Neighbors of the old Coast Guard housing in Buxton are concerned about development By CATHERINE KOZAK

April 30, 2012 | Local News | By: Catherine Kozak

By CATHERINE KOZAK By CATHERINE KOZAK Developers who have contracted to buy the housing complex at the former Coast Guard base in Buxton are renewing promises to keep the community’s concerns in mind as they plan restoration of the property. Neighbors of the long-abandoned base came out in force at a public hearing on a […]

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Congressional Committee hears testimony on ‘beach roadkill’ bill

April 27, 2012 | Editor's Blog | By: Irene Nolan

A house subcommittee today heard testimony on H.R. 4094, a bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., to overturn the final off-road vehicle plan, end a court-agreed-to consent decree, and return management at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore to the 2007 Interim Protected Species Management Plan. The bill would ?authorize pedestrian and motorized vehicular […]

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And, finally, to the maximum extent possible, the secretary must designate pedestrian and vehicle corridors of minimal distance around any additional restricted areas to allow access to areas that are not closed. In December 2005, the NPS began the negotiation process to create regulations that would allow the seashore to meet its compliance standards, and in June 2007, an Interim Management Strategy was implemented to provide a framework for regulating the seashore while the NPS developed its long-term plan.  This Interim Management Strategy allowed for controlled ORV access to the beaches.  However, on July 17, 2007, an injunction was filed by the Defenders of Wildlife and the National Audubon Society to prevent ORV use until a final management plan was established and approved by NPS. A settlement negotiation process ensued, and on April 30, 2008, a federal judge approved a consent decree that required all seashore ramps to be closed to ORVs from 10 p.m. until 6 a.m., created buffers for nests and chicks that are clearly defined and in some cases more restrictive, and ruled that deliberate violations of the buffers would result in an expanded restricted area.  In February 2012, the NPS implemented final rules, requiring that ORVs must obtain permits to access the seashore, further limiting the accessibility of the park to vehicles. FOR MORE INFORMATION Click here to read the Senate bill, The Preserving Public Access to the Cape Hatteras Beaches Act.   The Interim Protected Species Management Strategy is available on the park planning website at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/document.cfm?parkID=358&projectID=13331&documentID=19796

April 26, 2012 | Local News | By: Irene Nolan

Burr and Hagan introduce bill in Senate to overturn final ORV plan By IRENE NOLAN By IRENE NOLAN By IRENE NOLAN U.S. Sens. Richard Burr, R.-N.C., and Kay Hagan, D-N.C., today introduced in the Senate the Preserving Public Access to Cape Hatteras Beaches Act, a bill that would overturn the National Park Service’s final off-road […]

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Retta Meekins Gray

April 25, 2012 | Obituaries | By: Island Free Press

AVON — Retta Meekins Gray, 91, passed intoeternity on April 25, 2012. She was born to Calvin and Maggie Meekinson Dec. 20, 1920. She was an active member of St. John’s UnitedMethodist Church in Avon, where she served as a trustee, treasurer,past president of the United Methodist Women, taught Sunday School andserved in the choir […]

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Subcommittee hearing on Jones bill is Friday, April 27 By IRENE NOLAN

April 25, 2012 | Local News | By: Irene Nolan

UPDATE: April 26, 2012 HOUSE LEGISLATIVE HEARING ON: H. R. 4094 (W. Jones), To authorize pedestrian and motorized vehicular access in Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area, and for other purposes. “Preserving Access to Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area Act” AND OVERSIGHT HEARING ON: “Access Denied: Turning Away Visitors to National Parks” WITNESSES AND […]

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