Dredging contractor Weeks Marine will finish the job on the northern beaches of Southern Shores in March when it returns for the Duck beach nourishment project, according to Town Manager Cliff Ogburn who reported the “good news” at the Town Council meeting last night.
Weeks will place an additional 37,500 cubic feet of sand on the beaches north of 5th Avenue, Mr. Ogburn said, a deposit that ensures the area receives the agreed-upon 22 cubic yards of sand per linear foot to meet the goal of creating a “sufficiently wide useable beach.”
In a Nov. 30 meeting with Ken Willson of Coastal Protection Engineering, who managed the project for all of the Dare County towns, and representatives from Weeks Marine, it was revealed that the northern Southern Shores beaches only received 13 cubic yards of sand per linear foot.
Mr. Ogburn promised at the Town Council’s Dec. 6 meeting that “I’m going to do everything I can do make sure we get what we should have gotten, and that there’s a remedy to this.”
(The Town Manager identified 5th Avenue as the dividing line between the northern section of the beaches and the central section, whereas Mr. Willson cited 4th Avenue. In past beach surveys, 3rd Avenue has served as a cut-off line.
(It has been known for years that the northern section has a better beach profile, with a more-than-adequate volume of sand, than the sections south of it—regardless of what the visible beach looks like. There was considerable discussion among the Council members who approved the project about omitting this area.)
Mayor Pro Tem Matt Neal praised the Town Manager last night for his persistent, round-the-clock effort in the past month to promote the resolution—which was reached among Weeks Marine, CPE, and Dare County—and Mr. Ogburn, in turn, credited Mr. Neal and Mayor Elizabeth Morey with doing the “heavy lifting” to “mak[e] sure that we were made whole.”
“It took a team effort,” the Mayor modestly said, adding that anyone who has any “follow-up questions” about what is to happen should email Mr. Ogburn, Mr. Neal, or herself.
The remediation effort in March will be done without further cost, Mr. Ogburn said.
The Beacon congratulates and thanks all those involved in bringing about this swift and equitable resolution.
(For background on the beach nourishment shortfall, see The Beacon, 11/28/22, 11/30/22, 12/1/22, and 12/30/22.)
IN OTHER ACTION, the Town Council, as expected, unanimously approved 1) the special use permit application submitted by the engineering firm tasked with building a new EMS/fire station at 28 East Dogwood Trail and 2) the Town Code Amendment (22-04) that adds a section on conflicts of interest (COI) to the Code. (See The Beacon, 12/30/22, for background.)
The language of the COI ordinance, which will be codified as section 1-13, is the same language as currently appears in the N.C. General Statutes, Deputy Town Manager/Planning Director Wes Haskett confirmed last night. In past instances of suggested conflicts, former Town Attorney Ben Gallop relied on this State language to make decisions. Although the Town has not had its own ordinance, it has not been without legal guidance.
LAND USE PLAN UPDATE SURVEY: We remind you again that if you have not yet completed the Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA) Land Use Plan update public survey, you have until Friday to do so. You will find the survey at https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/planning/page/land-use-plan-update-public-survey. Your views on future planning in Southern Shores are vital to preserving the environment that we have, as well as improving it.
The survey is also accessible by clicking on a link at the top of the Town website home page. As long as the Christmas tree disposal link is at the top, however, you will have to click on the right arrow to advance to the survey link.
According to Mr. Haskett, as of yesterday, only 354 people had completed the survey, which is open to people who live or work in Southern Shores, full- or part-time; all property owners; “frequent or long-term” visitors who do not live here, but would like to; and people who otherwise “relate” to the town.
According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the year-round population of Southern Shores is 3,107.
Asked by Mayor Morey whether Friday’s deadline was a firm one that could not be changed, Mr. Haskett indicated it was. (We would not be surprised if it were extended.)
For background on the Town land use plan, the plan update process, and the public survey, see The Beacon, 11/12/22, 12/7/22, and 12/9/22.
We will try to provide more details about last night’s meeting, which lasted about 80 minutes, on the weekend. You may view the meeting videotape at https://www.youtube.com/@SouthernShores/streams.
2022 was the year of beach nourishment in Southern Shores. Will the Town Manager tell us at Tuesday’s meeting more than we already know about what went wrong with the project and how it will be fixed?
The Southern Shores Town Council will meet next Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. for what its agenda suggests will be a light business meeting, with the Town Manager’s update on the beach nourishment project being the item of most interest to residents and property owners.
Although there are two public hearings scheduled, they concern matters that The Beacon would characterize as perfunctory and likely to be approved unanimously by the Council.
