Except for candidate selections for the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, the May 17 primary is a Republican affair in Dare County. Many of the winning Republican Party primary candidates for local offices will not have Democratic opposition in November.

“One-stop” early voting for the primary began last Thursday and runs through 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 14, with next weekend excepted. The closest voting site for registered voters who reside in Southern Shores is Kill Devil Hills Town Hall.

For election information, including the hours of operation for all early-voting polling sites, see https://www.darenc.com/departments/elections/election-information.

Here’s how the primary election shapes up:

Registered Democrats in Dare County—and “Unaffiliated” voters who choose to vote in the Democratic primary—have only two choices on their ballot: They can vote for one person among the 11 candidates running for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Senator Richard Burr, who is retiring; and choose between two candidates running for the U.S. House, District 3, for the seat now held by Republican Dr. Greg Murphy.

See the Democratic Party Primary Sample Ballot here: https://www.darenc.com/home/showpublisheddocument/10825/637838236119270000

In contrast, registered Republicans in Dare have a choice of 14 candidates for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate; five candidates for the Republication nomination for the U.S. House, District 3, including the incumbent Dr. Murphy, as well as choices in other statewide and local primary races.

Republicans will decide who represents Dare County in the N.C. House of Representatives and the N.C. Senate. There are no Democratic challengers.

As a result of the legislative redistricting—a legal challenge to which delayed the primary from March to May—Dare County has been split into two newly drawn districts for the N.C. House of Representatives. The dividing line goes through Kill Devil Hills, such that voters who live north of the line are in N.C. House District 1, and voters who live south of the line are in N.C. House District 79. All Dare County voters are in a newly drawn Senate District 1.

Republican incumbent Ed Goodwin of Edenton, who represents voters in the currently drawn District 1, is running unopposed for the new House District 1 seat, which represents northern Dare. Republican incumbent Keith Kidwell, who represents voters in the currently drawn District 79 (Beauford and Craven counties) is running against Ed Hege of New Bern for the new House District 79 seat, which represents southern Dare.

Republican Bobby Hanig, who currently represents all of Dare County in what is now District 6 of the N.C. House, is vying for Senate District 3, which includes Currituck County, but not Dare. Mr. Hanig has no primary election opposition, but he will face a Democratic challenger in November.  

As if these changes were not confusing enough, the redistricting has resulted in two Republican incumbents competing against each other for the newly drawn N.C. Senate District 1 seat. State Senator Norman Sanderson of Minnesott Beach, who currently serves the second Senate district, which includes Carteret, Craven, and Pamlico counties, and State Senator Bob Steinburg of Edenton, who currently serves in District 1, which includes Dare and Currituck, among other counties, will face off in the primary. The winner will have no Democratic opposition in November.

Republicans also will vote upon a N.C. Supreme Court associate justice position; two N.C. Court of Appeals judgeships (the Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court; 15 judges sit on it); and one N.C. district court judgeship (District 1, which includes Dare), which is currently held by Jennifer Bland.

Judge Bland, who was appointed by Governor Roy Cooper when she was a registered Democrat, switched her party affiliation weeks after taking office. She has two Republican Party opponents: B.J. McAvoy and Jeff Moreland. The primary victor will not face opposition in November.

All of the winning primary candidates for the appellate judgeships will have opposition in the general election.  

Republicans will choose between two candidates for the office of at large commissioner on the Dare County Board of Commissioners. Incumbent At Large Commissioner Ervin Bateman, who previously ran as a Democrat and switched parties last year, is running against Republican Mike Burrus. The winner of their race will face Democrat Heather Euler in November.

Republicans will determine the successor of retiring District 1 District Attorney Andrew Womble, choosing between two candidates, Jeff Cruden and Kim Pellini, each of whom currently serves in the DA’s Office. Mr. Womble is running for Dare County Superior Court against incumbent Judge Eula Reid, a Democrat, in November.

See the Republican Party Primary Sample Ballot that includes N.C. House District 1 here: https://www.darenc.com/home/showpublisheddocument/10829/637840632309870000

See the Republican Party Primary Sample Ballot that includes N.C. House District 79 here: https://www.darenc.com/home/showpublisheddocument/10827/637840631925500000

For biographical material about candidates, consult The League of Women Voters’ Vote 411 guide at https://www.vote411.org.

‘UNAFFILIATED’ CANDIDATES FOR DARE SCHOOL BOARD NEED 1200+ VOTERS’ SIGNATURES TO GET NAMES ON NOV. BALLOT

Although not a factor in the May 17 primary, three seats on the seven-member Dare County Board of Education (BOE) are up for election this year, and a Republican has filed for each one. None of these candidates is facing Democratic opposition, but there are two Dare County women who are trying to get on the November ballot as Unaffiliated candidates for two of the open seats.

They are Marie Russell, of Kitty Hawk, who is vying for the BOE’s District 3 seat, which includes Southern Shores, Kitty Hawk, and Duck; and Jessica Fearns, of Colington, who is seeking the District 2 seat, which includes Kill Devil Hills, Colington, and Nags Head.

To qualify to have their names appear on the general election ballot, Ms. Russell and Ms. Fearns each must obtain the signatures of 4.0 percent of Dare County’s registered voters on petitions and submit them to the county Board of Elections for validation by noon on May 17.

This percentage computes to about 1,200 ink signatures for each candidate.

Dare County Board of Education elections became partisan in 2018 as the result of legislation ratified by the two houses of the N.C. General Assembly. Because the bill effecting the change was “local”—meaning that it applied to fewer than 15 counties in the state—it did not go to Governor Roy Cooper, who likely would have vetoed it. The bill became law upon ratification.

In order for Unaffiliated candidates to have their names on the ballot in a partisan election, N.C. law requires them to secure nomination by petition. (See N.C. General Statutes sec. 163-122(a)(3).)

If successful, Ms. Russell, who is a substitute teacher and businessperson with three children in the Dare schools, would face Republican Matt Brauer. Ms. Fearns, who is a substitute teacher and real estate agent with one child in the local schools, would face Republican Ron Payne.  (For more information about both candidates, see The Outer Banks Voice, 4/16/22, “Dare Ed Hopefuls Battle for the Ballot,” and the candidates’ Facebook pages at https://www.facebook.com/MarieforBOE and https://www.facebook.com/jessicafearnsforBOE.)

Margaret Lawler of Southern Shores currently serves as BOE District 3 representative, and Joe Tauber of Kill Devil Hills holds the District 2 seat. Both chose not to seek re-election.

