Over the Boardwalk: Planned Myrtle Beach hotel would bring second sky bridge to city’s downtown
With recently announced plans for a 210-foot hotel along Myrtle Beach’s oceanfront, the city would add a second elevated walkway to its portfolio — a design feature that builders behind the project are glad to provide.
Robert Guyton, an attorney representing the development team, said inclusion of the sky bridge as part of the 17th Avennue S. project was a welcomed component for investors.
“The developer is actually really excited about the potential because it activates Ocean Boulevard, but it also activates the beachfront. There’s actually a destination without getting in your car from both directions,” he said.
It would be the city’s second enclosed crosswalk, joining Landmark Resort at 1501 S. Ocean Blvd.
Also known as skyways or pedways, the structures have proven to make pedestrian crossings safer, especially in urban areas.
A September 2019 U.S. Department of Transportation paper said pedestrian fatalities jumped 53% between 2009 and 2018.
Some of America’s largest cities have rolled skyways into their municipal planning, including Chicago’s famed Pedway that runs through five miles of its downtown and links 50 buildings by enclosed bridge or tunnels.
South Carolina is home to one of the globe’s most lauded elevated structures.
North Charleston’s Noisette Creek Pedestrian Bridge, which spans 800 feet and large swirling arches, was named by Architectural Digest in 2022 as one of world’s most beautiful elevated walks.