We regret that we will be unable to attend Tuesday’s meeting, but we will live-stream it and report on highlights as soon as possible.
BEACH NOURISHMENT
It has been a month since the Town’s beach nourishment program manager and coastal engineer, Ken Willson of Coastal Protection Engineering (CPE), acknowledged at a public meeting that dredging contractor Weeks Marine “over-filled” the Southern Shores beaches south of 4th Avenue with more sand than they needed, and, as a result, under-filled the beaches north of 4th Avenue.
While Weeks Marine and CPE delivered the contractually agreed-upon 894,000 cubic yards of sand per linear foot to the Southern Shores oceanfront, Mr. Willson said at a Nov. 30 meeting, that volume was not distributed as the Town expected it to be. Instead, too much sand was deposited on the southern beaches, leaving the northern beaches short of volume.
The beaches north of 4th Avenue were to receive 22 cubic yards of sand per linear foot, Mr. Willson informed an active in-person and Zoon audience that attended the meeting a month ago.
In fact, he clarified in response to a homeowner’s question, those beaches only received 13 cubic yards of sand per linear foot—which was deposited over a three-day period, from Nov. 20-22.
The speed with which the dredging occurred caused alarm among northern Southern Shores property owners, who posted comments on the social media site, Nextdoor, expressing their concern. (See The Beacon, 11/28/22, 11/30/22, and 12/1/22 for background.)
The Nextdoor commenters essentially “broke the story” of this project failing.
While Town Manager Cliff Ogburn showed empathy for property owners in remarks he made at the Dec. 6 Town Council meeting about the nourishment project, he did not detail any facts about the sand shortfall on the northern beaches nor did Mayor Elizabeth Morey or any other member of the Town Council address what happened.
Anyone who attended or viewed the Council meeting without having read The Beacon or attended/viewed the Nov. 30 meeting would not have known what was going on.
According to Mr. Willson on Nov. 30, a “significant discrepancy” occurred between a survey of the beach that was performed in 2021 for design purposes and an August 2022 survey of the beach that was performed before construction began. Conditions of the beach changed, as they so often (and predictably) do. But the project design did not change to accommodate this “discrepancy.” No adjustments were made. Weeks Marine operated with a “template”— as Mr. Willson called it—for construction that was appropriate for the 2021 beach, but not for the August 2022 beach.
CPE was “in discussions” with Weeks Marine about how to address the shortfall in the northern beaches, he said a month ago.
About a week later, Mr. Ogburn replied in response to public comments at the Council’s December meeting: “I understand completely the accountability that the Town has to the taxpayers and to those in the MSDs, but at this time . . . we’ve got questions that we need to get answered.
“It’s a complicated process,” he continued. “There’s a lot of contracts associated with this. There are a lot of missing pieces, and so we’ve got some work to do, and I want to promise you that I’m going to do everything I can do make sure we get what we should have gotten, and that there’s a remedy to this.”
Mr. Ogburn concluded by saying that he will meet with representatives from Weeks Marine and CPE this week [by Dec. 9] “so we can start those discussions.”
The Beacon believes it is time for the Town Manager and the Town Council to provide some answers to Town property owners about what actions will be taken—or, at least, what actions are being considered— to remedy the contract breach.
While we appreciate that negotiations can be sensitive and some communications should remain confidential, we strongly believe that the public has a right to know the status of discussions among the parties to date and the direction the Town, whose interests are being represented by Dare County, is pursuing.
A month ago, Mayor Morey said about the dredging shortfall, “We’re not going to be satisfied until we’re satisfied.”
It is time for the Mayor to elaborate upon actions by Weeks Marine and CPE that would satisfy the Town and whether any steps have been taken toward arriving at that satisfaction.
TWO PUBLIC HEARINGS
In addition to holding a public hearing Tuesday on a special use permit application submitted by the engineering firm tasked with building a new EMS/fire station on East Dogwood Trail, the Town Council will hold a hearing on a proposed Town Code Amendment (22-04) that would add a section on conflicts of interest (COI) to the Code.
The new COI ordinance is a requirement of the N.C. General Assembly. We discuss it below.
For the first hearing, we refer you to the meeting packet for the site plans submitted by engineering firm, Timmons Group, on behalf of Fire Service Real Estate, Inc., for a proposed 8,756-square-foot station. Fire Service is the owner of the property at 28 E. Dogwood Trail. Dare County EMS shares the current facility with the SSFVD.
