Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel

After a long history of false starts and dashed hopes in the quest to ensure the navigability of Dare County’s Oregon and Hatteras inlets, real progress seems at hand.

Dare County Commissioners unanimously approved Monday a contract for the design, construction and operation of a dredge tasked with clearing and maintaining those inlets and other shallow draft inlets in the state under the direction of the Oregon Inlet Task Force.

Introduced at the May 20 meeting by County Manager Bobby Outten as “the long-awaited dredge contract,” the agreement calls for the county to advance Greenville-based EJE Dredging Service $15 million in order to build the dredge.

Once the dredge is built, EJE is to own and operate the dredge at least 12 hours per day, 340 days a year, subject to weather conditions, for a period of 10 years. Dare County will be the home port of the dredge, with EJE maintaining a standing agreement with the state Ferry Division to use its dry dock in Manns Harbor for maintenance and repair.

Because EJE will be charging Dare County a discounted rate, Outten explained to that the county hopes to recoup that $15 million in savings over the life of the contract, at which point the loan effectively becomes a grant approved by the state.

“If we can do the dredging for a million and a half dollars a year, if you will, less than what the Corps would have charged us to do the same thing, then the state will forgive the loan,” Outten said.

Formed during a hurricane in 1846, Oregon Inlet has experienced repeated shoaling and massive shifting of sands caused by numerous storms over the years and for years, attempts to combat the problem focused on the construction of jetties. But those efforts fell short.

Wanchese resident Harry Schiffman, who serves as vice chairman of the Oregon Inlet Task Force Advisory Committee, believes that the only truly effective long-term solution is the construction of jetties at both ends of Oregon Inlet and a sand-bypass system. “But we tried that for 35 years,” he said. “They kept telling us to dredge the inlet.”

Acting on that, steps were taken to secure regular dredging by the Army Corps to “proactively” open the inlet and keep it open. Made aware of Oregon Inlet’s ongoing crisis, State Senators Bill Cook, R-Beaufort, Harry Brown, R-Onslow, and Michael Lee, R-New Hanover, sponsored a bill to create the Shallow Draft Navigation Channel Dredging and Lake Maintenance Fund. Passed in May 2015, the new law reserved $4 million for dredging Oregon Inlet, to be matched by non-state dollars.

Dare County then contracted with the Army Corps of Engineers to aggressively and proactively dredge Oregon Inlet. But as the Corps dredging time was steadily reduced over the next few years, Schiffman recounted that, “We began to say, ‘We’ve got to do something for ourselves and stop relying on the Corps.'”

The breakthrough, he added, came last May when the state legislature passed a budget that included an appropriation of $23.2 million to the Shallow Draft Navigation Channel Dredging Fund, with $15 million earmarked as a “forgivable loan (the equivalent of a grant) to a private partner for the purchase of a shallow draft hopper dredge to be used under the direction of the Oregon Inlet Task Force.”

The county has been working since then to finalize the details of the contract just concluded with EJE. Under the terms of the agreement, EJE is to select a naval architect and construction project manager and develop plans and specifications, issue an RFQ, select a builder and negotiate a construction contract, all subject to final approval by the Task Force.

Outten added that there is currently no time frame for completing the dredge’s construction and beginning of its operations. That will be among the details in EJE’s contract with the builder.

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel

DARE COUNTY — With its approval this week of a capital project ordinance for the Shallowbag Bay Dredging Project in Manteo, the Dare County Commissioners moved a step closer to freeing the Elizabeth II, the iconic wooden vessel stranded by shoaling and unable to move from Doughs Creek across from the Manteo waterfront.

Commissioners voted to appropriate $1.9 million awarded to the county by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality for the dredging project. The project is fully funded by DEQ, which finalized a financial assistance agreement Feb. 12. The agreement is effective until June 30, 2020.

Dare County Manager Bobby Outten said in an interview that in approving the capital project ordinance the commissioners had basically authorized “moving the money from one account to the other, so we can spend it.”

The appropriation was approved without discussion during the board’s March 4 meeting as part of the consent agenda. The action also authorizes Outten to execute a $6,996 related services agreement with APTIM Coastal Planning and Engineering of North Carolina to coordinate the permitting of dredging for the navigation channel in Shallowbag Bay.

In the agreement, APTIM states that it “anticipates that the review of authorization, identification of potential disposal sites, coordination with County staff on purpose and need, and development of the project narrative, will be completed within 30 days of receiving notice to proceed from Dare County.”

Asked about a time frame for the dredging project to be completed, Outten said it will be “as quickly as possible,” adding that the time needed to receive the necessary permits will determine when the dredging work can begin. He also added that the project will be complete well before the end date of the financial assistance agreement in June 2020.

The Elizabeth II was built in 1983 to represent the 16th century ships that sailed to Roanoke Island during the voyages between 1584 and 1587, establishing the first English colony in the New World. The vessel was built for $670,000 at the Manteo waterfront to mark the 400th anniversary in 1984 of the first English voyage to Roanoke Island. It is one of the premier attractions at Roanoke Island Festival Park.

In May, in response to a request from the Dare County Waterways Commission, Dare commissioners approved a resolution requesting “urgent assistance for emergency approval” to dredge the Manteo Channel to its authorized depth of 12 feet, citing the “dire situation” created by the channel’s shoaling confronting North Carolina’s “floating ambassador” and impacting area economies. The resolution also asked for assistance in permitting and funding.

