LEGAL 



TIDES 



surrounding towns, he speculates. 



Although Atlantic Beach was able to 

 retain some parking spaces on the street, many 

 disappeared with the sale of the land. Atlantic 

 Beach officials were unable to comment on 

 specific figures regarding spaces retained or lost. 



"Oceanfront and soundfront property is 

 being bought up so fast for development that 

 public access is not adequate," Jones says. 

 "Private areas where the public was once invited 

 to access the beach are being lost." 



Similar stories are echoed from Corolla to 

 Kure Beach. 



"We're building like gangbusters down 

 here," says Todd Rademacher, planning director 

 for Surf City. 



Approximately 12 million people visited 

 North Carolina's coastal region last year, 

 according to the N. C. Department of Commerce 



(NCDC). That number or more 

 are expected this year, and many will come by car. 



State and federal parks often have 

 large parking areas, but some coastal communities 

 are struggling to accommodate visitors 

 during the peak summer season. 

 Depending on the destination, 

 visitors may feel a parking pinch. 



To try to retain that traditional access, some 

 towns, like Pine Knoll Shores and Surf City, 

 have purchased private land and made it public. 



In 1999, Pine Knoll Shores bought part 

 of a site that once included the Iron Steamer 

 fishing pier. With the help of a $450,000 grant 

 from DCM, the town acquired 100 feet of 

 oceanfront property and an adjacent parking lot. 

 With another DCM grant, the town added two 

 restrooms, shower facilities, a dune crossover 

 and an emergency access ramp. 



In Surf City, a similar acquisition cost 

 $2.9 million. The town recently bought Cindy's 

 Oceanside Restaurant — adjacent to the town's 

 regional parking area — and plans to turn the 

 nearly 150-foot beachfront strip into a public 

 access site. Town officials have yet to work out 

 a specific plan for the facility, scheduled to open 

 next summer. 



The hefty price tag will be worth it, 

 explains Rademacher. 



"You can't put a price tag on public access 

 to the beach - it's a resource that is shrinking 

 every day," he says. 



The town currently has 29 public access 

 sites, and at least half have free parking facilities, 

 notes Rademacher. More beach access and 

 parking means more tourism dollars for the 

 town and local businesses, he explains. 



"The ocean is our biggest amenity." 



But for many municipalities, the cost of 

 purchasing private land is prohibitive, forcing 

 them to maximize existing parking areas. 



"We're trying to leverage all the sites we 

 have now," says Andy Garman, town planner 

 for Nags Head. 



The town has about 40 access points, and 

 almost all have free parking. Some sites have as 

 few as 10 parking spaces, others have as many 

 as 80 spaces, according to Garman. 



This year, Nags Head officials applied for 

 five grants from DCM and the Dare County 

 Tourism Board to update and expand the town's 

 beach access points. They plan to add parking 

 lots, dune walkovers and other facilities to 

 the sites. 



The town of Kill Devil Hills is pursuing a 

 similar strategy. Officials received a DCM grant 

 in 2005 to upgrade the town's only regional 

 parking lot, located on Ocean Bay Boulevard. 

 The site has 40 parking spaces plus 28 spaces in 

 a satellite lot across the street. 



"Our public access sites see a tremendous 

 amount of use," says Meredith Guns, the 

 assistant planning director for Kill Devil Hills. 



The town has 29 public access sites, 

 and most accommodate up to 25 cars. A new 

 neighborhood access site is scheduled to open 

 on Raleigh Avenue early this summer. But no 

 matter how many new parking spaces are added, 

 there will always be eager beachgoers waiting to 

 fill them up, says Guns. 



Rademacher, of Surf City, concurs: "You 

 can never have enough parking." 



Garman, the planner for Nags Head, urges 

 frustrated beachgoers to be patient and to keep 

 some perspective. 



"People can find a parking spot if they look 

 long enough," he says. 



Garman says he'll drive to three or four of 

 the Nags Head's public access points to find a 



parking space during summer months. 



"At least it's not like Virginia Beach, 

 where I'd have to drive 20 or 30 minutes to find 

 a parking lot where I have to pay, and then cart 

 my stuff for five blocks." □ 



KNOW BEFORE YOU GO: 



Types of Access Sites 



across Coastal North Carolina 



Find a parking spot before 

 heading to the beach this summer. 



Log on to a special section 

 of the N.C. Division of Coastal 

 Management Web site (www. 

 nccoastalmanagement.net) and use 

 an interactive map tool to find 

 public access sites and facilities 

 along the coast. Click on "Beach 

 and Waterfront Access," then "Find 

 Access Sites." 



The maps group public access 

 sites into four main categories: 



Regional sites are generally 

 the largest. There are exceptions, 

 but usually regional sites have 

 ample parking (25+), and many 

 have additional facilities such as 

 restrooms, showers and picnic tables. 



Neighborhood sites generally 

 have fewer parking spaces than 

 regional sites and usually don't 

 have facilities such as showers or 

 restrooms. 



Local sites are often simple 

 dune crossovers with little or no 

 associated parking or facilities. 

 However, bicycle racks may be 

 provided. Pedestrians living or 

 vacationing within a few hundred 

 yards primarily use these sites. 



Waterfront sites are typically 

 located on estuarine waters in 

 urbanized areas. They vary greatly in 

 the amount of parking and facilities 

 provided. 



Coastwatch 



I High Season 2006 I www.ncseagrant.org 23 



