The Cape Charles Wetlands and Dune board held an informational meeting with the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in order to provide the public with an update on the status of the channel dredging and beach replenishment project. The contract for this final phase has been awarded, and USACE will be in contract negotiations with the contractor as early as next week. This last phase of the project was designed to use dredging material to fill in gaps at the north end of the beach between Jefferson and Madison Avenues.
The original design called for 100,000 cubic yards of sand to be used to fill in the beach; however, that amount has been lowered to only 30,000, with the rest being taken to the upland spoil site. But 30,000 cubic yards, according to USACE engineers will not be enough to fill in the parabola between Jefferson and Madison, and will leave the project 55 feet short of the intended goal; this will also leave that end of the beach vulnerable to the severe erosion caused by coastal disturbances such as nor’easters. The monetary value of the sand being sent to the upland site is close to $840,000.00 (based on the cost per cubic yard to haul sand by truck, which is between $12 and $18 per cubic yard).
Also, by refusing the full amount of sand, the upland spoil site could not handle the capacity (maybe 118,000 cubic yards), the channel width will have to be reduced from 300 feet to 200 feet (still an 18 foot depth).
“Since the town said we did not need another 130,000 cubic yards, they didn’t listen to us, we had to go to Lynwood Lewis, went to Scott Rigell, he a phone conversation and meeting with the Corps, to ‘get them to listen to us’, and they did listen to us. And this is what they came with, the 30,000 cubic yards…because there is only 100,000 cubic yard capacity left in the upland site, they are short about 60,000 cubic yards, to compensate for that, they are going to narrow the channel from 300 feet to 200 feet….” Councilman Steve Bennett, at June 16 Town Council Meeting.
Note: The channel has not been dredged since 1989, and the only reason it is being dredged now is that after hurricane Sandy, the Norfolk office of the Corps of Engineers noticed some shoaling, and was able to leverage this event to obtain disaster relief funds to negotiate the project. With the new breakwaters, which will reduce much of the wave action, most of us will not see another dredging of the Cape Charles Harbor in our lifetimes. Supposedly worried about blowing sand getting into people’s yards, Council has made the dubious decision to make the channel narrower, only 200 feet instead of the designed 300 feet. Sources tell the Mirror that Bayshore Concrete, which depends on the channel, was furious when they found out about the Mayor and Council’s decision.
During the meeting, this reporter asked the USACE representative what was the rationale for not distributing the full amount of sand. USACE responded that they had designed it to use 100,000, but the town came back and requested that the amount be lowered to 30,000 cubic yards:
Mirror: So, who made this decision? Who signed off on this?
Mayor: (silent)
Mirror: Who made that decision? Was it the Corps? Was it Council? Steve (Bennett), was it you (town council)?
Bennett: (quietly) Yes.
Russ Dunton (Wetlands Board): We just found out about this two weeks ago.
Mirror: Why? What was the reasoning? What was the rationale?
Mayor: (silence)
Natali: (silence)
Bennett: (silence)
Andy Buchholz: It was because of timing…not to have this going on while people are on the beach.
Mirror: What? People on the beach? Who cares? I don’t understand….that end of the beach, Russ you know what happens to it when it gets hammered by storms (Dunton had earlier remarked that they needed so much sand at that end of the beach due to the severe erosion, which at one time almost took out the north end of the boardwalk, and threatened Bay Avenue).
USACE member: We really think having the full amount of sand at that part of the beach would be very beneficial to the town.
Mirror: So, you’re saying, it’s your opinion we should be putting down the full 100,000?
USACE: Yes.
Sensing, too late, that a public relations issue may be brewing, Mayor George Proto and Joan Natali exited the room, conferred, and then came back in. The Mayor finally addressed the room:
Mayor: We looked at this…we wanted to find a way to minimize…that much sand, we felt it would be too much and would blow around; it would create, or misshape that end of the beach….we wanted to address the concerns of different groups.”
What model the Mayor and Council used to override the engineers at USACE (who have well over 25 years of experience doing this) was not mentioned. Does anyone working for the town really have enough of an engineering background to produce a reasonable alternative to the Corp’s design?
Interestingly, Councilman Buchholz’s earlier assertion that timing (inconvenience to tourists) was the reason for scaling back the project and forgoing close to a million dollars’ worth of sand (free), seemed to lend more weight to the Mayor’s more palatable narrative. This narrative was reinforced by Bay Haven Inn owner Tammy Holloway who was speaking for herself and on behalf of other B&B owners when she voiced concerns that the dredging and 2 weeks of beach replenishment could be an inconvenience for tourists. “This could undo all the progress we have made…we could get a bad review on our website.”
