THURSDAY 5/23: Town Council Reviews Harbor Budget
Cape Charles Town Council will conduct a budget work session 6 p.m. Thursday, May 23.
[Read more…]
USS Missouri Gun Barrel Ribbon Cutting Saturday
USS Missouri gun barrel arrives at new home at Wildlife Refuge. (USFWS photo)
By SUSAN RICE
Eastern Shore of Virginia National Wildlife Refuge
May 23, 2013
The Eastern Shore of Virginia National Wildlife Refuge is celebrating military history and honoring veterans this Memorial Day weekend.
On Saturday, May 25, at 2 p.m. the Wildlife Refuge will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony for the newest refuge addition –- a 120 ton, 68-foot gun barrel which was on the USS Missouri when the Japanese surrendered on September 2, 1945, ending World War II.
The public is invited to come touch this piece of military history and listen to someone who served on the USS Missouri talk about its storied past.
One can also learn about Fort John Custis, the Army base which was located at the Wildlife Refuge and housed two 16” guns for the protection of the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay.
There will be pomp and circumstance with a Navy Color Guard, and a Navy veteran playing the National Anthem on the saxophone. [Read more…]
New Historic Review Board Meets for First Time Today
CAPE CHARLES WAVE
May 21, 2013
The newly reconstituted Cape Charles Historic District Review Board will meet 4:30 p.m. today (May 21) at Town Hall.
All but one member of the previous Board resigned after Town Council overruled the Board’s decision not to grant a permanent occupancy permit to Hotel Cape Charles.
The new board is composed of:
John Caton (replacing Dianne Davis)
Ted Warner (replacing Bob Sellers)
Joe Fehrer (replacing Russ Dunton)
David Gay (replacing Jan Neville)
Terry Strub
Terry Stub is the sole remaining member of the former Board, to which she had only recently been appointed..
All members of the Board reside in the Historic District with the exception of John Caton, who lives in Bay Creek’s golf community. [Read more…]
Town Planner Bonadeo Retiring; Replacement Appointed
Town Planner Tom Bonadeo’s last day is May 28. (Wave photo)
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…]
Developer Rejects Request to Allow Hoops on Empty Court
J. David McCormack, new owner of the Town’s only basketball court, has refused to allow the court to be used during the time it sits idle awaiting conversion to a private parking lot. (Wave photo)
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…]
THURSDAY 5/16: Public Hearing on Waste Management and Town Council Meeting
Cape Charles Town Council will hold a public hearing 6 p.m. Thursday, May 16, at St. Charles Parrish Hall. The regular Town Council meeting will immediately follow. [Read more…]
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…]
