Myrtle Beach is beginning to take steps toward demolishing and temporarily purchasing blighted properties in the southern portion of downtown with the hope of spurring economic development.

A big step in being able to execute plans for that area includes working with banks to secure a $10 million “loan pool,” which would give the city the ability to pay for property demolitions and purchases. The city then would sell those properties to private companies to be developed.

Myrtle Beach City Council met Tuesday morning with the president and executive director of the Downtown Redevelopment Corp. to establish a clear plan for how the two entities would work together to spur development in the south mixed-use area.