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel

KILL DEVIL HILLS — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, or BOEM, is expected to hold an open house meeting regarding the proposed 2019-24 National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program on May 14 at the Ramada Plaza.

That information was shared at the Dare Board of Commissioners meeting Feb. 19 by Commissioner Rob Ross, who said he had learned of the scheduled meeting from Michael Flynn, a coastal advocate at the North Carolina Coastal Federation.

That news comes in the wake of a preliminary injunction filing last week by communities and environmental groups that have brought a suit seeking to block Atlantic seismic testing, a precursor to offshore drilling. Environmental advocates and many public officials have rallied against the Trump Administration plans for drilling in the waters off the Atlantic coast.

Flynn said he has learned that the Department of Interior had reserved the ballroom at the Ramada Plaza 3-7 p.m. May 14  to host the open house to provide information on the proposed energy plan, similar to one that was held in Raleigh last February.

Asked for a confirmation and additional details on this meeting, BOEM Deputy Chief of Public Affairs and Media Relations Manager Tracey Blythe Moriarty said, “A final decision has not been made on the Proposed Program … so I do not have much to share yet.”

Moriarty added that BOEM expects to publish the Proposed Program and Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement “in the coming weeks.” During the 90-day public comment period that follows, she said, “public meetings will be held in coastal cities adjacent to program areas still under consideration for oil and gas leasing.”

She also stated that, “It is easier to reserve venues way in advance and cancel later, rather than competing for space during high tourist season, especially for venues located in smaller towns.”

Back in May 2015, BOEM also held an open house at the Ramada Plaza, drawing nearly 700 participants who visited six information stations featuring a video presentation, maps and a description of the proposed actions for the 2017-2022 Oil and Gas Leasing Program.

At the same time, an estimated crowd of 300 people jammed into the ballroom of the Comfort Inn next door as protesters passionately declared their opposition to drilling off the North Carolina coast. They later gathered on the beach for a rally and group photo.

The BOEM meeting in Raleigh February 2018 followed the same format. The Coastal Federation and 13 other members of the Don’t Drill NC Coalition chartered four buses to shuttle people from the coast who wanted to make their voices heard. At one point during that event, drilling opponents staged a boisterous rally, cheering speakers that included Outer Banks Visitors Bureau Executive Director Lee Nettles, Kill Devil Hills Mayor Sheila Davies and Dare Board of Commissioners Chairman Bob Woodard.

Acknowledging that May 14 “does seem to be a ways off,” Flynn said the Don’t Drill NC Coalition has already started “to plan a response” to a May BOEM meeting. He said that, as part of that response, the coalition “plans to gather in the ballroom of the Comfort Inn North located next to the Ramada Plaza for a public rally/press event.”

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.

Reprinted from Outer Banks Sentinel

The Chicamacomico Historical Association is planning five days of events, Aug. 13-17, to commemorate the centennial of what is frequently cited as “the most dramatic rescue in U.S. maritime history.”

Many of the events memorializing the rescue of the crew of the Mirlo will be held at the Chicamacomico Life-Saving Station on N.C. 12 at the north end of Rodanthe on Hatteras Island and in the adjacent Rodanthe-Waves-Salvo Community Building. The facility became the Chicamacomico Coast Guard Station in 1915, after the Life-Saving Service became part of the Coast Guard.

One of those events will be the debut of the “definitive” book on the rescue by historian, author and documentary filmmaker Kevin Duffus titled “Into the Burning Sea: the 1918 Mirlo Rescue.” Duffus will speak during the morning symposium on Aug. 16 in Rodanthe.

Struck by a torpedo fired by German U-boat 117 during World War I and covering the ocean with fire after the ship exploded a second time and split apart, the British tanker Mirlo had three lifeboats in the water. The 400-foot ship was loaded with 6,679 tons of critical aviation fuel and bound from New Orleans to New York, where it was to join a convoy for England.

Deployed within 30 minutes of the alarm being sounded, the Chicamacomico Beebe McClellan self-bailing motor surfboat 1046 — with five crewmen under the command of Keeper John Allen Midgett Jr. — had to attempt four times to cross the rough surf with waves from 15 to 18 feet high before proceeding to the tanker, located between 5 and 7 miles from shore.

Reaching the ship’s first lifeboat, which had capsized, the crew quickly rescued the six seamen clinging to it. Bypassing a destroyed lifeboat and racing farther out to the third lifeboat, they plunged through a gap in the sea of fire and saved 42 of the 51 men on the ship.

Laying to rest in his book the persistent rumor that the Mirlo was sunk by a mine, Duffus produces detailed accounts of the nine mines laid by U-117 — all of which were accounted for within a month by the U.S. Navy Destroyer sent to investigate and recover the mines.

While other rescues stand out, such as Life-Saving Service surfman Rasmus Midgett’s single-handed rescue of 10 men from the sinking barkentine Priscilla in 1899 and the exploits of Richard Etheridge, the first black keeper of the all-black Pea Island Life-Saving Station, several years before, Chicamacomico Historical Association Treasurer Ralph Buxton told the Sentinel the Mirlo rescue remains the most historic and heroic.

“The sheer number of awards they received surpasses every other rescue,” Buxton said, adding that the crew was honored for “courageous and heroic action” in a Navy commendation. The rescuers also received Congressional Gold Life-Saving medals, the Grand Cross of the American Cross of Honor, the U.S. World War I Victory Medal and the U.K Foreign Service Gold Life-Saving Medal.

