Town Water Line Flush Begins Tonight at 9 p.m.

May 22, 2013

Town of Cape Charles utility workers will be flushing the water lines beginning 9 p.m. tonight (Wednesday).

The flushing will continue until 2 a.m. Thursday morning.

The Town cautions residents not to use any water during the flushing period, as sediment could be drawn into their water lines. [Read more...]

Town Planner Bonadeo Retiring; Replacement Appointed

CAPE CHARLES WAVE

May 20, 2013

Cape Charles Town Planner Tom Bonadeo had planned to retire November 1, but recently moved up the date. His last day of work now will be Tuesday, May 28.

Town Manager Heather Arcos has announced that Robert Testerman will become the new Town Planner as of Friday, May 31.

Testerman is the Land Use Planner for Accomack County, where he has worked for six years.  He is a 2006 graduate of Virginia Tech.

Arcos said that three candidates were interviewed for the Town Planner position.

One of Bonadeo’s final projects is to set limits on residential occupancy in the Harbor District. He has urged the Cape Charles Planning Commission to recommend that density be calculated according to a formula known as Floor Area Ratio (FAR). [Read more...]

COMMENTARY: Wake Up and Trim the Fat, Cape Charles!

By DEBORAH BENDER

May 18, 2013

It has come to my attention that the Town of Cape Charles is having budget problems. There is not enough money and too many expenses.

In order to help, I did a little homework. And after speaking with the Town of Onancock’s administrative assistant, I have some advice: Trim the fat, Cape Charles.

According to the 2010 census, Cape Charles has 1,009 full-time residents. The town of Onancock has 1,263 full-time residents.

The Town of Cape Charles has 10 employees in the administrative offices at a salary cost of $509,875.

The town of Onancock has 3 employees in the town office for a total of $195,000 in salaries. That is $314,875 less spent on employees in Onancock than in Cape Charles.

How does Onancock manage with such a small staff? For starters, their town manager is also their town attorney, thus avoiding the price tag for a town lawyer.

The two people who work in the office do all the billing, accounting, customer service, and take turns taking minutes at the town meetings.

They run the entire town office with just three employees! Onancock does not have a town planner, a treasurer, an accountant, a building code enforcer, a community recreation activities director, or an assistant clerk. [Read more...]

6 Comments

Developer Rejects Request to Allow Hoops on Empty Court

By GEORGE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave

May 16, 2013

Real estate developer J. David McCormack, new owner of the former Central Park basketball court and Cape Charles Old School, has rejected a request to allow basketball hoops to be reinstalled on the court.

The request came from two local civic leaders, Lenora Mitchell of Concerned Citizens of Cape Charles, and Wayne Creed of Old School Cape Charles, LLC.

Mitchell and Creed sent developer McCormack a letter after Cape Charles Town Council postponed the deadline for construction at the old school to August 23.

“During the four months since our Town Council gave our school property to Charon Ventures, the young people in our town have been without a place to play basketball. This is a hardship for both children and their parents, since the basketball court was one of the favorite places for our youths to expend their excess energy,” the letter states.

“We request that you allow the town to reinstall the basketball hoops so that both locals and tourists will have a place to play during the interim period before a new court is constructed,” they wrote.

Yesterday, McCormack told Lenora Mitchell no — he would not agree to allow the Town to use the basketball court.

According to Mitchell, McCormack said his reason for denying use was because Old School Cape Charles was suing him.

The Wave left both a voice mail and a text on McCormack’s cell phone last night requesting his side of the story, but did not hear back as of time of publication.

Although McCormack rejected the request from the two civic leaders, the question remains whether he would reject a request from Mayor Dora Sullivan to use the court. [Read more...]

5 Comments

Wave Announces Listings for Faith-Based Activities

May 15, 2013

The Cape Charles Wave was established to  publicize local events open to the public. But until now, faith-based activities have largely slipped through the cracks.

No longer. Effective immediately, there is a specific page in the Wave for information about faith-based activities, entitled, appropriately enough, FAITHS.

It’s not called “Churches,” because a broader designation seemed more appropriate. Several local faith-based activities are not or were not connected with a church.

And although there may be no synagogues or mosques on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, the FAITHS page is intended to be all-inclusive.

The FAITHS tab appears at the top of every page, next to the CLASSIFIEDS tab. Content is wholly dependent on our readership. As with Wikipedia, if you want it to appear, you have to write it and submit it. [Read more...]

Newcomers Take A Walk on the Sunnyside (Garden, That Is)

By MIKE and LINDA MEE
Special to the Cape Charles Wave

May 14, 2013

When longtime owner Bo Lewis put Sunnyside Garden Center up for sale last year, no one knew what might become of it.

But thousands of motorists on Highway 13 saw the FOR SALE sign, and it wasn’t long before wheels began turning in the minds of a couple from Philadelphia.

Matt and Carold Yancy had been vacationing on the Eastern Shore for years, and long ago fell in love with the fishing, farmland, and friendly folks in the area.

That led to the purchase of a weekend home, with weekdays still in the city.

That all changed when Carold, who is originally from Haiti, retired after more than 20 years at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia.

The Yancys took the next step and made a permanent move to Cape Charles.

Matt realized that, much as he loved to fish, he needed more to do. And that’s when they noticed the FOR SALE sign.

The transition was seamless, with former owners Lewis and his wife frequently on the scene. [Read more...]

3 Comments

Strawberry Street Getting Yet Another New Business

CAPE CHARLES WAVE

May 13, 2013

As the month of June approaches, Strawberry Street is “busting out all over.”

It started a year earlier at 16 Strawberry Street, where Drizzles Tasting Shop, a boutique oil shop, injected new life in the “off-Mason” area previously devoid of shops other than a side entrance to Stage Door Gallery.

Then Moonrise Jewelry opened at 22 Strawberry Street with custom designs, quickly followed by expansion into a second storefront.

Now, Suzanne Golibart is opening a “unique consignment boutique” named Periwinkles at 12 Strawberry Street.

Periwinkles will offer “upscale women’s clothing, accessories, and home decor in an eclectic boutique environment,” Golibart says.

The official opening is Thursday, May 16, but Periwinkles is accepting consignment accounts and merchandise now. [Read more...]

4 Comments

Sewer Costs Push New Town Water Bills to $100

By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave

May 10, 2013

The Town of Cape Charles has the most modern sewage treatment plant on the Eastern Shore.

It is also the most expensive.

Town Manager Heather Arcos broke the news at a Town Council budget work session last night: Now that the new plant is in operation, the cost for sewage treatment is skyrocketing, and the minimum monthly sewer charge of $35.45 could increase to $64.44.

That would be an increase of 82 percent in one year.

Town Council didn’t like that number, and decided to defer some improvements and maintenance to cut costs by $85,000. Purchase of a grinder will be postponed, as will manhole repairs and engineering studies for pump stations.

Council also axed a $10,000 request from Chairman Bob Panek to fund his Public Service Authority that hopes to provide sewerage to properties on Highway 13 and the road to Cheriton.

Even with the cuts, sewer bills are still expected to increase by $18, which is a 51 percent increase over current rates.

The reason for the huge increase is because the Town borrowed $5 million for the new treatment plant and is required to pay down the loan by $289,000 every year for 20 years. [Read more...]

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