Horse owners discouraged by Myrtle Beach decision to ban horses from the beach year round

Horse owners entering Myrtle Beach State Park for a ride along the beach can no longer head north into Myrtle Beach city limits without fear of getting a ticket.

City management last week said it would begin enforcing city code updated in 2011 when the animal control ordinance was rewritten. Myrtle Beach city spokesman Mark Kruea said while a previous resolution had allowed horseback riding on the beach during winter months, the existing code does not allow the animals on the public beach without a special event permit.

“City code prohibits horses on the beach except for special events,” Kruea said. “Council previously (1998) had approved a resolution allowing horseback riding on the beach, subject to certain restrictions, from the third Saturday in November until the end of February. With the updated code, that resolution was no longer effective… Bottom line, the previous permission for horses on the beach during the winter months had been overtaken by the updated code.”

While Kruea said there was no recent council action on the matter, the city manager decided to begin enforcement as of Jan. 22 due to complaints about horse manure on the beach.

Horseback riding on the beach is already prohibited in Surfside Beach and in Georgetown. Riders going through Myrtle Beach State Park will have only the 3-mile stretch of beach to ride in front of the park that stretches between the Surfside Beach city limits and the Myrtle Beach city limits.

S.C. Parks, Recreation and Tourism (SCPRT) Director of Corporate Communications Dawn Dawson-House said Monday it would be next year before the park can determine what effect the code enforcement has on traffic to the park.

“We think it is such a premium experience that even with the new city rules in place that shortens the length of the ride, we’ll have people come into the park to ride during the season,” she said.

Horse owners entering the park to ride during the winter months must purchase a $75 season permit per trailer and pay $25 per horse plus the park entry fee. Dawson-House said the change will not affect park operations and time will tell if it affects the experience.

As word of the enforcement began to circulate last week primarily through social media, horse owners began to express their concerns, especially those who own businesses that bring tourism into town.

Richard “Buster” Ray, owner of Horseback Riding in Myrtle Beach LLC, advertises horse rides on the beach during the winter months. He said he generally takes his clients south out of the park but he feels strongly that places to participate in this “good, wholesome, family activity” are being taken away.

“It is fading and it’s a shame,” he said of an activity that draws thousands of horse enthusiasts to the beach annually.

“I’ve ridden [with] more than 70,000 people in the last 10 years. A lot of them come with their own horses. That’s revenue,” Ray said. “We’re the most photographed people in the winter when riding down the beach. I’d say 90 percent of the people love to see horses coming down that beach.”

Lorraine Weckerle who owns five rescue horses heard about the change while riding in the park on Sunday.

“It is just really upsetting,” Weckerle said. “I’ve been doing this for years. It’s hard enough we can’t go to Georgetown. I just feel like they are pushing us out totally and I want to know what is triggering this.”

Weckerle, who rides every Sunday on her one day off and often with her grandchildren, said she was one of about 50 horseback riders on the beach Sunday.

“I understood why Georgetown and Surfside Beach don’t let us ride on the beach because there are a lot of homeowners on the ocean, but in Myrtle Beach it is all hotels,” she said. “I ride in the water. The ocean is free. ... This is working class people and it brings joy to the community.”

Kruea said while it is true no one owns the ocean, the city does have responsibility for the offshore waters and can regulate activities in the water.

The decision to make the change now, rather than wait until the end of February this year, was based, Kruea said, on the number of complaints from residents and visitors.

“The major complaint is the horse manure. I understand there is a biological difference between horse manure and dog excrement but beach goers are not happy about it and it doesn’t mean it is not an unsightly, smelly mess. It still generates a lot of complaints,” he said.

“We realize this is a change,” he said. “We wanted this change to be known rather than us writing tickets.”

Riding into the city limits now would be a misdemeanor, which carries a fine of up to $500 and/or 30 days in jail. Kruea said a number of riders were turned away at the city limits — which start just north of Springmaid Beach Pier — this weekend.

“As far as I know, all complied without incident. We didn’t have to write any tickets, to my knowledge,” he said.

City Council member Michael Chestnut said Monday that anyone discouraged by this change would be welcome to come speak to City Council.

“I would definitely be willing to entertain any type of proposal,” he said. “It’s so slow this time of year. It’s not during the summer; it’s the offseason. I don’t have a problem with [riding]. It’s the cleanup that is the problem.”

At last Tuesday’s meeting, City Council approved a special event permit request that would allow the American Heart Association to conduct its annual Ride-A-Thon on the beach in November. A riding event can be requested via a special event permit, which requires City Council action.

Kruea said as calls come in from concerned horse enthusiasts; the city is clarifying the city code.

This story was originally published February 3, 2016 at 2:00 AM with the headline "Horse owners discouraged by Myrtle Beach decision to ban horses from the beach year round."