“The fact that it was World War I is significant, that it occurred so close to our shoreline and that the rescuers persisted through such terrible conditions and went into a burning sea all point to a group of men that really went above and beyond to save lives,” Buxton stated.

In the final stage of being restored by the National Park Service in time for the week of centennial events, the famous motor surfboat that was used in the Mirlo rescue is on permanent loan to Chicamacomico and is housed there.

The surfboat had just been upgraded that spring 100 years ago from an eight-horsepower to 12-horsepower engine, with gasoline being used that would be more resistant to driving through open flames than the more volatile type of fuel previously used.

“That was a real blessing,” Buxton said. “Having that extra horsepower really made a big difference. They had developed confidence in their boat and so, on that fateful day, they did not hesitate.”

Other events slated for the five-day Mirlo Rescue Centennial Week include the 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 13, artists and buyers opening reception in the Dare County Arts Council Gallery, 300 Queen Elizabeth Ave. in Manteo. A collection of cedar shakes salvaged from the 1911 Chicamacomico Life-Saving Station building and hand painted by local artists will be on display for the remainder of August and then sold by auction.

The Mirlo Rescue Exhibit and Reception will be held 4 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 14, at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum, 59200 Museum Drive, Hatteras. Descendants of the rescuers gather to point out and talk about artifacts on display, followed by a private reception. The display continues through August.

Guided tours of historic Hatteras Island will be available throughout the day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 15, and a Hospitality Station will be open at the Rodanthe-Waves-Salvo Community Building. There will also be a ticketed dinner at 7 p.m. for descendants of the Mirlo rescuers at the Camp Hatteras Convention Center, 24798 N.C. 12 in Rodanthe.

The Centennial Commemoration of the Mirlo rescue starts at 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 16, with the Mirlo Rescue symposium led by Duffus at the Rodanthe-Waves-Salvo Community Building. At 2 p.m. there will be a beach apparatus drill, followed by keynote speaker Adm. Charles Ray, vice commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, who may be replaced by another senior Coast Guard officer if he is unavailable. This will be followed by a flyover by Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, the laying of the wreath and a band concert at the Life-Saving Station.

There will be a local art fair and festival at the RWS Community Building in Rodanthe from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Aug. 17, with 20 local artists participating. At noon there will be live entertainment and locally sourced food available.

Noting the four years of restoration work and the raising of more than $350,000 in preparation for the centennial, Buxton reflected: “Nowadays, we take technology for granted, but these surfmen didn’t have that. They relied on their own brute strength, fortitude and persistence. And John Allen Midgett was a real leader. He had the inner strength that it took to take on that job and he was determined to succeed.”

“We’re very proud of these men,” Buxton added, “and proud to honor them as part of preserving our heritage.”

Learn More

• Chicamacomico Life-Saving Station

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel

HATTERAS VILLAGE — With the help of Dare County and the North Carolina Department of Transportation,  Hatteras Village is hoping that the pending Ocracoke Express passenger ferry service is the lure that brings in a major federal grant to boost that community’s economy and ambiance.

The Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development, or BUILD, Grant, which provides a minimum award of $1 million, is “a grant program for transportation improvements,” said Dare County Planning Director Donna Creef.

The funds would be used to construct multiuse paths along N.C. 12 and Eagle Pass Road in Hatteras Village and to implement a tram system for use with the passenger ferry between Hatteras and Ocracoke islands, now expected to be running by the end of the year.

At the Dare County Board of Commissioners’ July 16 meeting, the board authorized Creef to apply for that grant, which would be administered by the county, with the assistance of NCDOT.

In a letter to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao supporting the project, NCDOT Secretary James Trogdon wrote that, “This project will provide 3.5 miles of pedestrian facilities connecting the Hatteras passenger ferry terminal to the Village of Hatteras and the Cape Hatteras National Seashore and launch a fixed route transit system within the village,” that will help “create a more vibrant, walkable and livable community.”

Watching the July 16 commissioners meeting remotely from Buxton, Dare planning board member and Hatteras Village resident Beth Midgett said the grant will “kick-start” the multiuse path project and “contribute not only to our safety, but to our overall economic recovery that still is continuing after Hurricane Matthew.”

At that meeting, Creef said that she had been contacted by Albemarle Rural Planning Organization Planning Director Angela Welsh about the federal grant opportunity, adding that NCDOT was interested in encouraging both Dare and Hyde counties to apply for funding related to the passenger ferry.

With Hatteras Village residents approving a “Pathway Referendum” in the May 8 election endorsing a proposal to allocate previously collected tax funds from the Hatteras Village Community Center Special Tax District for the multiuse path project, Creef said, “They’ve been working on multi-use paths for some time, and so it was very fortuitous that we got that email (from Welsh).”

Because Dare County qualifies as a rural community and has a population of less than 50,000, Creef said no matching funds would be required from the county. Welsh told the Sentinel that there is $1.5 billion available in federal funds overall and 30 percent of those funds must be awarded to rural projects.

“They are looking for transportation related projects that have a local or regional impact,” she added.

Originally projected to start running this month, construction delays have pushed the expected debut of the $9 million Ocracoke-Hatteras passenger ferry — dubbed the M/V Ocracoke Express— to the end of this year. The 100-passenger, aluminum catamaran-style ferry has 96 interior seats, two wheelchair tie-downs, 16 bicycle racks, Wi-Fi, a concession area and an upper deck with 26 additional seats.