The Beacon supports choice and competition in elections. If you would like to sign the petitions of either candidate or both, you may write to us at ssbeaconeditor@gmail.com and request that someone contact you. Please include your name, address, and mobile phone number.

Your signature on a petition signifies only that you support including the candidate’s name on the November ballot. It is not a vote.

Ms. Russell and Ms. Fearns also will be appearing with their petitions at the following venues in the next week:

Wed., May 4: 7:45 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. at Ashley’s Espresso Parlour, 100 E. Helga St., KDH (at the corner of Helga and U.S. 158).

Wed., May 4: 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Starbucks in the Southern Shores Marketplace.

Sat., May 7: noon to 2 p.m. at the 2022 Artrageous Kids Arts Festival at Dowdy Park in Nags Head. The candidates will be walking around the park.

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 5/2/22

Town Manager Cliff Ogburn is recommending that the Town Council approve closing Hickory Trail at East Dogwood Trail and placing local-traffic-only barriers in northbound lanes at other key road accesses in the dunes and in Chicahauk—among the summer weekend traffic mitigation measures that he outlined at the public forum Tuesday—but not blocking outlets on to Duck Road, according to a report he filed for the Council’s May 3 meeting, which was posted yesterday on the Town’s website.

(For background on the Town’s summer traffic plan, see The Beacon, 4/27/22.)

Mr. Ogburn is also recommending that the Council close Ocean Boulevard during peak summer weekend hours at the Duck Road split, near the cell tower, so motorists cannot use the local road to bypass traffic backups on the N.C. 12 thoroughfare between the split and Hickory Trail. (At least, not until Porpoise Run, which is a block north of the split.)

For a summary of the mitigation measures discussed at the forum and Mr. Ogburn’s recommendation, see page 58 of the meeting agenda packet at https://mccmeetings.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/ soshoresnc-pubu/MEET-Packet-0fed0c2da0a14989b65c6bb0d764dc6c.pdf.

According to the meeting agenda, the Council will take up the proposed summer traffic plan as the second item of new business, after the first public-comment period. In the first new item, Mr. Ogburn will establish with the Council a date for a public hearing on the Town’s FY 2022-23 budget, which the Town Manager has not yet published online. 

See the agenda at https://mccmeetings.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/soshoresnc-pubu/MEET-Agenda-0fed0c2da0a14989b65c6bb0d764dc6c.pdf.

The proposed traffic plan combines a number of measures by which the Town seeks to encourage northbound motorists passing through Southern Shores to stay on U.S. 158 and N.C. 12 and not cut through on residential roads.

In addition to road closures and obstructions, the Town’s plan envisions reaching arriving visitors through property managers at rental companies; using road signage informing visitors that travel is faster on the thoroughfares; and making adjustments to travel apps, such as Waze.

The locations where Mr. Ogburn recommends erecting local-traffic-only northern lane barriers are:

Hillcrest Drive and Sea Oats Trail

Hickory and Wax Myrtle Trail

Hickory Trail and Sea Oats Trail

Hickory Trail and Hillcrest Drive

East Dogwood Trail and Wax Myrtle Trail

East Dogwood Trail and Sea Oats Trail

East Dogwood Trail and Hillcrest Drive

Juniper Trail past the Marketplace entrance

(The latter is an addition to the locations mentioned at the public forum.)

Mr. Ogburn also discussed at the forum closing outlets on to Duck Road from Sea Oats Trail, Eleventh Avenue, Hillcrest Drive, and Hickory Trail, but he is not currently recommending that these closures be made. The Town Council may decide otherwise, and it may consider closures and barriers along other sections of town roads. 

Porpoise Run, which connects Duck Road with Ocean Boulevard, is a block north of the proposed Ocean Boulevard closure. Trout Run, Dolphin Run, East Dogwood Trail, and Periwinkle Place also intersect with Duck Road and are other jumping-off points for frustrated northbound visitors.

The Town has decided not to prohibit the left turn from U.S. 158-east on to South Dogwood Trail, a mitigation technique that has been used effectively in recent summers to reduce cut-through traffic volume.

This decision was made without any public discussion by the Town Council. Indeed, the Council, with the exception of Mayor Elizabeth Morey, sat quietly on the sideline Tuesday during the presentation and critique of the traffic plan—with the exception of a few comments by Councilman Matt Neal in response to a homeowner’s remarks about cell-phone technology.

Next Tuesday’s meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. in the Pitts Center. You may live-stream it at https://www.youtube.com/user/TownofSouthernShores.

BEACON NOTE: Due to a conflict, I will be unable to attend or live-stream the Town Council’s meeting. I would appreciate hearing from anyone who attends or views the meeting about the action that the Council takes on the traffic plan and any other news that you may choose to report. You may email me at ssbeaconeditor@gmail.com. Thank you.

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 4/29/22

Town Manager Cliff Ogburn yesterday outlined a summer weekend traffic “mitigation” plan that would close outlets on cut-through residential roads in Southern Shores and place “local traffic only” barricades at other access points along the roads, but would not include prohibiting the left turn on to South Dogwood Trail from U.S. 158-east or closing South Dogwood Trail to non-local traffic by means of a gate or other control.

The plan, said Mayor Elizabeth Morey, who served as what she called a “referee” during yesterday’s public information meeting on traffic at the Pitts Center, is designed to keep vehicles on U.S. 158 and N.C. Hwy. 12.

Besides closing and limiting access to Southern Shores residential roads on the cut-through routes, the Town would seek to persuade northbound vacationers via mobile road signage and other informational means, including cell-phone apps, that “cars mov[e] through town faster on 12,” the Mayor said.

Ms. Morey opened the meeting, which was live-streamed and is available for viewing on the Town’s You Tube site, by announcing that “We’re not here to solve the traffic problem.” That, she said, would require “a magic wand.” Rather, the Mayor and Mr. Ogburn sought to present well-thought-out “options” for mitigating cut-through traffic, some or all of which may be implemented this summer.

(You may view the meeting videotape at https://www.youtube.com/user/TownofSouthernShores.)

Before doing so, however, the pair first dispensed with what the Town is “not recommending”—the most controversial being a continuation of the left-turn prohibition at the 158-South Dogwood Trail intersection, which has been the chief tool in recent years to reduce cut-through traffic.

“We can’t say [the turn prohibition] has an impact to a magnitude of $40,000 a year,” Mr. Ogburn said in explaining the discontinuation, without explaining how such a cost-benefit calculation would be made.

