‘We’re not welcome’: Parents, kids upset after Murrells Inlet HOA bans sport-related activities in common areas

MURRELLS INLET, S.C. (WBTW) — Parents in a Murrells Inlet neighborhood are voicing their concerns after their HOA put a halt to sports-related activities in common grassy areas.

The HOA said it’s a liability; parents say the action is stopping their kids from getting outdoors.

The HOA of the Creekhaven neighborhood near Highway 707 decided recently to plant trees in the middle of the largest common area where kids play sports like football.

“It’s just a bunch of 5- to 9-year-olds coming to play,” resident Camila Denshuick said. “There’s nothing organized about it. There is nothing sponsored about it.”

The Creekhaven neighborhood has five grassy common areas, the largest one off of Wind Whisper Circle.

Resident Marty Whitten said he enjoys getting together with other parents and watching his kids have fun.

“The whole environment becomes like this nurturing community for your kids to come up in,” Whitten said. “The parents all get along, and it’s what you always dreamed of honestly when you think of a neighborhood.”

Parents said a handful of HOA members and residents decided to ban kids from using the space for sports-related activities. Some parents were notified through a cease-and-desist letter; others found out while passing by and watching as trees were planted.

“It’s an egregious use of power, I believe,” Denshuick said. “The fact that the HOA can just come out here and say, ‘you’re not using this land, you’re not using this property.'”

News13 reached out to the HOA Monday afternoon and again Tuesday morning for comment but got no response. However, HOA president Jimmy Walsh sent a letter to residents Tuesday afternoon, which residents shared with News13.

The letter said children and their parents had been holding sports scrimmages with music and food. He added that the common areas are not designed nor maintained to be soccer or football fields.

Walsh stated after four failed attempts to talk with parents, the board decided to regulate the area, which it has a right to do.

“Being outside, being in a common area, we are paying for the upkeep of the common area,” resident Karl Eversmeyer said. “We have just as much right as anybody else to be here.”

Parents said the best solution would be to come to a compromise with the board or to take a vote. Many said they would continue to let their kids play, even with trees in place.

“[It] makes us feel, like, really upset because, like, if we can’t play here, it’s like that we’re not welcome,” said Charlotte Messer, a young resident.

* * *

Adrianna Lawrence is a multimedia journalist at News13. Adrianna is originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia, and joined the News13 team in June 2023 after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University in May 2023. Keep up with Adrianna on Instagram, Facebook , and X, formerly Twitter . You can also read more of her work, here .

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBTW.