Horry County leaders said "no" Tuesday, March 18, to a trial run for wind-driven shade devices on unincorporated parts of the beach 鈥 but not before an argument ensued among some council members.
Horry County Council voted 9-3 against a one-year trial period for the devices on a second reading Tuesday. Council members Tyler Servant, Dennis DiSabato and Cameron Crawford voted in favor of the trial period.
Local business owners and public safety officials have expressed opposition to the shading devices 鈥 commonly known under the brands Shibumi or Solbello shades 鈥 citing the shades block visibility, take up too much space and are loud.
Councilman Michael Masciarelli said he was against passing the ordinance for a trial period because public safety officials say the shades are unsafe. He said the majority of the council seems to be on the side of public safety officials, and suggested that council members in favor of wind-driven shading devices may be complying with desires of campaign contributors.
Disabato became irate in his response to the accusation, followed by an intense dialogue between the two councilmen while Chairman Johnny Gardner asked them to gain their composure.
鈥淭hat is absolutely out of line, Mikey,鈥 Disabato said. 鈥淕o ahead and look at my campaign contributions and see where they came from, Mikey.鈥
A public hearing was held before the council's Tuesday vote.
Weslyn Lack Chickering with Lack鈥檚 Beach Service, which provides lifeguard services, umbrella and chair rentals in Myrtle Beach, said they are against the trial period of wind-driven shading devices because their size impacts lifeguards visibility, beach patrol鈥檚 route down the beach, and ultimately creates unsafe conditions for their lifeguards and staff to properly monitor beachgoers and swimmers.
She said wind-driven shading devices are not a problem during the off season, but during the tourist season 鈥 Memorial Day through Labor Day 鈥 the presence of wind-driven shades wreaks havoc on their operations in terms of safety of beachgoers, lifeguards and beach patrol.
鈥淥ur lifeguards are the first line of defense and need to be able to see the beachfront,鈥 she said. 鈥淥ur staff is going to be cursed and threatened. It will lead to a major increase in beach patrol calls.鈥
Three Shibumi executives and founders of the company spoke on behalf of the product during Tuesday鈥檚 public hearing.
Shibumi cofounder Dane Barnes said umbrellas have been proven to create unsafe conditions on beaches and Shibumis have no record of doing so since being created. Barnes also said Lack鈥檚 Beach Service is against Shibumi鈥檚 presence only during beach season because they want beach tourists to rent products from their business rather than bring a Shibumi.
鈥淭hey are allowed in the off-season in Myrtle Beach and the city 鈥榯urns a blind eye year-round to them in the Dunes Club area,鈥 Barnes said. 鈥淪urfside Beach and Briarcliffe Acres allow them year-round.鈥
Disabato was the first on the council to say both Shibumi and Lack鈥檚 Beach Service, and other beach service companies, have a financial stake in the outcome, and asked if anyone without a financial impact had an opinion. He also said since the first reading, most calls from county residents consider the wind-driven shade devices to be a nuisance, due to noise, rather than a threat to safety.
Tyler Servant, who represents the Surfside area where Shibumis are allowed, said for the sake of free enterprise and freedom of choice in what products beachgoers wish to use, he is in favor of passing the ordinance to allow a trial period.
Assistant Administrator of Public Safety Randy Webster said based on the information provided by beach patrol, various police departments, and beach service companies, wind-driven shading devices negatively impact public safety and his professional opinion is for the council to vote against the ordinance allowing a year trial period.
Councilwoman Jenna Dukes proposed to amend the ordinance to allow the year trial period, but exempt the tourist season to accommodate the city of Myrtle Beach鈥檚 jurisdiction, which allows the shades in the offseason.
Councilman Danny Hardee had previously pointed out that chaos would ensue on the beach if tourists arrived with a Shibumi in the city of Myrtle Beach and were instructed to take them down, while beachgoers within sight, but in Horry County limits, could have theirs on display.
Duke鈥檚 motion to allow the trial period, but to exempt beach season, was voted against 7-5.
Council then voted down the original ordinance.
Myrtle Beach talks shades
Myrtle Beach's Beach Advisory Committee meeting convened the following day (Wednesday, March 19) to discuss the second reading of the ordinance, and committee members expressed relief over county leaders' decision.
Chickering said she foresees issues with large families creating clusters of umbrellas. While square footage is included in the ordinance for a single shading device, the scenario of umbrella clusters needs to be addressed.
"It's going to become really hard to defend how that is not blocking the view any more than a Shibumi would block the view," Chickering said. "There might be 15-20 people under those umbrellas, you cannot see through them at all and I think that will be our next battle."
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