The Town Manager made no mention of the traffic-count data that the Town has collected on the impacted roads when the left turn prohibition is in effect and when it is not. He and the Mayor both made clear simply that the new plan takes the Town in a different direction with different tactics.

As to gating or otherwise limiting access to South Dogwood Trail to local traffic, Mr. Ogburn said attorneys have advised the Town that it cannot discriminate among motorists using the public street by their destinations and that the Town “must treat all the same.”

When pressed on the legalities, the Town Manager described the question as a matter of constitutional law, but he cited no legal precedent or authority, only “legal advice.”

(To discriminate among motorists on the basis of their origin–for example, by looking at license plates–would be wrong-headed. The road closure would have to be for the purpose of limiting traffic to local traffic only.)

Both the professional traffic consultant whom the Town hired and the citizens’ advisory committee on cut-through traffic recommended gating South Dogwood Trail and permitting only Southern Shores residents and guests to access it on summer weekends.

The road closures and barriers that Mr. Ogburn recommended as options along the South/East Dogwood Trail-to-the-dunes cut-through route are designed to keep northbound motorists on East Dogwood Trail and out of the dunes. Indeed, South Dogwood Trail and East Dogwood Trail would be the only roads into and out of the Southern Shores woods and dunes for all motorists on summer weekends during the peak hours of travel.   

Under the Town’s plan, Hickory Trail would be closed to all traffic at its intersection with East Dogwood Trail, and Sea Oats Trail, Eleventh Avenue, Hillcrest Drive, and Hickory Trail would be closed at their intersections with Hwy. 12 (Duck Road).

During public discussion of the Duck Road intersection closures, Mr. Ogburn acknowledged, in response to resident concern, that traffic flow farther south on Porpoise Run and Dolphin Run, which connect Duck Road with Wax Myrtle Trail, also might need to be blocked.

Mr. Ogburn further proposed closing Ocean Boulevard to all traffic at the Duck Road split near the cell tower to prevent motorists from using the road as a shortcut around Duck Road traffic backups from the split to Hickory Trail.

The “Road Closed/Local Traffic Only” barriers that the Town proposes would be placed at the same seven locations that such barriers were used last summer, only they would be made of more substantial material–Mr. Ogburn’s graphics showed concrete obstructions–and not be as easily circumvented.

The seven locations include the entries to Hillcrest Drive, Sea Oats Trail, and Wax Myrtle Trail at East Dogwood Trail, as well as entry points farther north along these three principal north-sound roads in the dunes.

Mr. Ogburn indicated that the use of such barricades would be subject to continuing assessment of their effectiveness. In general, the Town Manager, with the support of the Town Council, has shown a willingness to improvise if the need arises. 

Cut-through traffic advisory committee chairperson Tommy Karole yesterday spoke strongly against the Town’s plan, saying it would not work and could open the Town up to liability in the event emergency vehicles are prevented from reaching destinations in Southern Shores in as quick a manner as they would without the closures and barricades.

Mr. Ogburn and Mayor Morey will present the Town’s traffic plan to the Dare County Tourism Board at its meeting tomorrow morning in Manteo. As her comments yesterday made clear, the Mayor has been actively networking with community representatives who can assist Southern Shores with keeping traffic on the thoroughfares, including property managers at rental companies in the Currituck Outer Banks. 

We would characterize the Town’s plan as two-pronged, one prong being the use of physical impediments along the cut-through route to discourage motorists from leaving the thoroughfares, and the other being a public-information campaign to do the same. We may write more about the plan after the Town Council’s May 3 meeting, when it will be formally presented and discussed.

The Council’s agenda for next Tuesday’s meeting has not yet been posted on the Town website.

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 4/27/22 

The Town will hold a public information meeting on Tuesday (April 26) at 5:30 p.m. in the Pitts Center to address potential traffic mitigation measures that may be implemented this summer.

Town Manager Cliff Ogburn will be presenting a “draft plan of potential traffic calming measures” to use during summertime weekends, according to yesterday’s Town newsletter.

Southern Shores residents will have the opportunity to ask questions at Tuesday’s meeting about the proposed traffic mitigation plan and to comment critically on its anticipated effectiveness.

Mr. Ogburn will likely present a draft plan for cut-through traffic control to the Town Council for its consideration and approval at its May 3 meeting.

Last summer the Town arranged with the N.C. Dept. of Transportation to prohibit turning left on to South Dogwood Trail from N.C. 158-East during certain hours on summer weekends and experimented with erecting barriers along heavily traveled residential roads in the dunes, including Hickory Trail, Hillcrest Drive, Sea Oats Trail, and Wax Myrtle Trail.

Both a professional traffic consultant’s report, which the Town commissioned, and a Southern Shores citizens’ advisory committee on cut-through traffic recommended closure of South Dogwood Trail to non-resident traffic on summer weekends. The Town Council did not endorse this recommendation and held no public discussions about gating South Dogwood Trail.

The Town Council has vested full authority in Mr. Ogburn to devise a plan of action on cut-through traffic. Elected officials no longer take the lead on such initiatives—at least not publicly. 

Tuesday’s meeting will be recorded and available by live-stream and for later viewing on the Town’s YouTube page at https://www.youtube.com/user/TownofSouthernShores.

FLAT TOP TOUR APRIL 30

The Southern Shores historic flat top cottage tour is back in force this year with 14 houses open for viewing next Saturday, April 30, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets are $10 each (two for $15) and are available for purchase during tour times at 156 Wax Myrtle Trail and 13 Skyline Road (the Outer Banks Community Foundation). All proceeds benefit the Flat Top Preservation Fund of the OBCF.   

The tour is self-guided and includes the following flat tops, located from north to south:

218 Ocean Blvd., the Mackey Cottage

176A and 176B Ocean Blvd., the Price cottages

170 Ocean Blvd., “Pink Perfection,” originally owned by Edith Pipkin

169 Ocean Blvd., “Atlantic Breezes”

157 Ocean Blvd., “Sea Breezes”

23 Porpoise Run, the Sokol-Clements Cottage

159 Wax Myrtle Trail, the Falconer Cottage

156 Wax Myrtle Trail, the Clarke-Gudas Cottage

113 Ocean Blvd., the Knight Cottage

69 Ocean Blvd., “Sea Spray”

43 Ocean Blvd., the Powell-Harritt Cottage

40 Skyline Road, “Beach Box Flat Top (Mitchell)”

13 Skyline Road, the OBCF office

The homes at 23 Porpoise Run, 156 Wax Myrtle Trail, 170 Ocean Blvd., and 218 Ocean Blvd. have been designated by the Town of Southern Shores as Southern Shores historic landmarks.

