North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission meeting

Shell Island Variance Request (CRC-708)

September 26-27, 1996

Opening of Issue

Chairman Tomlinson stated this item had generated considerable interest locally and statewide.

The chairman reminded the individuals that this was not a public hearing.

Chairman Tomlinson advised the Coastal Resources Commission was sitting on this issue in a quasi-judicial position.

He stated the CRC would hear argurments from the Petitioners and from the staff of the Division of Coastal Management, and then the Members of the Commission would make a decision based on the information that was presented by the two parties and in light of their knowledge of the rules and regulations of the Coastal Resources Commission.

Chairman Tomlinson stated there would be no public input allowed.

Review of the Facts in the Case

Ms. Gillespie stated she was with the North Carolina Attorney General's Office and was representing the Division of Coastal Management on this variance.

Ms. Gillespie advised that she would begin by reviewing the facts in this case, then would give the Petitioners the opportunity to present their side, then give DCM's staff position and then questions would be heard.

Variance Request

Ms. Gillespie said this variance came to the Commission as a request to vary sandbag rules.

She reported the request was by the County of New Hanover and the Town of Wrightsville Beach both acting as agents for the Shell Island Homeowners Association.

Ms. Gillespie stated their hope was to protect a structure in the Shell Island Resort with a temporary emergency erosion control sandbag structure.

Conditions at the Shell Island Resort

Ms. Gillespie advised the Resort building was a 170-unit condominium/hotel high-rise building that was built approximately ten years ago and was at the northern most end of the development's tract at the north end of Wrightsville Beach.

Ms. Gillespie reported that at the time it was constructed it was approximately half a mile south of Mason's Inlet.

She said today the inlet was approximately 144 feet from the Shell Island Resort building.

Ms. Gillespie stated the inlet was rapidly and relentlessly migrating toward the Shell Island Resort building to the point where this building was now threathened of being undermined by the inlet.

Ms. Gillespie reported the erosion escarpment was approximately 84 feet from the building, which was the distance that was generally measured to determine whether a building was threatened.

Ms. Gillespie reported the County and Town had requested an emergency permit to install sand bags on August 30, 1996.

Ms. Gillespie stated they were requesting a revetment of sand filled tubes approximately 375 feet long, some 90 to 110 feet away from the building with a base width of approxiamtely 60 feet and about 18 feet high with some 8 feet of that above ground.

Ms. Gillespie said the Division of Coastal Management denied this permit on the grounds that the Resort was not an imminently threatened structure and was not eligible for sand bag protection and also because the proposed revetment exceeded the parameters for temporary erosion control structures set forth in the CRC's rules.

Ms. Gillespie advised these rules were stated in Attachment A of CRC-708. Ms. Gillespie said the underlined portions of that page were the portions which a variance was requested from and she reviewed these with the Commission.

Change in Conditions at Shell Island

Ms. Gillespie stated that Hurricane Fran had hit three weeks ago and the Resort lost approximately 40 to 50 feet of escarpment as a result of that storm.

Ms. Gillespie advised that due to Hurricane Bertha and Fran the Resort had lost approximately 100 feet of sand in the last two months.

Ms. Gillespie said that due to the storms, the Division of Coastal Management had changed its determination that the building was not imminently threatened.

Ms. Gillespie said the Commission had received an extensive Statement of Stipulated Facts in CRC-708. Ms. Gillespie then reviewed some of these with the Commission.