Horry County, SC Noise from Specific Sources: Bar & Nightclub Noise (2026)

Section 13-32(a) makes it unlawful to make or continue any excessive, unnecessary or unusually loud noise that annoys, disturbs, injures, or endangers the comfort, repose, health, peace, or safety of others in the unincorporated county. Subsection (b)(3) is specific to commercial establishments: using or operating a radio, musical instrument, phonograph, loudspeaker, sound amplifier, or similar device to produce sound that is broadcast upon the public streets for the purpose of commercial advertising or attracting the attention of the public to any building or structure is declared a violation.

That reaches a bar or nightclub running outdoor speakers or leaving doors open to pull in customers with music audible on the sidewalk. Section 13-33 gives the enforcing officer discretion, directing them to weigh the volume, whether the noise is usual for the area, its proximity to residential sleeping areas, the zoning of the area, the time of night, and whether it is recurring or constant, factors that matter for entertainment districts near residential neighborhoods along the Grand Strand. Neither section sets its own dollar penalty, so a violation defaults to the Code's general penalty.