Further information about the tour is available on the Facebook page of the Southern Shores Historic Flat Top Cottages at https://www.facebook.com/Southern-Shores-Historic-Flat-Top-Cottages-421136131314749. You also may contact tour organizers Sally and Steve Gudas at seatide1@gmail.com or (804) 399-8342.

We encourage you to tour these historic homes that once dominated Southern Shores’ architectural landscape and meet the owners who maintain and preserve them for the benefit of everyone who loves the Outer Banks. They are a quaint reminder of a peaceful yesteryear when there was no need for a town traffic mitigation meeting because there was no traffic—nor was there a town.

*****

A NOTE ABOUT THE BEACON: Last November we said that we were suspending publication of The Beacon for between three and six months. It has now been nearly six months, and while we are not committed to resuming the demanding schedule of reporting that we had before last November, we would like to drop into your lives every now and then with news items. We could not let the traffic meeting go unnoticed by Beacon readers who do not read the Town website or the Town newsletter. We also wanted to welcome the return of the flat top tour after an interruption of two years caused by the COVID pandemic.

Since November we have resumed working on a book project that we set aside in favor of The Beacon. Publishing that book is now our priority and will largely determine how often we report on The Beacon.

MAY 17 PRIMARY: We anticipate writing soon about the May 17 primary election, which, on the local and state level, concerns only Republican Party candidates. The only primary choices available to registered Democrats in Dare County are among the candidates running for the U.S. House of Representatives (the seat currently held by Dr. Greg Murphy) and the U.S. Senate (Senator Richard Burr is retiring). Early voting for the primary begins Thursday, April 28, and will be held at the Kill Devil Hills Town Hall, as well as in Manteo and Buxton.  

Thank you.

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 4/23/22 

The Town Council will hold a public hearing at its regular meeting Tuesday (Nov. 9) on a rewrite of the Town Code signage ordinance that the Town Planning Board scrutinized for months before it agreed upon language that it could recommend for enactment.

The Planning Board’s recommended revisions of the Town Code sections pertaining to signage—sections 36-57 (definitions) and 36-165 (regulations)—are encapsulated in Zoning Text Amendment 21-08, which you may access here: 

Click to access 10-18-21-ZTA-21-08-Signage.pdf

The Town Council’s meeting will be held Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. in the Pitts Center. All meeting attendees must wear face masks. You may access the agenda here:

Click to access MEET-Agenda-648984db33974e3ea8275a0bf0247d8a.pdf

Also scheduled on the agenda, as The Beacon has previously reported, are an update by Town Manager Cliff Ogburn about the 5-G cell poles being installed in the Town’s residential areas and a “discussion” by the Town Council of the future of the citizens’ committee that has been exploring the potential for a Northern Dare branch library.

Ordinarily, we would provide a link to the meeting packet, which consists of background materials for the agenda, but Tuesday’s packet consists of 168 pages, of which 123 pages pertain to the Town’s Human Resources Policy and proposed amendments to it. We doubt many of you are interested in the Town’s personnel policies.

The meeting agenda and consent agenda take up another 18 pages, and materials about ZTA 21-08 consume another 23 pages (pp. 144-167).

We would hope that if the Town Council expects to have an extended discussion about revised personnel policies that it would change the order of the new business items so that the public hearing on ZTA 21-08 precedes that discussion.  

REGULATING SIGNS

As for ZTA 21-08, the impetus to revise the Town Code signage ordinance came from CodeWright Planners, the consultant hired by the Town in 2015 to update and improve the Town Code—a job it handled poorly, producing a largely unacceptable work product.

The Town Council previously decided to incorporate relatively few of CodeWright’s suggestions, in particular, rejecting its recommended reorganization and re-design.

In March, the Council asked Town staff to identify “valuable elements” within CodeWright’s final draft for the Planning Board to review and the Council to consider. Its signage rewrite was identified as such an element.

CodeWright cites a 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Reed v. Town of Gilbert, Ariz., 576 U.S. 155, for its proposed sign revision, which is the foundation for ZTA 21-08.

Messages on signs are protected speech under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. It is well-established law that a town cannot discriminate against political and ideological-message signs, like the one pictured above, in the guise of regulating aesthetics or the time, place, and manner of sign displays.

In 1972, the Supreme Court clearly stated that a municipality “has no power to restrict expression because of its message, its ideas, its subject matter, or its content.” Any content-based laws are presumptively unconstitutional.

Municipal sign ordinances that impose “content-based” restrictions on speech are subject to a legal analysis known as strict scrutiny. (Anyone who has ever studied constitutional law knows about strict scrutiny.) Under this analysis, a restriction can survive only if a government can prove that it serves a “compelling interest” and is “narrowly tailored” to serve that interest.

IOHO, the town of Gilbert went out of its way to violate the First Amendment. Its Sign Code treats signs differently depending on their content.

The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously agreed to strike down Gilbert’s Sign Code, but the justices did not all agree on the legal reasoning for its decision.

As a result, Reed v. Gilbert is a somewhat messy opinion, except for its outcome, and lower courts have interpreted and applied it differently.

To read Reed v. Gilbert, see https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/13-502.

For Town Attorney Ben Gallop’s comments on Reed v. Gilbert, see:

https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Reed-Case-Comments.pdf.

In order to ensure “content neutrality” in Southern Shores’ sign regulations, the Town is proposing in ZTA 21-08 to address signage—categorized as either permanent or temporary—according to the applicable zoning district in which it appears and to distinguish within the residential areas by whether the signs are for the purpose of a residential or nonresidential use.

We have decided not to analyze ZTA 21-08 in detail and to say only that it over-complicates signage regulations and over-reaches in its scope.

In his agenda item summary on ZTA 21-08, Mr. Ogburn recognizes as much, writing:

“Town Staff feels that additional discussion and further revisions are needed, and Town Staff recommends that Council direct Town Staff to make further revisions to ZTA 21-08. Comments on the application from Council or anyone wishing to speak during the public hearing would be welcomed by Town staff.”

APPOINTMENT OF FIFTH COUNCIL MEMBER

As a result of Mayor Pro Tem Elizabeth Morey’s election on Nov. 2 to the Mayor’s seat, there will be a vacancy on the Town Council after she is sworn in on Dec. 7.

