Petition to Remove Nuisance Alligator from Parmelee Pond

The undersigned owners at Parmelee Townhomes in Murrells Inlet request that our HOA instruct Waccamaw Management representives to contact the SC Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and obtain a free permit to remove the sizable nuisance alligator from the Parmelee pond. The reasons for our request are:

  • The alligator is estimated by a licensed SC trapper to be 5 to 6 feet long, large enough to inflict considerable harm.
  • The alligator is a nuisance and potential danger to residents, visitors, small children in particular, pets, and pond swans.
  • Waccamaw Management representatives have failed to advise residents to stop feeding pond waterfowl and turtles. As a result, a number of residents and guests openly feed the pond wildlife and some even throw food into the pond. Such behavior is known to cause alligators to begin associating people with food, thereby losing their natural fear of humans and becoming more aggressive towards them.
  • The back patios of townhomes along the pond are on average 15 to 20 feet from the water's edge, which puts residents and pets in these units at special risk. SC Parks advises people to keep at least 15 feet from an alligator, while the Brazos Bend State Park in Texas recommends they keep at least 30 feet away because an alligator can outrun any human for that distance.
  • Waccamaw Management representatives have incorrectly informed owners that an alligator must be at least 6 feet in length and/or act agressively to legally qualify for a SC permit for removal. According to Dean Cain of the Department of Natural Resources who issues permits for the Charlestown area that includes Horry County, he will issue a permit to our HOA if a Waccamaw Managment representative contacts him and states there is a nuisance alligator in our community that should be removed.
  • All owners have a legal right to the peaceful use and enjoyment of their property. The inaction of our developer controlled HOA and Waccamaw Management representatives on the nuisance alligator issue has interferred with this owner right. Many residents, especially those living along the pond, have become fearful and feel they cannot safely go into their own backyard at night, allow pets in the backyards and rear patios, and are at risk when taking raw meat outside for grilling.

In sum, we want the alligator removed from the Parmelee pond as soon as possible, and there is no justifiable reason not to do so.

Photo by owner Blaine Feighter