After the June 15th meeting, the Mirror was notified by a citizen that Andrew Follmer and the Cape Charles Business Association had circulated an email which claimed that if the beach replenishment took place for two weeks during the summer (mid to late August), it would be ‘devastating’. Sources also tell the Mirror that members of the CCBA have been in contact with the Mayor and members of Council regarding the cancellation of the beach replenishment portion of the project.
The question remains: why is the Mayer and Council so willing to risk the long term health of our economic engines, our only real assets, just to avoid the minor inconvenience to a few people at the beach, as well as some sand blowing into a few yards? Most people would surely understand the need to maintain and nourish the beach.
Wetlands Board Blindsided by Town Council
On June 1, 2016, the Wetlands and Dune Board was scheduled to meet to discuss the USACE dredging project. The packets sent out contained the current plans for the project, which clearly showed that 100,000 cubic yards of sand was planned for the north end of the beach. Also at the meeting was Hank Badger of the VMRC. Before the meeting began, a member of the board mentioned to Badger that the 100,000 cubic yards would really solve many of the problems occurring at the north end of the beach (erosion, pooling water, etc.). Badger replied that he understood that there were several other options on the table that would scale it down. When the board member questioned Mr. Badger about ‘what other options’, he referred him to an email from the Corps of Engineers that he had been CC’d on. See email below:
From: Anderson, Michael L NAO [mailto:Michael.L.Anderson@
Sent: Tuesday, May 31, 2016 9:22 AM
To: Larry DiRe; brent.manuel@capecharles.org
Cc: Waring, Elizabeth G NAO; Amos, Jeannine L NAO; Gray, Willie (Hunter) H NAO; ‘Mayor Proto’; Steele, Gregory C NAO; Darrow, Michael R. NAO; Kelly, Jason E COL NAO
Subject: RE: Cape Charles SANDY Dredging Project – Way Forward Discussion
Good Morning Larry and Brent,
This is a follow-up to our teleconference and meetings that occurred last Thursday and Friday, 26 and 27 May 2016, respectively. It is understood that the Town Leadership needed additional time to weigh the dredging, navigation, and dredged material placement options presented last week to gain consensus on a decision. We are now at that point that a decision is required to not delay the Contractor further or place the Government in a position to be subject to Contractor standby time.
At your earliest opportunity, please email or call me to discuss the path forward.
General Options discussed last week:
1. Current Scope in the Contract: 100,000 CY of Sand on the North Beach; 100,000 CY of Sand in the Upland Site (channel dredged to maintained width and depth (300 feet wide and 18 feet deep)
2. Reduced Scope in the Contract: 30,000 CY of Sand on the North Beach; up to 125,000 CY of Sand in the Upland Site (reduced navigation, channel segment in contract dredged between 200 and 300 feet wide, 18 feet deep)
3. Reduced Scope in the Contract: No Sand on the North Beach; up to 125,000 CY of Sand in the Upland Site (reduced navigation, channel segment in contract dredged between about 150 and 300 feet wide, and 18 feet deep)
4. Terminate the Contract: No Sand, No further Dredging or Navigation
Respectfully,
Mike
Michael L.Anderson, P.E.
Chief, Design Section Operations Branch
Water Resources Division, Norfolk District
During the meeting, the Wetlands Board questioned Planner Larry DiRe about whether there were actually alternatives to the plans they had in their packet. DiRe responded that there were in fact other options on the table. The Board was confused by this; why were they there to approve a project that may or may not take place, or take place with a different set of specifications? The Board asked DiRe who, or when these alternatives were being discussed, but he could not answer. Then at the June 15th meeting, when the Corps announced that there was only going to be 30,000 cubic yards placed on the beach, the Wetlands Board, who had called the meeting, was taken aback by the news. According to one member, “The first time I heard about a final decision to put down only the 30,000 was at the meeting on the 15th.” It soon became apparent that the Mayor and Town Council had met in private and made the decision to scale back the project, by-passing the Wetlands Board completely. They also did not even bother to alert them to the changes. While towns are required to maintain boards, such as the Wetland board, they are not required to use them for meaningful policy endeavors. Even still, why would Council not extend the courtesy of letting the board know about its decision before they were set to meet with the Corps?
