Ocean Isle Renourishment !

The Corps of Engineers has just completed the Ocean Isle Beach beach renourishment project which also included the dredging of Shallotte Inlet aiding navigation.

More than 500,000 cubic yards of sand was placed on the Ocean Isle Beach strand during May 2010.

The project removed sand from a sand bar in the Shallotte River Inlet (near the waterway between Ocean Isle and Holden Beach) and moved the sand to the east end of the beach.

Also the widened beach at the east end will offer additional recreational benefits such as sunbathing, fishing and shelling, also the extra sand will create extra nesting habitat for sea turtles.

It was important that the project be completed by May 21st in order to not interfere with loggerhead turtles’ nesting season.

Mayor Debbie Smith said it is the largest project of the year.

The renourishment project, which is in conjunction with Carolina, Kure and Wrightsville Beaches, bought 509,200 cubic yards of sand to the beach, according to the town’s Web site. The sand was placed as far east as Shallotte Boulevard and as far west as Concord Street.
“This goes the furthest west than any renourishment has gone since original construction in 2001,” Smith said.

Ocean Isle Beach has contracted with the Corps of Engineers in a 50-year, $150 million contract for beach renourishment.

Holden Beach Renourishment!

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has just finished a beach renourishment project on Holden Beach NC that also includes dredging aiding navigation.

The $800,000 project removed sand from the last sand bar in the Lockwood Folly Inlet (near the waterway) and moved the sand to the east end of the beach.

Work at Holden Beach went very quickly.

Officially titled the Lockwood Folly Inlet Crossing Navigation Maintenance, the project put sand starting in front of the last house on the east end all the way to in front of the clubhouse at Winding River’s which is also on the oceanfront.

The project which put 172,000 cubic yards of sand on the beach runs 9/10ths of a mile long and is 150 feet wide.

The beach at Holden Beach has been widened considerably

Town manager David Hewett said that Congressman Mike McIntyre worked to make sure the Corps’ project was fully funded without any cost to Holden Beach.
The benefits of the adding sand to the shoreline include beach-compatible sand keeping the cost of the project down because it doesn’t have to be transported from a distant source, the additional sand will provide protection from storm-damage to homes at the east end of the island, some of that sand is expected to drift down providing extra protection for beach houses elsewhere on the beach.

Also the widened beach at the east end will offer additional recreational benefits such as sunbathing, fishing and shelling, also the extra sand will create extra nesting habitat for sea turtles.

It was important that the project be completed by May 1 in order to not interfere with the nesting season of the loggerhead turtles.

Descendent Buys Orton!

A direct descendent of Roger Moore, who built the original Orton Plantation home in 1725 is the new owner of the antebellum plantation house and the gardens!

Louis Moore Bacon, who now resides in London but was born in Raleigh, has purchased almost the entire 5,000-acre property – including the historic plantation house and its famous gardens – from the Laurence Sprunt family who have owned the Brunswick County landmark since 1884.

The Plantation and Gardens will close indefinitely on May 31st while plans for the future and other renovations are made. Hurry to see this incredible place while this years gardens are still available to you!

Current Orton manager David Sprunt, will retain that position, said the family has kept the land around the plantation’s pond.

He said he’s excited about the plans for the plantation, but it is hard for the property leave his family’s ownership after all of these years.

A press release states that Bacon is directly descended from Roger Moore, who built the original Orton residence in 1725. Bacon’s mother’s family has strong ties to nearby Wilmington.

Many are relieved to hear that Mr. Bacon has a reputation for buying historic properties such as Orton Plantation and keeping them in their natural state. Also the N.C. Coastal Land Trust holds conservation easements covering much of the Orton property. The executive director of the Land Trust states that Bacon is noted as a conservationist and a supporter of numerous environmental organizations.

Forbes magazine notes Bacon, age 53, is a native of North Carolina who manages several hedge funds and now resides in London, and the London Sunday Times notes that that he is the richest hedge fund manager in Britain having a nearly $1.7 billion fortune.

Orton Plantation, which recently opened for the 2010 season, is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the gardens. Extensive renovations were made in the gardens to open up panoramic views to the Cape Fear River, remove competing vegetation, redesign and enhance the flower beds and restore and preserve the colonial rice fields.