The appointment of a Town Council member to serve out the two remaining years of Ms. Morey’s unexpired term must occur in an open meeting.

The Beacon has previously addressed how this appointment may be made, according to N.C. state law. (See The Beacon, 10/8/21.)

In the Town’s Nov. 5 newsletter, Town Manager Ogburn announced:

“The new Town Council will determine the process they use to identify potential candidates to fill the vacancy and the procedure for choosing the right person to fill the vacancy. There are numerous ways they can go about doing this. Discussions and decisions on these matters by the Town Council will be made in open session . . . and the Council will discuss the process for selecting potential candidates as well as establish the rules of procedure to govern the appointment. There is no requirement for when this all has to take place, but it’s likely that this will be placed on the December 2021 regular meeting agenda . . . The Council could take action at that time, or [it] could give direction and instruction to staff on how they would like to proceed.”

We encourage you to attend the Dec. 7 regular meeting, of which the Town will give you notice through its website and newsletter, and to make your opinions known at the meeting and in advance about how you think that appointment should be handled.

You may email Ms. Morey at emorey@southernshores-nc.gov; Councilman Matt Neal at mneal@southernshores-nc.gov; Councilman Leo Holland at lholland@southernshores-nc.gov; and Mr. Ogburn at cogburn@southernshores-nc.gov.

Remember: It may be the new Town Council’s decision to make, but the Council represents you, not the individual members of the board.

We believe that both Rod McCaughey and John Carter should be given consideration for this seat, if they are interested in serving. Both are successful, intelligent people who would bring a diversity of opinion to the Town Council that would only strengthen our government, and the election results show that they have sizeable constituencies.   

Southern Shores residents deserve to be represented by Council members with diverse viewpoints. As long as elected officials respect compromise and majority rule, we believe diversity among them should be sought and welcomed, not shunned and marginalized. 

SUSPENSION OF BEACON PUBLICATION

As some of you may recall, I tried to take time off in June, but then felt obligated to report on the cut-through traffic and never really did.

I then felt obligated to run for the Town Council when, as of the night before the last day of candidate filling, no one had filed for the seat that Paula Sherlock just won.

Ms. Sherlock, Mr. Carter, and I all filed on the morning of the last filing day. We all appeared at the Dare County Board of Elections office during the last two hours.

I then resolved to hang in with The Beacon through Election Day and decide my next move based on the election results.

While I would have been happy to provide a public service to the town as a Town Council member—and fix ZTA 21-08—the voters have liberated me to do what I would like to do. For now, that is work on other writing projects and take care of my family, in particular, my mother.

So, for the foreseeable future, I am suspending publication of The Beacon after this report. I will not be covering Town Council and Planning Board action for at least the next three to six months. I am uncertain of my time away and do not wish to make any predictions.

I would like to wish Mayor-Elect Morey well as she begins in January to put her imprint on our town government and to define her four-year term.  

Thank you all for your readership. Have a safe and enjoyable holiday season. Until we meet again . . .

Warm wishes, Ann

Mayor Pro Tem Elizabeth Morey and former Kentucky Family Court Judge Paula Sherlock were elected yesterday Southern Shores mayor and Town Council member, respectively, in an election in which about 42 percent of the town’s registered voters participated.

Ms. Morey, who has served on the Town Council for two years and was a longtime member of the Town Planning Board, received 724 votes (65.7 percent) of the 1102 votes unofficially reported yesterday by the Dare County Board of Elections (DCBOE) to have been cast; her opponent, former Southern Shores Civic Assn. president Rod McCaughey, received 376 votes (34.12 percent). There were two write-in votes cast in their race.

Ms. Sherlock, who is known in town politics for her advocacy before the Town Council of a lower tax rate on oceanfront property owners—of which she is one—for the 2022 beach nourishment project, received 538 votes of the 1104 votes (48.73 percent) unofficially reported yesterday by the DCBOE to have been cast in her race.

Ms. Sherlock’s opponents, John Carter and Ann Sjoerdsma, received 284 votes (25.72 percent) and 282 votes (25.54 percent), respectively.

The results of yesterday’s municipal election will be certified on Nov. 9, after the last of the absentee ballots are tabulated. The current vote totals, therefore, will change, but not significantly, before what is known as election canvassing—results certification—occurs.

According to the DCBOE, the breakdown in voting among the candidates according to early-voting and Election Day voting totals was as follows:

Morey: 455 Election Day; 269 early voting

McCaughey: 238 Election Day; 138 early voting

Sherlock: 321 Election Day; 217 early voting

Carter: 199 Election Day; 85 early voting

Sjoerdsma: 174 Election Day; 108 early voting

There are approximately 2600 active registered voters in Southern Shores, according to DCBOE data. The unofficial turnout for the election was, therefore, about 42 percent.

As The Beacon has explained previously, the Town Council seat that Ms. Morey will vacate on Dec. 7 when she is sworn in as mayor will be filled by a Council appointment. The appointee will serve out the two years of Ms. Morey’s unexpired term.

The Town is subject to N.C. state law in this matter. Section 160A-63 of the N.C. General Statutes specifies that “a vacancy that occurs in an elective office of a city shall be filled by appointment of the city council.”

The statute elaborates upon how long the appointed person shall serve, explaining that in the event a successor will not be elected until the next regularly scheduled city election–which is the case in Southern Shores–the appointed person shall service until the elected successor takes office.

The next election in Southern Shores is November 2021. Candidates elected to the Town Council then would take office in December 2021.

The new Town Council with Mayor Morey and Council members Sherlock, Matt Neal, and Leo Holland can make its appointment by the motion-and-vote method or the nomination-and-ballot method, upon which we elaborated in a blog post 10/8/21.

The Town Council need not appoint one of the three candidates who ran for office yesterday and lost.

“[T]he new Council can appoint anyone they choose,” Town Manager Cliff Ogburn confirmed in an email to The Beacon for our earlier post. “There is no requirement that the person receiving the next highest vote total would automatically fill the unexpired term of [Ms. Morey’s] seat should she become Mayor.”

“Nothing is automatic or predetermined,” he said.

Whether the appointment is made by motion-and-vote or nomination-and-ballot, Mayor Morey would be able to vote only in the instance of a tie.

BOOK DISCUSSION AND SIGNING

A Reminder: Journalist Andrew Lawler will discuss his new book, “Under Jerusalem: The Buried History of the World’s Most Contested City,” and sign purchased copies, today at 7 p.m. at All Saints Episcopal Church on Pintail Trail in Southern Shores.

