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Has Real Estate Investment Ruined the Shore?

January 29, 2023 by 15 Comments

The Short-Term rental bill HB2271 has finally woken the Shore from its dogmatic slumber and exposed the Resident Evil which is the tourist/vacation rental industry (mafia). Can we for once just be honest and say it? The Real Estate Industry has exploited our culture, land, towns, and natural resources in the name of stuffing the pockets of so-called ‘real estate investors’. The bill itself is pretty meaningless and is just the government/industry’s way of saying the quiet part out loud. The damage has already been done.

But, let’s continue:

Reader submitted – This bill states that short-term rental properties that are managed by a Virginia realtor do not have to comply with the following short-term rental ordinance provisions:

1. a prohibition on short-term rentals

2. limitations on occupancy in a short-term rental property to less than what is allowed under the building code or a local zoning ordinance

3. a limitation on the number of days for which a short-term rental property can be rented

4. a requirement that an owner shall occupy the property as his primary residence for any number of days

5. a requirement for the installation of any type of remote monitoring device on the short-term rental property, including decibel, audio, or video

6. exterior or interior inspections of the short-term rental property pertaining to any items defined under the building code more frequently than 3 years, unless a complaint has been filed

7. required repairs, renovations, or updates to the structure of the short-term rental property that are greater than those required under the applicable building code

8. requirement for an owner to add additional or otherwise alter existing parking spaces for the short-term rental property.

*For provisions #3 and #4 there is the ability to create a written process whereby the Virginia realtor can apply to rent for more days and apply to rent for more days without satisfying the residency requirement.

There is an additional clause that states that any provision in an ordinance that relates to a short-term rental that restricts the number of days or requires the owner-occupied provision cannot be enforced for a short-term rental managed by a Virginia realtor if the ordinance was not passed prior to January 1, 2023.

While Shore residents are gathering pitchforks and torches over the perceived loss of “Local Control” and the misguided belief that something called a Comprehensive Plan has any real meaning, the sad part is that we did it to ourselves; we voted for people that openly, and behind closed doors, promoted this outcome.

This writer has been yelling into the abyss like an Edvard Munch painting for almost 20 years, warning that the tourist industry (which included real estate investment in vacation property) would be our undoing. Everything we cherish about this place will be raped, exploited, and sold to the highest bidder. Just look at the summer dystopian hellscape that is Cape Charles. But y’all be all addicted to the ToT tax–bring on the tourists and let’s spend that blood money.

Now that Cape Charles is overrun, the muck and filth are seeping into the County–so, now y’all are worried about it. The County folks always felt they were immune to the viruses that infect Cape Charles, never realizing that Cape Charles is the fireplace whence heat and light emanate into the darkness. The vacation/investment property virus has now infected the once-hidden gems of the County (hello Smith Beach).

Whether the bill passes or doesn’t pass doesn’t matter. What exactly are localities ever going to about someone buying property and then renting it out as a short-term vacation stay? Can you fairly say Joe Schmoe can do it over here, but Joe Blow, on a similar property over there, cannot? It’s not fair, and not how basic property owner rights work.

A reader-submitted comment reflects the local malaise:

My husband and I purchased our home on Monroe Avenue, in 2015.
At that time, there was only one long-term rental in our block, which includes 12 homes.
The quiet, residential nature of our block was so appealing, that even though we had never owned a historic home before, or lived in a town, we were smitten. In addition to the beautiful homes, we are blessed to have neighbors, both full-time and part-time, who know each other and look out for each other. Many people called this “Mayberry:” quiet, beautiful, and safe.

Then, about 4 years ago, some folks from Northern Virginia purchased one of the homes in our block. They invested about a year in sweat equity, to return the home to its original beauty.

Then they listed it on VRBO For $4,000 per week.

The first summer was not bad. Most of their guests were extended family units, who were quiet, respectful, and appreciative of our little paradise. I guess $4k is not a lot to pay for a week of paradise. But last summer, things were different. I caught a child, unsupervised, running his bike through my neighbor’s flower garden. Another group had 5 elementary school-age kids who were recklessly riding their bikes, jumping the curb into the street, without looking for traffic. Also unsupervised.