Among the predominant species in the garden are live oaks, camellias, azaleas, flowering fruit trees, daphne, hydrangeas, crape myrtles, dogwoods, and colorful spring and summer annuals. Lawns and water gardens lend variety to the lush vegetation.

Plan to come spend a day at Orton Plantation! The gardens are in their glory right now! The historic landscape designed around the 1735 mansion and colonial rice fields overlooking the Cape Fear River and 20 acres of secluded walking trails surrounded by hundreds of acres of rice fields make Orton Plantation Gardens a wonderful place to visit.

One of the oldest plantations on the Lower Cape Fear and the only one with a manor house still standing, Orton has become a privately owned tourist attraction, celebrated for its elaborate gardens. In recent years, the plantation and its grounds have served as locations on a number of motion pictures.

The house and grounds are located at 9149 Orton Road S.E., Brunswick County just off N.C. 133, close to the Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site.

Get directions click here!

Hours are 8am to 5pm March – August and 10am – 5pm September – November (except they close for Thanksgiving Day).

Work Resumes On Park

Work on the first park in southwestern Brunswick County’s, the five acre Ocean Isle Beach Park located on Old Georgetown Road, has resumed, and it could be open to visitors by late June according to county official.

Originally the county’s plan was to be finished with the park by last by October, but construction on the park came to a standstill when the contractor on the project, Weaver Co. Inc., of Conway, S.C., went bankrupt, leaving the park’s fate hanging in the balance.

Liberty Mutual, the bonding company for the project, took over with Boggs Paving Inc., of Myrtle Beach, chosen to finish the job.

Although most of the park’s amenities have already been completed, including eight tennis courts, playground equipment and a 300-seat amphitheater, the park is still lacking infrastructure.

The new contractor will be responsible for completing the 15% of work that remains to be finished, including paving, landscaping of the entire site and tying sewer into the Ocean Isle Beach sewer system. Boggs Paving recently began work at the park.

According to Ocean Isle Beach Mayor Debbie Smith a town staff member recently met with the new contractor about the park’s wastewater connection linking its restroom facilities to the Ocean Isle Beach treatment plant, an important step in the project. Smith said she was happy the project now has a completion date in sight.

I think it is certainly going to be an asset to this end of the county. It’s got wonderful tennis courts and a wonderful playground for children,” Smith said. “Of course, with the amphitheater and event space it should add some activities in our end of the county.”

The county received a $500,000 Parks and Recreation Trust grant for the $2.9 million project.

Holden & Sunset In Our State!

Local Holden Beach fisherman Tony DiFranco is front and center on the cover May issue of Our State Magazine. The May issue is traditionally their “Coastal Issue”. Editor Elizabeth Hudson and Art Director Deanne O’Connor note that  “The May Coastal Issue provides great cover opportunities to showcase the beauty and richness of our North Carolina beaches.”

“We loved how one shot, above all others, stood out. Photographer Geoff Wood captured the image of fisherman Tony DiFranco just as the early morning light illuminated his kind face. As viewers, we are drawn in to the scene and story — here, we are more than mere spectators but participants in the scene. It’s easy to feel a connection to this fisherman, and we feel as if we are standing right there with him on the Holden Beach pier, listening to the click of his reel, smelling the salt in the air.”

A great cover photograph should capture the character and personality of a place, and the fisherman cover reveals the essence of a favorite visit to the North Carolina coast.

Other coastal stories in the issue reflect the wistful nostalgia of memory — including a look back at the little Sunset Beach Bridge (at nearby Sunset Beach NC) to the fond recollections of a NC family as they spend another summer in their beach cottage.

Our State Magazine wanted a cover that reminded all of us of our past and the traditions we carry through from season to season. We think they achieved that at Holden Beach!

Sunset’s New Bridge

The Sunset Beach bridge has been more controversial than the Wall Street bailout Read more

Get Current Weather & Climate Info For Coastal NC

Now you can easily check current weather conditions for Coastal NC as well as a 15 day forecast, weather maps and current radar at http://CoastalNC.com

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