Jessica Wnuk went on local TV assuring residents of the Waterside Residential community that the Grand Strand animal shelter was taking great steps to ensure noise issues caused by their animals would not affect the residents’ quality of life.
The Grand Strand animal shelter desires to locate in Waterside as a result of land given to the not for profit by Santee Cooper. Waterside is just west of the Myrtle Beach International Airport.
The matter is now headed to state lawmakers for approval over resident objections.
Deal cut by Senator Rankin, who heads the Public Utility Review Committee which oversees Santee Cooper
Lindsay Bonds Rankin, wife of powerful Horry Senator Luke Rankin, heads the board of the Grand Strand Humane Society.
A letter obtained by MyrtleBeachSC News to Santee Cooper C.E.O. Jimmy Staton exposes Senator Rankin’s extended involvement in the land grant. Waterside Residents say that the transaction reeks of impropriety. MyrtleBeachSC News published that letter and the corresponding details on March 8th.
Controversy surrounds Grand Strand animal shelter deal
The letter begins:
Dear Mr. Staton,
After a meticulous review and receipt of documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, it has become glaringly obvious that the land transaction in question is not just potentially unethical but a blatant display of conflicts of interest, collusion, and favoritism within Santee Cooper’s leadership.
The evidence provided by the FOIA documents leaves no room for doubt: this transaction reeks of impropriety. Specifically, Vice Chairman David Singleton’s actions, as detailed in the FOIA documents, paint a disturbing picture of favoritism and magnify this blatant conflict of interest.
Director Singleton’s willingness to help bend rules and offer preferential treatment to Mrs. Lindsey Rankin’s non-profit organization, the Grand Strand Humane Society (GSHS), is deeply troubling. His admitted friendship with the Rankin’s, in addition to an undisclosed (in FOIA) business partnership with Senator Luke Rankin, create an undeniable, massive conflict of interest that taints the entire transaction.
READ THE ENTIRE LETTER WITH EXHIBITS HERE
It is unclear whether the residents decide to sue the utility, Senator Rankin, and the Grand Strand Humane Society as of this publishing. Much will depend on what S.C. state lawmakers (who oversee Santee Cooper) decide.
The Santee Cooper utility has been surrounded by controversy since the utility lost $9 billion in a failed nuclear power facility approved by Rankin and other legislators.
The Grand Strand animal shelter also continues to swirl in controversy after experimenting on a Chinese manufactured cat drug not approved by the FDA. Multiple cats died after being injected by the drug. Afterwards, key board members left the organization.