In March Burroughs and Chapin (B&C) announced that after the summer season, the Pavilion amusement park would close its doors for good. This decision has spawned an outpouring of criticism from citizens who want the Pavilion to remain open. Many online petitions have collected thousands of signatures from people who demand that B&C keep the Pavilion open. Some have even threatened not to return to Myrtle Beach if the Pavilion closes. But I say tear it down; it’s about time.

Please don’t take me as a cynical jerk with no respect for our town’s history. I have plenty of respect for it and look forward to watching the town grow into a thriving metropolis, without the Pavilion. Let’s be honest. The downtown area is horrible. Its streets are filled with drugs, prostitution, and crime at night. It is certainly not the place I would want my family after nine o’clock at night. But why is it so bad?

We need to look at the businesses that operate there: airbrush booths, old time photo booths, t-shirt shops, beach stores, arcades, haunted houses. If that does not spell gypsy galore, I don’t know what does. But why did they set up shop there in the first place?

The answer is the Pavilion. They draw off of the Pavilion’s business. But the Pavilion is only open in the summer time. In the winter, the boulevard becomes a ghost town. There are no stable jobs.

Therefore, if we were to get rid off the Pavilion, we would also get rid of all those ugly shops. The Pavilion, by itself, is decent, if that, but the baggage that comes with it (crime, con men, old time photo booths, The Gay Dolphin) is just not worth it.

Now, imagine cruising down Ocean Blvd. five years from now. On the ocean side there is a five star restaurant and where the Pavilion once stood; there is a one-of-a-kind shopping complex. Gone are all the air brushers and hustlers selling discount tickets. This one change is change for the whole area in a better direction.

Some say that it is a “landmark” and should be kept open like it has been since 1942. People who say this refuse to accept the fact that the only constant is change. If we kept everything how it was in 1942, there would be iPods, high speed internet, or cell phones. The reason I think this town is lame is because it does not progress. It’s run by a bunch of old, rich, fat people who have lived here all their lives and will die here. They refuse to change anything and that is why we lack the culture of towns like Miami or New York.

Another is that the downtown area has “charm.” Call it what you want, but it lacks in the charm department. It’s like “Look how horrible the colors on that building are, honey. It’s charming that someone would pick such awful colors.” It’s not charm; it’s a lack of class.

Then people say, “I have so many memories of all the great rides and times I had there as a kid.” I say good; save them for someone who cares because I don’t. The Pavilion is guilty of the same crimes as the rest of the city: refusing to update for the current time and failure to provide decent service. Let’s be honest. The Pavilion does not have any great rides. You can go to any state fair and find the same rides. B&C has the money to build rides like Six Flags or Disney World but they don’t. Also, I don’t have any great stories to tell about the Pavilion, but one time I did win a picture of Hulk Hogan when the gypsies guessed my birth month wrong.

So, as much as you might hate to think about it, the Pavilion is going away. There is nothing you can do about that. I usually am not a big fan of the “man,” but B&C made the right decision. In a few years when the downtown area is redeveloped and looks all nice and the Hard Rock Park is built, people will look back and wonder why it took so long?