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel

DARE COUNTY – State and local opponents of offshore drilling say they are struck, if not surprised, by the sheer magnitude of the Trump administration’s sweeping new offshore drilling plan announced last week. And they are promising a fight.

Outer Banks Surfrider Foundation Vice Chair Matt Walker said, “We were all pretty much prepared to see some far-reaching impacts, but this is on such a huge scale that it represents about as big a threat as we can imagine.”

Dare Board of Commissioners Chairman Bob Woodard said that the board’s longstanding opposition to offshore drilling and seismic testing “has not changed and we remain strongly opposed to this.” Speaking at the board meeting Jan. 8, Woodard encouraged the other board members to “look at this new plan. We as a board may need to take a look at passing another resolution against it. I still take the position that ‘we take all the risk, but get none of the reward.'”

Oceana Senior Campaign Organizer Randy Sturgill called the plan “insane” and a “radical offshore free-for-all. One thing is for sure. They will not get the Atlantic without one hell of a fight!”

The new plan for developing the National Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 2019-2024 was announced Jan. 4 by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. It proposes to make more than 90 percent of the total OCS acreage available for exploration and development. By comparison, the current program approved by the Obama administration puts 94 percent of the OCS off limits.

The plan calls for 47 potential lease sales. Nine are in the Atlantic region, with three of them in the Mid- and South Atlantic, which includes North Carolina. The proposal also includes all federal waters, which begin 3 nautical miles off the coastline and extend out for 200 miles.

Zinke announced proudly that the program “proposes the largest number of lease sales in U.S. history.”

Surprising to many observers was the inclusion of seven potential lease sales off the Pacific coastline from California to Washington. There had been no federal lease sales on the Pacific or Atlantic coast since the 1980s.

The new policy was set in motion last April, when President Trump signed an executive order overturning a 2016 Obama Administration ban on offshore drilling in portions of the Arctic and Atlantic oceans and the decision that there would be no offshore drilling leases in the Atlantic Ocean for the 2017-2022 period.

This was followed in November by the introduction of a legislative package endorsed by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources designed to “streamline” and speed up granting seismic testing permits and expediting both onshore and offshore oil and gas drilling.

While the legislation has not yet advanced to the House floor, its committee endorsement sent another signal that the Trump Administration was serious about pushing new offshore drilling leases.

During a telephone press conference Jan. 4, Zinke touted the benefits of his plan, stating that it is “better for the environment to produce energy here with responsible regulation.” He added that “as far as the economy goes, clean, reliable, abundant and affordable energy is what’s driving the economy.”

And, in what seemed to be an effort to contrast this administration’s offshore drilling policy with that of its predecessor, Zinke declared, “There is a clear difference between energy weakness and energy dominance.”

Support for the new plan followed quickly from the International Association of Geophysical Contractors (IAGC), which represents seismic testing companies. IAGC President Nikki Martin called the announcement “a win for the American people,” adding that, “Today’s announcement demonstrates that this Administration is thinking beyond today and taking into account the energy needs of a growing economy forfuture generations.”

The American Petroleum Institute, another supporter of the new plan, cited a Harris Poll survey that reported that 77 percent of voters support more oil and gas development, with 68 percent specifically supporting more offshore drilling.

Dare County Commissioners Chairman Woodard, however, pushed back against claims of widespread voter support for more offshore drilling, calling them “absurd.”

“There is no truth to that at all,” he asserted, “particularly not here on the Outer Banks.”

Gov. Roy Cooper joined a number of other East Coast governors in opposing the plan unveiled by Zinke. “Offshore drilling represents a critical threat to our coastal economy,” Cooper said. “Protecting North Carolina families and businesses is my top priority, and we will pursue every option to prevent oil drilling near North Carolina’s beaches, coastal communities, and fishing waters.”

Kill Devil Hills Mayor Sheila Davies, who has taken an active role in opposing offshore drilling, said that, “Given the direction the administration has been going, I’m not surprised by this, but I am extremely disappointed.”

“As a town, and hopefully partnering with the Surfriders and other groups,” Davies continued, “we will make our voices heard loud and clear once again. We won’t give up fighting.”

New Nags Head Mayor Ben Cahoon said he is personally “opposed to both offshore drilling and seismic testing,” stating that, “New drilling off the Atlantic shore, where existing tourism economies already employ millions of people and contribute massively to state coffers, seems especially foolhardy.”

Outer Banks Chamber of Commerce President Karen Brown said she and the chamber are “disappointed with the new proposal” and will continue to work with the “business community, elected officials and the Business Alliance for Protecting the Atlantic Coast (BAPAC) to have our voices heard, the facts presented and work toward a positive outcome.”

Next up in the leasing process is a 60-day public comment period that started Monday, Jan. 8. People may post their comments online at regulations.gov. There will also be a public forum hosted by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) in Raleigh on Feb. 26.

Walker, of the Surfrider Foundation, said he objects to the scheduling of North Carolina’s only public forum in February in Raleigh: “They’re holding meetings only in state capitals. So, they’re going to be extremely difficult for people to get to. It’s obviously not designed to get input from the people who will be most affected.”

Acknowledging the need for strong and united action from both Democrats and Republicans, Walker emphasized, “This is going to require a lot of heavy lifting on the part of all concerned citizens from both sides of the aisle – real concerted political pressure – to push this back.”

