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Community Corner

🌱 MBPD Ramping Up + MBFD's New Wagon + US 501 To Expand In 2023

The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Myrtle Beach.

Kathy Mandell's profile picture
Kathy Mandell, Neighbor
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(Patch Media)

Good morning, Myrtle Beach! Happy Passover and Happy Easter! Here's everything you need to know to get this Sunday, April 17, 2022 started off right.

A glance at Sunday's weather:

A couple of morning showers. High: 73 Low: 60.

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Here are the top five stories in Myrtle Beach today:

  1. Myrtle Beach Police Department has openings for 47 sworn officers, and just sent job offers to 15 candidates. If all 15 accept the conditional offers, the number of openings would be reduced by a third. The department has shifted to year-round recruitment and hiring, as opposed to its traditional quarterly hiring. MBPD started optional summer weekend overtime staffing already, which means 15 to 20 officers accept extra shifts because activity increases in the summer months due to the region's seasonality. New city employees are offered a $4,000 relocation bonus to live and work in Myrtle Beach. (WBTW)
  2. The Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce is reporting a decrease in occupancy rates as compared to spring break week last year, but some individual companies and resorts say they've seen a surge in bookings. Flexibility may be the key in these times of "work from anywhere" lifestyles, with a lot of vacationers wanting just a long weekend, or a mid-week arrival and departure instead of the traditional "Saturday flip." (WBTW)
  3. Meanwhile, the "now hiring" signs are popping up on businesses up and down Highway 17, Ocean Boulevard, and everywhere in between. Businesses are in need of workers more than ever, as the population continues to increase around the Grand Strand, and vacationers head to the area in droves. Many restaurants, shops, hotels, and other local businesses are having a hard time finding employees all the way from entry-level, to management. MBACC will be hosting some job fairs, starting with one on Wednesday, April 27 at CCU. (WMBF)
  4. Say hello to Myrtle Beach Fire Department's new ambulance. The vehicle is one of two that the department is adding to its fleet. The new vehicles replace old ambulances that have more than 100,000 miles on them and are being retired. The new rescue wheels include some cool technological advances including a new stretcher feature that does all the heavy lifting for personnel. The second ambulance will go into service in May. (WMBF)
  5. Expansion of the heavily-traveled U.S. 501 has been announced to begin in the summer of 2023, and is expected to take approximately 18 months to complete. SCDOT hopes to have the right of way acquisition purchased about a year from now. The roadway is a key path from inland areas to the Grand Strand beaches, and the project is decades overdue. The plan calls for an expansion to four lanes, and has some pedestrian-centric sections in and around the Arts and Innovation District where U.S. 501 comes into the heart of the city. (WMBF)

Today in Myrtle Beach:

  • Crooked Easter Egg Hunt @ Crooked Hammock Brewery (1:00 PM)
  • Easter Bunny @ Lulu's in Barefoot Landing (1:00 PM)
  • Easter Sunday with Jim Quick & Coastline @ Captain Archie's (3:00 PM)
  • N'tranz @ Dead Dog Saloon (7:00 PM)
  • Jarrett Forrester @ Bar Louie (7:00 PM)

* More Easter Sunday info on Explore North Myrtle Beach website: (Easter Sunday)

From my notebook:

  • House of Blues Myrtle Beach: we've got a special Gospel Brunch! Celebrate Easter Sunday with us from 9am - 3pm for our World Famous Brunch! 🥚 🍳 🐣 🐰 Reservations recommended - just call 843-913-3746. (Facebook)
  • The Humane Society of North Myrtle Beach: Today's featured #PetOfTheDay is Bradley! His adoption fee is being sponsored today by Anderson Brothers Bank. Bradley is a big and handsome boy! He weighs a little over 70 lbs! This frisky boy sure does love people. (Facebook)
  • News13's Pet of the Weekend is Princess, a black and white "tuxedo" kitty who is two years old. Princess is well taken care of, and was surrendered to Grand Strand Humane Society by her owner for personal reasons. Note that GSHS has two adoption events coming up April 23: one at Inlet Square Mall in Murrells Inlet, and the other at The Local Social in Surfside. (WBTW)
  • Myrtle Beach Police Department: Join us from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 23 at our Training Annex for our next Recruitment Expo! Participants will have a chance to run our Physical Agility Course, talk to our Recruitment team or apply for open positions! (Facebook)
  • Myrtle Beach Convention Center: If you love gospel music, then you must travel to an Abraham Productions event! Make plans and reserve your spot today to attend Singing in the Sun April 18 - 23, 2022. For tickets and nightly talent info, please visit https://abrahamproductions.net/index.php or call: 1-888-238-6858 (Facebook)

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You're officially in the loop for this holiday Sunday. I'll see you back in your inbox tomorrow with your Monday morning Myrtle Beach update! Be safe out there, everybody!

— Kathy Mandell

About me: The best decision I ever made was relocating to the Myrtle Beach area from New England a few years ago, with my three dogs and three cats. I enjoy dogs, cats, road trips, photography, writing, vegetarian food, live music, bicycling and above all my daily walks on the beaches in and around the Grand Strand.

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

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