News Title:3.2-Acre Parcel in Jessica Lakes Targeted for Rezoning to Allow Nine New Homes
A small undeveloped parcel within the established Jessica Lakes community near Conway is the subject of a rezoning request that could ultimately create approximately nine additional single-family homes.
A rezoning request was submitted involving approximately 3.2 acres on Wilderness Road. The request is for the property be rezoned from Planned Unit Development (PUD) to Residential (SF 14.5).
The request was heard by the Horry County Planning Commission on August 6, 2026. Horry County Planning documents identify the property as part of the Jessica Lakes PUD and confirm the proposed change from PUD to SF 14.5.
A Small Piece of Jessica Lakes
The property is somewhat unusual because it is located within the larger Jessica Lakes development but has remained undeveloped.
The parcel is shown on the Jessica Lakes site plan as Future Development. However, according to the information presented with the rezoning request, the PUD is now fully developed and the original plan did not designate a specific use for this particular parcel.
Rather than remaining under the existing PUD zoning, the applicant is seeking to remove the 3.2-acre parcel from the PUD and establish conventional SF 14.5 residential zoning.
If approved and subsequently subdivided, the property could accommodate approximately nine single-family lots.
At roughly 3.2 acres, the proposed development would therefore be relatively small, amounting to an average of about one-third of an acre per proposed lot. The SF 14.5 zoning designation itself is based on a minimum lot area of 14,500 square feet, although the final configuration of the subdivision would be determined through the subdivision and site-plan approval process.
Development on the Property Has Been Attempted Before
There is also some history behind the current request.
The owner attempted to subdivide the property in 2023, but that subdivision was not approved because the property remained within the Jessica Lakes PUD. The current rezoning request appears to address that issue by taking the parcel out of the PUD zoning and placing it into the SF 14.5 residential district.
That makes the current request more than simply a proposal for additional homes. It represents an effort to establish a separate residential zoning designation for a portion of the original Jessica Lakes development that was never assigned a specific development use.
Wilderness Road and Surrounding Property
The parcel is located along Wilderness Road, which is a dead-end road.
The property is surrounded by the existing Jessica Lakes PUD as well as property carrying CFA (Commercial Forest Agriculture) zoning. Because the proposed development is only approximately nine homes, the scale is considerably different from the large residential rezonings that have become increasingly common throughout the Conway area.
The road configuration, however, will be an important consideration as the project moves through the subdivision process. Rezoning the property would establish the underlying residential zoning, but it would not by itself constitute final approval of the nine-lot subdivision.
Jessica Lakes
Jessica Lakes is an established residential community in the Conway area, and this rezoning is notable in part because it involves a small remaining piece of land within an already developed neighborhood rather than a large tract being converted from agricultural or undeveloped land into a new master-planned community.
That distinction is important when looking at the continuing growth around Conway.
Much of the area's residential expansion has occurred through large developments involving dozens or hundreds of homes. In this case, the proposed addition is much more limited: approximately 3.2 acres and nine potential homes, effectively filling in a small piece of property that was identified for future development when Jessica Lakes was originally planned.
What Happens Next?
If the rezoning is approved, the applicant would still need to proceed through Horry County’s subdivision and development review process before the nine proposed homes could be constructed.
For now, the important point is that the 3.2-acre parcel remains an undeveloped portion of the Jessica Lakes PUD, and the rezoning request is intended to create the zoning necessary to pursue approximately nine single-family homes on the property.
For those tracking new-home development around Conway, this is a good example of the type of smaller-scale residential development that can emerge within established communities as previously undeveloped or reserved parcels are revisited years after the original neighborhood was planned.