Horry County buys land to build veterans nursing home

HORRY COUNTY, SC (WMBF) - Horry County finally has its hands on the property to build a veterans nursing home right here in the Grand Strand.

Councilman Johnny Gardner confirms the county bought 70 acres of land back in May on Highway 90 in the Conway area.

The council first approved a veterans nursing home in 2021, setting aside $600,000 for the project, but Gardner said the county then received $1.7 million through the American Rescue Plan Act, allowing them to buy a bigger piece of land.

Right now, the closest state-run facility is in Florence, and retired army veteran Lou Mascherino said this is a huge sigh of relief for the 32,000 veterans calling Horry County home.

“A lot of them need a place where they can go when they get to that age where they can’t look out for themselves,” Mascherino said. “I know it’s going to help quite a few veterans out. Hopefully, it’s going to help me out in a few years, too.”

Councilman Gardner said the county hopes it will be able to use around 10 acres of the property for something else in the future.

He said they’re still working out some state and federal issues, so it’s not clear when crews will start building.

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