Letter: Cape Charles Kids Clean the Beach…This is what Community Looks Like

For many locals, the Cape Charles Beach has been a mess. Trash, clumps of seaweed, grass, even flotsam and jetsam. Sometimes, you have to take matters into your own hands and clean it up yourself.

To the Editor:

Last Thursday, a group of 5 to 10 kids — none of them older than 12 — grabbed a single rake and a kayak and did what the Town of Cape Charles said couldn’t be done.

They cleared 50 feet of beach frontage in under 45 minutes.

For context: When homeowners contacted the town about the buildup of debris and seaweed on the beach this summer, here’s the response they got:

“Thank you for contacting the town of Cape Charles regarding the seagrass and debris that has washed up onto our beach area. This has been bought (sic) to the attention of the town manager and the public works director. Public works will get to this request as soon as they are able. Keep in mind that this will have to be done during off peak hours when the beaches are almost empty for the equipment to be used.” *this request was made before any sewer/waste water issues that occurred on 3 July

Heavy equipment. Off-peak hours. Sometime, maybe, eventually.

That’s the same beach that public works combed every Friday and Saturday for decades — according to several neighbors who, together, have lived in Cape Charles for more than 50 years. That routine quietly disappeared over the past few summers, and apparently so did any urgency about reviving it.

So the kids stepped up. One rake. One kayak. Forty-five minutes. Done.

It’s hard not to love that. Cape Charles has always run on that kind of spirit — neighbors pitching in, volunteers showing up, people who genuinely care about this place doing what needs doing. That’s part of what makes this town special.

But it also raises a fair question: When did keeping the beach clean become something volunteers have to solve?

Because this isn’t just about seaweed. Walk down Bay Avenue and look around. The trash cans are unpainted and falling apart. The gazebo looks like it’s been neglected for years. The kind of basic, visible upkeep that makes a beach town feel welcoming — it isn’t happening.

And the “heavy equipment, off-peak hours” explanation doesn’t quite hold up. The beach isn’t crowded before 10 a.m. There might be some tents or umbrellas, but not where the seaweed is. The town finds a way to run yard debris pickup several days a week. Surely a small crew with some basic tools could get out there before the crowds arrive. If there’s a real obstacle, let’s hear it — because right now the answer just feels like “no.”

Meanwhile, the town is busy planning more gazebos.

The Beachfront Master Plan, developed by consultants since December 2023, has gone through revision after revision. The town has already submitted a $2 million grant application to fund more design, more environmental compliance, more planning. There are renderings. There are plaza concepts. There are golf cart parking specifications.

There is, conspicuously, no one raking the beach.

It’s worth asking where the money is going. Cape Charles has expanded its short-term rental regulations and fees in recent years. Developers are paying more. Residents have seen property taxes rise significantly over the last decade. The town’s revenue base has grown — and that growth was tied, at least implicitly, to the promise of better services and well-maintained public spaces.

The beach is that public space. It’s the reason people visit. It’s the reason people live here.

Volunteers and community members have always done their part — and they’ll keep doing it, because that’s who Cape Charles people are. But town services exist precisely to handle the things that can’t be left to a kid with a rake. If the increased revenue isn’t going toward keeping Bay Avenue presentable, maintaining the jewel of this town, and keeping the beach clean — then it’s worth having an honest conversation about where it is going.

Those kids reminded us what can be accomplished when someone just decides to get it done. Let’s make sure the town is meeting them halfway.

Cape Charles Homeowner

About the Author

Wayne Creed

Administrator

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