The addition of 27 boat slips and other amenities at 202 Summer Rest Road was rejected by the Wrightsville Beach Board of Aldermen during its meeting Nov. 13. The proposal, made by representatives of Bailey and Associates Inc., impacts the town’s only sewer connection leading from the island to Cape Fear Public Utility Authority’s wastewater treatment plant.
Construction in the area of the 40-year-old pipe could potentially cause it to fail. Docked boats could interfere with the pipe as well if the boats were to sink or deepen their slips.
Construction in the area of the 40-year-old pipe could potentially cause it to fail. Docked boats could also interfere with the pipe if the boats were to sink or deepen their slips.
Although the proposed location is not within town jurisdiction, the town was granted an easement by the state of North Carolina to put the pipe in place. The width of the easement is not specified, but town attorney John Wessell said the boat slips would likely encroach on the space reasonably required to maintain or replace the pipe.
Town manager Tim Owens said when the existing dock was originally installed, the town had very little input in the permitting process although it was built in the direct vicinity of the sewer line. Wessell said in recent years there have been a number of requests to make changes to the pier and the town has objected to each request.
“The sewer line runs right through the middle of where these piers are proposed to be constructed,” Wessell said. “Not only would you have construction, but then you would have ongoing use in the immediate vicinity and on top of the pier where the pipeline lies, and we believe it would be unsafe.”
Wessell went on to say although he is not an engineer, he believes the existing dock was created incorrectly and should be removed.
“I think it’s just not a good situation to have a pier built over the sewer line that carries 100 percent of the sewer from the town of Wrightsville Beach,” he said.
The board allowed the applicant to describe the project in more detail. Representatives from Bailey and Associates Inc. said they noted the objections over the years and altered the latest plans to avoid the sewer line. The closest dredging to the sewer line would be 11 feet, the applicant explained, and at that location they would dredge to a depth 1 and one-fourth feet above the depth of the pipe.
Assistant public works director Steve Dellies said his main concern was not so much the initial construction but the subsequent docking of boats and usage in that area by boat owners who might not be mindful or even aware of the pipe.
“It only takes one mistake, though,” Dellies said. “And if you get a hole in that line you’re looking at a minimum of 300 gallons a minute of sewage that we can’t control.”
Board members agreed to allow Wessell to proceed with a formal letter of objection to the project.
The proposed project brought up a separate issue for the town: the necessity of a second sewer pipe.
“If we had a break in any of this now we’d be in a world of trouble,” Owens said. “We don’t have a contingency plan, that may be something we would need to do.”
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