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Horry County, SC Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Vending Zones (2026)

Some Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Key Facts

Allowed zones (general units)
HC, NC, CC, RE-1-4, LI, HI + more
Front setback
25 feet minimum
Distance from competing restaurant
300 feet
Distance from PreK-12 school
200 feet
Ice cream trucks
Allowed in all zoning districts
Max stop time (ice cream)
30 minutes

Summary

Horry County limits stationary mobile food units to commercial and higher-density zoning districts as a conditional use, including HC, NC, CC, the RCS/TRS group, RE-1 through RE-4, and the county's light and heavy industrial districts. Ice cream trucks are treated differently and can operate in every zoning district countywide.

These county ordinances apply to unincorporated areas of Horry County. Incorporated cities within the county may have their own rules that take precedence over county-level regulations.

1.Mobile food units (with the exception of ice cream trucks) may be allowed as a conditional use in the following zones: HC, NC, CC, TRS, RCS, RE-1, RE-2, RE-3, RE-4, EIO, PA1, OPI, PR-1, PR-2, MA-1, MA-2, MA-3, MI, LI, HI, AC, AMI, AM2, and commercial areas of PUD/PDD provided they meet the following requirements:a)The mobile food unit meets a 25' front setback...f)The mobile food unit is not located within three hundred (300) feet of the principal public entrance to any food service business not owned by the vendor or property owner...g)The mobile food unit is not located within two hundred (200) feet of the principal public entrance to any PreK-12 educational facility, unless approval from the school exists in writing...2.Ice cream trucks may be allowed as a conditional use in all zones, provided they meet the following:a)The unit shall only be stationary for a maximum of 30 minutes per stop and move at least one block before making another stop;b)It is unlawful for any ice cream truck to stop on private property without the consent of the property owner.

View official code

Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 88).

Full Breakdown

1 allows a mobile food unit, other than an ice cream truck, as a conditional use in HC, NC, CC, TRS, RCS, RE-1, RE-2, RE-3, RE-4, EIO, PA1, OPI, PR-1, PR-2, MA-1, MA-2, MA-3, MI, LI, HI, AC, AMI, AM2, and the commercial areas of a PUD or PDD, and only if the site also clears a set of siting rules: a 25-foot front setback (plus the underlying district's side and rear setbacks if the parcel touches a residential area), a principal structure already on site with at least a 30-foot dust-free driveway throat, no unit within 10 feet of another business's public entrance, no more than one unit per parcel (or one per 2 acres on parcels over 30 acres, capped at 15 per parcel), two dedicated parking spaces per unit, no unit within 300 feet of an existing food-service business's entrance (unless that business consents, or a competing restaurant later moves in within two years of the vendor's continuous operation), and no unit within 200 feet of a PreK-12 school entrance without written school approval.

2 carves ice cream trucks out of that zone list entirely: they're a conditional use in every zoning district, provided each stop lasts no more than 30 minutes before the truck moves at least a block, and it may not stop on private property without the owner's consent.

Violations & Fines

Vending outside the zones listed in Section 913.B.1, or an ice cream truck exceeding its 30-minute stop limit or stopping on private property without consent, is a violation that can cost the operator the Certificate of Zoning Compliance and vending permit under Section 913.H, on top of the general zoning penalty in Section 114 of up to $500 and 30 days per offense.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a food truck park anywhere zoned commercial in Horry County?
No, only in the specific districts Section 913.B.1 lists, HC, NC, CC, TRS, RCS, RE-1 through RE-4, EIO, PA1, OPI, PR-1, PR-2, the MA group, MI, LI, HI, AC, AMI, AM2, and PUD/PDD commercial areas, and only after clearing the setback and distance rules in that same subsection.
Can an ice cream truck operate in a residential neighborhood?
Yes. Section 913.B.2 allows ice cream trucks as a conditional use in every zoning district, unlike other mobile food units, as long as each stop lasts 30 minutes or less before moving at least a block, and the truck never stops on private property without the owner's consent.
How close can a food truck be to an existing restaurant?
Not within 300 feet of that restaurant's public entrance, unless the restaurant owner signs an affidavit agreeing to a shorter distance, or the restaurant opened within the 300-foot zone after the truck had already operated there continuously for at least two years.

Sources & Official References

Other rules in Horry County

All Horry County rules

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