The new station is part of an ambitious $18.8 million renovation/new construction project by Dare County to improve its eight EMS facilities.
According to the Southern Shores Town Code, fire stations are a permitted use in the R-1, low-density residential district in which the East Dogwood Trail property is located. For a station to be built in R-1, however, the Town Council must grant a special use permit, imposing conditions as it deems appropriate—after the Town Planning Board has first recommended approval.
Both the Town staff and the Planning Board have recommended conditional approval of the Timmons Group’s application, according to Deputy Town Manager/Planning Director Wes Haskett’s summary in the meeting agenda packet. Among the conditions recommended by the Planning Board is the submission of a light plan with Timmons’s application for building and zoning permits; no lights are shown on the plans filed with the special use permit application.
Another Planning Board condition that restricts the number of wall signs at the new station to two, not to exceed 64 square feet, has already been satisfied by Timmons.
The proposed conflicts of interest ordinance, which would be codified at section 1-13 of the Town Code, addresses participation by Town Council members; members of appointed boards, such as the Planning Board/Board of Adjustment; and Town administrative staff in decision-making on development and zoning matters.
The language of TCA 22-04 derives from N.C. General Statutes Chapter 160D, the Local Planning and Development Regulation, which consolidated and clarified development regulations for municipalities and counties and took effect in 2021. We quote TCA 22-04, in pertinent part, below:
“Town council: A town council member shall not vote on any legislative decision regarding a development regulation adopted pursuant to this Town Code where the outcome of the matter being considered is reasonably likely to have a direct, substantial, and readily identifiable financial impact on the member. A town council member shall not vote on any zoning amendment if the landowner of the property subject to a rezoning petition or the applicant for a text amendment is a person with whom the member has a close familial, business, or other associational relationship.”
Proposed sections on “appointed boards” and “administrative staff” use similar COI language.
Another section on “quasi-judicial decisions,” which the Town Board of Adjustment makes, specifies that:
“A member of any board exercising quasi-judicial functions . . . shall not participate in or vote on any quasi-judicial matter in a manner that would violate affected persons’ constitutional rights to an impartial decision maker. Impermissible violations of due process include, but are not limited to, a member having a fixed opinion prior to hearing the matter that is not susceptible to change, undisclosed ex parte communications a close familial, business, or other associational relationship with an affected person, or a financial interest in the outcome of the matter.”
Although the proposed ordinance defines what constitutes a “close familial relationship,” by listing relatives, such as spouse, parent, child, etc., it does not define a “business” or “associational” relationship. We view this as a major omission, especially in regard to what constitutes an “associational” relationship.
The survey is also accessible by clicking on a link at the top of the Town website home page. As long as the holiday information link is at the top, however, you will have to click on the right arrow to advance to the survey link.
For background on the Town land use plan, the plan update process, and the public survey, see The Beacon, 11/12/22, 12/7/22, and 12/9/22.
It appears from the update process timeline graphic on the Town website that survey results will be compiled by Jan. 18 and draft recommendations for the Land Use Plan will be completed by Feb. 20.
We find the timeline chart very burdensome to use—its enlargement is fleeting—and would prefer to have a written-word schedule of update task deadlines.
CHRISTMAS TREE DISPOSAL
We conclude our last post of 2022 with a reminder that you may place a Christmas tree, cleared of all decorations, in the Town right-of-way for pickup during the regular sector-based limb and branch collection. Wreaths will not be collected.
Collection this week is supposed to be occurring in sector four, which includes addresses on Duck Road and streets generally north of the Duck Road split, but east of Sea Oats Trail. Wax Myrtle Trail is in sector three.
You also may recycle your tree by disposing of it at the Hillcrest Beach parking lot. Trees collected from the site will be used as sand fencing to help rebuild and stabilize dunes on the beach.
ANOTHER YEAR
Monday, Jan. 2, may be a national holiday, but Bay Disposal will pick up the garbage. You gotta love that. Its consistency takes the guesswork out of our rollouts.
Happy New Year, everyone. Peace, joy, and good health to all.
Santa Claus is coming to town Sunday in a brand-new fire truck and will be making his rounds for two hours, starting at 1 p.m., if the weather permits.
Santa’s parade, which is sponsored by the SSCA, will start at the Southern Shores Fire Dept. station on South Dogwood Trail and then travel to stops at Sea Oats Park, the Hillcrest Beach parking lot, the Chicahauk Trail parking lot, and the Kitty Hawk Elementary School, before moving on to Martin’s Point. Children and their parents may wish to wait for Old St. Nick’s arrival at one of these locations.