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel

Several companies developing wind farm projects in northeastern North Carolina are taking a wait-and-see approach after Gov. Roy Cooper recently signed a bill with an 18-month moratorium on such projects, but then issued an order allowing “behind the scenes work” to continue during that moratorium.

In late July, Cooper signed House Bill 589 that contained good news for solar energy developers, including a competitive bidding process and a new solar leasing program. But it also contained the 18-month wind farm halt, a reduced version of a four-year moratorium that had been introduced by North Carolina Senate Majority Leader Harry Brown, R-Onslow.

Legislators say the moratorium is intended to allow time for them to more thoroughly study potential effects of wind turbines on area military facilities and operations.

To mitigate the effect of the wind moratorium, Cooper then signed an executive order directing the Department of Environmental Quality to continue recruiting wind energy investments and to “move forward with all of the behind the scenes work involved with bringing wind energy projects online.”

“I want wind energy facilities to come online quickly when this moratorium expires, so our economy and our environment can continue to benefit,” Cooper stated.

The Timbermill Wind project in Chowan County and the Little Alligator wind farm in Tyrrell County had been on track to receive all their needed permits within a year. The moratorium will delay that process until at least the end of 2018.

Kevin Chandler, Apex’s senior manager of federal affairs, said the company is “disappointed by the moratorium. It is anti-innovation and anti-business, and the wind study proposed is unnecessary, given the level of state and federal review already required for wind projects.”

But given “the [Cooper] administration’s willingness to work with companies on permitting while the moratorium is in place, we anticipate continuing to explore options for Timbermill Wind,” he added. “However, if the moratorium is extended or if the study leads to anti-clean energy zoning, we will reconsider that position.”

The British energy firm Renewable Energy Systems, or RES, is developing the Little Alligator project. RES spokesman Scott Dunaway did not rule out continuing work on the project, but said: “RES must reassess the state’s interest in our project and the risks associated with its development permitting.”

Avangrid Renewables, whose $400 million Amazon Wind Farm project just outside of Elizabeth City is now in operation and will not be affected by the moratorium, was guarded in its response.

“With regard to HB 589, we remain focused on our onshore development in Perquimans and Pasquotank counties,” said Avangrid Communications Manager Paul Copleman.

Early this year, Avangrid’s project became fully operational, but only after a group of state lawmakers, including the legislative leadership, tried unsuccessfully to derail the wind farm by petitioning the Trump Administration to halt it, citing national security concerns.

Indeed, the assertion that wind farms could interfere with military operations, including radar facilities, has been frequently cited by those trying to halt such projects. During the attempt to stop the Amazon project, however, media accounts quoted Navy sources as saying it would not interfere with military operations.

There was no response to a request for comment for this story from the Navy.

But Rep. Bob Steinburg, a Chowan County Republican representing much of northeastern North Carolina, was a staunch supporter of the Amazon Wind Farm outside of Elizabeth City. Steinburg said he strongly opposed the moratorium.

“There is no one anywhere in the military who has gone on record stating that they have any problems with wind energy,” he said. Wind farm opponents are “using the military as a straw man … I am totally pro-military and I would never support any renewable project that was going to impede the ability of our military to function in any way.”

Noting that the Amazon Wind Farm is located in his district, as are the planned project sites for the Tyrrell and Chowan counties, Steinburg said he is upset over the loss of badly needed revenue for Tyrrell and Chowan counties.

“Renewable energy is a foregone conclusion going into the 21st century and it will continue to grow and prosper,” he added. “So we need to do all we can to encourage the consideration of all renewable energy as part of the overall energy policy for our state and our country.”

Learn More

• Timbermill Wind
• Renewable Energy Systems

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel

FRISCO – For decades, countless Outer Banks residents and visitors have done a double take while driving down Highway 12 on Hatteras Island and catching a glimpse of what appears to be a flying saucer that landed just south of the Milepost 66 mile marker on the ocean side of the road.

Often called the Frisco UFO House — but referred to by owner Leroy Reynolds as “the spaceship”— the structure is officially a Futuro House, one of nearly 100 built in the late 1960s and early ’70s. Constructed of fiberglass-reinforced polyester plastic, the 13-foot-tall by 26-foot-wide homes were designed by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen as structures that could be easily transported, assembled and used as vacation homes.

Once advertised in Playboy Magazine as a “portable playhouse,” there are just 61 of the structures left the world, according to the photo gallery on thefuturohouse.com site.

Now, amidst swirling rumors, the future of “the spaceship” is the subject of a dispute between Reynolds and Dare County over what it is required to make improvements on the property. Reynolds wants to focus on bringing in a 12-foot-by-12-foot shed and installing a power pole that will provide space and power for the air conditioning that will help pave the way for a souvenir shop.

The county says before any work can be done, Jim Bagwell, who owns the property on which the structure sits, must submit a set of plans produced by a licensed engineer about how to bring the uninhabited property up to code and how to physically support the structure.

The UFO House issue took center stage at the June 19 Dare County Board of Commissioners meeting when Reynolds spoke during the public comment portion. Introducing himself as “the alien at the Frisco UFO for many years,” he began by declaring simply: “I come in peace.”

Reviewing the growing popularity of the “Google landmark,” Reynolds declared, “It is just for fun. I am not trying to make it a major business venture. I’m just trying to do my best to preserve it for our island.”

