Criminal Defense Lawyer in Conway, SC

CONWAY, S.C. (WMBF) - A trio of new operators spoke with WMBF News on Wednesday about what people can expect in the coming months for the Conway Outpost and Marina after its recent makeover.

“I think everybody is pretty excited about it,” Shannon Jordan said.

Jordan, her husband, and their business partner won a bid with the city of Conway and now have a lease to the marina and outpost for the next 10 years.

The trio has two other restaurants around the Grand Strand, but Jordan said there’s something special about this one.

“I mean, that’s where my husband and I graduated high school, so we’re kind of going back to our roots,” Jordan said.

The group started selling gas at the marina just last week, and they plan to offer kayak rentals beginning next week.

Tony Spivey frequents the marina to get out on the water with his pup and said he’s excited to see the place hustling and bustling.

“It’s very nice to see a lot of activity, especially things that will involve everybody,” Spivey said.

Jordan said that inclusiveness is the goal.

She said they plan to have a deli-style restaurant inside the outpost, plus a place to get some of the boating essentials.

They’re also planning to build a patio and a tiki bar capable of floating.

Folks are already putting in requests, too.

“Let’s see some more live music, maybe a weekend festival with several types of bands and stuff,” Spivey said.

They’re working to tackle that as well, they said they plan to have a stage for those artists.

“I want to make it where people don’t have to go to the beach to listen to live music and they can just pull their boats up, have a bite to eat, have some drinks, enjoy outside, and hear some music,” Jordan said.

They’re not stopping there, Jordan said the hope is to host other events, bringing the community together.

“I want to do some Small Business Saturdays and vendor events and things like that out there as well, so a lot is going on. I wasn’t to help the city and the county, and we’re going to make it a great place,” she said.

As for when these new changes could take place, Jordan said they’re hoping to bring food trucks out starting next month.

They said they hope to have the restaurant open and have their liquor license for the tiki bar in June.

Copyright 2025 WMBF. All rights reserved.

A new hotel has officially opened in Conway, SC.

Home2 Suites by Hilton is a pet-friendly five story hotel that features 100 guest suites.

“We are excited to welcome visitors to the Home2 Suites by Hilton in Conway. Our goal is to offer an exceptional, modern lodging experience with the convenience and comfort of home, whether guests are here for a short stay or an extended visit,” General Manager Leonard Boothstodd, wrote in an emailed statement.

On Wednesday, Boothstodd said they’ve hosted approximately 89 guests since they first opened their doors in late March.

According to their website, rooms start at $168 a night for a king bed studio suite.

Every room in the new hotel is a suite, featuring fully equipped kitchens with full-sized dishwashers, garbage disposals, coffeemakers, dishes and cutlery.

In a nod to their proximity to Coastal Carolina University, the owners have embraced teal as an accent color, even adding it to the staircases.

Guests can enjoy an indoor heated saltwater swimming pool and outdoor sitting areas that feature gas fireplaces and grilling areas.

The first floor of the new hotel is also home to a combined laundry and gym area that is home new equipment including three treadmills, a Peloton bike and resistance bands.

No guest rooms are on the first floor.

Despite being right off of Highway 501, the interior of the hotel is quiet, with no noticeable traffic sounds.

Guests have access to free hot complimentary breakfast, which includes ingredients to make your own breakfast sandwiches, according to hotel marketing materials.

Later in the day, people over 21 can also pour their own beer and wine on tap, with options including Budweiser, Bud Light and at least one local beer.

Boothstodd said that they’ll be hosting a ribbon cutting ceremony on April 29 with the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce and the Conway Chamber of Commerce.

The property was developed by Shiv Properties, LLC, built by Dargan Construction Company and is managed by Crossroads Hospitality, a statement from the hotel said.

CONWAY, S.C. (WMBF) - A Conway church has announced it will close its daycare by the end of next month.

WMBF News obtained a letter sent on March 31 from First Baptist Conway GracePoint Church to parents who had their children at Lovell Weekday Ministry.

The note, signed by Pastor Brian Hoffman, states the daycare will close on May 30 and that the move “was not made lightly.”

He added that “increasing legal and financial liabilities” led to the decision.

“While we wish we could continue, it is simply not sustainable for us to bear the weight of the liability and responsibility that comes with operating a licensed childcare center,” Hoffman wrote.

In response to the sudden closure, several parents told WMBF News they feel like their community is being ripped apart.

“As a church, I would expect people to take care of your community and your families, and they’re not. They’re not,” said a Lovell parent who wanted to remain anonymous. “Why are you cutting parents off. I mean, that’s not taking care of your families. That’s not taking care of your community.”

The pastor also said that the letter that the daycare was never about profit, but was a ministry of the church. Hoffman also wrote that as staff at the daycare start looking for new jobs, the church anticipates “it will become increasingly difficult to maintain the proper ratios and staffing levels required for safe, licensed care.”

Hoffman also wrote that while the church’s goal is to keep the daycare open until May 30, “staffing capability and family needs in the weeks ahead” may make that difficult.

“We are committed to doing our best to stay open through that date, and we will communicate promptly if any adjustments become necessary,” he said.

Several parents tell WMBF News the short notice is hurting employees and is putting pressure on dozens of families to find a childcare solution before summer.

“We want to raise our kids together, and this is just heartbreaking that we’re not able. We may have to break them up because of a choice by the church,” said an anonymous parent.

