This letter was sent to the Cape Charles Mirror…we tore the right corner getting it out of the envelope.
GOSSIP: Town Harbor in need of cleaning and repair
For the most part, the town enjoyed a great Fourth of July. The town harbor, however seemed less busy than in previous seasons. This email sent in by a slip holder echoes concerns many, including some members of town council, have for the town harbor:
We have a unique harbor, wonderful views, and a great seafood restaurant. Residents and visitors alike walk the docks to see the boats, enjoy the restaurant, and admire our bay.
But our town harbor is in need of maintenance. Dock boards are pulling up, slip guards are peeling away, and trash collects along the ramps.
Dockmaster and staff need to weed and maintain the flower boxes, remove trash from the ramps, keep docks and slips in good repair, and possibly remove floating trash from around the docks and launch lot.
This is a safety hazard for everyone, an eyesore, and a detraction if all is not in good repair and free from debris.
GOSSIP: Concerns for Beach Parking and Safety
This was sent by email to the Cape Charles Mirror, highlighting citizen’s concerns about the growth and safety of our town.
(Photo Cape Charles Mirror)
Cape Charles offers its unique and wonderful beach to its residents and visitors but parking is limited. Safety and convenience must coexist.
Please consider the following:
1) golf cart parking only along Bay Ave.
2) golf carts park head in
3) no bicycles or vehicles of any kind on median strip along Bay Ave.
4) limit # of food trucks/stands/food carts permitted on Bay Avenue
This will create a second problem; where do the cars then park?
Please review how our sister beach towns have handled this problem: Dedicated parking lots with fees.
Full time CC residents would be exempt and have an annual decal to park for free. Rental properties could issue this decal to renters for one car per home.
Please consider the following for safety on the beach.
1) Personal watercraft is to remain 1000′ from shoreline IAW regulations set by the National Park Service, example Fire Island.
2) Exceptions would be the navigational channels leading to the Town Harbor and the Bay Creek Marina.
Enhances safety, noise reduction, pollution reduction.
GOSSIP: Do RVs and Boat Trailers Pose a Safety Issue for Cape Charles?
Dear Cape Charles Mirror,
The Fourth of July was very busy this season, with much more out of town car traffic speeding through our streets. The safety of children and adults is compromised severely by street parking of boats, trailers, and RVs. To help alleviate the problem, I believe a couple of things could help to make it safer.
First, RVs are not to be parked in town or parked for overnight camping in town. All RVs are to use designated camping and storage facilities. Second, boats/trailers are not permitted to park on town streets. Parking lots exist for boat launches and storage areas exist for boat storage. They need to put them there.
Safety first
Gossip: A moment of Kindness and Grace
This story was sent to the Mirror about my good friend Lisa Lunger. This was a rare moment of beauty, kindness and grace that we wanted to share.
Yesterday, I tried to save this little man who we believe got hit by a car. Unfortunately, he had a severed spinal cord and had to be put down. But I snuggled him the whole time and made sure he knew what it felt like to be loved. Please, please be careful out there. And if you hit something, have the decency to stop. Thank you to my friend for finding him and thank you to the compassionate staff at ESAH (Eastern Shore Animal Hospital) who helped him pass on.
Sweet kitty taken to Eastern Shore Animal Hospital by Lisa Lunger (Photo credit Lisa Lunger)
Gossip: The Kindness of Strangers
This note was forwarded to the Cape Charles Mirror by our friend and neighbor Jennifer Ingram. This was a short, small note, but it spoke to where live in a very big way:
$265…Just now at Foodlion. the gentleman behind me bought the groceries for the woman in front of me. When she went to pay, she found that her card had been cancelled…he just paid for it. She thanked him and hugged him. Kindness and gratitude, humanity.
IT WAS ALL I COULD DO NOT LOOSE IT AND START CRYING. I mean I was teary eyed cuz hello it’s me and I’m emotional anyway, but who wouldn’t be?
