A judge has thrown out a lawsuit challenging Topsail Beach’s repeal of the town’s dune ordinance, a decision that lifts a block on new building permits.
Beach & Inlet Management
Inventory Tracks ‘Armoring’ of Beaches, Inlets
Newly released data lists all hardened structures, beach re-nourishment projects and other changes made to East Coast beaches since 2012, raising questions about what should be done to offset their effects.
Coastal Towns Brace For Beach Funding Cuts
Local government officials gathered last week in Nags Head to discuss how to respond to expected federal and state funding cuts to beach and inlet management programs.
Plan Streamlines Re-Nourishment Permitting
The state will soon roll out a new biological review system to fast-track permitting for certain types of beach re-nourishment projects, trimming at least three months from the approval time.
Corps OKs Ocean Isle’s Terminal Groin Plan
Ocean Isle Beach has the federal permit needed to build an estimated $5.7 million terminal groin at the erosion-prone east end of the Brunswick County town.
Topsail Beach’s Request for Sand Site Stalled
The Corps will not seek an exception to federal restrictions in order to designate an area of Banks Channel as a sand source for Topsail Beach re-nourishment projects, but town officials aren’t giving up the idea entirely.
Judge Halts Topsail Beach Building Permits
A judge has blocked Topsail Beach from issuing building permits for a stretch of oceanfront lots, a move prompted by a lawsuit brought by property owners upset about the town’s recent repeal of its dune protection ordinance.
Topsail Beach Repeals Dune Ordinance
Rather than add controversial provisions to accommodate development, Topsail Beach commissioners voted 4-1 Wednesday to simply scrap the town’s longstanding dune-protection ordinance.
Property Owners Divided Over Dune Rule
Topsail Beach property owners, some with their lawyers, turned out Saturday for the first of two public hearings over proposed changes to the town’s dune-protection ordinance.
Federation Takes Living Shorelines Online
The North Carolina Coastal Federation and Restore America’s Estuaries collaborated to make a one-stop shop for all things living shorelines, including training, learning and connecting.
Southern Shores Sets Forum on Beach Plan
Town officials in Southern Shores have set a date for a forum to gauge public opinion on a proposed beach re-nourishment project that will likely require a tax increase.
‘Many’ Figure Eight Owners Haven’t Voted
As the world’s attention is focused on Election Day, a pending vote on a controversial plan to build a terminal groin on Figure Eight Island may not have generated the response proponents wanted, so far.
Figure Eight Set to Vote on Terminal Groin
Property owners on Figure Eight Island will soon receive ballots for a vote on whether to proceed with construction of a terminal groin here. Meanwhile, a letter from nearly 50 owners opposed to the project will also arrive in their mailboxes.
Groups: Ocean Isle’s Groin Application Flawed
The N.C. Coastal Federation and the Southern Environmental Law Center say Ocean Isle Beach’s permit application for a terminal groin doesn’t meet state, federal environmental requirements.
Sunset Beach Studying Plan to Dredge Canals
Officials in Sunset Beach have hired a firm to review the environmental effects of dredging creeks and man-made canals here, but some say going deeper for bigger boats is a bad idea.
Lawmakers Tour New River Inlet
Members of a state House committee took a boat ride through New River Inlet to get firsthand look at shoaling and the erosion at North Topsail Beach. They heard about dredging, terminal groins and even jetties as possible solutions.