In other holiday news, Southern Shores town offices will be closed Friday, Dec. 23, Monday, Dec. 26, and Tuesday, Dec. 27. Trash and recycling will be picked up on the usual days. (Dec. 26th is a federal holiday.)
Christmas trees cleared of all decorations may be placed in the Town right-of-way for pickup during the regular limb and branch collection, according to sectors. Wreaths will not be collected.
The Southern Shores Land Use Plan Update public survey—which is open to anyone who would like to live in Southern Shores “in the future” or simply has heard of the town—is now online and may be accessed here:
The Town’s first Land Use Plan was locally drafted and approved by the State of North Carolina in 1980. Since then, there have been four updates of the plan, the latest one occurring in 2008, even though the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission did not certify it until 2012.
At no time during any of the previous updates was the public workshop/meeting/survey/other method of soliciting community opinions and perspective open to people who do not live in Southern Shores, but “would like to in the future,” as this survey is. One need have no familiarity with Southern Shores in order to submit answers to the questions in this survey. One need only “relate” to the town.
To wit, the first question of the survey is “How do you relate to Southern Shores?” The answers offered are:
*Live here full-time
*Live here part-time
*Work here
*Own property here
*Business owner
*Frequent or long-term visitor, but not a resident
*I don’t live in Southern Shores, but would like to in the future
*Other (Such as I’ve passed through town before? I’ve heard of the town? I live in Kitty Hawk and have a beef with Southern Shores?)
(The lack of parallel structure in the answers to all of the survey questions drives us crazy, but we imagine our grammatical cringing makes us old school. Just stick with the verbs.)
The next question asks how long one has “lived, worked, or owned property or a business” in Southern Shores. In the event one has done none of the above, there is the catch-all response: “Not applicable.”
We wonder how respondents who have no familiarity or history with the town can respond to the next questions posed by the survey about the relevancy and achievement of goals identified in the last land use plan. Is the point of these questions to suggest that some of yesteryear’s goals are no longer relevant in today’s Southern Shores?
The survey also asks one to prioritize goals and concerns that the survey identifies as such. If you would like to know where these goals and concerns came from, we suggest you watch the videotape of the Nov. 15 roundtable discussion that planning consultant Jay McLeod of Stewart moderated with members of the Town Council and Planning Board.
(For background on the land use plan update process, see The Beacon, 11/12/22, 12/7/22.)
The idea of constructing a community or civic center in town—on what land?, you may justifiably wonder—came from Planning Board chairperson Andy Ward. This idea has been kicked around in the past and been rejected because of space/location issues. More than 25 years ago, there was a movement to develop the SSCA land on which the Sea Oats Park is now located into a community center/swimming pool/recreational area. No one who lived anywhere near that property supported the idea.
We forget who brought up increasing the boat slips at the marinas, but it was someone at the Nov. 15 roundtable who is associated with the Boat Club. Is this truly a pressing concern for anyone?
We have issues with the content and phrasing of the questions that ask one to prioritize goals and concerns, but we will not get out our fine-toothed comb now. We do wonder, however, how we’re going to change land-use policy to improve “access to healthcare” and what exactly the concern is about short-term rentals. The vacation rental business is Southern Shores’ economy. Is the concern here actually Airbnb rentals? If so, say so.
Interestingly, the two words that you will not see in the questions about the goals and concerns of Southern Shores land-use growth and development are “low density,” which are the defining words in zoning that have set Southern Shores apart from other Dare County towns. But you will read about “housing affordability and availability,” twice.
The survey poses some open-ended questions, which we favor, about what the responder values the most about Southern Shores and what he/she thinks are the most important issues facing the town in the next five, 10, or 20 years.
The chicken question also made the survey, although we fail to see how the keeping of chickens by residents has anything to do with land use and the preservation of natural resources.
A concluding question asks how “willing” the responder is to being “inconvenienced by attempts to mitigate summer traffic”: The choices are very willing; willing; somewhat willing; and not willing.
We see Mayor Elizabeth Morey’s handiwork here.
This is another political question, like the chickens. Any question on a land use survey about traffic in town should address the damage to the natural environment and to the roadways caused by congestion and suggest, or seek, ways to reduce it.
Sunsets over the Currituck Sound draw spectators, but it can be difficult to sit soundside when a rotten-eggs stench emanates from the water, as it does sometimes with a west wind. Water quality is one of the issues that needs to be addressed in the new land use plan.