A town hall was scheduled to be held on Sunday to talk about the decision to close the daycare, but the church cancelled the meeting. Church members shared an email with WMBF News, which said in part, “We kindly ask that Sundays remain a sacred space for worship and for celebrating what god has done in our lives, not a time for confrontation or criticism directed at church leadership.”

WMBF News has reached out to the church for additional comment, but has not heard back.

Stay with WMBF News for updates.

Copyright 2025 WMBF. All rights reserved.

Farmer Leviner probably wouldn’t recognize the old place.

Everything from capybaras, camels, zebras and kangaroos, to sloths, tortoises, wallabies and baboons, are now featured at the 40-plus acre farm, with about 40 animal enclosures surrounding 5490 Dongola Highway in the Conway area.

Wild Woods Farm also has also horses, fancy cows, mules, goats, rabbits, chickens — a multitude of traditional farm animals.

“We’ve got all the eggs we can eat,” laughed Todd Kramer, who owns and operates the farm with his wife, Tina.

The animals down on the farm are an eclectic, diverse mix of exotics and domestics that are sure to fascinate tourists and local alike.

“We’ll be the closest thing there is to a zoo” on the Grand Strand, with more than 200 animals in all. They hope to capitalize on the tourism trade.

+15 Gallery: Conway-area zoo features exotic animals from capybaras to camels

It started as a hobby, and Tina’s private collection of animals. She’s an avid animal rescuer, who was raised in rural Clinton, North Carolina, an agricultural area. She was introduced to raising animals by an uncle who had a farm, and other relatives who brought up livestock.

“I grew up around farm animals, horses, and eventually got into exotics,” Tina said.

She’s got a soft heart, and had collected 40 horses at one point, a number that’s now down to about 20.

Still, that’s a lot of mouths to feed.

“I said, ‘if we’re going to keep this up, it’s gonna have to pay for itself,’” Todd Kramer said.

And a business was born. One that Todd, who grew up under a car hood, never dreamed he’d be involved in. Tina credited her husband for his support. “He hasn’t left me yet.”

The former Leviner farm will soon join a growing agri-tourism industry in Horry County.

Starting probably in May, the farm/zoo will be open to visitors from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays through Sundays. Admission will be $20 for adults and $15 for children and senior citizens. Special holiday-themed events will be planned.

Weekdays will be reserved for private tours and school field trips.

Food trucks will operate on-site, and the operation may eventually provide its own food service, Todd Kramer said.

There will also be a petting zoo where guest can feed the animals. Guests will be schooled about the inhabitants.

The animals cannot survive on Todd and Tina’s labor alone. Just to feed them is an 8-hour-per-day job. They’ve invited four employees into the fold.

“It’s a big learning curve for people. You have to deal with every animal differently,” Todd said. “Each diet is unique.”

Not all of the animals are created equal. The couple has a regular pet — a bat-eared fox — who sleeps in their bed. “He’s special,” Tina said.

The rest greet the day with a cacophony of calls. Donkeys, Todd said, make better alarm clocks than roosters.

The couple built the enclosures and did all of the construction and landscaping themselves. That includes a six-foot high, mile-long fence that surrounds the property, as required by the U.S, Department of Agriculture. The new zoo is heavily regulated by the both the county and the feds.

They also hope to provide attractions like pony rides and petting zoos at area events and celebrations.

They think the venture will be successful, based on the number of visitors who show up unannounced as word of the menagerie spreads by mouth.

“A lot of people are just amazed,” Todd Kramer said.

Reach Casey Jones at 843-488-7261 or casey.jones@myhorrynews.com.

In early 2025, it seemed like the Myrtle Beach area lost one of the many national retailers that had locations on the Grand Strand.

In quick succession, Big Lots North Myrtle Beach, Conway and Myrtle Beach sites plastered large signs outside their stores announcing closures and corresponding fire sales. Now, some of Big Lots Grand Strand locations will re-open by this summer.

The North Myrtle Beach store at 710 Highway 17 South Street D and the Conway location at 1641 Church St will re-open in 2025. The Sun News called both stores and employees at each said the sites will serve customers again starting June 5, 2025.

When asked for additional details about the plan, employees at both stores directed The Sun News to contact Big Lots’ press team for further information.

The Sun News could not reach the Myrtle Beach location.

The Sun News also sent a request for comment to Big Lots’ parent company, Variety Wholesalers, media team. Variety Wholesalers did not return a request for comment before publication.

This change marks a turnaround for a chain that went into bankruptcy proceedings in 2024. As part of the process, the company closed many locations and sold off others to Variety Wholesalers, which also owns other discount-branded stores like Roses Discount Stores.

In an April 2025 press release, Variety Wholesalers announced the start of a phased approach to re-open 219 Big Lots it bought during the bankruptcy, starting with nine located in the southeast United States.

Big Lots’ website states the nine shops opening in the first wave will offer services starting April 10, although the page lacks other details aside from a vague mention of ‘The Comeback Starts Soon!’

It’s unclear how the Grand Strand fits into Big Lots re-opening plans. The business magazine Fast Company reported April 14, 2025, that 54 locations will open in May 2025 as part of the company’s second phase of the plan.

Fast Company reported that four South Carolina stores in Rock Hill, Spartanburg, Simpsonville and Easley are part of the second phase but did not mention any Grand Strand locations.