Cherry Grove dredging discussion bumped to January

The vote to establish a date for channel dredging in Cherry Grove was delayed Monday by the North Myrtle Beach City Council until its January meeting.

Council will meet Jan. 12 to determine a date to hear from the public on whether it should create a special taxing district to pay for a $13 million dredging project, which is expected to span over the next 10 years.

The city’s main proposal is to charge the 700 parcels impacted by the dredging. That would mean a $24,000 bill for those property owners, which would be spread over 10 years. Homeowners in that area have expressed concern with that bill, and have said they would like the city to consider spreading the amount to all property owners throughout the city because of the economic impact the dredging is expected to have on North Myrtle Beach.

Pat Dowling, spokesman for North Myrtle Beach, said the city is making sure it has everything in order before moving forward.