Local businesses say rally’s low turnout, fewer vendors hurt revenue
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Local businesses say rally's low biker turnout...
The fall bike rally is officially over and even with clear skies and warm temperatures not enough bikers came to the Grand Strand.
Aisha Khan/WBTW
Biker crowd at Wednesday’s fall bike rally kick off at the Harley Davidson Shop on 17.
The fall bike rally is officially over and even with clear skies and warm temperatures not enough bikers came to the Grand Strand.
This year, the crowds were noticeably smaller and now, some business owners and vendors say the new ordinances enacted by Myrtle Beach drove away their business.
Brian Nel of Daytona Beach, FL said he couldn’t believe the emptiness he saw during this year’s rally.
He said that as a vendor he was disappointed not being able to make money the way he said he used to every time he came to the Grand Strand.
“I’ve been coming here for the last nine years and the sad part is that in a rally that’s old some 60 70 years, when you damage it is that going to be that easy to repair? It’s not just the locasl that are getting hurt by this” said Nel.
The damage Nel said was the lack of bikers and vendors this year, adding that the low attendance was a result of the city’s strict biker regulations and Horry County’s increased vendor permit fees.
Todd Price of Suck Bang & Blow said that a small portion of his lost business over the rally event was due to economical reasons while a bigger reason he said was the city’s strict biker ordinances.
“It’s one thing if the city had a plan,” said Price, “if the city made the conscious decision that they didn’t want this tourism business anymore and before they acted on it and had a plan in place to replace it with another segment of tourism or maybe some industry here but to just do this without having a plan and say we’ll fix it later they are affecting hundreds thousands of people’s lives, people can’t repair their cars can’t fee their children and cant pay their rent.“
Karen Mitchell owner of Sea Palms Motel and Chesterfield Inn, said she also feels the negative impact the low turn out had on her business. She said for many years during the rally all of her rooms were always a 100% booked.
“I was down by 95%,” said Mitchell, “the problem here is that we have taken this hit but what’s the next hit that the city council’s is going to throw at us? It will hurt us smaller businesses even more, and I don’t think that we’ll ever get the bike business back.“
“There’re also people on city council that if they are replaced I think we ill begin to see change soon if we are left to face the same political machine then I think we anywhere from 3 to 5 years before we can a recovery,” said Price.
As far the city is concerned, officials there said the ordinances will stay just the way they are.
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Reader Reactions
WTF do taxis have to do with covering the costs of local services? I use a taxi to get to the airport. MB could be the dumbest place on the planet,judging by these moronic comments!!!
Wow. So many smart Grandmothers with pink tee shirts, it is no wonder Myrtle Beach is the way it is. Let me keep this simple for some of the slower minded readers. Taxis are how a town pays for its infrastructure, and the less money all these hotels, cottages, restaurants and other business make the less tax base the town has in order to pay for police, fire, roads, water, sewage, and many other services. Taxis on the average little old Gremlins retirement will not be enough to pay for all the little pet projects that your political sewing circles think up. So unless you wise little old men and women come up with something other than some kind of occasional basket ball Jones, the days of the Gravy trains are over. You messed it up, so now you can fix it up. So far all we have heard about is that long winding board deck that you are building for all the drug addicts and criminals to have a place to hang out. Time to put up or shut up.
Who gives a #### if Suck Bang & Blow lost some moolah. With a name like that they’re lucky anyone steps foot in the place!!!
The last line of the last paragraph says it all. The arrogance of the city attorney and mayor is plain enough. One thing big britches, The State Supreme court will be forced in the end by public opinion to rule on your rules. Things MAY NOT stay the same after all.
It might be hard for some people to imagine that a slow economy and people being out of work could have anything to do with it. My understanding is that it was to be no less than two years of show up and boycott Myrtle Beach. People have many of reasons for not spending money and many reasons for not coming to the smaller fall rally, but the vendors have been given the shaft by Grand Strand politicians for years, so it is no surprise that they have had enough. Some of them can be found up the road at the new Beach House Harley Davidson dealership in Shallotte N.C.
The people that I saw out there were all having a great time. I pointed out that this is a new type of gathering. Many of us are now looking at it as a BACK TO BASICS, GRASS ROOTS, COMERCIALIZATION FREE GATHERING OF FELLOW BIKERS. It is great. There is less traffic, less police harassment, better people and we are still eating good food, enjoying great weather, and great fellowship. So what if the sleeping business community is no longer getting rich off of us. If they want us to spend money then they will get the local politicians to do their jobs, represent the people, and decide if the Grand Strand is a high tax retirement community or a location that welcomes tourism. They have a lot of work to do when it comes to making it a clean, welcoming tourist friendly fun, safe place that people will want to stay.
If your business plan is based on two events a year, who is really to blame?
DAh! You think? Hard for the people but city council’s income or livelyhood didnt change.
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