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MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - The Arts & Innovation District is starting to see visible changes including three new drink or food spots opening over the next few months.

The Tasting Room, a locally owned wine bar, will be the first spot to open.

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Owner Lisa Lee said The Tasting Room will be open to the public next week on April 5 and she’s met many really excited people so far.

“We’re excited to be part of the new wave which is 9th Avenue and the Arts & Innovation district and so with that comes a lot of excitement and a lot of new and a lot of curiosity from people,” said Lee. “So being at the forefront of that and being one of the first businesses instead of coming in years later has been so much fun.”

The Tasting Room will be situated between two other businesses that are also getting ready to open, but you’ll have to wait a bit longer for those doors to open.

The Dolly Llama is an ice cream chain that will make the Arts & Innovation District home and they’re in the middle of construction right now.

There’s also Boteco, which is a Brazilian restaurant on a similar timeline.

Brian Tucker, the assistant city manager for Myrtle Beach, said these are the visible changes people will notice as growth in the district starts to show. However, there are lots of changes in infrastructure work that won’t be as noticeable until they’re done.

“Everywhere you turn it seems like things are clicking and I think the general public has a hard time seeing sometimes the behind-the-scenes work that’s going on,” said Tucker. “So when you actually start seeing that work and it’s tangible, it’s visible, you see businesses opening up it starts to make sense for folks.”

Tucker said this is just the beginning of what they have planned for this part of downtown.

“The general philosophy of the arts and innovation district has been to create a different vibe downtown, create a different vibe in the district, and to generate activation and activity and engagement,” said Tucker.

Part of that engagement includes the new theatre that’s being built in partnership with Coastal Carolina and the city of Myrtle Beach. Tucker said the goal is for that theatre to be used more than 250 days a year.

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Will, Susan, and Berkley White.

Growing up in a charming Cape Cod home that her father built and her mother designed, Susan White developed a love for the building industry at an early age. That love was passed to her son, Berkley, who was only three years old when Susan built her first home. Growing up in and around the trade, Berkley often accompanied his mother to home construction sites where he learned the trade from the ground up.

When Susan, Berkley and his wife, Kim, founded Classic more than twenty-five years ago, they had no idea that this love would be passed to a third generation. Berkley and Kim’s son, Will, is now integral to the Classic legacy.

Taking a cue from his father Berkley, Will White grew up in the family business. He watched and learned from his father, adhering to the same principles that Berkley had learned from his mother, Susan. Today, those principles — choosing the best materials available, working with credible building partners, working as a team, and most importantly, always doing what is right—are paramount.

Will graduated from the University of South Carolina in May 2023 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance and a minor in Marketing and Real Estate Finance. With a work ethic as strong as the generations before him, you could find him in Classic’s office and on job sites in less than a month following his graduation. With both experience and education, he was soon handling estimates, purchasing and construction management, and the list continues to grow.

Classic’s success has never been left to chance. Throughout the years, they have built a reputation for providing efficient project management and open communication throughout the life of the project and beyond. Their numerous awards and industry recognition attest to their dedication to the building trade and to their customers.

To date, Classic has built more than 1,500 homes in the Carolinas and has almost 75 years of combined experience in homebuilding. Well-known and widely respected as one of the southeast’s premier builders, Classic was chosen as a member of the Southern Living Custom Builder Program nearly two decades ago. They introduced the area’s first Southern Living Showcase Home to the Grand Strand in 2012, opened their second Showcase Home in 2017 — the first built in Georgetown County — and recently expanded the Showcase Home concept to Brunswick County, North Carolina. The Inverness, located at the Thistle Golf Club, was introduced as that area’s first Southern Living Showcase Home in 2023.

Classic’s experience and intrinsic understanding of the business is complemented by a close-knit team of professionals—including Berkley’s wife, and Will’s mother, Kim, a talented Residential Home Designer and Classic’s General Manager. Susan White’s younger son, Abe, owns First Flight Stairs and Millwork. His craftsmanship can be found throughout many of Classic’s homes. “Our employees are like family and our most valuable asset,” Susan said. And, in an industry where change is rampant and turnover is common, Classic’s employees are an exception. There is little turnover and a long list of prospects that desire to be part of the success story that began in 1999.

What is Classic’s recipe for success? “It’s about respect,” said Berkley. “Respect for the wishes of our homeowners and respect for our team members who each bring something unique to the process.”

Speaking of recipes, it would be remiss not to mention that Susan White, Classic’s co-founder and President/Founder of sister company, Classic Interiors, is a gourmet cook. Her recipes have appeared in Bon Appetit, and her beautiful interior design, including her signature kitchens, make Classic homes a classic!

Classic Homes 524 Broadway Street Myrtle Beach, SC 29577 (843) 839-0537 classichomebuilding.com

Jill Heaton, Owner & Lead Designer

If you’re looking for a top interior design firm, look no further than Jill Heaton Interiors. The company is a full-service design firm specializing in new construction and renovation.

Owner and Principal Interior Designer Jill Heaton had been working with Myrtle Beach-area clients since she began her business in Lexington in 2019, and later decided to relocate her home base and move with her family to the Murrells Inlet area in 2023.

The design firm “brings organization to every project with an intentional 15-step process,” she explains. “We are upfront about our structure and work very hard with our clients on the front end to commit to their budget.”