In September, a group of 9 women rented the house for about 4 days. Nearly all 9 women drove separately and took up all the street parking for 6 lots, plus they rented 3 golf carts.

So much for peace and quiet.

Now the house next door has been sold, also to someone from Northern Virginia, and just hit VRBO before Christmas. And it appears it is already rented for the whole summer. Plus, a house sold last fall in our block, to someone who already has other STRs in Cape Charles, so we anticipate that by summer, 3 out of 12 homes in our block will be STRs.

It is not cheap to maintain an old house. We and our neighbors take great pride in keeping our historic homes repaired and painted, and our yards beautified with gardens and trees. Because Cape Charles is a town, we pay taxes to both the town and Northampton county. This past year, the tax assessment for our home, from Northampton county increased 72%. We are retired and do not have children in the public schools, but we are happy to support the town and county, especially as relates to the k-12 schools, with our tax dollars.

We pay dearly for this sweet little piece of paradise, where we enjoy hosting family and friends and little grandchildren, but it is worth it to us. What we do not appreciate is people who do not live here, are not part of our community, but who are making a huge profit selling the beauty, peace, quiet, and safety that we cherish, and for which we pay dearly. The only people who will benefit from SB1391 are people interested in getting rich at the expense of small communities like ours.

As newly registered voters, as of last fall, in Northampton county, you can be sure that we pay close attention to issues like this, and will not vote for someone who does not represent the interests of the people who have chosen to make the Eastern Shore our home.

As an addendum, below is a response from Lynwood Lewis sent to RH Meyers regarding the Senate Bill. Mr. Myers’s response is as follows:

Your email response on behalf of Lynwood is a gross insult to the intelligence of anyone who has even a small knowledge of the Northampton County Comprehensive Plan and its derived zoning.  From what you wrote, it seems that your understanding of SB1391 is seriously lacking with little to no understanding of land use under many parts of Va Code. Trying desperately to be polite, I ask that you seek land use professional help before further discussion to increase your education. I would suggest you contact Greehan, & Taves &  Pandak law firm. They specialize in Virginia Land Use Law. Mr. Randy Greehan was instrumental in the formation of our Comprehensive Plan. As I wrote,  SB1391 is very poorly written legislation and should be withdrawn.

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Filed Under: News, Top Story

Education Foundation Needs Community Support To Continue Record Level Of Giving To Northampton County Public Schools

October 16, 2022 by 3 Comments

The Northampton County Education Foundation contributed a record $56,000 to the Northampton County Public Schools in the2021-22 fiscal year, the highest in the organization’s sixteen-year history.

The organization has just announced a major fundraising campaign that begins October 10, aimed at continuing this high level of support to the schools in the coming year.  The campaign’s goal is to match a $25,000 pledge from Preserve Communities’ James Fisher Memorial Foundation.  Preserve communities is the parent company of Cape Charles’ Bay Creek.

The Foundation is a nonprofit organization established to channel support from the community to the public schools for initiatives that are not included in the annual school budget. 

Foundation initiatives aim to enhance Northampton County Public Schools students’ academic success, broaden their life experiences, and enhance their well-being.  Through direct grants and community crowd funding, the Foundation supports multiple school programs and projects. 

Laren Everage’s science class at Northampton High School was adopted by Peach Street Books in Cape Charles through the Education Foundation’s Adopt A Class program that funneled $3,475 directly to individual classrooms.

This included funding for the annual four-session summer Pre-K Camp program that introduces the school experience to children enrolled in Pre-Kindergarten and their caregivers. The organization also provided scholarships to 20 Northampton High School students to help cover the cost of taking college classes at Eastern Shore Community College.

Foundation funding supported the high school robotics team, tutoring for student athletes, new uniforms for the marching band, Kids Closets that provide clothing and hygiene products for students, and projects aimed at raising teacher morale and rewarding teacher excellence and more.