In a conversation with Councilman Frank Wendell, the Mayor, Council members Bennett, Bannon and Natali wanted to abandon the dredging and beach replenishment altogether. According to Wendell, they felt they could cancel this phase of the project, and then just apply for the same amount of money next year. Wendell and fellow councilman Sambo Brown, however, fought to keep the project as scheduled, along with getting at least the 30,000 cubic yards on the north end of the beach. They argued that given the relatively small amount of monies available for dredging, and how competitive it was to get them, they needed to move forward with the project as USACE had it scheduled.
The Bay Creek Connection
“I witnessed a lot of blowing sand this winter. I had concerns about placing another 100,000 on the beach. We thought we could take the 30,000, and take the other 130,000 and put it on the Bay Creek beach, which needs the sand desperately. There were reasons they said they couldn’t do that…” – Steve Bennett at June 16 Town Council Meeting.
Why this is interesting is that the original dredging plan was to replenish the eroding Bay Creek (southern beaches) with between 100,000 to 200,000 cubic yards of sand. That plan was nixed however, due to the tiger beetle habitat, as well as protests from private clamming operations at Plantation Creek. During the fall of last year, things began to change; VMRC was loosening up on the tiger beetle habitat, allowing beach clearing operations to occur. Sources close to that project also tell the Mirror that the possibility of replenishing portions of the southern beach may also soon be on the table. The problem is that, the 130,000 or so cubic yards of sand was earmarked for the north end of the public beach, not Bay Creek. Sources close to Council tell the Mirror push back on the USACE project began this winter. While Steve Bennett blamed the Corps for the delay:
“The delay is not due to the Town, it is due to the Corps; this is typically not dredging season; I was concerned about what they were doing,” – Steve Bennett.
the Mayor and Town Council also had a good bit to do with it–the mood of the email from USACE is clearly laced with frustration with the Town’s procrastination. By pushing the process into the tourist season, the town could leverage the angst of the business community to justify the decision to cancel the project. As was mentioned earlier, during a work session, canceling the project was vigorously discussed. Timing is everything; by canceling the dredging for one year, there was a sliver of hope they could get the proper permits and then dump all the sand on the Bay Creek beach (which needs at least 200,000 cubic yards or more).
Note: With three members of Council now from Bay Creek, that scenario certainly must have seemed more plausible. At the June 15th meeting, USACE representatives noted that, while permitting could take some time, southern beach replenishment was not entirely out of the question.
In a private conversation with sources close to Council, it was brought up that a possible scenario was that since Wendell was a lame duck, he would not even show up for the work session, and they could cancel the project with little or no objection. As bad luck would have it, Wendell did show up, and fought for at least the 30,000. In what appears to be a final, vindictive act of disrespect towards Wendell, they refused to put the full 100,000 cubic yards on the homeboy’s beach, even if it meant narrowing the channel from 300 to 200 feet.
The Town also tried to use political pressure to get its way, “they (the Corps) didn’t listen to us, we had to go to Lynwood Lewis, went to Scott Rigell, he a phone conversation and meeting with the Corps, to get them to listen to us”, -Steve Bennett at June 16th Council Meeting.
To the Corps credit, their main focus was to dredge the channel, with or without political pressure—if the town only wanted a 200 ft channel, so be it.
It just seems inconceivable that we would not be widening the channel and expanding the beach as much as possible (at no charge to the town taxpayers). Private conversations with members of the Wetlands Board, as well as other engineers, leads us to believe that the Town needs to put at least another 150 ,000 to 200,000 cubic yards on the north end of the beach between Jefferson and Madison, as well as filling in the low, pooling areas from Madison to Monroe. With that, of course comes the responsibility of managing the beach and dunes, which the Town so far has not even attempted to do. The Wetlands Board has been tasked with coming up some form of management plan, but whether the Town Council will use it is another story. It is important to remember that the sand and dunes belong to the Town; we adjust, trim and maintain it when, how and where we feel fit.
We keep coming back to the same question: what is the rationale? Maybe the real question is what is the real agenda? Who is really benefiting? The fact that the policy making process seems narrowly focused on a few niche communities and individuals that apparently have elevated and prioritized access to the decision makers in Cape Charles, raises several red flags, and certainly warrants closer investigation.
Having read this article, I am trying to see both sides of the issue. I’m not sure what caused Council to make the decision they did. First, why was the Dune Board not more fully involved with the process – isn’t it their job to visit the pros and cons and make a recommendation to the Council?
Next – Bay Shore Concrete is, to my understanding, the largest employer in Northampton County. Shouldn’t their needs be considered?
Another point – the north end of the beach is hardest hit with storms. Has anyone on Council looked at how much deterioration has occurred in the last twenty years? That end of the beach sorely needs replenishment! It is my understanding we have lost close to 150 feet of land on the North end of Bay Ave over the last four years.
The last point I will raise is the “inconvenience” to our visitors from the middle until the end of August. I have been involved with our Retail District for 14 years. Traditionally, retail business slows down considerably the second week in August when Freshmen start their first year of college. So, how many visitors would we have inconvenienced? How can one receive poor reviews on their website over protecting the Town’s largest asset?
Let’s look at our Town’s history and use it for forward thinking. We pass up “free” sand this year and spend $800,000 in replenishing the beach within the next few years?! I am truly disappointed in Town Council.
Hey Judi,
Hope you will read my other post in a separate response regarding my comments at the town council meeting on June 16th. They were taken out of context a bit. I agree the later part of August is the slower time here, which is why at the Dunes/Wetlands board we asked for the beach part of the dredge to be done last. There was a lot of information at that meeting, wish some of the folks commenting had a chance to hear all of the information as well, I really learned a lot.
Just to clarify, I did not state that I was concerned about negative views on our website (our reviews are based on what we do, yes sometimes impacted by outside experiences but mainly on what we do and we strive to provide a level of exceptional service). I too am concerned about the towns largest asset and how we could be this recipient of this free sand. I actually work very hard to promote Cape Charles in a positive way. The overall reputation management of Cape Charles was the concern I raised. The part that was missing from my comments ( because I said them at the meeting the night before, not that they were mis-reported ) was that we should be proactive in the way we communicate what is happening with the dredging, it will be the elephant in the room ( well on the beach) and we should come up with a clever informative way to communicate this to residents and visitors. In my experience information normally trumps negativity!
Would love to get to know you, I worked for the American Chamber of Commerce for many years…similar worlds!
I am disappointed in the Mayor and the Town Council if they have truly manipulated this opportunity to redirect sand from the north end of the beach to Bay Creek. This is short sited and could eventually lead to disaster to the Mayors end of town if we get a truly big hurricane or nor’easter.
The council has proven that they have no experience managing sand as evident by the huge dunes that developed on the south end of the beach this past year. This could have been avoided with the proper placement of several snow fences that would catch and manage the sand.
The council has also proven that they cannot manage the waste treatment plant as I have heard that the original $70,000 fine has now increased to $140,000. Is it time to ask for a recall?
As a recent purchaser of town property, my wife and I won’t be building for two years. As such we are renting a house this summer for a week at the end of July. Based on this article it references weeks in August for possible replenishment, but this weekend my wife and I were discussing how frustrated we would be to find out the beach was closed during our rental week. We paid good money and wanted our family to experience the Cape Charles beach life in preparation for our future endeavor. As a future resident, I’m all about preserving and protecting the beach, but shouldn’t this type of thing been done in the spring or the fall?
Note: It is important to remember, this project is about dredging the channel in Cape Charles Harbor; the beach replenishment, that is using the dredge material to fill in the beach, is an added benefit. The contract to dredge the channel has already been awarded (Federal Contracting is not always a straight forward process); if the Federal Government were to push the dredging to the fall, it would incur Contractor standby time (additional costs).
This is unreal, where do we live? Wonderland? Kalamazoo? NeverNeverland? Do we live in place that is not affected by nature?
Bay Avenue was constructed parallel to the salt waters of the bay, common sense would tell me that, sand blowing around is just something we will have to deal with. Would you rather have actual salt water in your street and yards? Why would you be more worried over upsetting off tourists or bad publicity than losing our beach completely? Wait, let me guess the response is, well it won’t erode for a long time…. Your welcome future generations for our current lack of fore-thought and planning.
The beach is your number one asset Cape Charles, get your heads out of the sand and do a bit of research. It almost seems as if some people actually think they are smarter than the hordes of research and statistical data the Amry Corp. of Engineers has in their pocket.
Maybe I am looking at it wrong, maybe the number one asset that Cape Charles has, is tourist dollars. It most certainly seems like that is what some people portray. But stop and ask yourself why did you fall in love with Cape Charles? I suppose it was for the tourism dollars that is generated here, Right? Who cares about the waters or the beaches?
I know that I would be disappointed if the beach closed in August, but HELLO, we are surrounded by water! There is a perfectly Beautiful State Park just to the south of us, with an awesome beach!
With Cape Charles having one of the true “public beaches” left on the Lower Eastern, common sense would lead one to believe that it would be valued, and well taken care of. However I suppose I must remind myself, when does common sense rule in Cape Charles? Just another reason why we Love this town….
