Nikki Haley Visits NMB

ATLANTIC BEACH, SC – Governor Nikki Haley met with Atlantic Beach officials Tuesday. In May, she met with local leaders and said Bike Fest should end after this year’s violence that coincided with the Memorial Day Bike Fest. During the May meeting, she privately met with several Horry County leaders including Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes and Horry County Chairman Mark Lazarus. Haley said Tuesday morning she wants to propose working together to find a way to change the event that is known as Bike Week. She suggests working with the Director of Tourism to make sure it’s a destination spot for people all over the country. She pledged her commitment to make an event that works and still brings in revenue. Her goal is to create an event that won’t turn violent. She once again mentioned the media attention from an article in USA Today that cast a negative light on the town after three people were shot and killed during Memorial Day weekend. She said South Carolina doesn’t deserve that. “This is not about bikers this is about lawlessness this is about the fact that we are having crime, that we’re having arrests that we’re having to bring in 273 state officers just to manage a weekend that it’s spending 1.3 million that what this is about. any other tourist destination on any other given weekend is not requiring that. Just the fact that it requires that means there is a problem and it means that we’ve got to fix it,” said Governor Haley. Council members didn’t have any questions and Mayor Jake Evans basically said they’re not canceling Bike Fest. “It’s unanimous among the council members that actually putting something on the table to actually cancel bikefest is not something we’re interested in at this time,” said Evans. However, Evans said they want to make it safer and he welcomes discussions on some of her plans for the area. Some in attendance on Tuesday held mixed reactions to the Governor’s visit and her plans.