Gossip: Town of Cape Charles Complicit in Derelict Buildings
For folks that are not local, trying to work with a non-business friendly town like Cape Charles can be frustrating. Owners have told the Mirror that if you can’t physically walk into the Plum Street offices, it is nearly impossible to get things done, despite a brutal and capricious business tax structure. Business owners have complained about the town’s reluctance or inability to get derelict shops to clean up their act. A case in point, 207 Mason has been in a state of disrepair for 7 years, and continues to spiral downward.
Code Enforcement has been contacted by adjacent owners concerned about 207 several times, but was told that the town could do nothing about it. These folks had to obtain an engineer at their expense. It wasn’t until the report was given to the town that the owners of 207 were required to take down a cracked wall that joined the adjacent property. The report exposed a wall that was in danger of falling and causing bodily harm.
The town also never inspected the 2-3 inch cracks in the common wall that was causing it to bow and increase damage to the adjacent building.
Even after having the special use permit revoked, the back of 207 still has cinder blocks piled up on town property. Rodents continue to call the building home.
“The building remains a danger and eyesore. How long and how many times will the town allow permits that result in no improvement. A two story building on that site will take a long time, should never have been approved because of the future water runoff on a common wall will cause damage to both buildings on each side,” said a business owner. “It leaves other businesses who work hard to stay compliant, to do the right thing, feeling like they are treated unfairly for trying to correct a situation that should have had more attention and has decreased their ability to market and sell a property because of the building next door and its poor perception and noncompliance to correct the faults. Not to mention what it does to curb appeal and its street view.”
GOSSIP: Chicken Poop Fertilizer is Stinking Up Northampton
While many of us think factory poultry farms are Accomack’s problem, that may not longer be the case, as this citizen explains in this comment sent to the Mirror:
I don’t think there is much that smells worse than chicken manure fertilizer. The new trend among the local farmers is using chicken poop ( presumably coming from the factory chicken operations up in Accomack County) to spread on their farm fields. The odor is a combination of dog poop and rotten fish. As I like to keep my windows open (for “fresh” air) my entire house reeked yesterday. I had to burn candles. To top it off, our large, very hairy dog comes in the morning having trudged all through said fields and rolled enthusiastically, so she is now coated with the horrendous ( toxic, too, no doubt!) stuff. We NEVER had these issues with regular fertilizers or fungicides. I can only guess that the chicken poop is cheaper.
GOSSIP: Attempted Break-Ins Reported in Lower Northampton County
This report was sent in by a local resident of Northampton County.
Beware Lower Northampton residents! We came within a few minutes of being broken into this morning- By chance, my husband woke up at 5:30am – it was still basically dark outside- he let one of our dogs out of the front door and heard the handle of the kitchen patio door being tried ( thank God we lock everything at night). When he ran back to the kitchen, he heard car doors slam from back near the barn behind our house! He ran over to the windows by the driveway and saw a black Ford or Chevy full size pickup truck with camper shell on the bed take off down our driveway! Possibly Florida tags. He grabbed his keys and chased them as far as Plantation Rd, where they turned their lights off and frank couldnt see which way they went. So whoever was planning to rob us came all the way up our driveway, knowing we were at home and were prowling around our property and attempted to get into the house. This is APPALLING, and has never happened in the 20+ years we have lived here. We will now be installing a gate, motion sensors, and alarm system.
Note: There have been other reported break-ins, and attempted breaking and entries along Plantation Road.
GOSSIP: Drone Invades Privacy of Bay Creek Residents
Sent to the Mirror by a local citizen. “12:05 today, a drone was weaving around our home in Marina Villages. Not just from above, but from second story between homes right by windows like a peeping tom! I felt like shooting the darn thing down. Total invasion of privacy!! And total violation of the law! I called non-emergency police and Sgt. Potts responded and he was going to search for the thing. Of course, as Sgt. Potts said, these things have become so inexpensive and so many people have them, it’s difficult to control.”
Opinion:How difficult is it to control, really? We’re all in favor of folks having fun with drones, but there is a time and place. When I was kid, we used to launch Estes rockets, but my father made sure we did it in a big open field, so we didn’t launch one through our neighbor’s kitchen window. Seems the same kind of courtesy could be offered here. Or, an new town ordinance allowing annoyed citizens to shoot them down?