Conway working on several projects to improve quality of life - WMBFNews.com, Myrtle Beach/Florence SC, Weather

CONWAY, SC (WMBF) - Conway City Council members say they are on the cusp of something great.

"What we're really hoping to do is use some HUD money, that's federal money, that's grant money to develop a community center so we're negotiations with them right now so that that can be worked out." said City Council member William Goldfinch.

The item on the agenda today was a new $240,000 community center, which the city hopes to have built in a recreation area owned by The Smith-Jones Group near downtown. While the special meeting was in executive session for nearly three hours on Monday, no motions were filed about the new building. However, Goldfinch says they're just hammering out the details.

"It's a place where civic groups, family reunions can come together, people in the community can get together. Senior citizens can take classes.Young folks can take classes," said Goldfinch. 

Goldfinch says that is exactly the kind of people they are trying to attract. He says city council has allocated a tremendous amount of money to the chamber commerce to conduct studies on how to attract more people, specifically, young professionals.

"Those are the folks with the disposable income. Those are the folks that shop at you're Target's and retailers and such, and so in bringing those folks to our community to have a presence here would certainly be more attractive for those businesses and so of course we would welcome that."

Other ventures in the works include a river front property that was recently gifted to Conway, as well as the old Grainger facility along 501.

"More importantly the use of that property and how it would continue to develop our retail downtown, our food and beverage, and perhaps even, fingers crossed, residential. So a lot of opportunities there and you would hope to marry those to facilities around the Grainger facility where the old steam plant was and Lake Busbee. So there's a tremendous opportunity."

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