The Pavillion

I read that the Myrtle Beach Pavillion is closing at the end of this season. Does that include the amusement park, also? That was, really, a landmark/ attraction for Myrtle Beach. Does anyone know what the plans are for that area?

The Pavillion

Everything is going.

The Pavillion

Yes, this will be the final season for the Pavilion. That does include the amusement park. If you go to myrtlebeachonline.com and scroll almost to the bottom where it says special coverage,One Last Summer,last season of operation (where the girl is on the roller coaster) that will bring up a whole page about the Pavilion. A petition has also been started with thousands of signatures on it. It is a pretty sad time for so many memories has been created there!

Yep, it%26#39;s all going to be gone except for the memories. From what I can gather from the locals in the area it has not been decided what will become of the space. There has been discussion of a memorial of some sort to the Pavilion. I was given a website by some of the local experts on these forums. It is http://www.mbchamber.com/pavilion/ if you would like to check it out and share your memories.

In todays local newspaper...

Pavilion much more than amusement park

By Dawn Bryant

The Sun News

Meet me at the Pavilion.

Chances are you%26#39;ve been told that, said that or overheard it.

The phrase is frequently used in planning get-togethers at the beach, though the times, days and reasons for meeting have varied since the first group of teens hung out there 58 years ago because there wasn%26#39;t anything else to do.

The Myrtle Beach Pavilion Amusement Park has been the local landmark that everyone knows, the high-profile place charities use for fundraisers. Locals through the years have flocked to the park for dance recitals, religious services and even wrestling, long before Ric Flair made it cool.

It%26#39;s an unofficial gathering spot that attracts people for reasons way beyond rides and funnel cake. Locals don%26#39;t want to lose that this fall when the Pavilion calls it quits.

';I%26#39;m not sure if Myrtle Beach is doing the right thing,'; said Mary Penn, who has lived in Surfside Beach since 1986 and enjoys the amusement park and the community events at the Pavilion%26#39;s oceanfront stage. ';I%26#39;d like for them to keep an area here in the center for the concerts, the sunrise service, the sandcastle. Still have something here that would bring a lot of people together.';

Pavilion owner Burroughs %26amp; Chapin Co. Inc. says the redeveloped area will keep some of its feel as a gathering spot by the beach, but officials wouldn%26#39;t elaborate. B%26amp;C won%26#39;t announce details of the new development until this fall, at the earliest.

B%26amp;C has said it will be a mix of lodging, stores, restaurants and attractions.

Creating some type of public plaza, in addition to the boardwalk to be built by the city%26#39;s Downtown Redevelopment Corp., will be part of the Pavilion plan, B%26amp;C spokesman Pat Dowling said.

';The Pavilion has always been a central point,'; he said. ';You%26#39;ll still have the same identity as you did in the past.';

But the uncertainty over what will be built at the Pavilion site already has some groups, including the March of Dimes%26#39; fundraising walk and the Sun Fun Festival, coming up with other plans.

And several alumni at Myrtle Beach High School are planning one last reunion at the Pavilion to say good-bye to the landmark they grew up with.

For a town that doesn%26#39;t have a traditional downtown with a community plaza, the Pavilion - with an oceanfront stage and building resembling an auditorium - has filled that void, said Tommy Vaughn, interim youth minister at First Baptist Church of Myrtle Beach and president of the Myrtle Beach Ministerial Association.

';That area lends itself to that type of thing,'; he said. ';That%26#39;s kind of the core. People have just become accustomed to it. People associate having meetings and concerts with that area. Whether the Pavilion is there or not, people are going to see that as the Main Street of Myrtle Beach.';

bump

Try this link:

www.myrtlebeachinfo.com/pavilion/default.html