SC sheriff tells people to stop having sex in public park after years of complaints

It’s a dog park and part of the long textile mill history in Greenville County.

And according to the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, Pelham Mill Park is also a place where people go to have sex.

In a news release issued Monday, the Sheriff’s Office said it had received numerous complaints over a period of years of people having sex in the parking lot, woods and out in the open.

The Sheriff’s Office said it has sent extra patrols and canvassed the area. They have staged undercover operations., but it’s continued for years.

The release said people have been arrested but did not say how many.

“Under no circumstance should a young child or community member who is trying to enjoy a peaceful day at a park have to be exposed to this sort of activity,” Sheriff Hobart Lewis said in the statement.

He described people “blatantly exposing themselves and engaging in illegal sexual activity.”

He has one word for them “Stop.”

He said officers are monitoring apps used for meet-ups.

“There are appropriate places to engage in adult activities and a public place is not that area. We must think about others when we act and I ask the community to be considerate of one another and especially our youth.”

The park, described as a passive park, is operated by Greenville County Parks, Recreation and Tourism and is located near the Highway 14-Interstate 85 interchange near Greenville Spartanburg Airport.

It has a masonry dam left over from when a textile mill operated on the site, which is on the National Register of Historic Places and Greenville County Historic Preservation Commission.

Through the years it was known as Buena Vista Factory, Hutchings Factory and Lester Factory. The mill was a cotton factory from 1820 to 1935.

This story was originally published April 12, 2022 at 5:00 AM.