Personal Injury Attorneyin Myrtle Beach, SC.

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - In its second year, the Ignite Women’s Conference treated attendees to speakers and seminars, all aimed at uplifting and celebrating each other.

Hosted by the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, the conference boasted several employers and businesses from across the Grand Strand. Also on the agenda were three speakers, headlined by kidnapping survivor Elizabeth Smart.

Karen Riordan, CEO of the MBACC, said this conference was created after another one of the chamber’s events garnered some traction.

“The chamber does a ton of networking events over the course of the year,” Riordan said. “We had started a really successful social event called Women and Wine Wednesdays, and we saw that women really like that peer networking.”

Women and Wine Wednesdays were a huge hit and provided great networking opportunities, but Riordan said there was something missing.

“We were looking to really bring something that had more educational content to it, a little bit more self-care,” Riordan said. “Something that would inspire women, but also give women an opportunity maybe to meet other businesswomen who they had yet to meet that maybe weren’t in their industry.”

Smart spoke to attendees about the power of perseverance. She explained her thought process in surviving even the darkest days of her nine-month captivity.

“I eventually got to a point where I stopped thinking things could get worse because they always did,” Smart said. “So, instead of thinking this is rock bottom, I started thinking, ‘OK, this is pretty bad, not going to lie. This is pretty bad, but how could I make this situation worse?’”

She added that the support she received from her family helped her push through. She spoke at length about her mother, in particular, recounting how her mother always said she’d love Smart no matter what.

Riordan echoed Smart’s sentiments about the importance of community support. She said that same kind of support is crucial for women-owned businesses.

“If you have an opportunity between a huge behemoth and a small, locally-owned business, the Chamber’s always going to recommend that folks really support that locally-owned business. If it’s a woman-owned business, it’s even more important because women are very entrepreneurial, and I think we’re seeing more and more women-owned businesses.”

Riordan said the response to the event has been overwhelmingly positive, and the chamber is already looking ahead to next year’s conference.

Copyright 2023 WMBF. All rights reserved.

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - The winter months usually mean free parking in the city of Myrtle Beach, but this year there will be a major change.

Beginning November 1, drivers will be required to pay for parking at any city-owned spaces.

Public parking used to be free in Myrtle Beach from November 1 to March 1. But earlier this year, the Myrtle Beach City Council voted to do away with those “parking seasons,” meaning payment will now be required in the winter months.

Mark Kruea, a spokesperson for the city, said the initiative is less about the money and more about streamlining the city’s parking processes.

“Extending it for these extra four months really isn’t about the money, and won’t generate a great deal of money back to the city of Myrtle Beach,” Kruea said. “But it will regulate parking during those four months, instead of it becoming kind of a free-for-all.”

Kruea added that paid parking encourages higher turnover rates for individual spaces, and will help prevent one car from parking in a single space for the entire day.

Residents, however, aren’t sold on the new policy, including lifelong Myrtle Beach resident Evan Johnson.

“It’s ridiculous,” Johnson said. “You don’t even want to spend time at the beach because there’s no places to park. You’ve got to pay for it.”

For residents of Myrtle Beach, there may be a way to save your money at the meters.

Kruea recommends finding the receipt for your car’s tax and seeing what city the tax was paid in. It’s important to remember, that it’s about where your car’s tax was paid, not necessarily where you live.

“It’s not whether the person is eligible, but whether the car is eligible,” Kruea explained. “So, if the car pays taxes inside the city of Myrtle Beach, we count that tax payment as your payment for parking, whether you ever occupy a paid parking space or not.”

Drivers who paid their car tax in Myrtle Beach can bring their receipt to the Pavilion Parking Garage on the corner of Ninth Avenue North and Kings Highway. Drivers will receive a city decal to display on their car, indicating that their car is exempt from parking payments in public spaces.

Johnson thinks programs like that are well-intentioned, but don’t account for Horry County residents who may not live in Myrtle Beach, but visit very frequently.

“That’s fair to some, but what about the rest of the locals?” Johnson said. “Loris and Conway, that’s not fair for them. A lot of them work down here every day.”

Paid parking is enforced from 9 a.m. to midnight seven days a week.

The city said the money generated from parking payments will go towards various projects around the city.

Copyright 2023 WMBF. All rights reserved.

As new construction projects continue throughout Horry County, a new home development is in the works close to the North Myrtle Beach and Longs area.

Chestnut Farms is a new home community planned for 2471-2363 Chestnut Road, just off Veterans Highway. The 38-acre plot of land will have 72 homes.

