Myrtle Beach officials on Tuesday said they hope approving a “floating zone” in a portion of downtown will help spur creative, mixed-use development in an area that has been neglected for years.

The floating zone allows developers to propose projects that might not fit the current zoning in the portion of downtown referred to as the south mixed-use area, which is

defined as the area from First Avenue North to Seventh Avenue North and from the Atlantic Ocean to Kings Highway in Myrtle Beach. Current zoning, MU-H, allows for development such as commercial and retail.

“It’s amazing when you go down there and you wander around and see the potential for what it could be,” City Manager John Pedersen said.

City Council in January approved a set of strategic initiatives to help guide its decision making, which included focusing on the south mixed-use area. The floating zone is the latest in a series of steps taken that council hopes will spur development in that part of town.

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