A community survey that Stewart Inc., the Town’s land use plan update consultant, will use to help define the goals and vision of Southern Shores’ future, is in draft form and expected to be posted online soon, Deputy Town Manager/Planning Director Wes Haskett announced at last night’s Town Council meeting.
The survey will remain online for a month, Mr. Haskett said.
Surprised by the speed with which this survey was prepared, we checked the project timeline on the Town website today and learned that the survey is to be posted Friday, and all responses are to be submitted by Jan. 8. This is a revision of what was posted on the page in November—as well as just yesterday.
It appears from the timeline that Stewart, whose five-person update team is headed by planning manager Jay McLeod, will have the survey results analyzed, community goals drafted, and a proposed town vision statement written by Jan. 18.
The N.C. Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA) requires each of North Carolina’s 20 coastal counties to have a land use plan that accords with guidelines established by the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission. Each plan includes local policies about growth, such as the protection of natural resources and the desired types of economic development, as well as pertinent maps.
Although CAMA does not require coastal towns to have land use plans, 72 such towns and cities had them as of 1997, according to the N.C. Dept. of Environmental Quality. They are used in the determination of CAMA permit decisions and in regulating growth. Southern Shores has had a Land Use Plan since 1980. The 2023 update will be its fifth update.
The N.C. General Assembly gave the Town Council additional incentive to update the Town’s 2008 Land Use Plan, which it had talked about doing since 2017, when it enacted a new law requiring all local governments to have a “reasonably maintained” comprehensive plan or a land use plan in order to retain authority to adopt and enforce zoning regulations. No longer could the Council kick the can down the road.
(For background on land use plans and the Town’s update, see The Beacon, 11/12/22.)
***
The Beacon believes it is unfortunate that Stewart and the Town have decided to draft the community survey without giving residents more time to contribute to its content, as well as to post the survey during the holiday period, when people are extremely busy and often out of town or visiting in town with relatives and friends.
It was just three weeks ago that Mr. McLeod, assisted by Stewart planner Andrea Radford, held a public open house to explain what a land use plan is and the process by which the 2008 Southern Shores Land Use Plan would be updated. The open house, promoted as a “kickoff meeting” for the Land Use Plan Update project, offered attendees an opportunity to share their thoughts and perspectives with Mr. McLeod or Ms. Radford in informal chats or by comment cards that posed the following questions:
*What do you love about Southern Shores and never want to change or lose?
*What needs work or the Town government should focus on improving?
*What is your biggest concern about the future of Southern Shores?
Only 22 people signed the attendance sheet for the open house, of whom four were members of the Town Council, who gave their views on land-use issues in a roundtable discussion that morning with Mr. McLeod that also included Town Planning Board members. The Planning Board is serving as the steering committee for the update project.
There are only 10 resident comment cards posted on the Land Use Plan Update page.
Among the issues and priorities identified by the Town Council and Planning Board in their roundtable were protection of the maritime forest; improvement of water quality, especially in the Currituck Sound; preservation of low-density residential neighborhoods and a small commercial district; prevention of stormwater runoff; and improvement of the navigability of the canals.
In light of the problems associated with beach nourishment this year, the public may wish to reconsider maintenance of the project, which, according to Ken Willson of Coastal Protection Engineering, means doing another sand fill in five years.
Is the desirability of beach nourishment going to be on the community survey, which Mr. McLeod said on Nov. 15 will be primarily multiple-choice?
Will the survey address cut-through traffic in town, which is surely a land-use issue? The Town Council and Planning Board did not bring it up.
The Land Use Plan, whose format and content are defined by the Coastal Resource Commission’s rules, is to be used by the Town and its elected officials as a guide to decisions about land development and rezoning; growth and development priorities; public services and infrastructure to support development; the protection of environmental and other natural resources, and other planning topics.
We trust the community survey will be thorough and wide-ranging and reflective of a variety of perspectives. We will direct you to its location on the Town website when it is online.
Mum was mostly the word from the four Southern Shores Town Council members who attended tonight’s meeting as they let Town Manager Cliff Ogburn speak for the Town in the beach nourishment project dispute involving the sand shortfall in the northern beaches and made few statements of their own. They did not discuss the problem as a Dec. 1 Town special announcement represented they would.
The bottom line according to the Town Manager: “We’ve got some work to do, and we’re going to do it.”
In a Nov. 30 project update meeting, Ken Willson, a principal with Coastal Protection Engineering (CPE) who has served as project manager, acknowledged that dredging contractor Weeks Marine had “over-filled” the Southern Shores beaches south of about 4th Avenue and had run out of sand to fulfill the design goal in the north of creating a “sufficiently useable beach.”