Reynolds’ friend Dewey Parr followed up with a request that the commissioners “look into this problem about the Frisco UFO. The people here are concerned with why it’s going to be closed down.”

In an interview, Dare Planning Director Donna Creef said that landowner Bagwell “asked for permits to ‘refurbish’ the unit inside and outside. I have advised him that we need engineering info. The unit meets no codes. Bagwell signed an agreement in 2006 acknowledging the unit was not to be accessed or occupied.”

Dare County Planner Noah Gillam added that the matter is a “safety issue” and the county is taking no steps to “shut down” the house.

“The rumor mill on social media has been flying that we’re tearing it down or taking it, but none of that is the case,” he added. “We are just simply saying people don’t need to be going into it or using it for any other purpose than as an ‘ornament’ until they can get us a set of engineered plans.”

Dare Commissioner Danny Couch, who represents Hatteras Island, told the Sentinel, “There is a lot of misinformation running around, but nobody is trying to shut him down.”

Acknowledging that the house is “iconic” and one of the attractions that make the Outer Banks distinctive, Couch said that the guests on his Hatteras Tours tour bus just that morning “had to stop and take pictures.”

“But the rules are there for the general public and for Leroy [Reynolds] as well,” Couch added. “If he wants to make a retail go of that, the commercial insurance company is going to insist that that thing have all the building inspections and everything to make it legally viable.”

History of the House

The UFO house was originally bought in 1972 by vacationers Lee and Mary Jane Russo, who used it as an oceanfront cottage in Hatteras Village until the 1980s. Bought by Scotch Bonnet Campground owner John O’Brien, the house was later moved to several different locations in Frisco, where it was used as a Boy Scout meeting place, a magazine office, the Scotch Bonnet office and finally as the Scotch Bonnet’s “Footlong Out Of This World Hot Dog Stand.”

Reynolds said he bought the house in 1994 and arranged with Bagwell to have it moved to his property about a mile south of the campground.

Originally from Trout Run, a small community near Williamsport, Pennsylvania, Reynolds said he never cared much for science fiction growing up. He was a “good student” in high school, he said, but didn’t really apply himself because he knew he would join the Marines right out of school.

Enlisting at the age of 17, Reynolds served six years at Camp Lejeune. He recalled vacationing on Hatteras Island in the late 1970s with his family while growing up. And he chose the island as his destination during leaves from the Marines.

And he remembered being struck by the sight of the UFO House from his earliest days visiting Hatteras Island. “I thought, ‘Man! Who else has a space ship? This is so cool!'”

Moving to Hatteras Island in 1993, Reynolds started working for Lattimore Construction. But the following year, in partnership with Bagwell, he set up the house in its new location, painted over the original green color with silver and worked on the foundation himself.

Displaying his handiwork and trying to make a case for the sturdiness of the structure, Reynolds said, “See this steel I-beam? It’s welded to another I-beam and set three inches into the concrete slab. It’s not going anywhere.”

“I’ve just been doing this for free as a hobby and just for fun,” Reynolds added.  “It’s all about bringing a smile and laughter.”

But he has also been seeking permission to expand the uses of the house since 1996. Reynolds and his wife and daughter currently sell T-shirts and refrigerator magnets from a table beneath a shade tent when a crowd gathers at the site. The T-shirts bear an image of the house with the words, “Take me to your island.”

“The spaceship is the second most viewed thing on Hatteras Island, after the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse,” he said, claiming that he could easily sell $5,000 in merchandise a day if he had the shed and power that he wants.

Reynolds argues that by refusing to cooperate with his plans for the site, the county “is just shooting themselves in the foot. If we have money coming in, the county has money coming in in tax revenue.”

Donning his flame retardant green suit, acquired during his days driving in demolition derbies in the ’80s, Reynolds explained that he is on his third generation of masks—each one “scarier” than the last. And as visitors quickly gathered to ask questions and snap pictures, he paused to consider a question about whether he believes in UFOs.

“I believe that there’s a higher power,” he said. “I believe that there’s someone smarter than us. You know that cell phone and those cameras we play with? We didn’t get that smart overnight. That intelligence had to come from somewhere—whether it’s God or aliens. I don’t know. Maybe God rides in a spaceship.”

Offering a surprising assessment of the net effect of the “UFO House controversy,” Dare Commissioner Couch recalled that the debates and turmoil that surrounded the relocation of the Cape Hatteras lighthouse in 1999 — dubbed “the Move of the Millennium”— were actually “good for business.”

“This year’s tourist season is a screaming nuthouse,” he continued. “And I say that in a good way.”

Learn More

• TheFuturoHouse.com
• FuturoHouse.net

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel

ROANOKE ISLAND — When the 2017 season of “The Lost Colony” opens on Friday, the production at Roanoke Island’s Waterside Theatre will aim the spotlight squarely on a milestone event: America’s longest-running outdoor symphonic drama turns 80 this year.

“The Lost Colony” will celebrate with some high-tech upgrades and a rolling out of the red carpet for some distinguished alumni — including two performers who appeared in the play 78 years apart.

Lost Colony CEO Bill Coleman said it’s been hectic making final preparations for his fifth season at the helm of “The Lost Colony.”

“It’s an all-out dash from January to opening night on May 26,” Coleman said, “but I’m excited about what we have in store for people this season.”

Opening night will be the kick-off to the 80^th anniversary celebration, featuring cake served during intermission.

