Construction begins on Hatteras Village Pathway

Construction has officially begun on the new Hatteras village pathway, with an estimated completion date of August 11, 2021, per a recent update from project organizers.

“[The contractor] Barnhill was on site last Monday to do the initial silt fencing and some initial site prep,” stated Chairperson for the Hatteras Village Community Center District (HVCCD) and longtime advocate for the project, Dennis Robinson, “[and] they came back yesterday to begin construction.”

The new 3-1 mile pedestrian and multi-use pathway will stretch from the entrance to the Hatteras ferry docks to the northern village borders, and will include a loop along Eagle Pass Road, making all areas along the route safer and more accessible.

Construction is currently underway on the Eagle Pass Road loop, and then workers will extend their efforts to the rest of Hatteras village.

“We’re starting on Eagle Pass Road, because that’s the most critical area [of the project],” said Robinson in an earlier interview, noting that the upcoming construction should not impact local traffic in Hatteras village. “The concrete pours will be predominantly in the morning, and road closures are not expected at this time.”

The $1,165,027 pathway project, which has been in the works for roughly 15 years, is being financed through a number of sources that took more than a decade of efforts to establish.

The initial planning for the multi-use pathway in Hatteras village began in 2006, alongside a corresponding project to establish the Outer Banks Scenic Byway. (The Outer Banks Scenic Byway was officially completed and launched in 2016.)

The Hatteras Pathway project received a $342,640 Tourism Impact Grant in 2020, which represents about a third of the total project cost. An additional $342,000 or so was collected through the village’s designation as a special tax district, and recently, the Hatteras Village Civic Association, through Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative (CHEC), received an additional $360,000 loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant (REDLG) Program. The 10-year, no-interest loan stays in the community, so when the loan is repaid, the money can be used for other island projects.

In September of 2020, the CHEC Board of Directors also approved $10,725 to help fund the environmental assessment of the upcoming pathway.

Per an estimated timeline for the project, the initial surveying for the pathway began in md-March, and then contractors began work on sawing and removals, attending to storm drains, and excavation and grading. The upcoming concrete work, which will take roughly 63 days, will also coincide with the construction of bridges and guardrails.

The Island Free Press will post updates on the project as it progresses in the months to come.

In the meantime, a detailed map of the upcoming project can be viewed here