The problem on the northern beaches first came to light publicly on Nov. 25 when Southern Shores residents raised concerns on the Nextdoor social media site. Five days later, Mr. Willson revealed that, although the northern beaches should have received 22 cubic yards of sand per linear foot, they only received 13 cubic yards per linear foot.
(For more information about the beach nourishment project controversy, see The Beacon, 11/28/22, 11/30/22, and 12/1/22.)
Mr. Ogburn did not recap tonight what had been learned at the Nov. 30 meeting. He said only that the fill project had started on Oct. 7 and concluded on Nov. 22 and had nine days of “downtime.” Otherwise, he referred broadly to the task of remedying the shortfall.
“I wish I could stand here, and we would be in a celebratory mood and fashion, but unfortunately, we’re not,” he said in brief remarks, which came after two property owners spoke in public comments about the sand shortfall.
Tom Peabody of Sixth Avenue criticized both the reasoning behind the Town Council’s belated decision to include the stable northern beaches in the nourishment project—after it devised the novel “sufficiently useable beach” goal—and its inclusion of properties north of 3rd Avenue that are “13 lots deep” in the MSD-2 tax district.
(After surveying the Southern Shores coastline in 2017, CPE divided it into three sections: the northern, the central, and the southern. The northern section was defined as the oceanfront north of 3rd Avenue.)
Mr. Peabody cited a lack of need for the beach fill in the northern section and a lack of benefit to northern section property owners in MSD-2.
Mr. Peabody had previously requested that his property be excluded from MSD-2—as was his right under the N.C. MSD statute–and been denied by the Town Council.
In her public comments, Debbie Newberry of North Dogwood Trail asked that the Town Council resolve the sand shortfall by adding more to satisfy the contract, without doing further damage to the beaches from heavy equipment and without asking property owners to pay more in taxes.
“I understand completely the accountability that the Town has to the taxpayers and to those in the MSDs,” Mr. Ogburn said, acknowledging Mr. Peabody’s and Ms. Newberry’s comments, “but at this time . . . we’ve got questions that we need to get answered.
“It’s a complicated process,” he continued. “There’s a lot of contracts associated with this. There are a lot of missing pieces, and so we’ve got some work to do, and I want to promise you that I’m going to do everything I can do to make sure we get what we should have gotten, and that there’s a remedy to this.”
Mr. Ogburn concluded by saying that he will meet with representatives from Weeks Marine and CPE this week “so we can start those discussions.”
“I wish I had more that I could report and say,” he said, “but it’s been less than a week since a lot of this was put out there.
“We’ve got some work to do, and we’re going to do it.”
In response to a question by Councilman Mark Batenic about whether Dare County, which is the actual contracting party with Weeks Marine and CPE, is “behind the town”—a question to which we hope he knew the answer—Mr. Ogburn replied that he has had conversations with Dare County Manager/Attorney Bobby Outten, and “They have said they’ll stand with us and work with us for a result.”
In the few remarks she made, Mayor Morey reiterated: “We have the county in agreement with us; we are working through the issues; it is complicated, and we’re not going to be satisfied until we’re satisfied.
“That’s kind of where we are.”
No one was specific about any relevant facts.
In his brief comments, Mayor Pro Tem Matt Neal raised the issue of when the Town—including the Mayor and members of the Town Council—knew about the sand shortfall.
Mr. Neal thanked Mr. Ogburn for his effort “over the last three weeks—getting the information that we’ve been asking for—pretty much rapid-fire, getting it from the contractor and the engineer back to us in a timely manner. . . .”
Could it be that Mr. Neal meant the last three days, not weeks? We did not ask, because we did not have time after the meeting adjourned and the Council went into a closed session with the Town Attorney, and will give him the benefit of the doubt.
“There’s a lot of fact-finding,” the Mayor Pro Tem said. “[Mr. Ogburn has] been digging hard.”
Both Mr. Neal and Mayor Morey referred to the voluminous amount of data involved in the project, but did not elaborate upon the nature of the data that are of concern in determining how Weeks Marine incorrectly distributed the sand on the Southern Shores oceanfront.
In brief discussions after the meeting, The Beacon learned from Town officials that Dare County has not made final payment to the contracting parties and that the unpaid amount is substantial.
Town Councilwoman Paula Sherlock did not attend the meeting because of “family medical issues,” the Mayor announced.
