Bay Coast Railroad Must Move Hazardous Railroad Ties
Pile of railroad ties in foreground were amassed by the Army Corps of Engineers while preparing the spoil containment area in the background. The photo was taken from the Hump. (Wave photo)
By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
June 29, 2015
Bay Coast Railroad has been given five days to come up with a plan to properly dispose of creosote-treated railroad ties currently being buried behind the Cape Charles Museum. After the Wave alerted the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, DEQ sent a letter to Bay Coast Railroad, owners and operators of the Cape Charles rail yard, requesting a response within five days detailing what will be done to remove or recycle the material. That response is due today (June 29).
Creosote-treated products such as railroad ties must be disposed of in an approved landfill or be recycled appropriately. According to DEQ, the railroad ties must be treated as hazardous waste.
DEQ had not been aware of the large number of railroad ties amassed at the western end of the area being prepared to contain dredged spoil from the town harbor and channel. The mound of ties can easily be seen when driving over the Hump.
The regional DEQ representative, who asked not to be quoted by name, said the railroad was not allowed to use its property as an unpermitted dump site.
DEQ spokesman Bill Hayden told the Wave that he did not know whether the railroad ties could contaminate the water table. [Read more…]
$78,000 Later, Route 13 Sewer Project Put on Hold
By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
June 29, 2015
In a stunning defeat to proponents of a sewer pipe from Route 13 to the Cape Charles treatment plant, the Northampton County Board of Supervisors voted June 22 to put Public Service Authority plans on hold. Citing higher priorities, including emergency medical services and the public schools, Supervisor Granville Hogg made the motion, which carried in a 3-1 vote. Supervisor Larry Trala was opposed, noting that the PSA had been working on the project for quite a while.
Supervisor Larry LeMond expressed impatience with the Town of Cape Charles for its failure to reach an agreement with the PSA about the cost of services. He reported that the town wants to condition a sewer deal on whether the county gives the town a say on what kinds of commercial activity would be allowed just outside town limits.
PSA Chairman John Reiter told the Supervisors that engineering studies for the project were 40 percent complete. The PSA has paid almost $78,000 to date, including $8,000 for a study of possible use of the Bayview facility which had been requested by the Supervisors.
Reiter reported that negotiations with the Town of Cape Charles were still in progress, citing differences over how much should be charged per gallon of wastewater and whether there should be a connection fee. Reiter said that an agreement was close on the per-gallon cost. But he complained that the connection fee could cost $750,000, adding considerably to upfront costs. [Read more…]
Body of Teen Swimmer Found Near Town Fishing Pier
CAPE CHARLES WAVE
June 22, 2015
Persons gathered on the Cape Charles boardwalk Sunday night during search and rescue operations for a missing swimmer heard a weeping, distraught man call out “mi hijo” — my son. At that time his son had been missing in the water for some two hours. Police contacted the Coast Guard at about 6:30 p.m. to report the missing boy.
Although search teams continued through the night, the body of 15-year old Alvaro Lopez-Castaneda was not found until Monday afternoon, when it was recovered near the town fishing pier. He had recently finished the ninth grade at Nandua High School in Accomack County.
The tragedy was sadly reminiscent of another Sunday afternoon last August when an 8-year-old drowned off the beach. His body was not recovered until the following Tuesday — also close to the fishing pier.
Following the drowning last August, outspoken residents urged town officials to erect warning signs to swimmers and establish a roped-off area. Some called for town life guards as well. In response, the town announced plans for a designated swimming area, but as of yesterday — the first official day of summer — nothing had been done.
Rescue efforts included use of a Coast Guard 25-foot response boat crew from Station Cape Charles and a Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Air Station Elizabeth City. Virginia Marine Resources Commission personnel and members of the Cape Charles Fire Department also took part in the search.
PSA Briefing: Still No Agreement with Cape Charles
By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
June 22, 2015
When the county’s Public Service Authority meets in a joint work session with Northampton Board of Supervisors today, the story will be the same as the past two years: still no agreement with the Town of Cape Charles on rates and fees for sewer service in the vicinity of the Cape Charles traffic light.
The joint meeting starts at 5 p.m. (June 22), followed by a regular meeting of the PSA. The public may attend but not speak at the joint work session, but public statements will be allowed at the regular PSA meeting.
The PSA will report to the Board of Supervisors on the status of the engineering tasks and will provide an estimated cost for the project and a construction timeline. The PSA will also provide an overview of the negotiations with Cape Charles about wastewater treatments costs and hookup fees. No agreement has been reached, with a major sticking point being the hookup fee. The PSA doesn’t want to charge county customers a hookup fee, while the town argues that since new town customers have to pay the fee, so should county customers.
Discussion will also include a special tax district and whether service will be mandatory for customers in that district. Back in 2012 the county allocated 25 percent of estimated construction costs from the general budget. But would-be commercial customers balked at having to shoulder 75 percent of constructions costs, and the PSA has been urging the county to assume a larger share of costs. A bond issue would be backed by the county.
One of the drivers of the whole commercial sewer plan is the hope that Harmony Investments will build a hotel on property it owns on Route 13 in front of Kings Creek Landing. According to County Administrator and PSA Executive Director Katie Nunez, Harmony Investments already has a special use permit for a mass drain field there, so the hotel could be built with or without a sewer pipe to Cape Charles. Nunez told the Wave she is not aware of plans to move forward with building a hotel at this time. Harmony Investments also owns the Sunset Beach Inn and Grille near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. [Read more…]
Supervisors Overrule PSA, Spend $10,000 for New Study
By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
December 1, 2014
Northampton County Supervisors have approved spending up to $10,000 for a study on whether commercial sewage should be piped to the Cape Charles treatment plant or, instead, to a much closer, smaller facility owned by the county at Bayview. The action came November 24, less than a week after the county’s Public Service Authority had voted to go with the Cape Charles treatment plant. Only Supervisor Granville Hogg voted against spending the money.
