoning Map and rezone property owned by Harriett D. Hardee located on Highway 45 and identified as Parcel No. 186-00-00-0001
- Resolution 07-26: a resolution to approve the subdivision survey concerning the old Loris High School property, so as to designate the location of 5.75 acres on property bearing PIN 186-00-00-0024 as required by that certain contract to sell and purchase real property between the City of Loris and Horry County, a body politic, said contract being dated April 10, 2026
- Discussion and consideration of Off-Duty Management Service Agreement for Police Department
- Discussion of survey and design needs for joint training facility for Loris Police and Fire Department
- Discussion and consideration of authorization to enter into contract with Diamond Shores, LLC, for engineering services regarding the Community Development Block Grant for the Upper Pleasant Meadow Drainage Improvement Project
- Executive session — legal matters
Read the full summary
At its August 3, 2026 regular meeting, the City Council approved the minutes of its July 6, 2026 meeting. It took up Ordinance 06-26 on second reading, which would amend the Official Zoning Map to rezone a parcel on Highway 45 owned by Harriett D.
Hardee; the roll call captured on the video was evenly divided among the six council members present, and no mayoral tie-breaking vote or result was audible before the council moved on, so the outcome is left to be recorded from the approved minutes. The council adopted Resolution 07-26, approving a subdivision survey that designates 5.75 acres of the old Loris High School property and authorizing the mayor to sign it as owner, a step the city's April 10, 2026 contract to sell the property to Horry County requires.
It approved an Off-Duty Management Service Agreement for the police department, under which the agency requesting officers pays the service fee, and authorized the interim administrator to execute it. It voted to have the interim administrator seek a survey and design proposal for a joint police and fire training facility on city-owned land on Highway 701 South, with the mayor recorded as opposed.
It also authorized a contract with Diamond Shores, LLC for engineering services on the Upper Pleasant Meadow Drainage Improvement Project under a Community Development Block Grant. Council entered executive session for two legal updates from the city attorney and took no action there.
In reports, staff and the mayor covered an overnight water main break at Main Street and Railroad Avenue, a state drainage grant awarded by letter on July 10 (the amount stated on the video was unclear and is withheld), completed lead and copper testing with results mailed July 30, and a possible Horry County move to close Twin Cities Airport, on which the mayor said the city has had no official communication. One resident spoke about flooding near a canal ditch behind his property and asked the city to address drainage before further nearby development.
Outcomes and video timestamps here are from the city's unofficial meeting video, pending the approved minutes.
Written by an AI from the verbatim record below, a convenience, not the official record. It may contain errors; the sourced items below are authoritative.
On the agenda
From the posted agenda packet. Votes and video timestamps will appear here after the meeting.
Approval of minutes — July 6, 2026 Regular City Council Meeting
Second reading of Ordinance 06-26: an ordinance to amend the Official Zoning Map and rezone property owned by Harriett D. Hardee located on Highway 45 and identified as Parcel No. 186-00-00-0001
- What it is
- This was the second reading of an ordinance to change one parcel's zoning on the city's Official Zoning Map, on Highway 45. The council gave the same rezoning first reading on July 6, 2026. An ordinance takes two readings before it takes effect.
- What it does
- The roll call captured on the meeting video was evenly divided among the six council members present, and no result was announced before the council moved to the next item. Whether this second reading passed cannot be determined from the video, and is pending the city's approved minutes.
AI-written from the sourced items above, a convenience, not the official record.
Resolution 07-26: a resolution to approve the subdivision survey concerning the old Loris High School property, so as to designate the location of 5.75 acres on property bearing PIN 186-00-00-0024 as required by that certain contract to sell and purchase real property between the City of Loris and Horry County, a body politic, said contract being dated April 10, 2026
From the meeting video (pending minutes): staff said the survey required by the city's contract to sell the property to Horry County has now been completed; the county reportedly objects to a billboard on the property, which the city is still working through. The resolution also authorizes Mayor Suggs to sign the survey/certificate of ownership as owner, after which the survey attaches as Exhibit A to the sale contract and the county proceeds with recording.
- What it is
- Resolution 07-26 approves a subdivision survey marking off 5.75 acres of the old Loris High School property, and authorizes the mayor to sign it as the owner. The city's April 10, 2026 contract to sell that property to Horry County requires the survey.
- What it does
- Adopted, the resolution approves the survey and authorizes the mayor's signature on it. The survey then attaches to the sale contract with Horry County as an exhibit, and the county proceeds with recording.
AI-written from the sourced items above, a convenience, not the official record.
Discussion and consideration of Off-Duty Management Service Agreement for Police Department
From the meeting video (pending minutes): the police chief described a program that lets officers pick up off-duty work for other agencies (he cited Coastal Carolina University football games as an example) and lets the department track off-duty assignments; the requesting agency, not the city, pays the service fee, and the city is not obligated to route local-business requests for off-duty officers through the program.
- What it is
- This is a service agreement covering off-duty police work. It gives the department a system to track off-duty assignments and lets Loris officers pick up off-duty jobs for other agencies.
- What it does
- Adopted, the agreement is authorized and the interim administrator may sign it for the city. As described at the meeting, the agency requesting officers pays the service fee rather than the city, and the city is not obligated to route requests from local businesses through the program.
