Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Atlantic Beach, South Carolina

Town of Atlantic Beach’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside the limits of the Town of Atlantic Beach, SC

  • The town's zoning is contained in its Land Management Ordinance, Title 5, Chapter 3.
  • Amended through Ord. 2-2025 (3/3/2025 per the ordinance cover).

  “property is hereby classified into the following districts: cp conservation preservation district r2 residential district ms1 main street 1 district ms1r main street 1 residential district ms2 main street 2 district g government district hwy us 17 district wf1 waterfront 1 district wf2 waterfront 2 district”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts inside the Town of Atlantic Beach

  • Boundaries are shown on the official zoning map maintained at town hall.

  districts: CP, R2, MS1, MS1R, MS2, G, HWY, WF1, WF2

  “the boundaries of the zoning districts established by this chapter are shown on the official zoning map entitled the "zoning map of the town of atlantic beach, south carolina".”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R2 Residential District inside the Town of Atlantic Beach (the table lists no agricultural district)

  • More restrictive standards in Article V or elsewhere in the chapter override Table 5.3.420a.
  • Table extraction is column-flattened; the R2 column is the second value (6,000 sq ft area, 35 ft width). Verify against the official PDF.

  minimum lot area R2: >= 6000 sq ft · minimum lot width R2: >= 35 ft

  “minimum lot area (in square feet) minimum lot width (in feet) maximum structure height districts cp r2 ms1 ms1r ms2 g hwy wf1 wf2 none 6,000 7,000 7,000 7,000 7,500 15,000 22,500 22,500 none 35 50 50 50 50 100 150 150”

• Building in a floodplainLimited

  Special flood hazard areas inside the Town of Atlantic Beach (Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance, Exhibit D2 to the LMO)

  • Applies where base flood elevation data has been provided.
  • No basements are permitted.

  lowest floor above base flood elevation: >= 3 ft

  “new construction and substantial improvement of any residential structure (or manufactured home) shall have the lowest floor elevated no lower than three (3) feet above the base flood elevation. no basements are permitted.”

• Permit processPartial

  Zoning permits and building permits inside the Town of Atlantic Beach

  • Zoning permit approval must come before building permit approval.

  “no building permit application shall be approved by the building official until zoning permit approval has been granted.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Town of Atlantic Beach or Horry County directly.

• Building permit — Building permits inside the Town of Atlantic Beach
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside the Town of Atlantic Beach
• Building code adopted — Building code inside the Town of Atlantic Beach
• Inspections — Building inspections inside the Town of Atlantic Beach
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy inside the Town of Atlantic Beach

Each answer was extracted from an official source and independently re-checked against that source by a second reviewer. That is an evidence check, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the authority before you buy or build.