JUST A REMINDER: Town Manager Cliff Ogburn will provide an update on the Southern Shores beach nourishment project, which we learned last week was completed Nov. 22 without distributing the required amount of sand on the beaches north of about 4th Avenue, at the Town Council meeting today at 5:30 p.m. in the Pitts Center.
There will be two public-comment periods during the meeting, the first of which will occur before the update, which is on the agenda as “old business,” and the second of which will occur afterward. All speakers are limited to three minutes.
In its last special announcement to residents, on Dec. 2, the Town said it had “communicated” its concern to Dare County about “less sand [being placed] on the beach north of 5th Ave. than the original project design set forward” and “will be coordinating with them moving forward.” It also said that the Town Council would discuss the situation at today’s meeting.
(We note that the Town’s coastal engineering consultant, who served as manager of the multi-town beach nourishment project, referenced 4th Avenue in a Nov. 30 meeting during which he acknowledged an “over-fill” of sand in the southern beaches of Southern Shores and an “under-fill” on the northern beaches.)
The background materials for the agenda, which primarily deal with the engineering firm whom the Town is recommending receive the construction contract for the Juniper/Trinitie Trail Bridge replacement, may be accessed here: MEET-Packet-351b310086ca48faa05582d67f02080f.pdf (usgovcloudapi.net)
The Town of Southern Shores issued the following special announcement at 2 p.m. today about the design error committed by Weeks Marine in nourishing the beaches:
“Last week, based only on visual inspection it was difficult to determine if the project design goal had been achieved. At the biweekly public beach nourishment update meeting held Nov. 30 engineers with Coastal Protection Engineering confirmed that the contractor, Weeks Marine, placed less sand on the beach north of 5th Ave. than the original project design set forward. Having learned this information only yesterday, the Town Council has not yet had the opportunity to meet for discussion and determine options. Dare County entered the contract with Weeks Marine on behalf of four towns to nourish their beaches. The Town has communicated this contract concern to Dare County and will be coordinating with them moving forward. This matter will be on the agenda at the Dec. 6 Council meeting for discussion. The town appreciates everyone’s patience as we work to resolve this matter.”
For more information about this developing story, see The Beacon, 11/30/22 and 11/28/22.
Dredging contractor Weeks Marine over-filled the Southern Shores beaches south of 4th Avenue with more sand than they needed, and, as a result, under-filled the beaches north of 4th Avenue, beach nourishment program manager and coastal engineer Ken Willson acknowledged at a public project update meeting today at the Pitts Center.
While Weeks Marine and Coastal Protection Engineering (CPE), Willson’s company, delivered the contractually agreed-upon 894,000 cubic yards of sand per linear foot to the Southern Shores oceanfront, that volume was not distributed as the Town expected it to be. Instead, too much sand was deposited on the southern beaches, leaving the northern beaches short of volume. (Locals who were shocked by the change in the beaches south of 4th Avenue have reason to be.)
The beaches north of 4th Avenue were to receive 22 cubic yards of sand per linear foot, Mr. Willson said in response to questions from an active audience that attended both in-person and on Zoom.
In fact, he admitted, those beaches only received 13 cubic yards of sand per linear foot—which were deposited over a three-day period, from Nov. 20-22. The speed with which the dredging occurred caused alarm among northern property owners, who posted comments on the social media site, Nextdoor. (See The Beacon, 11/28/22.)
Twenty-two cubic yards of sand per linear foot is still considerably less volume than what the southern beaches were to receive, even if Weeks Marine had not over-filled them. They were supposed to receive one-third the amount of sand as the beaches south of 4th Avenue, Mr. Willson said.
“By design,” he said, “the northern beaches were never going to get the same amount of sand” as the southern beaches because coastal engineering surveys over a period of several years repeatedly showed that the northern beaches were not vulnerable to storm damage nor were they in need of mitigation from long-term erosion.
The Southern Shores beachfill project was designed to 1) provide for a reasonable level of “storm damage reduction” to the coastline in the event that a potential storm comparable to Hurricane Isabel hit Southern Shores (this level was determined by computer analysis) and 2) to reduce long-term erosion, which is a problem for only certain sections of the oceanfront, as The Beacon has previously documented.
The only reason the oceanfront north of 4th Avenue was included in the beach nourishment project was to create a “sufficient useable beach” in that area. This design goal was added to the project after homeowners on Seventh Avenue complained about their narrow beach, especially at high tide. In December 2020, the Town Council unanimously approved adding to the other two beachfill design goals the maintenance of a “healthy beach that provides sufficient useable beach and supports shorebird and sea turtle nesting habitat.”