AI-written from the sourced items above, a convenience, not the official record.
Discussion of survey and design needs for joint training facility for Loris Police and Fire Department
From the meeting video (pending minutes): the proposed facility would sit on city-owned property on Highway 701 South, the former site of a city trash dump abandoned for roughly 40 years. The police chief described a need for a closer firearms range (officers currently travel about 30 minutes to Columbus County, NC to qualify); the fire chief described a roughly four-acre lecture/skills facility for ladder, search-and-rescue, and hose operations, sized to meet ISO community-rating requirements, that could also support in-house recruit training. The vote authorized the interim administrator to seek a survey and design proposal to move the project forward.
- What it is
- This item covers a proposed joint training facility for the Loris police and fire departments, on city-owned land on Highway 701 South that was a city trash dump abandoned about 40 years ago. As described at the meeting, it would include a firearms range for police and a lecture and skills area for fire training.
- What it does
- Adopted, the vote authorizes the interim administrator to seek a survey and a design proposal for the site. It does not by itself fund or build the facility.
AI-written from the sourced items above, a convenience, not the official record.
Discussion and consideration of authorization to enter into contract with Diamond Shores, LLC, for engineering services regarding the Community Development Block Grant for the Upper Pleasant Meadow Drainage Improvement Project
From the meeting video (pending minutes): staff and the city attorney said Diamond Shores assisted with the grant application and would provide the engineering work (described as the required first step before installing drainage pipe) under the recently awarded state grant; the attorney said he had reviewed the contract and it addressed everything needed.
- What it is
- This is a contract with Diamond Shores, LLC for engineering services on the Upper Pleasant Meadow Drainage Improvement Project, which the city is carrying out under a Community Development Block Grant. As described at the meeting, the engineering work comes before any drainage pipe is installed.
- What it does
- Adopted, the contract is authorized and the engineering work on the drainage project proceeds under the grant.
AI-written from the sourced items above, a convenience, not the official record.
Executive session — legal matters
From the meeting video (pending minutes): council entered executive session at roughly 44:33 into the video for two updates from the city attorney described as legal matters, and reconvened in open session at roughly 65:21. No votes or actions were taken in executive session.
Beyond the votes
Reports, announcements, and public comment from the same meeting, drawn from the city's unofficial meeting video, pending the approved minutes.
Reports & announcements
- New businesses. The mayor welcomed two new businesses that held ribbon cuttings in July, one on Broad Street (July 18) and one on Main Street in the former Loris Chamber of Commerce office (July 21); the transcript could not reliably resolve either business's name.
- Regional League of Cities meeting. The mayor, along with council members Hardee and Padgett, attended a regional League of Cities quarterly meeting on July 23, hosted by the Town of Surfside Beach; a guest speaker discussed a teen-communication skills program.
- Water main break. A water main broke overnight at Main Street and Railroad Avenue, apparently caused by equipment during nearby highway paving work; city water and sewer crews worked through the night and the next day on repairs.
- Twin Cities Airport. The mayor said Horry County may be considering closing Twin Cities Airport near Loris, a facility built by local citizens in the early 1960s and given to the county in 1963; he said the city has received no official communication about it and encouraged residents to contact their county council member.
- State drainage grant. The mayor reported a July 10 letter from Governor McMaster awarding the city a state community-infrastructure-program grant for pipe and channel improvements to the Upper Pleasant Meadow detention basin, targeting roughly a dozen sites along Heritage Road and Railroad Avenue. The dollar figure stated in the video was unclear in the transcript and is withheld pending verification.
- Meeting with the administrator. The next public meeting with the interim administrator is Thursday, August 13, moved to an afternoon time (roughly 4 to 6 p.m.) to accommodate residents who work mornings.
- Chamber of Commerce. A Chamber of Commerce representative thanked the city for its help with July events, reported strong turnout at a recent Downtown Tuesday event, previewed upcoming Downtown Tuesday events, and distributed an August calendar of events.
- Code enforcement & planning. Staff reported 22 applications processed and 13 complaints received in July, resulting in seven certified violation letters, and relayed the governor's proclamation naming August Emergency Management Awareness Month.
- Fire department. The fire department reported 106 calls in July, including a multi-day fire off Highway 45, and is planning a Thursday, September 10 9/11 remembrance ceremony at 7 p.m. at the State Theater with the Chamber, the Sheriff's Office, and city police; three new volunteers are being onboarded.
- Police department. The police chief reported the department has two vacant officer positions after two departures and is recruiting to fill them; two recent narcotics search warrants led to two arrests, though final numbers were not yet available.
- Public works. Staff reported the city's lead and copper testing (required for state DHEC compliance) was completed in June, with results mailed to participating households on July 30; the city will resample 40 addresses selected by DHEC through the rest of the year. The final phase of a sewer project — coating manhole interiors — resumes this week, after which the city plans to inspect and repair any affected properties before final payment to the contractor.
- Recreation. The recreation department reported wrapping up its 10-and-under baseball season, thanked the city for help funding a team trip, and reported new football equipment purchased with the city's help ahead of the fall season; a person accused of breaking into the department's concession stand three times has been arrested.