Note: Only a portion of the beach will be off limits for a couple of weeks while replenishment takes place. The rest of the beach will still be available, albeit a bit more crowded (maybe?).
Hello,
I wanted to take a moment to clarify the comments referenced in this article and to make a few points. I spoke at the town council meeting on several areas and had attended the Dunes/Wetlands board the previous evening to learn factual information from the Army Core of Engineers about the dredging project. It was a VERY informative meeting and I encourage all those concerned and who made comment here to try and attend these meetings, they are enlightening and provide first hand an account of what happens at a meeting. Become engaged and involved in our community. Wayne is loyal and attends so many of these meetings and takes the time to report on them , truly an amazing feet in itself , I commend him for this.
On this occasion however the context of what I said was not 100% accurate and I would like to clarify. When I spoke at the town council meeting on June 16th I spoke about three things (the dredging project, the mosquito spraying and flush timing)
clarifications:
1) I was speaking on behalf of our B&B not all B&B’s as I have no authority to do so. I do know that many other businesses share my concerns, however I spoke on behalf of my husband Jim and I only.
2) Most of what I said on the subject had been said the night before at the Dunes/Wetlands board and I did not provide the “back story” so I can see where my comments seemed as if I was only concerned with the reviews and impact on tourism. Jim and I are very committed to the Cape Charles community and are first and foremost glad to call it home, we made the escape from the DC area 5 years ago and have never looked back!
My concern is not IF the dredging should be done it is WHEN it is done. I began asking this question of the council and town back in February in hopes that we could avoid this work being done in the middle of the busy season. ( hoping the timing could be more like it was done last year in phase 1). As months ticked on and I continued to ask the question there were still not concrete answers as to WHEN the dredging would be done. At a council meeting in April it was announced it would start April 30th and it could be a 2-3 month project. Yes, as a business owner who makes our living on the prime season I was concerned. The question I asked from the beginning ( February) was can we have conversations with the core and see if there is a way to schedule this around the prime season. Both for safety and yes reputation management. Am I concerned about how it will effect my reviews and website, not at all. We deliver exceptional service and a quality experience and will continue to do so. However, people do review their experiences when visiting a place ( haven’t you?) and those reviews directly impact ALL of the businesses in Cape Charles. Like it our not folks that is the primary revenue driver in the Town of Cape Charles.
3) What I asked at the Dunes/Wetlands board the night before were these things:
-Is there a way the beach part of the work could be done last so that it falls more into the late summer part of the season? (I agree with Judi who commented earlier, that is the slower part of the season)The answer was yes, the Core are a great group of folks and were very willing to listen and work with us. ( I do wonder why these conversations did not take place in earlier months however)
-I recommended we get ahead of this potentially negative situation with frequently asked questions page on the town website and other media forms and some informational signage so that we are communicating to residents as well as visitors, being proactive instead of reactive. For example, I learned at the Dunes/Wetlands board this project was not a beach replenishment project but a project in regard to some “shoaling” ( sorry I am not an expert, I think that is what I heard!) that was observed after Hurricane Sandy.
-And lastly I asked about the safety of the beach goers in regard to the dredging equipment that will run parallel to the board walk from the south all the way to the north-end of the beach. Just raising awareness of this so we are staying ahead of any potential problems in that area.
Are we concerned about the blowing sand and the impact that has had on the folks on Bay Avenue? Are we concerned that we may have lost a portion of this “gift” of sand? ABSOLUTELY! But I ask folks not to judge on one side of this situation, it has many. Do you have all the facts?
As I mentioned above we love our life in Cape Charles, are very actively involved in making this community the best it can be and are committed to being a part of a solution. We NEVER make a complaint without offering how WE can be a part of the solution. I encourage everyone to take a look at what they are doing to make Cape Charles a better community? Are you attending council or other planning meetings? Do you volunteer on a project you are passionate about? How can you make a difference?
Editor’s Note: While I love Tammy and Bay Haven, and all they do, it should be noted that she was quoted accurately at the Dune and Wetland Board meeting (only); there was no back story that we were aware of, or are aware of now. As far as information, if there are facts missing, please send them and we will publish them immediately. Not sure what negativity means, but the facts is the Town of Cape Charles accepted a large sum to widen the channel to 300 feet, where designers from the Corps of Engineers recommended that all that material be placed at the North end of the beach. That did not happen. You can try and spin that any way you want, but it does not change the facts.