Linda Schulz, Chair of the Northampton County Education Foundation Board of Directors, stated, “Since our inception, the work of the Foundation would not have been possible without the help of our community – individuals, businesses, non-profits, churches and other entities – who have used the foundation to funnel financial support to our public schools. We are asking the community to step up again and match the generous pledge from Preserve Communities so that we can continue this level of funding for our schools.”

Tax Deductible donations can made through the Foundation website, NCEDUFOUNDATION.COM or sent to NCEF, PO Box 323, Cape Charles, VA 23310.

The 2021-2022 Impact Report of the Northampton County Education Foundation has comprehensive details of Foundation support for the schools. It is available on the organization’s website, NCEDUFOUNDATION.com or via this link https://issuu.com/nocoeducationfoundation/docs/ncef-annual_report-2021-2022.

Filed Under: News, Top Story

CRABBY BLUES FESTIVAL Saturday, September 17th

September 11, 2022 by 2 Comments

The CRABBY BLUES FESTIVAL in Cape Charles Central Park is on for Saturday, September 17th from 2pm – 7pm.

FREE ADMISSION to celebrate the 10th festival! This is a fundraiser supporting Cape Charles Christian School. For your enjoyment: “Later That Night” and “Heather & Nathan” will be playing music.

There will be a KID ZONE with bouncers from Bay Bounce. Cape Charles Carriage Horses, Party Ponies and Petting Zoo will have their small animals and pony rides. There will be a Silent Auction with many fantastic items.

Local Food and Beverage Vendors will offering a variety of foods and both alcoholic & non-alcoholic drinks will be available for purchase. Local Art & Craft vendors will be on hand, plus much more.

Come spend the afternoon with the great folks of Cape Charles Christian School.

Please contact Debbie at debbie@cccsesva.org for more information.


Special thanks to the Sponsors : Cherrystone Aqua Farms, Financial Security Advisory, John Burdiss, Esquire, Shore Container, Atlantic Brokerage LLC, Turner & Wiggins Attorneys At Law, Fig Street Inn, Rayfields Pharmacy, Knight MaGee Insurance, Ruby Salts Oyster Company, The Tayloe Family, and Cape Charles Animal Hospital ….. and to the CCCS staff and families!!!

Filed Under: News, Top Story

Auditions: Night of Gothic Horror, Sept. 10th

September 4, 2022 by 1 Comment

Join our local heroine for a night of Gothic Horror on her journey by night where she will try to escape hungry, graveyard zombies, and is hunted by slasher Michael Myers after he escapes the asylum. Along the way, meet an aging gravedigger who is about to be replaced by a backhoe, dance through a Pet Cemetery and follow a light Over at Frankenstein’s Place, and be trapped in a house full of hungry vampires. This is set to be a fun and horrific Monster Mash at the Historic, and haunted Palace Theatre.

Auditions for the show will be held on Saturday, September 10th at 11:30 at the haunted Palace Theatre in Cape Charles. Be there by 11:00 or so to get signed in.

Check your calendars!!!

Show dates are Friday October 28th, Saturday October 29th, and Sunday October 30th

The show will be directed by Amy Watkins and Wayne Creed. The directors are looking for youth actors ages 11 to 18, but there are also roles for some adults (if you do not frighten easily).

There are speaking, singing, and dancing roles, so don’t be shy, there is a part for everyone.

How we do it: basically, you will have to read a little bit from a script, and if you have a little ditty you can sing for us, that would be great. Miss Amy may have us do little group choreography to get a feel for our dancers.

Our auditions are always light and fun and very stress-free.

Please join us on September 10th at 11:00 at the haunted Palace Theatre in Cape Charles….if you dare.

Filed Under: News, Top Story

Does Cape Charles need a Cart Narc?

May 15, 2022 by 14 Comments

It seems like a basic courtesy to others: you get a cart at the supermarket, use it to get your groceries and bring them to your vehicle, and return it for others to use. And yet, many people ignore the cart receptacle entirely and leave their carts next to their cars or abandoned haphazardly all over the parking lot. The Cape Charles Food Lion makes it very easy and convenient to return the cart, providing two corrals within easy walking distance from anywhere in the parking lot. Still, people just leave the cart right in the middle of a parking space.

