2025 Legal Settlement FAQs
Overview: Pawleys Inlet Relocation Dispute and Resolution
The Town of Pawleys Island conducted a beach renourishment project from 2019–2020. This project pumped offshore sand onto the public beach to protect homes, infrastructure, and tourism. The placement of sand stretched from the southern tip of Pawleys to beyond the Pawleys Island pier.
Subsequently, the Prince George Community Association, Inc. and certain Prince George homeowners asserted that this renourishment project caused Pawleys Inlet to migrate southward at an accelerated rate and, in turn, caused the beach in front of Prince George properties to erode. Beginning in May 2022, several Prince George owners filed a series of lawsuits against the Town, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC, now the S.C. Department of Environmental Services), the S.C. Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism (PRT), and the renourishment project design engineer and contractor. By mid-2023, the Town faced three active lawsuits.
In late 2024, the Prince George Community Association applied for permits from the Army Corps of Engineers and DHEC to relocate the inlet north by cutting a new 750-foot channel across Pawleys Island’s southern tip and filling the existing inlet with sand.
In July of 2025, a proposed settlement was reached to end the lawsuits. The agreement provides funding of $4 million overall for inlet relocation and beach restoration, with the Town of Pawleys Island contributing $150,000 of this amount. This resolution will allow the permit process and restoration planning to advance, addressing the erosion on Prince George while resolving the legal claims brought against the Town and other parties. Critically, the agreement provides a plan moving forward for the neighboring Pawleys Island and Prince George communities to manage the location of the inlet in an appropriate location. As of December 2025, the Town and all other parties formally approved the settlement, marking the end of active litigation.
Did the Town admit fault in the lawsuit?
No, the lawsuit was settled outside the courts. There was no admission of fault by any party.
So, why did the Town pay $150,000?
In order to settle the dispute, all parties agreed that there needed to be a long-term solution to managing this inlet. The parties included are:
- Prince George Community Association, Inc. and individual Prince George property owners
- Town of Pawleys Island
- SC Department of Environmental Services
- Coastal Science & Engineering, Inc.
- Marinex Construction, Inc.
- SC Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism
The parties also agreed that an Inlet Management Zone (IMZ) needed to be established to have an effective long-term plan. To repair the erosion and relocate the inlet within the new IMZ, a project needs to be engineered and completed. The insurance companies and other parties, not the Town, will pay the vast majority of the project cost. The Town contributed $150,000 to supplement the insurance proceeds to help fund the project.
What will the Town receive in return for the $150,000 it paid?
This settlement ends the lawsuit. No more uncertainty and no more legal fees. It also mitigates the risk and exposure associated with a loss in court.
There will also be no more opposition to future beach renourishments. If the inlet moves outside of the designated IMZ, we have a mutually agreed plan to move it back.
The Town will gain access to sand for periodic renourishments:
- 100,000 cubic yards at any time. How much is that? It is 1/10 of the large scale 2019 project (1.1 million cubic yards), but it is enough to do a material renourishment along the entire stretch of our beach.
- Periodic renourishments will reduce the number of large-scale renourishments we would have to do (offshore dredge and large pipes which are very expensive and intrusive)
- Sand is very expensive–100,000 cubic yards of sand which ranges from $15-$30 per cubic yard. Take the low number — $15 – multiply that by 100,000 — and you get $1.5 MM. That is what the sand it worth each time we go get it. There will be costs associated with permitting, design, and construction work, but by comparison, the cost is much lower and access is much easier logistically.
- The 2019 beach renourishment was very effective. But the sand from offshore was shelly and had clay balls which took time to “even out”. This sand will be ideally beach compatible.
- We did not have access to this sand before, but we will now.
And what’s the plan for the spit?
A new inlet will be cut 800 feet from the south end parking lot and sand from this new cut will be used to repair the eroded beach at Prince George. Then, an Inlet Management Zone will be maintained at the South Spit.
What is an “inlet management zone”?
An “inlet management zone” is simply a defined boundary (north and south) that the inlet must remain within. Once it leaves this “zone”, it needs to be moved back. This IMZ will be established with:
- Northern Boundary: 800 feet south of the south end parking lot.
- Southern Boundary: An additional 750 feet south from the northern boundary.
What happens if the inlet starts to move south past the southern boundary of the IMZ and needs to be moved back within the IMZ?
When the inlet leaves this zone, north or south, there is a written agreement between the parties for how it gets moved back. We believe it is a fair agreement between the 2 communities.
Who is on the hook to pay for that?
Prince George will be responsible for moving the inlet back within the IMZ when it moves past the southern boundary; UNLESS the Town conducts a significant beach renourishment (e.g., involving large scale offshore dredging) and the inlet then moves past the southern boundary within 4 ½ years of completion of the Town’s renourishment project. In that case, the Town would be responsible.
What happens if the inlet moves past the northern boundary of the IMZ?
The Town will be responsible for moving the inlet back within the IMZ if it moves past the northern boundary.
Will the relocated inlet be reinforced with riprap or other “armoring” to keep it from migrating again?
No, the inlet will not be reinforced with riprap. Coastal inlets like Pawleys Inlet generally do not use hard stabilization measures like riprap because South Carolina state regulations generally prohibit their use on active beaches. This is due to a conscious decision to allow the inlet to migrate naturally for environmental preservation and effective beach management. South Carolina’s Coastal Zone Management Act generally discourages or prohibits hard erosion control devices like seawalls, bulkheads, and riprap on beachfronts because they often increase vulnerability to storm damage and contribute to the loss of the dry sand beach. Instead of fighting nature with hard armor, the management strategy for the area involves allowing the inlet to migrate naturally within a designated conservation zone. This managed migration approach aims to balance the need for coastal protection with the preservation of a dynamic, naturally functioning ecosystem.
Where is the IMZ located?
The Pawleys Island spit from the south end of the parking lot to the south end of the island is being subdivided in order to create the IMZ. The IMZ begins 800’ south of the parking lot and extends to the southern end of the island. The IMZ area, in which the inlet will be maintained, is 750’ in length. As part of the settlement, the Town is obtaining an express easement for public use of the IMZ on Pawleys Island. The portion of the spit between the parking lot and the IMZ remains in separate ownership.
The new, longer beach spit formed by the accretion is a benefit to the public. Why is it being taken away?
The relocation of the inlet will be near the historical location over the last several decades. At one point, the inlet was just south of the parking lot with very little additional beach. This spit has always been subject to mother nature. But to protect both communities, we’ve established this IMZ to ensure both communities can enjoy this area. The agreement will also protect the ability of the Town to maintain and renourish the rest of its beach without objections from the Prince George Community Association, because Prince George will know that there is a plan in place to relocate the inlet if it ever moves south of the IMZ after a Town renourishment project.
What will the new distance be between the South end parking lot and the new inlet?
800’ (approximately 3 football fields)
How far can the inlet move either way before it has to be moved back?
Once the inlet crosses either boundary of the IMZ, plans must be implemented to move it back to the northernmost boundary.
When will this work take place?
Prince George will manage the relocation of the inlet, which involves numerous activities including permitting and sand relocation. Current plans are to complete the work in the 1st quarter of 2026 before turtle season begins.