Jill Heaton Interiors boasts an impressive portfolio ranging from updating comfortable living areas, to upscale, roomy dressing rooms, luxury, waterfront home designs, and spacious commercial properties. “We design spaces unique to each client’s style and budget, so our services truly change with each client experience, within our core commitment to our process,” Jill explains.

“This community offers JHI the chance to work with so many different personalities! Each new project offers us a completely new experience, and the Grand Strand has the eclectic feel that lets us and our clients truly express themselves with their space.”

JHI is also involved with the Grand Strand community.

The design firm is a member of the Horry-Georgetown Business Association, and “we look for opportunities to sponsor charities in our area through special events in our growing network,” Jill notes.

The Heaton family is attending a new church home, First Baptist Church of Murrells Inlet.

Jill and her firm have also accrued some impressive accolades, including being featured in the 11th edition textbook, Housing and Interior Design by Evelyn L. Lewis and Carol Turner Smith. Most recently Sherwin Williams highlighted Jill’s renovation of a master closet in a STIR Article Titled: “Closets Are The New Self-Care Sanctuaries”.

A mission statement of sorts, Jill says: “Jill Heaton Interiors seeks to attentively serve her clients with effective communication. We are responsive and timely. Connecting with each of our clients on a personal level is our heartbeat. Their joy in the big reveal of installation day is a true reward! We provide intentional design for a beautiful life.”

Jill Heaton Interiors Murrells Inlet, SC (803) 638-8287 jillheatoninteriors.com

Walking into New York Pizza at 117 Maryport Drive, you see the pizza rotating display cases alongside others containing ready-made food. In contrast, pizza makers in the open kitchen area are busy shuttling pies in and out of the 500-degree gas oven.

With minimal flop and a crispy crust upon first bite, the eatery serves many different slices and pies, as well as garlic gnots, gyros, calzones, Jamaican beef patties and other items.

Whether you order the Sophia Loren pizza— named after the famous actress and topped with fresh mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, garlic and extra virgin olive oil —the pie is prepped, cooked, cut and boxed within 10 minutes of ordering. Everything in the pizza-making process is homemade, says Arben Rroku, owner and manager of the eatery.

“If it’s not crispy, it’s not New York style,” Rroku said. “The dough, it’s authentic (to the) New York style.”

Rroku said New York Pizza opened in December 2023. He started working in pizza in 1997 and previously had two pizzerias in Staten Island and Brooklyn, N.Y., before moving to Myrtle Beach.

Rroku, born in Albania and having lived in Reggio Emilia, Italy previously, added that he found his way into working in the pizza industry naturally.

“I had a different job before I started this, but it wasn’t me,” he added. “I wanted to build a pizzeria restaurant.”

Rroku said he is building off of a pizza legacy in Myrtle Beach. The site, which Rroku runs with four employees, was originally the home of an Original DiCarlo’s Pizza place.

DiCarlo’s specializes in Ohio Valley-style pizza that features cold cheese on top of a hot square. Rroku said the pizzeria continues to offer Ohio Valley-style pizza to pay homage to the eatery he took over for.

“I liked the spot. So it was a perfect fit for me,” Rroku added.

New York Pizza is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. It is next to a Walmart Neighborhood Market alongside South Kings Highway in Myrtle Beach.

on Monday reiterated his support for a completed Interstate 73 through Horry County, despite not recommending any money for the project in his proposed budget.

“I think it’s important it happens,” he told News13 during a stop in Myrtle Beach. “I’ve been in favor of that. This area is growing and we need to be able to get people in and out, and do so safely.”

McMaster has been a proponent of the interstate’s expansion throughout his administration. In 2021, he first proposed a $300 million investment to be funded through COVID-era federal aid. The same suggested allocation was included in his 2023-24 executive budget proposal.

“This new interstate will connect supply chains to efficiently move goods and services across our state and infrastructure that connects our people to jobs, healthcare and education,” McMaster wrote in his Jan. 6, 2023 budget plan.

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A finished I-73 is also estimated to create 29,000 jobs and cut evacuation times by up to 15 hours.

It would be about $300 million to built out the first six miles to U.S. Highway 501 with an I-95 interchange.

McMaster left I-73 out of his recommended spending plan for next year as long-term local and federal financial support has dwindled.

Horry County leaders in 2021 rejected a proposal to put up $4.2 million a year for 30 years or $126 million in all toward the construction of I-73 using hospitality fee revenues, saying at the time there wasn’t a clear fiscal path forward.

Marion County, Myrtle Beach and North Myrtle Beach leaders have all supported resolutions pledging local money for an expanded I-73.

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And up to half of the cost could be covered through RIDE IV revenues should voters approve the referendum in November — and only if construction contracts are finalized between state and federal agencies.

“That’ll prevent us from having a bridge-to-nowhere situation,” Horry County assistant administrator David Gilreath said at a March 20 RIDE IV meeting. “Whenever (South Carolina) DOT is ready, the local match of half is ready to be spent.”

McMaster said on Tuesday the region’s explosive growth makes a robust I-73 more vital with every passing year.

“Myrtle Beach is growing. The whole county is growing. We’re just going up, up, up and you have to have the infrastructure to support that.”