Other special events will include monthly “pre-show talk-backs,” providing the opportunity to meet the director, Ira David Wood III, production designer William Ivey Long and a third key member of the artistic staff.

The centerpiece of the season-long celebration will be the alumni reunion, running June 30-July 2. On Saturday, July 1, alumni are invited to the show.

“They’re a great audience — except for the fact that every alum, to a person, will tell you, ‘The show’s not as good this year. The best show was the year that I was in it,'” Coleman observed.

One highlight of the July 1 celebration will be a presentation of “our oldest alum and our youngest.” The oldest is Marjalene Thomas, who appeared as a child in 1938 — the show’s second season.

“She’s played the queen, Eleanor Dare — just about every major woman’s role except Agona,” said Coleman.

The youngest alum was identified only as “Baby Barker” on Virginia Dare Baby Night last season, when she appeared as the newborn Virginia Dare in the christening scene. She is the daughter of Rob and Alex Barker and the granddaughter of Patsy Hart, who plays Agona this year.

“When she went on,” Coleman said, pausing dramatically, “she was four days old.” Indeed, her parents “auditioned” her for the part before she was born.

Adding to this year’s excitement are capital improvement projects funded by a $75,000 grant from the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau and a $5,000 grant from the Outer Banks Community Foundation.

PNC Bank is also supporting the projects as this season’s title sponsor.

“We’re upgrading our technology,” Coleman said. “This is a very competitive field we’re in in terms of what people want to do with their dollars. We have to be competitive in terms of the sound, the lighting and the total product that we deliver. It all has to be up to the expectations of today’s audience.”

About half of the funding will go toward upgrading the theater’s sound equipment.

“We replaced half of the microphones two years ago, going from analog to digital. This year we’re replacing the other half,” Coleman said. At a cost of “several thousand per unit,” the change is expensive, but well worth it: “It will make the show sound a lot better.”

Lighting designer Joshua Allen is also continuing an ambitious lighting upgrade begun in 2016. Taking $40,000 in funding for new lighting made available last year, Allen used his connections as a lighting consultant to bring in an additional $100,000 in donated or loaned lighting equipment.

“It made a huge difference for us last year,” Coleman said, “and we made some major advances in our lighting. And he’s continuing that this year.” Among the changes is a continuing move to LED lighting, which Coleman said uses less electricity, gives off less heat and opens up new capabilities such as changing colors “with the push of a button” at any time during the performance.

Another upgrade is in the works for the production’s guest services. Along with new signage, the theater is continuing to expand its move to fiber-optic cable, linking the administrative offices with the box office and concession stands and providing the “fastest possible connections to the internet,” while bringing the capability of scanning people’s tickets directly from their phones and taking credit cards at concession stands.

Several new large monitors in the theater’s lobby will present previews and information on other shows and programs, along with “fun facts” and trivia questions.

Estimating that 97 percent of the cast and crew have been finalized, Coleman said, “We’ve got a lot of great people coming back.”

Returning cast members include Don Bridge as the National Park Service park ranger/historian, Terry Snead as Governor White, Joey Cassella as Manteo, Emily Asbury as Queen Elizabeth I, Christopher Flores as Uppowoc and John Bennett as Wingina.

“And we’re very excited about Robert Hooghkirk returning as Old Tom,” Coleman said. “He was very popular last year.”

One change this year is Ethan Lyvers switching from the role of Sir Walter Raleigh to John Borden.

Another change will be moving this year’s curtain time back 15 minutes to 7:45 p.m., “primarily for the convenience of our audience,” while retaining the “better lighting” of last year’s 7:30 curtain.

“And then everybody’s excited about Erlin Zavala playing Wano, the son of Manteo,” Coleman said. “He’s a local boy who goes to Manteo Elementary School. He grew his hair out for the role and he’s really excited about being part of this production.”

Of course, Coleman added, one indispensable returning favorite is the character known as “Burning Girl.” The colonist who runs across the stage in flames during a climactic fight scene was added back to the show in 2015 after being absent for many years.

“Our stunt coordinator, Jason Tate, helps us with other stunts as well,” said Coleman. “But he comes for two or three weeks and puts that particular stunt together.”

The specialist in movement direction and performance, fight choreography and pyrotechnics is valued especially for his “very expensive 10 seconds” of fiery excitement. “They lather her up in this fire-retardant gel,” Coleman said. “It’s kind of chilling, I’m told, and keeps the body temperature so cool that you don’t want to be in it for very long. And the gel is also put on the clothing that we don’t want to burn.

“And then the apron is treated with something that is flammable, and it all has to be timed out very well. It’s a fantastic effect.”

Learn More

• The Outer Banks Sentinel
• Learn more about the production and buy tickets

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Sentinel.

MANTEO — After 40 years in the National Park Service, Wright Brothers National Memorial Park Historian Darrell Collins retired on Jan. 17 — exactly one month after telling the story of the aviation pioneers for the last time at the annual first flight celebration on Dec. 17.

Each year since 1978, Collins has presented the Wright Brothers Story during the wreath-laying ceremony at the boulder marking the spot where Orville first took off in the flyer built by him and his brother Wilbur.

“It has been amazing,” Collins said in an interview. “And the seventeenth of December is probably the best day to work at Wright Brothers. That’s when we look back at the day and the moment that it all happened. There’s no more exciting day to be at the park than that day.”

