Comments on: Council Deal to Buy Foster Lots Includes Back Tax

By: Mr. Melvin W. Williams, Jr CWO USCG (Ret)

Mr. Melvin W. Williams, Jr CWO USCG (Ret) — Fri, 04 Apr 2014 01:07:38 +0000

Rip out, Rip off, and Rip up. This deal should be investigated to see if it’s really legal.

By: Mike Kuzma, Jr.

Mike Kuzma, Jr. — Fri, 28 Mar 2014 14:52:38 +0000

Wayne, my use of language was a bit vague — I was simply referring to the building, not the organization.

The bank: We had a fine library building, off the tax rolls, and a nice property on the main business drag that will now NOT be throwing off sales, business, or personal property taxes. OR be used to bring those who may purchase anything from the other, struggling for customers, shops already there.

A couple of really fine restaurants up here that used to be Bank Buildings. The wait for the “Vault” room reservations runs around 6 months out. Now that would be a nice thing to advertise on the signs — especially if they were on Route 13 where passersby might be enticed to stop in for lunch. A little shopping, and dropping of the cash.

We still owe each other an amicable libation. Gotta keep Frank Wendell and Gene Kelly in chips, buddy!

By: Wayne Creed

Wayne Creed — Thu, 27 Mar 2014 23:51:53 +0000

Hey Mike, you’re close. Old School Cape Charles’ initial, and ultimate goal, was to keep the old school public property. OSCC’s original agreement was to lease the school as a partnership with the Town, but when Cape Charles Christian School offered take it on as the new campus, OSCC backed off. Transferring the public space to private entities, thus depriving public access, is what led to the challenge. If in the end we prevail, we hope the school will be renovated and shine as public property. Purchasing the Bank of America for the public to use as a library, I feel, was a good thing. Purchasing the 7 lots, if used wisely, is also a good thing.

By: Mike Kuzma, Jr.

Mike Kuzma, Jr. — Thu, 27 Mar 2014 17:57:58 +0000

Wayne, just want to make sure I got this right:
Old School Cape Charles Government Transfer = BAD.
7 vacant lots Government Aquisition = GOOD.
Sooooo, if the Town Council decides to give those 7 lots away for a pittance someday, can I presume you will be agin’ it again?

By: Wayne Creed

Wayne Creed — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 19:58:55 +0000

I’ve made too many bad moves in real estate to say whether or not the Town got a good deal on the seven lots; however, I think purchasing the property that leads into Town, especially being able to control the look and feel of that bit of corridor, seems like a smart thing to do. What I am concerned about is what they plan to do with it. We understand that there is some movement to create a traffic circle at the intersection of Fig and Randolph, and that they needed that piece of property to make it happen. I understand roundabouts like Dupont or Logan circles in DC really work well as traffic flow devices, but I don’t think we have that issue in Cape Charles. A four-way stop might do more to save money and maintain our rural character.

More troubling, there are strings attached to the grant money for this project: the Town will need to brand, or re-brand itself (say goodbye to the Gazebo) with some form of icon or symbol, which will stand at the center of the circle. What exactly will that be? I shudder to think. Again, this appears to be an attempt to turn us into something we’re not but interjecting random, incongruous elements into what should be a quiet, sleepy seaside village. It’s as if they go on vacation and come back, “Oh, they had these adorable traffic circles in Glasgow; we should do that in Cape Charles!”

Time to step on the brakes, take some time, and re-evaluate. Now that we do have that land, skip the roundabout, and instead do something fun and silly, like one of those beachy signs you see in the Keys that points out the direction to various local hot spots (a bigger version of the sign that leads to Aqua).

By: Steve Downs

Steve Downs — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 23:02:45 +0000

How about using the six lots not needed for a sign, as a park area with a basketball court and a farmer’s market? Also, I don’t think we need to pay a full time executive director of the museum $100K when we only have a volume of tourists here for five months of the year. Perhaps a very knowledgeable person for that time period.

By: Scott Wade

Scott Wade — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 17:30:46 +0000

“Cape Charles Historical Society President and Treasurer Marion Naar requested $15,000 funding for a professional museum director.” Why not take the $100,000 to provide for a full-time executive director of the museum? This position could include an experienced grant writer that can continue to bring in funds and create programming for the museum. The Historical Society and museum could then operate as a true welcome center for visitors to the town. The Historical Society exists due to the efforts of Marion and a small group of dedicated volunteers. The chronic lack of funding and support from the town for the historical society is shameful.

By: Kathleen Bahri

Kathleen Bahri — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 15:09:58 +0000

Maybe the Farmers’ Market could be set up near the Welcome sign, making use of more than one of the seven lots located there.