Where does this disregard come from? More than likely, it is the same type of people that just throw trash out of their car windows, somehow unable to make it to a trash receptacle.

The essence of “shopping cart theory” proposes that an individual’s moral character can be determined by whether they choose to return a shopping cart to its designated spot after use or whether they simply leave it wherever it suits them, “The shopping cart is the ultimate litmus test for whether a person is capable of self-governing, the post states. To return the shopping cart is an easy, convenient task and one which we all recognize as the correct, appropriate thing to do. To return the shopping cart is objectively right. There are no situations other than dire emergencies in which a person is not able to return their cart. Simultaneously, it is not illegal to abandon your shopping cart. Therefore the shopping cart presents itself as the apex example of whether a person will do what is right without being forced to do it.”

The author of The Shopping Cart Theory continues, “No one will punish you for not returning the shopping cart, no one will fine you, or kill you for not returning the shopping cart, you gain nothing by returning the shopping cart. You must return the shopping cart out of the goodness of your own heart. You must return the shopping cart because it is the right thing to do. Because it is correct.” The theoretician then goes on to make some rather radical statements about those who do not pass The Shopping Cart test. “A person who is unable to do this is no better than an animal, an absolute savage who can only be made to do what is right by threatening them with a law and the force that stands behind it,” they state.

Does Food Lion need to hire a Cart Narc?

“Americans are facing an epidemic perpetuated by the laziness of their fellow citizens,” Cart Narcs, a segment on the YouTube channel The Woody Show, states in one video. “We’re talking about the dicks who don’t put their carts back into the corral.” They decided to take matters into their own hands by publically shaming people who leave their carts in the parking lot to ding cars and take up precious parking spots.

Just put the cart back where it belongs.

Filed Under: News, Top Story

Mason Ave Parking Proposal: 15mph speed limit, all trucks, and large vehicles banned from parking

February 13, 2022 by 18 Comments

The Town of Cape Charles continues to move ahead in its effort to change reverse-in parking spaces with head-in parking spaces.

The Town submitted a Design Waiver Request to VDOT last August 2021, however, VDOT responded that they consider head-in angled parking more hazardous and requested that the Town address several safety issues.

As part of the new ‘safety’ plan, the Town proposed reducing the speed limit to 15 mph from Peach Street to Harbor Avenue and prohibiting trucks of all kinds (including vans and SUVs) from the angled parking spaces. VDOT, for ‘safety’ reasons, likes the idea of restricting parking on the north side of Mason Avenue to passenger cars only. According to the VDOT, it would improve visibility and would alleviate safety concerns.

Parking for trucks, SUVs, and minivans will be located on the south side of Mason Avenue, the municipal parking lot south of Mason Avenue, side streets north of Mason Avenue (Peach, Strawberry, Pine, and Harbor), and Randolph Avenue.

Town Council will review the proposal at the next Regular Meeting this Thursday, February 17th.

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Cape Charles Halloween Updates 2021

October 24, 2021 by 1 Comment

This Halloween in Cape Charles Trick-or-Treating will be permitted on Sunday, October 31 from dusk to 8:00 p.m.

The town asks that trick-or-treaters respect those that do not want to participate…if they don’t have a light on, just go on to a house that does.

The town curfew will be enforced for anyone under 18.

Due to being short-staffed due to turnover, there will be no trunk-or-treat this season.

If you have any suggestions, please contact Julie Pruitt at julie.pruitt@capecharles.org.

Filed Under: News, Top Story

1ST Annual Crab Slam Comes to Cape Charles July 30th

July 25, 2021 by 11 Comments

We have all missed the old Clam Slam, and then the Shuck-n-Suck, but all of that is changing this season. The first annual Crab Slam is coming to the Cape Charles harbor. It is being billed as a Celebration of Watermen, and will feature fan favorites such as featuring Live Music, Smith Island Speed Skiff Races, and of course, the boat docking contest.

The annual boat docking contest event is hosted by the Shanty and the Cape Charles Harbor & Marina.

