#16 Story
TOWN COUNCIL: ‘Don’t Answer That Question’
Penny postcard of historic old school — where is the front of the building?
By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
October 21, 2013
Cape Charles Town Planner Rob Testerman found himself in a difficult position at last Thursday’s Town Council meeting. Councilman Frank Wendell asked him if he could identify the front of the school in Central Park and if parking is allowed in the front of residential properties in the Historic District.
The issue was an appeal by the Old School Cape Charles civic group of a Certificate of Appropriateness granted to a developer by the Town Planner. Testerman and Town Manager Heather Arcos had decided to reject the appeal without a hearing by Town Council.
WENDELL: Doesn’t our historic ordinance say you can’t put a parking lot in front of an historic building?
TESTERMAN: I don’t believe there’s anything about that.
WENDELL: Do you agree that they can put a parking lot in the front of the building? Does anybody dispute that the front of the building faces south? Let’s start with Rob: Does the front of the building face south?
MAYOR DORA SULLIVAN: Overruled. There is no discussion . . . it’s not an action item. [Read more…]
#17 Story
Old School Developer Gets Another Lucky Break
Town gave Petersburg developer J. David McCormack $41,000 to repair damage to old school wall, but McCormack did the job for an estimated $1,000. (All photos Cape Charles Wave)
By GEORGE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
December 15, 2014
J. David McCormack of Petersburg, who is converting the old Cape Charles High School in Central Park into a 17-unit apartment building, has enjoyed one lucky break after another over the past four years. Most recently, he saved as much as $200,000 in repairs to a crumbling back wall.
It was that same wall that town officials claimed made the old school impossibly expensive to repair for use as a community center. When Northampton County offered to chip in, then-Mayor Dora Sullivan turned the County Board of Supervisors down flat.
“The cost to provide a historic restoration is prohibitive at $2-4 million,” she wrote to then-Supervisor Willie Randall, noting that “one exterior wall collapsed as a result of the earthquake last year and the estimate to repair that wall alone was approximately $200,000.”
The actual estimate was $228,000 and came from FEMA, who was willing to pay to repair the earthquake damage so long as the town retained ownership of the building. FEMA refused, however, to compensate the town unless the money was used to repair the wall.
The FEMA report also contained the question, “Was this site previously damaged?” The answer given was “No.” But the damage had been documented years earlier in the 2006 Shriver Holland report: “The exterior wall along the west side of the east wing has pulled away from the floor framing. . . . Geotechnical investigation should be provided to determine cause of wall movement. Wall may need to be re-anchored and additional foundation support provided,” the report stated. [Read more…]
#18 Story
EXTRA: Town Paying Dickie Foster’s Real Estate Tax
Under agreement between Town of Cape Charles and Bay Creek developer, Foster has saved over $30,000 in taxes and lawn care in four years by allowing this sign on one of his lots. (Wave photo)
CAPE CHARLES WAVE
March 20, 2014
Lease documents supplied to the Wave show that since 2010 the Town of Cape Charles has paid all real estate taxes for seven commercial lots on Randolph Avenue owned by Bay Creek developer Richard “Dickie” Foster.
The annual Northampton County tax bill is $2,355 and the annual Cape Charles tax bill is $935, for a total of $3,290 paid by the town each year.
Under the lease agreement, the town also bears all expense for landscaping, cutting the grass, and “otherwise maintaining the property.”
The lease was signed in June 2010 by Foster and Town Manager Heather Arcos. By June of this year the town will have saved Foster over $13,000 in taxes and at least $17,000 lawn care, for a total of over $30,000. [Read more…]
#19 Story
Aqua Restaurant Announces Reopening by Easter
CAPE CHARLES WAVE
January 12, 2013
The new owner of Bay Creek Marina Village, including Aqua Restaurant, the marina, and accompanying shops and villas, plans to reopen the restaurant in time for Easter weekend.
Bob Occhifinto, a New Jersey entrepreneur who bought the properties at a December 28 foreclosure auction at the County Courthouse, hinted in a press release that his new venture will cooperate closely with the original Bay Creek developer.
“We are excited to become a part of the Bay Creek family, and honored to have the opportunity to build on Dick Foster’s commitment to excellence and his vision for a first-class destination marina resort,” Occhifinto said.
Foster, the developer of Bay Creek properties, continues to hold a 25 percent share of Bay Creek South, the golf course side of the development.
Occhifinto’s company is named Peacock Holdings VA, LLC, presumably because prior to buying the Marina Village properties, he bought and renovated the Peacock Motel in Capeville.
Renovations at Aqua are scheduled to be complete by late March, with a grand reopening of the restaurant and catering operations by Easter weekend.
Occhifinto’s staff includes a number of former Bay Creek employees along with a mix of new names. [Read more…]
#20 Story
EXTRA! Town Council to Sell Inner Harbor for $10
Inner Harbor at left rear will be sold, but the new Outer Harbor at front will remain, as will Coast Guard station and new yacht repair facility.
CAPE CHARLES WAVE
April 1, 2014
Cape Charles Town Council has tentatively agreed in closed session to accept an unsolicited confidential proposal to buy the inner portion of the Town Harbor for $10. The original offer was $1, but was raised ten-fold as a demonstration of goodwill by the buyer. “Even though we don’t receive a whole lot of money up front, we can expect to benefit in the future from property taxes, water bills, and increased tourism,” explained one Council member who supports the deal.
The purchaser is J. David Schmick, originally from St. Petersburg, Russia, owner of Sketch-Along Resourcing LLC. Schmick, an international entrepreneur, promises that Sketch-Along’s investments in Cape Charles will invigorate the entire Eastern Shore, beginning with the Shanty, which will become a floating restaurant after the style of those in Hong Kong.
Drawing a sketch on a Shanty napkin, Schmick outlined his plan to relocate the Shanty onto a floating dock in mid-harbor. There will be a harbor taxi service to ferry customers, and Cape Charles Water Sports would be a logical supplier of the service, he said. There is also the opportunity for tourists to rent a jet ski to get to the Shanty, eat, and then zoom over to the public beach.
According to an official, the town’s newly increased transient occupancy tax will also be levied on customers of the harbor taxi. “What could be more transient than that,” reasoned the official.
However, at least one close observer is worried that Schmick’s development plans could destroy the small-town charm of Cape Charles. For example, it is already rumored that Schmick will take control of the Shanty and rebrand it as a McCormick & Schmick’s seafood restaurant. Schmick is not known to be associated with the famous restaurant chain, but admits to an affinity for the company that shares his unusual last name.
Entrepreneur Schmick was able to convince Town Council to essentially give him the Inner Harbor to fulfill his vision for a water theme park replacing the current boat slips. Schmick claims to have financing already in place to build a Disney-style “Slip ‘n’ Slide” along with paddle boats, a competition jet ski race course, and an “Ol’ Tyme Ferry Boat” modeled after a Mississippi riverboat casino. (The ferry boat casino would come in Phase 2, with a yet-to-be-determined start date, operated by a separate firm doing business as Charade Adventures LLC.) [Read more…]