The book, which was released nationwide yesterday by Doubleday, sells for $32.50.

According to advance press about “Under Jerusalem,” Mr. Lawler “takes us into the tombs, tunnels, and trenches of the Holy City—a saga of biblical treasures, intrepid explorers, and political upheaval—and brings to life the indelible characters who have investigated this subterranean landscape.”

Mr. Lawler is also the author of “The Secret Token: Myth, Obsession, and the Search for the Lost Colony of Roanoke” and “Why Did the Chicken Cross the World?: The Epic Saga of the Bird That Powers Civilization.”

For more information about the author, who specializes in science journalism, see www.kennethlawler.com.

NEXT TOWN COUNCIL MEETING: NOV. 9, 5:30 P.M. AT PITTS CENTER

You may access the agenda for next Tuesday’s Town Council meeting here:

Click to access MEET-Agenda-648984db33974e3ea8275a0bf0247d8a.pdf

This will be the last regular meeting of the current Town Council. It will feature a public hearing on Zoning Text Amendment 21-08, which encompasses the Planning Board’s recommended revisions of the Town’s regulations concerning signage. You may access ZTA 21-08 here:

https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/10-18-21-ZTA-21-08-Signage.pdf.

Also on the agenda are a report by the Town Manager about the 5-G cell towers that are being installed in residential areas and a “discussion” by the Town Council concerning the Citizens’ Exploratory Committee for a Potential Branch Library in Northern Dare County. 

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 11/3/21

REMEMBER: Southern Shores’ polling place today is the gymnasium of the Kitty Hawk Elementary School on South Dogwood Trail—not the Kern Pitts Center behind Town Hall. The polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

The results of Southern Shores’ two elections for mayor and Town Council member should be in soon after the polls close, unless the races are too tight to call. (See the ballot above.)

The Dare County Board of Elections reviewed absentee ballots yesterday and will continue its absentee ballot review today and next Tuesday. 

You may obtain the results of the elections on the N.C. State Board of Elections website at:

For Mayor: https://er.ncsbe.gov/?election_dt=11/02/2021&county_id=28&office=LOC&contest=10.

For Town Council member:

https://er.ncsbe.gov/?election_dt=11/02/2021&county_id=28&office=LOC&contest=11

Early “one-stop” voting was reported by poll watchers to be very light.

So, let’s GOTV, Southern Shores! Get Out the Vote! It’s time to raise your voices and make some choices about your town’s future.

The Beacon hopes all five candidates have a smashing good day. All have worked hard for months and deserve our gratitude for wanting to serve the public and make a difference.   

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 11/2/21

Southern Shores voters will cast their ballots for a new mayor and at-large Town Council member this Tuesday, Nov. 2, at the Kitty Hawk Elementary School gymnasium. The polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Rod McCaughey, immediately past president of the Southern Shores Civic Assn., and current Mayor Pro Tem Elizabeth Morey are vying for the mayor’s seat. There are three candidates running for the other seat: Ann Sjoerdsma, John Carter, and Paula Sherlock.

There are no qualified write-in candidates.

Each elected office carries a four-year term.

In the event that Ms. Morey wins, her current Town Council seat would become vacant: She has two more years remaining on her term.

In conformance with North Carolina law, the new Town Council would appoint someone to serve out Ms. Morey’s unexpired term. There would not be a special election.

The Council is under no obligation to appoint the next-highest vote getter in the election or, indeed, one of the candidates who did not win.

The Beacon explored this eventuality, explaining the two methods of appointment—either by motion-and-vote or nomination-and-ballot—in detail in an Oct. 8 blog post. We refer you to that post, titled “You Have Two Choices on Election Day; The New Town Council Could Make a Third,” at www.southernshoresbeacon.com (Oct. 8).

The mayor would not participate in the appointment process.

Same-day voter registration is not available on Election Day, as it was during the early “one-stop” voting period that ended yesterday, so if you have not yet registered, you will be unable to vote.

Southern Shores has always had an informed and involved electorate. We look forward to a large voter turnout on Tuesday.

PLEASE NOTE: The Town Council’s first-Tuesday-of-the-month regular meeting will be held on Tues., Nov. 9, in the Pitts Center, at 5:30 p.m. (Update 11/1/21: The Town released today the agenda for the Nov. 9 meeting. See the home page of the Town website for a link to the agenda.)

This will be the last meeting of the current Town Council, unless a mid-month workshop session is belatedly scheduled. There is none on the calendar now.

The new Town Council members will be sworn into office and preside at the Tues., Dec. 7, regular meeting.

***

Because of the election, we have curtailed our reporting of late. We will provide just a brief news update now.

POLES FOR ‘SMALL WIRELESS FACILITIES’ TO BE INSTALLED

Residents have expressed concern to Town Manager Cliff Ogburn and The Beacon and through social media about “cell towers” being installed in the residential areas. These poles—one of which is planned for the Hickory Trail-Wax Myrtle Trail intersection and is to be 37 feet tall—will be installed in the Town’s right-of-ways and will have “small wireless facilities” attached to them that will enable an upgrade to 5G cell service.

5G is the fifth generation technology standard for broadband cellular networks. Cellular phone companies, such as Verizon, began deploying it in 2019. The greater bandwidth of 5G will enable higher download speeds.

Mr. Ogburn has explained the law and procedure behind this upgrade and the pole installations in the right-of-ways in the town newsletter, most recently in the Oct. 22 issue, which you may access through this link: https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/broadcast-news/.

Southern Shores Town Code section 36-175(i) enables service providers (Verizon) to obtain conditional use permits to collocate and use its small “wireless facilities” on poles in town. It sets forth the requirements a permit applicant must meet.  

As defined in Code section 36-175(a)(29), a “wireless facility” is “equipment at a fixed location that enables wireless communications between user equipment and a communications network.”

While we recall when it was evaluated/recommended by the Planning Board and enacted by the Town Council, we have not had an opportunity to study this ordinance.

We do note, however, that the ordinance authorizes Town to “engage an outside consultant for technical consultation and the review” of an application for a conditional use permit. The consultation fee is not to exceed $500 per application and is to be paid by the applicant.

We believe it would be helpful if the Town Manager reported upon the number of poles that will be installed and their locations. The more information disclosed to the public about the design here, the better.

According to the ordinance, new poles may not be erected in residential areas solely for the purpose of attaching the wireless facilities to them, unless the service provider demonstrates that it cannot reasonably provide service through other means.