The event kicks off Friday night, 7/30 with live music, food & beverages.

The Shanty will be closing down their parking lot on Saturday, 7/31 and Sunday 8/1 to host retail, food, wine, and beer vendors. There will be an outdoor stage for live music the duration of the event.

Sunday, 8/1, is the only day tickets are required! This is one of the biggest days of the year in Cape Charles, the Boat Docking Contest.

Get your tickets here

Filed Under: News, Top Story

Cape Charles Awarded $845,115 grant for Covid-19 Relief

August 30, 2020 by 1 Comment

The Town of Cape Charles has been awarded a Virginia Department of Housing and Development (DHCD) Community Block Grant in order to provide relief from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The town will receive the full amount requested of $845,115.00.


The Town of Cape Charles partnered with Cape Charles Main Street to apply for the CDBG grant and use any funding received to provide assistance for the Cape Charles business community for expenses such as rent/mortgage relief, reopening expense relief to help cover required equipment and supplies, possible technology upgrades to allow for hands-free point-of-sales systems.

Filed Under: Bottom, News, Top Story

Cape Charles moves to relax “some” restrictions

May 17, 2020 by 5 Comments

Town Council voted Thursday to rescind the ordinance banning short-term rentals in town. Owners are now free to begin booking guests.

Council agreed to keep the rest of the restrictions the status quo.

Restaurants are only allowed 50% capacity outdoors, and all other businesses are closed. There has been some confusion, mainly Social Media chatter, about whether barbershops and salons in town will be allowed to open.

The beach, park, and public restrooms remain closed.

“We have to circle back around to the beach,” Mayor Dize said. “When the Governor opens the beaches, then we can look at opening up the town.”

“They are already here. Day trippers, campgrounds are open. We need to be prepared. Focus on how we can protect citizens and visitors. Adhere to our guidelines. It’s naïve to think they are not coming,” Councilwoman Holloway said.

Councilman Benett stated that he was worried that the area is already stretched, “Food Lion is completely bought out…with the campgrounds open, it’s going to make it even worse. The same goes for medical.”

The most at-risk group for coronavirus infection are those in the 65 plus age group–that is a large percentage of the town’s population.

While it is recognized that folks are coming, the goal has been to try and slow traffic down, such as closing the beach and most businesses.

Governor Northam’s Phase 1 eases some of his business restrictions, but the Town Council decided to move cautiously, at least until phase 2 is announced.

Here is the official status:

  • Short-term rentals are authorized to resume operations in Cape Charles.  The Council formally rescinded Ordinance 20200416, that had temporarily closed short-term rental operations.  However, operators are requested to ask tenants to bring supplies with them, so as not to over task an already strained supply of local goods for Town residents.
  • Transient moorage will be accepted at the Town Harbor.  Again, boaters are asked to bring their own supplies, easing the demand on local supplies needed for Town residents.
  • Most public restrooms will remain closed.   
  • The park, playground, and tennis courts will remain closed.
  • The fishing pier will remain closed.
  • Town offices/facilities will remain closed to the public and continue to operate under the IOP Phase 2 protocols currently in place.
  • The beach will remain closed in conformance with Executive Orders 55 and 61. 

With the harbor now open to transient boaters, an effort to open the harbor restroom will more than likely have to happen. In the Mason Avenue district, a porta-potty may be placed behind the library. Public Works staff will be responsible for cleaning. Full PPE protocols will be in place for the worker.

One idea floated as a way to increase social distancing, is to close off reverse-angle parking lanes on the north side of Mason. The town is waiting for VDOT to confirm if this can be done.

Public comments were about 50/50 regarding opening the town. The following comment was sent to the Mirror via email:

As a homeowner in Northampton and a regular customer at a lot of the facilities in the town I take offense to the comment of the town manager who said in his latest virus update “Like it or not the tourist season is started”. I believe that comment is unwarranted since the town’s businesses rely on the tourist season to survive. The town should cater to tourists and not a have “Like it or not “ attitude regarding the tourist season. I for one may spend my money elsewhere.

Filed Under: News, Top Story

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