The Wrightsville Beach Foundation has offered to fund two new bicycle racks and three beach volleyball nets to add to the island’s recreational amenities.
Determining the best location for the equipment was the goal of a Feb. 1 meeting of the town’s parks and recreation advisory committee. Committee members voted to recommend the town install the bike racks in Wrightsville Beach Park: one near town hall and one near the playground. They agreed volleyball nets should go at Public Beach Access No. 4, Public Beach Access No. 42 and possibly in front of the Hanover Seaside Club.
They decided to place both bike racks in the park after briefly considering other locations around town like Wynn Plaza. They also ruled out the beach strand because they said bike racks already exist at several of the accesses.
They would like one bike rack to go on the east side of town hall, near council chambers and the Fran Russ Recreation Center. They want the other placed near the handicap-accessible playground when that is constructed in the coming months.
The second location serves those utilizing the tennis courts, too, committee member Susan Collins added.
Finding locations for the beach volleyball nets was slightly more difficult because committee members were worried erosion had narrowed the beach in some places. Once placed, 4-foot by 4-foot posts and net will be permanent, so they cannot be put somewhere that will block emergency vehicle access, parks and recreation program supervisor Katie Ryan said.
Wrightsville Beach Foundation member Elise Running said the foundation intended the nets to be evenly spaced, with one at the north end, one at the south end and one serving the middle of the beach strand.
The north end net should go at Public Beach Access No 4, the committee quickly agreed, because of that location’s wide beach and large parking lot. They applied the same logic to picking the south end location, looking for a spot close to the large south end lot, but the narrower beach strand in that area posed a challenge.
They chose a spot at the very tip of the island, south of Crystal Pier, where they felt the beach was widest. They proposed putting the third net north of Crystal Pier, in front of the Hanover Seaside Club.
The Wrightsville Beach Foundation will seek approval from the board of aldermen in the coming months to install the equipment. The foundation will also ask to move forward with a project it started working on a year ago — refillable filtered water stations on the John Nesbitt Loop.
The stations will be handicap accessible and include a dog bowl. If the foundation gets enough sponsor donations, the design will also incorporate a beach-themed sculptural element, like stainless steel fish or a surfer riding a wave, created by local metals artist Dumay Gorham.
The foundation hopes to build one in the Harbor Way garden by the beginning of summer. Depending on fundraising, they could also build a second station in the center of Wrightsville Beach Park.
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