Court decision on Isle of Palms Tidal Wave Water Sports

isseyfarran onkworksAugust 10, 2021

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ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCSC) – Isle of Palms spokesperson Desiree Fragoso says a magistrate court judge ruled on the city’s motion for summary judgment today in the city’s favor regarding the Tidal Wave Water Sports lease.

On April 23, 2019, city council voted to notify Tidal Wave Water Sports that the city was not renewing their lease or exercising the city’s renewal option. Fragoso says the city sent, and Tidalwave timely received, a written notice of council’s decision as required by the lease.

She added that the Tidal Wave Water Sports lease expired on Sept. 30, 2020. Therefore, she says the city began an eviction process to remove them from the city’s marina.

Last September, about 100 people showed up at the marina advocating for Tidal Wave Watersports. The owner, Michael Fiem, claims they still have two, five year terms left on their lease. Tidal Wave is also now operating jet skis out of their downtown location on Immigration Street.

Following Friday’s ruling, Fragoso says the business does not have the city’s permission to be on the premises because their lease with the city expired last Fall. Per Fragoso, on Aug. 6, 2021, the magistrate court ruled with the Isle of Palms that the city complied with the lease and gave Tidalwave proper notice that the lease was not being renewed.

City council voted last year to convert the dock occupied by the holdover tenant into a public dock for kayak and paddleboard launching and to enhance public access to the water in the city-owned marina.