Described variously as a masterful and inspiring storyteller, a “national treasure” and an “Outer Banks institution,” Collins has been recognized by the nonprofit First Flight Foundation as one of the “top five historians in the world on early aviation and the Wright brothers.” He is respected and loved for his warmth, down-to-earth humor, profound historic insight and flair for the dramatic.

In 2003, he was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the highest civilian recognition given by the state of North Carolina.

Collins was honored by the Dare Board of Commissioners at its Feb. 6 meeting, with Board Chairman Bob Woodard declaring that, “in a five-minute span, he can give you the history and he can have you laughing. In the next two or three minutes he’ll have you crying. He is a phenomenal human being.”

Outer Banks Group National Park Service Superintendent David Hallac told the Sentinel that Collins “is without a doubt one of the most inspirational storytellers and interpreters the Park Service has ever had the pleasure to work with.”

Tom Crouch, senior curator at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, said Collins will “certainly be missed by all of us who know and love the story of the Wright brothers. He is a good friend, a true gentleman and an inspiration. And he does this like no one else.”

A lifelong Manteo resident, Collins traces his ancestry on his mother’s side to the first African-American residents of the Freedmen’s Colony established in 1862. On his father’s side his genealogy goes back even farther — to the Native American residents of Roanoke Island, who called the Outer Banks home long before the Lost Colony appeared and vanished.

His uncle, Herbert Collins, served as the last commanding officer of the only all-black Pea Island Lifesaving Station before it was decommissioned in 1947. His father, Frank Collins, served 16 years in the U.S. Coast Guard before he was killed in Hurricane Donna in 1960. His mother, Dellerva Collins, served on the Manteo Board of Commissioners for more than 26 years.

After her death in 2005, Collins was appointed to finish his mother’s term and has been re-elected and continued to serve as a commissioner ever since. He and his wife Tonya attend Haven Creek Missionary Baptist Church in Manteo and have two sons and one grandson.

Beginning his Park Service career by running a printing press at headquarters, Collins was soon offered a seasonal ranger position as park interpreter at the Wright Brothers Memorial.

The following year, 1978, was a “very big year at Wright Brothers,” he said, as the park geared up for the celebration of the 75^th anniversary of the first flight. Traveling around the region with a NASA exhibit, Collins did his first public speaking on the Wright brothers.

“I was basically at the right place at the right time,” he recalled. Taking a position as a full-time park interpreter/historian, Collins said he was inspired by two aviation historians who came and spoke at the 75^th anniversary.

“The great Paul E. Garber is the man who started the national air museum in 1972 and was responsible for all the collections up to that point. He was also the man who brought the Wright brothers’ airplane back to America in 1948, after it had been in England for 20 years at the Science Museum in South Kensington, London.

“The other speaker was Charles Gibbs-Smith, a famous aviation historian at the Science Museum in South Kensington. Both these men really opened up my eyes to what the Wright brothers actually accomplished and how significant their invention truly was. I fell in love with the story of the Wright brothers, and that’s when I realized this was something I wanted to pursue as a career.”

Dedication, Perseverance and Determination

Collins said he has sought to pattern his life after the Wright Brothers, to “emulate their dedication, perseverance and determination” and to pass that on to others — particularly the younger generation.

“Our youth are the ones who will shape the future,” he noted. “So we have to challenge and inspire our young people to step out and create that future. It’s all part of the never-ending journey that started at Kitty Hawk.”

Collins said speaking about the Wright brothers has taken him across the country and around the world, introducing him to people and experiences that most would only dream of.

“I’ll never forget getting to take a back-seat ride in an F-15 Strike Eagle,” Collins said. “We did a high-performance takeoff from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. The airplane went down the runway, then pulled up vertically and went straight up 7,000 feet. I knew it was a great invention, but I didn’t know it was that great.”

Pausing, Collins added, “Aviation has touched so many lives, and I’ve literally met all the greats. I had breakfast in Pensacola, Florida, with the first man and the last man to set foot on the moon — Neil Armstrong and Eugene Cernan.”

Serving at the park during the centennial celebration in 2003, Collins recalled the one downside at “the event of the century.” The Wright flyer replica, which had flown successfully three times previously, failed to take off that day because the conditions were not right.

“The airplane couldn’t take off on a nice warm day,” he explained. “You had to have at least an 18-mile-per-hour wind and freezing temperatures in order for the plane to fly under its own power.”

Less than a month into retirement, Collins is already anxious to get on with the “next chapter” of his life. He’s started his own business — A Legacy of Greatness. The author of numerous articles and in-demand speaker on the early days of aviation plans to continue to “tell the story.” A book is also in the works. It will focus on the Wright brothers and his experiences at the Wright Brothers Memorial.

Collins said what really impresses him about the brothers is that they didn’t just study what others had written about aviation, but “they created the science of aviation. They had excelled in math in high school and they used this math 18 years later to invent the world’s first successful powered airplane — the same math that is used today to design modern airplanes.

“They achieved what was then considered to be impossible, and I believe that set the stage for America’s achievements that would follow. If flight was impossible — something that would require a ‘miracle’ — and they did it, then anything was possible. And I believe that attitude has changed the course of our nation and the world.”

Learn More

• Wright Brothers National Memorial
• First Flight Foundation

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Sentinel, a weekly Dare County newspaper that is published in print every Wednesday and headquartered at 2910 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head. Aside from the print paper, the Sentinel also produces a continually updated digital version at www.obsentinel.com.