(Update 11/1/21: Mr. Ogburn will address the cell towers in his Town Manager’s report at the Nov. 9 Town Council meeting, according to the meeting agenda that the Town released today.)

ALL VACCINE BOOSTERS AVAILABLE FOR PEOPLE AGE 65 OR OLDER

If you are age 65 or older and completed your Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine series more than six months ago or you received your Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine more than two months ago, you are eligible to receive a booster vaccine, regardless of the status of your health. You are qualified by age alone.

People who are at least 18 and also received their COVID-19 vaccines the requisite number of months ago are eligible if they:

*live or work in a nursing home or long-term care residential facility; OR

*have a medical condition that puts them at high risk for severe illness, such as obesity, asthma, heart disease, high blood pressure, or diabetes; OR

*work in a high-risk profession, such that they come in contact with a lot of people whose vaccination status they don’t know (for example, health care workers, first responders, teachers, retail and restaurant workers); OR

*live or work in a place where many people live together, such as a homeless shelter, correctional facility, dormitory or other group living setting in a college or university.

Eligible people may receive any brand of COVID-19 vaccine for their booster shot. There is no increased risk involved with mixing vaccine brands, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Dare County Dept. of Health and Human Services is offering Moderna booster vaccines. To obtain an appointment for one, you may call the DCDHHS Clinical Services team at (252) 475-5003 (selection option #2) or register online at www.darenc.com/register4vaccine.

Area pharmacies are offering booster doses of Moderna, Pfizer, and J&J.  

For further information, see https://www.darenc.com/Home/Components/News/News/7539/1483.

AUTHOR TALK, SIGNING ON WEDNESDAY AT ALL SAINTS CHURCH

Journalist Andrew Lawler will discuss his new book, “Under Jerusalem: The Buried History of the World’s Most Contested City,” and sign purchased copies, on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at All Saints Episcopal Church on Pintail Drive in Southern Shores.

The book, which is scheduled for release Tuesday by Doubleday, sells for $32.50.

According to advance press about “Under Jerusalem,” Mr. Lawler “takes us into the tombs, tunnels, and trenches of the Holy City—a saga of biblical treasures, intrepid explorers, and political upheaval—and brings to life the indelible characters who have investigated this subterranean landscape.”

Mr. Lawler is also the author of “The Secret Token: Myth, Obsession, and the Search for the Lost Colony of Roanoke” and “Why Did the Chicken Cross the World?: The Epic Saga of the Bird That Powers Civilization.”

For more information about the author, who specializes in science journalism, see www.kennethlawler.com.

The Beacon supports all author events, which once were commonly held at Outer Banks bookstores, and thanks All Saints Church for hosting this one.

That’s the news for now.

We wish everyone a Happy Halloween.

Judging from the skeletons, witches, spooks, wolfmen, and assorted ghouls on residents’ front yards, Southern Shores is definitely in the grip of the Halloween spirit. Have fun and stay safe.

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 10/31/21

The videotape of the virtual Southern Shores Town Council Candidate Forum, hosted Oct. 13 by the League of Women Voters of Dare County, is now online at https://lwvdarenc.org/videos/.

All five Southern Shores candidates—two for mayor and three for an at-large Town Council seat (see ballot above)—participated in the forum and also answered questions for the League’s Vote411.org online voters’ guide.

You may access the voters’ guide at https://www.vote411.org/ballot.

Early voting, aka “one-stop” voting, for the Nov. 2 municipal election began Oct. 14 and runs through Saturday, Oct. 30, at the Kill Devil Hills Town Hall and the Dare County Administration Building in Manteo from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and on Sat., Oct. 30, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

There will be no early voting this weekend, Oct. 23-24.

The Southern Shores polling place for voting on Election Day, Nov. 2, will be the Kitty Hawk Elementary School gymnasium, not the Kern Pitts Center. The polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Please Note: Because of my conflicts of interests as a Town Council candidate, The Beacon will not be endorsing a mayoral candidate, as we thought months ago we might.

SAME-DAY VOTER REGISTRATION

If you are not yet registered to vote, you have missed the deadline for voting on Election Day, but you still may participate in same-day voter registration during the early one-stop voting period. The process and requirements for same-day voter registration are explained on the Dare County Board of Elections’ website at https://www.darenc.com/departments/elections/register-to-vote.

Basically, you must attest to your eligibility to vote in your respective Dare County town by completing and signing a Voter Registration Application and then producing documentary evidence of your residence.

The evidence need not be a N.C. driver’s license with a Southern Shores (or other Dare County town) address. You may produce a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, paycheck, or other government document showing your name and address.

After you have registered, you may vote in the municipal election.

Within two business days of your registration, according to the Board of Elections’ website, the Board will verify your registration (or not) and count your vote if you are qualified.

IF YOU ARE ALREADY REGISTERED TO VOTE, you do not need to produce your voter registration card or a photo ID in order to vote. All you need to do is state your name and residential address to a poll worker upon check-in.  

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 10/21/21

The Southern Shores Town Council unanimously approved yesterday pursuing a 10-year capital improvement plan (CIP) that would entail spending $1 million annually on road maintenance—$800,000 to be allocated to improving the Town’s 37-mile street system and $200,000 to be available for “contingency” construction.

Town Councilman Matt Neal, who made the motion to approve the $800k-$200k option, cited as its advantages that the Town would be “touching streets at a vastly greater velocity than we are now” and would have the flexibility to do up to $200,000 in additional needed construction.

The $800k-$200k option was one of four CIP options presented to the Town Council for its consideration at yesterday’s morning workshop session. SEPI Engineering and Construction, which performed a pavement condition survey of the Town’s roads in the spring, proposed two of the other options in its report and provided an analysis for the option that the Council chose.

(For background on the four options, see The Beacon, 10/16/21.)

SEPI’s final report is accessible at https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Southern-Shores-PCS-CIP-Final-Report-v2.pdf.

According to Town Manager Cliff Ogburn, the $800k-$300k option, which he recommended to the Council, will “raise as many streets as we can to a better condition.”

In his agenda item summary for the Town Council’s workshop, Mr. Ogburn said that the $800k-$200k option “touches 47 miles of road and improves the system to 73 percent good/excellent, [and] 27 percent fair.”

All of the CIP options envision treating some sections of roadway more than once during the 10-year period. The approved CIP represents a major change from the Town’s past and current practice of rebuilding full sections of selected streets, rather than doing preventive maintenance town-wide.  

