Horry County, SC Environmental Rules: Boat Dock Permits (2026)

Section 918 makes it unlawful to build, construct, repair or alter any noncommercial dock in the county without conforming to the section, and it applies in every residential district and in commercial districts where residential uses are allowed. No dock may be designed or built to accommodate more than two boats for permanent mooring, and no residentially zoned lot may have more than one dock; personal watercraft lifts don't count toward that boat-slip limit. A dock owned and used by the property's resident is a permitted accessory use, while a dock on land without a residence is allowed as a principal use only if it's limited to one dock per lot (or group of contiguous commonly owned lots) and any roof on it stays under 20 feet tall.

B requires a minimum 10-foot setback from side property lines and at least 20 feet of separation from any other dock, bars renting or selling watercraft-storage space, prohibits a separately metered utility connection to a residential accessory dock, and flatly bans commercial activity on the dock, gas and marine-supply sales, boat rentals, repair and storage among them. Where a state or federal permit is required to build the dock, that permit must be presented in writing before Horry County will issue a building permit. C where individual docks aren't practical, and a multi-use community dock serving an HOA or condominium is capped at 1,000 square feet (excluding the walkway) with boat slips limited to the number of units served.