Beaufort business owner plans exotic-animal exhibition, despite citation

As the owner of Beaufort Liquidation awaits his day in court over displaying lions and tigers at his business, he has announced yet another animal attraction: an exotic animal expo scheduled for Mother's Day weekend.

Unlike the guided tours owner Jeff Lowe offers of his big cats' enclosures at his U.S. 21 flea market, he now plans to charge a $15 admission fee. The expo will feature vendors with small mammals, reptiles, fish and other exotic pets.

Lowe was cited April 14 for allegedly violating a zoning permit by displaying more than a dozen big cats at his business, according to court records. He is scheduled to appear in court April 30, Beaufort County attorney Joshua Gruber said.

If a judge agrees, the county would likely seek a court order demanding Lowe stop showing the big cats, Gruber said, since the business owner has said fines of up to $2,000 a day will not deter him from displaying his pets.

If Lowe violated the court order, he could be held in contempt of court, Gruber said.

The planned exotic animal expo will be the first such event for Beaufort Liquidation, and the first in which Lowe plans to charge admission.

Gruber said he believes Lowe is well within his rights to host an expo, but said the $15 charge to attendees would likely violate the zoning of the 5 Parker Drive location.

"Displaying animals and charging people for it, that's the definition of a zoo," Gruber said.

Lowe says he disagrees, citing similar expos throughout the region, such as Repticon Greenville on May 2 and 3, that charge admission.

He began planning his event two months ago after a Savannah reptile vendor approached him. He said he does not know how many vendors his event will have.

On Wednesday morning, Lowe claimed his county code dispute had been resolved by his attorney, Thomas Goldstein of Charleston, last week.

Attempts to reach Goldstein were unsuccessful, and Gruber said no attorney for Lowe had contacted him.

On Wednesday afternoon, Lowe said he did not accept Gruber's authority as county attorney, adding he was prepared to go to court and face fines for the right to continue his operation.

"They're not going to keep me from showing these animals to whoever I want, and there's no judge that's going to be able to support that restriction on my private property," he said.

This story was originally published April 22, 2015 at 9:45 PM with the headline "Beaufort business owner plans exotic-animal exhibition, despite citation."