CPE defined a sufficient useable beach as one that is 84 feet wide, as measured from “the wet-dry line to the toe of the dune,” Mr. Willson recalled today. The coastal engineer claimed that the beaches north of 4th Avenue currently do in fact have a width of 84 feet, even though they did not receive the sand volume that the construction design called for.
So, what happened? Why did the southern beaches receive so much of the sand that was to be deposited in the north?
According to Mr. Willson, a “significant discrepancy” occurred between a survey of the beach that was performed in May 2021 for design purposes and an August 2022 survey of the beach that was performed before construction began. Conditions of the beach changed, as they so often do. The volume of sand in the system increased: The beach accreted, gaining 180,000 cubic yards per linear foot naturally.
But the project design did not change to accommodate this “discrepancy.” No adjustments were made. Weeks Marine operated with a “template”— as Mr. Willson called it—for construction that was appropriate for the 2021 beach, but not for the August 2022 beach. In essence, it piled the sand on.
Whose fault is that? We leave that question to Weeks Marine and CPE to sort out and then for the Town to explain to residents. As Mr. Willson explained, the construction contract provides for an adjustment in the template, based on a change in conditions, provided Weeks gives CPE the requisite notice. A Weeks Marine employee who attended today’s meeting said the contractor had attempted notification, but clearly there was a disconnect between the parties.
CPE is “in discussions” with Weeks Marine about how to address the shortfall in the northern beaches.
So where does the Town stand in all of this?
Town Manager Cliff Ogburn did not speak publicly today, but he did speak with The Beacon after the meeting about the issuance of a statement to residents tomorrow. He also said the Town Council will be discussing the problems that arose with the beach nourishment project, starting at next Tuesday’s meeting at 5:30 p.m. in the Pitts Center.
Mayor Pro Tem Matt Neal, who is a local builder, attended today’s meeting and asked Mr. Willson for copies of the 2021 and 2022 beach surveys. The only other Town Council member in attendance was Paula Sherlock, who appeared by Zoom.
Mr. Willson said that Weeks Marine and CPE should have a resolution regarding the northern beaches “within a couple of weeks.”
According to Mr. Willson, the first day of sand pumping in Southern Shores was Oct. 7; the last day was Nov. 22. The Beacon regrets that we said on Nextdoor that the pumping had started in September, which was the original plan. The photograph at top is of equipment at the Trout Run access on Sept. 17. Storms apparently delayed the start of the dredging for three weeks.
We have been writing about beach nourishment for about four years now and are ready to turn over further explanations and disclosures to the Town.
Contractor Weeks Marine finished its sand dredging in Southern Shores on Nov. 22, according to an update about the beach nourishment project posted on the Town website today.
The Town’s update also said that consultant/liaison Coastal Planning and Engineering of N.C. is currently surveying the beach and will be providing the Town with “the results to indicate that the project was constructed as designed.”
The project, which was slated to be completed by mid-December, appears to be complete–although the eye of the beach beholder may suggest otherwise.
Confusion arose last Friday on the social media site, Nextdoor, about the status of the dredging work, when Southern Shores property owners questioned whether Weeks Marine had sufficiently replenished the beach north of Fifth Avenue, in particular, at the Hillcrest Beach. The person who initiated the conversational thread said he had spoken with Weeks Marine crew members on-site and been informed by them that the Southern Shores project was over. The property owner had a different viewpoint based on his observations.
We entered the Nextdoor thread in an effort to correct misinformation and eventually contacted Mayor Elizabeth Morey and Town Manager Cliff Ogburn, who responded on Friday with the issuance of a special announcement that read as follows:
“. . . Earlier this week Weeks Marine announced that they were leaving the Dare County project and would be coming back in March to finish the portion in the Town of Duck.
“Based on a visual inspection it is difficult to determine if the project design goal has been achieved.
“Town Staff has discussed these concerns with Coastal Planning and Engineering. We expect to receive surveys early next week to verify that our beach has received the nourishment it should have.
“Once we receive this information we will be in a much better position to share with you all the status of our project.”
We do not wish to speak for the Town, but we believe it is safe to say that the width of the beach as it appears to the naked eye is not the determining factor in assessing whether the beachfill project goals have been achieved.
If you have questions about the project, we suggest that you attend in person or via Zoom the next biweekly public update meeting, which will be held on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in the Pitts Center. You may log into Zoom at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86210244731?pwd=MWFYVWIQRHpYN0FneXBTUzZrZjZjIRQT09. The meeting ID is 862 1024 4731; the passcode is 730379.
The Southern Shores Beacon 