A principal reason that the Town held the town hall on sidewalks last week was its interest in applying for a grant this month from the Dare County Tourism Board to help fund a sidewalk project. Indeed, it was during a discussion about this grant with Town Manager Cliff Ogburn at its August meeting that the Town Council had the idea for the town hall.
(The Town Council meets in September this Tuesday (9/5) at 5:30 p.m. in the Pitts Center. See the meeting agenda and business highlights, below.)
We do not believe that the Mayor, the Town Manager, and the other three Council members who attended the town hall expected to receive the negative reaction they did. (See The Beacon, 8/30/23, “Residents Resoundingly Reject More Sidewalks in Southern Shores.” Town Councilman Leo Holland could not attend.) Opponents turned out in force.
Among the objections to sidewalks cited by speakers were the following:
*Destruction of the natural environment, especially the trees and canopy.
*Damage to the aesthetics of tree-lined streets, neighborhood charm.
*Flooding caused by impervious concrete of 5-foot-wide, six-inch-deep sidewalks.
*Cost of building and maintaining sidewalks.
*Loss/encroachment of people’s front yards (although people recognize that the Town owns the public right of way).
*An inducement for drivers to drive faster because pedestrians are no longer in the roadway.
*Absence of proof that a major safety issue exists now.
Daphne Porter of Sea Oats Trail asked the Town to “take care of what we already have,” and Tony DiBernardo of Ninth Avenue spoke of maintaining the “founders’ plan,” which is reflected in the Town’s current Comprehensive CAMA Land Use Plan (LUP) and in the newly revised draft LUP.
The new Community Vision Statement states, in part, that “We strive to protect Southern Shores’ environment.”
Ken Sengel of Sea Oats Trail said he is “totally against having sidewalks,” and a homeowner on Skyline Road compared installing sidewalks on his street to “putting lipstick on a pig.”
The Town does not currently have a master plan for constructing sidewalks along well-traveled streets, including on the weekend traffic cut-thru route, according to Mr. Ogburn at the town hall. But the “priority list for future path segments” posted online by the Town in advance of the event—a list that was promoted as the focus of the forum—certainly suggests it does.
Mayor Elizabeth Morey has said at Council meetings that she favors “walking paths” and considers their construction a priority of the current Council, which prepared the list of 12 “future path segments” at its March 2022 retreat. (The first sidewalk project, along the east side of N.C. 12/Duck Road from Triangle Park to East Dogwood Trail, is already in progress.)
Residents and homeowners received a paper handout of this list at the town hall. They were asked to rank their “top 5” sidewalk projects, in order of priority, and to list “other segments of pedestrian improvements you feel are important and include those in your ranking.” The handout shows the “current rank” of priority assigned by the Town to a segment, with sections of the cut-thru route along Hickory Trail, Hillcrest Drive, and Sea Oats Trail receiving high rankings.
(You will find a blank priority listing form at: https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/sites/default/files/fileattachments/town_council/page/3066/path_plan_blank_form.pdf.)
The deadline for submitting a Dare County “Tourism Impact” grant application to the Tourism Board is the end of this month, according to Mr. Ogburn.
The Mayor and Town Manager have asked residents/homeowners to submit their priority sidewalk segments ranking handouts to the Town by Sept. 15.
In light of the irony (futility?) inherent in asking people who are opposed to sidewalks to submit a list of priority rankings for their construction, we do not see much value in this community survey. We suggest that people advise the Mayor and Town Council of their opinions by emailing them at council@southernshores-nc.gov. The Council members may be reached individually by writing to emorey@, mneal@, psherlock@, lholland@, and mbatenic@southernshores-nc.gov. Mr. Ogburn may be emailed at cogburn@southernshores-nc.gov.
We doubt the Mayor, Town Manager, and Town Council will engage in a lengthy discussion at its Tuesday meeting about the town hall. We expect the Dare County Tourism Impact grant to be the emphasis of Mr. Ogburn’s update on paths/sidewalks.
OF OTHER INTEREST AT THE TOWN COUNCIL MEETING
See the Sept. 5 Town Council meeting agenda and packet here: https://mccmeetings.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/soshoresnc-pubu/MEET-Packet-47132040ecd1411ea7817de67b905735.pdf.
Andrea Radford of Stewart Inc., the engineering, design, and planning firm hired by the Town to update its Comprehensive CAMA Land Use Plan, will present the most recent draft of the revised LUP to the Town Council and take members’ questions. The Council is expected to vote to refer the draft LUP, which is dated Sept. 1, to the N.C. Division of Coastal Management for review and comment, the next step in the update process.
Southern Shores Deputy Chief of Police Jonathan M. Slegel will give a presentation about active shooter training at the Town Council meeting, while Officer Jason M. Thompson will give a presentation/demonstration called “Project Lifesaver.”
Town Attorney Phil Hornthal, or another attorney from his law firm, will discuss “property acquisition action items” for the Town’s purchase of 13 Skyline Road.
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NOTE ABOUT COVERAGE: September is a very busy month for The Beacon, and we are unsure how much coverage we will give Town news this month, including any news that comes out of Tuesday’s meeting. Please bear with us. We plan to cover the Planning Board meeting on Sept. 18 and to monitor Town Council election campaigns. Thank you.
Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 9/3/23
The Southern Shores Beacon 