Building has yet to start on the property, but site work is underway. Chestnut Farms is a DRB Group project; the home-building company has multiple developments spanning the East Coast from Pennsylvania to Florida. The company DRB Group South Carolina LLC bought the Chestnut Farms property in June 2023 for about $2.1 million, according to Horry County Land Records.

Prospective buyers will choose from five-floor designs— three one-floor plans ranging from 1450-1900 square feet with two-car garages to two two-floor plans that go from 1900-2700 square feet.

“Some floor plans will live larger with additional bonus rooms (and) bedrooms because you have the ability and the flexibility to add some structural options,” Homes Division VP of Sales & Marketing Lindy Sfirlea said. “We definitely want that because of the nice, larger home site that families might be able to enjoy.

While still not set in stone, home prices will range from roughly $280,000 to around $300,000, Sfirlea said. She added that a pond would also be a part of the new community. Sfirlea added building should hopefully begin by the third or fourth quarter of 2024.

Chestnut Farms is not the only project DRB Group has planned for the Grand Strand region. Sfirlea said the company is planning on 250 closing in the next two years and is looking at Longs, Little River, Conway and North Myrtle Beach as other possible locations.

Sfirlea added that the company also plans to bring a 55 and older community to the Grand Strand, similar to DRB Group’s other communities in Charleston, S.C. that also featured community amenities like swimming pools, dog parks and pickleball.

“It’s really that 55-plus buyer that’s ‘Okay, now it’s about me, I’m going to live it up. I want the humanity lifestyle lock and leave low maintenance living single level living,’” Sfirlea said.

Winna’s Kitchen is going national again.

Jess Sagun, owner of the 819 Main St. eatery, will cook live during on The Today Show Oct. 25 during its third hour.

The appearance comes a year after Sagun took home top honors on “Chef Swap at The Beach,” a Cooking Channel competition that forces chefs to switch kitchens to create themed dishes.

Sagun posted a photograph of herself next to Al Roker on Winna’s Kitchen Facebook page to announce her appearance.

Roker, known for anchoring The Today Show’s weather segments, was on the Grand Strand last month filming with local stations.

The Today Show, now in its 72nd season, airs from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. weekdays or streaming live on Peacock.

Roker co-hosts the program’s third hour.

This story was originally published October 24, 2023, 10:53 AM.

Carolina Forest is getting a new pizzeria as the section of Myrtle Beach continues to see new businesses and development.

Sergio’s Pizza is a restaurant chain with locations in Brooklyn, Riverhead and Malta, New York, as well as locations in Utah and Raleigh, N.C.

The eatery will be at the new Forest Marketplace at 2248 Carolina Forest Blvd. next to the new Shell Station.

Sergio’s Pizza offers many varieties of pizza, including cheese pies, meat lovers and buffalo chicken pizzas.

The restaurant also serves Sicilian style that comes in thick doughy squares and Grandma style, reminiscent of the pizza your nonna would make, which is rectangular but crispier and thinner.

Sergio’s classic slice is New York style with a thin crust, akin to a slice from John’s of Bleecker Street, Sergio’s owner Michael Pavone said.

Sergio’s will also get its bread from a Long Island, N.Y. bakery. He added Sergio’s makes its pizza in a gas oven heated to 600 degrees Fahrenheit.

“We’re a New York-style pizza. We keep it simple, old school,” Pavone said.

The eatery will also have a full Italian menu with calzones, pastas, chicken parmesan and many more. Pavone said the Myrtle Beach location should open in two to three months.

He added the pizzeria will cater to Grand Stranders who moved to the area from the New York area and are looking for a taste of home.

“People are starting to miss just that flavor from back home that they grew up with ... If you could just somehow mimic what they’re used to, (it) becomes an instant success,” he said. “I know we’ll be able to bring that.”

Sergio’s will have delivery and seating for 50-60 people and will serve wine and beer, Pavone said. The restaurant will also have televisions and patios for people to sit and eat a slice or full pie.

“We’ll have the white subway tile halfway up, and the rest of the wall (will be) red tablecloths will be the red and white checkered, just give you that Little Italy, New York feel when you walk in.”

Sergio’s is also hiring, Pavone said. The pizzeria will employ between 20-25 people for the location, and he added more Sergio’s could be coming to the Grand Strand region.

Pavone is looking to expand to either the Socastee or Conway area in the next one to two years, but plans aren’t finalized.

This story was originally published November 1, 2023, 12:00 AM.