The new engineering study would be performed by the firm of Hurt and Proffitt, already the beneficiary of a $70,000 contract to study constructing a pipeline from Route 13 to the Cape Charles wastewater plant. That contract was executed by the PSA in 2013 with county tax money (although then-Board of Supervisors chairman Willie Randall said he thought they were spending grant money).
At last Monday’s meeting, Supervisor Granville Hogg raised concerns that Hurt and Proffitt might have a conflict of interest. He noted that the PSA had just authorized execution of a contract with Hurt and Proffitt for a wastewater collection and conveyance system from the Route 13 commercial properties to the Cape Charles wastewater plant, pending approval and funding by the Board of Supervisors. [Read more…]
PSA Defies Board of Supervisors on Route 13 Sewerage
By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
November 24, 2014
Northampton’s Public Service Authority voted November 18 to construct a wastewater collection system to run from the Cheriton area of Route 13 to the Cape Charles sewer plant, contingent on funding. The vote would appear to fly in the face of a September 23, 2013, decision by the county Board of Supervisors to table any further action on a sewer pipe to Cape Charles. Facing overwhelming public opposition at the time, then-Chairman Willie Randall said, “We heard you, we listened, there will be no action on this plan until we get a better understanding of what to do.”
Supervisors’ meetings over the past year reveal no “better understanding” today than before. In fact, a Supervisors meeting tonight (November 24) will discuss using the Bayview treatment plant instead of Cape Charles — an option not under active consideration by the PSA.
On paper, the PSA is an independent body, with four members appointed by participating municipalities and five members appointed at large by the Board of Supervisors. But while the PSA can vote to do whatever it wants, it has no taxing authority. The Board of Supervisors allocated $130,000 for the PSA in last year’s budget, $58,000 of which has been spent for sewer pipe engineering studies by the firm of Hurt and Profitt. But no money was allocated to the PSA for the current budget year.
PSA Chairman John Reiter (At Large) said that although the PSA is not yet ready to construct the sewer pipe, he requested authorization “to execute the contract at such time as the BOS approves the special tax district and mandatory connections and wants us to go forward.” J.T. Holland (At Large), Bob Panek (Cape Charles), and Felton Sessoms (Nassawadox) joined Reiter in approving the motion. Taylor Dukes (Exmore) and Greg Hardesty (Cheriton) voted against it.
Following the vote, Dukes said, “What I feel from the public is, they’re not for it.” He said he could not see supporting something the public is vocally against. Hardesty reported that business owners in Cheriton are not only opposed to the project, “they are vehemently opposed to it.” [Read more…]
Forum on County Rezoning Draws Full House
Audience member Katherine Campbell spoke in favor of proposed zoning changes. (Wave photo)
By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
November 10, 2014
Speakers at a community forum on the Northampton County Zoning Ordinance last Thursday called for the Board of Supervisors to withdraw the proposed ordinance changes being considered.
Some 140 residents braved the rainy evening to attend the forum in the Eastville Fire Station Bingo Hall sponsored by Virginia Eastern Shorekeeper and Citizens for a Better Eastern Shore. County Supervisors Granville Hogg and Rick Hubbard were among them. When asked when the supervisors might vote on the proposed changes Hogg answered, “I don’t know.”
Audience sentiment clearly supported withdrawing the proposed zoning changes. But one attendee, Katherine Campbell, bravely asked to speak in favor of the changes and was given three minutes. She said her concern was that the county needed economic development and that the zoning changes would lead to a more prosperous county. In response, panelist Roberta Kellam noted that everyone is interested in a more prosperous county. Kellam questioned how the zoning ordinance’s proposed ban on single-wide mobile homes could benefit low-income residents. “Will developers build affordable homes or waterfront homes?” Kellam asked. [Read more…]
Don’t Like Town Water? It Could Get Worse
SOLE-SOURCE AQUIFER DETAIL
By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
July 21, 2014
There’s a limited supply of groundwater in the Cape Charles vicinity, and the town needs to prepare to deal with saltwater intrusion now. That’s according to Elaine Meil of the Accomack-Northampton County Planning District Commission, who addressed the Cape Charles Planning Commission June 30. Meil said the problem is still a few years away, but that the town needs to begin planning for it.
According to groundwater modeling done by the United States Geological Survey, “saltwater intrusion can be expected in town wells over time and the town should be aware of this problem,” Meil said, adding that:
- Groundwater studies have shown limited groundwater in the Cape Charles vicinity. This is a natural feature of the area.
- The Eastern Shore of Virginia Ground Water Committee works extensively on groundwater issues and they have funded the USGS to develop a groundwater model. This model is the best source of information regarding changes to groundwater in the Cape Charles area.
- Long term, the Town may need to change water treatment technologies or obtain water from the Eastville area of Northampton County or possibly from the southern tip.
Town staff has applied to renew the 10-year DEQ (Department of Environmental Quality) Groundwater Withdrawal Permit at 68 million gallons per year, a reduction from 252 million gallons per year. The current use is just under 40 million gallons per year, Meil noted. [Read more…]