Mr. Neal suggested that after year two or three of the new plan, the Town Council should have a “lessons learned” discussion to evaluate how implementation has fared.

PLANNING BOARD ACTION

In other town business, the Planning Board unanimously voted Monday to recommend to the Town Council an amended version of Zoning Text Amendment 21-08, which is a new Town Code sign ordinance; and to table ZTA 21-09, which amends the Town Code so that there is no question that the area used for calculating 30 percent lot coverage on oceanfront property extends up to the first line of stable vegetation, and not beyond to the mean high water mark, which is the property’s easternmost border.

We will publish a link to the revised ZTA 21-08 when it comes before the Town Council for consideration.

You may access ZTA 21-09 at https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/wp-content/ uploads/2021/10/ZTA-21-09-Lot-Coverage.pdf.

Planning Director/Deputy Town Manager Wes Haskett asked to table ZTA 21-09 because he is continuing to work with Town Attorney Ben Gallop and Professor David Owens, a municipal law and land-use expert at the University of North Carolina School of Government, on the language of the proposed ordinance.

They want to avoid “over-complicating things,” Mr. Haskett said, and “bring something forward that we all feel comfortable with.”  

The Planning Board also discussed the requirements it might impose on produce stands in the Town’s commercial district if such stands become a permitted use, which they currently are not under the Southern Shores Town Code.

Board members agreed that they support produce stands, both those that are temporary and those that are permanent, while also acknowledging that their presence in the Marketplace, the Sandy Ridge Center (the strip mall on U.S. Hwy. 158), or the Southern Shores Crossing would ultimately be up to the respective property owner.

The Board considered criteria such as the stand’s size, its hours of operation, its products, its wind resistance and other safety factors, its trash disposal, its electricity needs, its parking requirements, etc.

Many of the criteria were suggested by requirements imposed by Kitty Hawk and Nags Head on produce stands that operate in those towns.

Mr. Haskett furnished the Board with these criteria and said he also would look at Duck’s and Currituck County’s ordinances before he “makes an attempt” to draft a Zoning Text Amendment for Southern Shores, which the Board authorized him to do.

For the Kitty Hawk and Nags Head requirements, see https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Produce-Stand-Requirements.pdf.

At the end of Monday’s meeting, Planning Board Vice Chairperson Tony DiBernardo said he would like to “resuscitate the trash discussion” at the next Board meeting, which will be Nov. 15 at 5 p.m.

The Board agreed that the collection of solid waste in Southern Shores, and any problems attendant to it, would be the priority of the November meeting. The Board also may take up the revised version of ZTA 21-09 and Mr. Haskett’s produce-stand ZTA then. 

*** 

Issues arose during the Town Council’s workshop, which featured extensive consultation with Town Engineer Joe Anlauf—who, unfortunately was off-camera and off-microphone—that we are too constrained now by time to address. We are hopeful that we will be able to pick up on some of them after the Nov. 2 election.

Mr. Ogburn said that he will bring “bid packages” for the initial work on the new CIP to the Town Council’s next meeting, which will be Tues., Nov. 9, at 5:30 p.m. 

Dare County Manager and Attorney Bobby Outten made an unannounced appearance at the workshop to explain in a lengthy public comment why the Dare County Board of Commissioners is “not prepared to move forward” with the proposed Northern Dare Library project in Southern Shores.

Two members of the Town’s Exploratory Committee for a Potential Branch Library appeared at the Town Council’s Oct. 5 meeting to enlist the support of Council members in communicating with Dare County officials about the prospect of funding a new library branch. Committee Chairperson Michael Fletcher and member Lilias Morrison said then that their correspondence and phone calls with the County had gone unanswered.

Mr. Outten said yesterday that perhaps the County had not been forceful enough in its rejection of the library project, leaving the committee with an ambiguous impression, but people had been trying not to be rude.

Among the reasons the County Manager cited for not supporting the proposed library were that Dare County librarian, Jonathan Wark, “doesn’t think it’s a good idea”; the County is currently engaged in “a pretty aggressive capital campaign,” which involves “redoing nine EMS stations”; and Southern Shores residents have only to travel “eight to 10 miles” to Kill Devil Hills to access a library.

Town Councilman Jim Conners, who is the Council’s liaison to the Town’s library committee, took issue with Mr. Outten’s comment about distance, pointing out that the Southern Shores-based library would serve people in northern Duck and Martin’s Point, who are farther away, and would be more accessible to children in Northern Dare communities.

Mr. Conners characterized distance as “a weak argument in the scheme of things.”

In the course of an exchange with Mr. Conners, during which both men said they did not want to be “argumentative,” Mr. Outten cited the unincorporated community of Rodanthe, which is on Hatteras Island, as having a better case for a library, in terms of distance, than Southern Shores. Rodanthe is more than 30 miles away from the Hatteras Library.

“We’re not going to build five more libraries to solve the distance problem,” Mr. Outten said.

According to 2020 U.S. Census population projections, Rodanthe only has 141 year-round residents. It is not included in the N.C. General Assembly’s N.C. town listing of 2020 census counts. See:

Click to access PL94_171_2020_PlacePop.pdf

According to the General Assembly 2020 population data, Duck, Southern Shores, and Kitty Hawk have 742, 3,090, and 3,689 year-round residents, respectively.

Town Manager Ogburn told The Beacon yesterday afternoon that he did not know the County Manager was coming to the workshop until he called him yesterday morning to speak about another matter.

Mayor Tom Bennett “previously spoke with [Dare Commissioner] Steve House to clarify the County position,” on the proposed library, Mr. Ogburn explained in an email. “He [The Mayor] thought he might speak at public comment to say that the County had clarified there wasn’t library support but didn’t know when (today or November, if at all). Commissioner House had a conflict so [Mr. Outten] came instead.”

Mr. House represents legislative district three, which consists of Kitty Hawk, Southern Shores, and Duck, and lives in Southern Shores.

According to Ms. Morrison, Mayor Bennett did not reach out to the committee before yesterday’s meeting to share with members his interaction with Mr. House.

REMEMBER:  FRIDAY IS BULK-WASTE COLLECTION DAY.

The Town asks that you have approved items for collection in the street right-of-way by 5 a.m. Friday.

For a list of acceptable and unacceptable items, see:

SEMI-ANNUAL BULK WASTE COLLECTION

Among the unapproved items that we routinely see on the roadside are lumber and other building materials, screens, doors, and carpets.

Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 10/20/21