The National Park Service is accepting public comment through Aug. 20 on the proposed next steps in the effort to protect an erosion-threatened mile of Fort Raleigh National Historic Site’s shoreline.
The 355-acre site at the north end of Roanoke Island was established in 1941 to safeguard the known portions of England’s first settlements in the Americas from 1584 to 1590. It is also home to the Waterside Theatre, where a dramatic retelling of the “The Lost Colony,” based on the group of 117 English settlers that disappeared in 1587 from Roanoke Island, is performed every summer.
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Erosion “poses a serious threat to potential archeologically significant sites and park facilities. Without action, the erosion will most likely continue, potentially jeopardizing the Waterside Theatre’s costume shop and parking lot, park roadways, and park housing along Pear Pad Road,” park officials said.
As part of the shoreline stabilization plan, the draft environmental assessment and start of the comment period was announced Monday.
“Public participation is an important element of the planning process, and Fort Raleigh welcomes comments on the EA through August 20, 2025,” park officials said, adding comments received during a Feb. 12 meeting and 30-day comment period helped inform the environmental assessment.
The federally required assessment analyzes the likely impacts of the three proposed alternatives to protect the shoreline: a rock revetment, a rock berm, or s combination of the two, with the combination being the preferred alternative, officials said.
Officials said a rock revetment would mitigate erosion by lining the existing shoreline contours with rock material, similar to an existing rock revetment at the site.
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A rock berm would mitigate erosion by placing sand, and then a raised berm made of rock along the widened shoreline to mesh with the existing rock berm in front of the Waterside Theatre.
The preferred alternative would “maximize shoreline protection based on topography, land use, and constructability,” officials said.
Comments may be submitted electronically, which park officials said is the preferred method, or mailed to: Superintendent, 1401 National Park Drive, Manteo, NC 27954.
