CAROLINA BEACH — A new proposal is in the works for a popular roadway that abuts nearby businesses along the Carolina Beach Boardwalk.
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The southern portion of Canal Drive is proposed to become a one-way street, suggested to the town council at its Tuesday workshop. The board has been ruminating on the topic for years, according to Mayor Lynn Barbee. At the 2024 retreat, the council decided it was going to put a plan into motion.
Brian Stanberry, public works director for Carolina Beach, gave a presentation Tuesday on the proposal. He said the goal is to improve traffic flow and safety, while also helping businesses. However, if council approves the plan next month, the changes along 400 feet of Canal Drive, between Harper Avenue and Cape Fear Boulevard, would be a test-run during the off-season only.
“It’s not a full implementation,” council member Joe Benson told Port City Daily. “Since it’s going on during the off-season, there’ll be far less people, vehicles, and activities. It’ll be easier to gauge the impact.”
The changes would cost the town around $5,000, according to Town Manager Bruce Oakley. This includes painting the roads, installing signs and a flashing stoplight for pedestrian crossing at the intersection of Harper and Canal. If Carolina Beach residents are happy with the initiative, the town would then work to make it a more permanent fixture. This could come with more elaborate alterations, potentially costing around $25,000, Oakley said.
Changes include making 400 feet of the road one-way for vehicular traffic, while also allowing loading and unloading zones for commercial vehicles delivering to businesses.
“We have tremendous problem with trucks coming up and damaging our sidewalks from loading and unloading,” Stanberry said.
The loading zones could flip into four additional parking spots in the afternoon, though the times they turn have yet to be determined by council. Additionally, four more spots could bring a total of eight paid parking spaces to the area. Though council isn’t considering adding more paid spots in the overall parking program, the ones on Canal Drive would be considered premium, due to their placement in the Central Business District.
Another part of the discussion included adding bike lanes to ensure cyclist safety, though concerns were raised by council member Mike Hoffer about bicyclists riding southbound, as it is illegal for bikes — considered vehicles — to go against the flow of traffic. Ultimately, council is bringing the concern to a consulting firm to measure the safety of bike lanes, Benson said.
Council overall advised on Tuesday that a traffic engineer should be consulted in order to study and project the flow of traffic with a one-way drive and ensure public safety, especially given the current design of the sidewalk. The plan did not include elevating the sidewalk, currently at the same level as the street.
Hoffer questioned whether it even counted as a sidewalk: “No, it’s just a different surface.”
Council agreed with him and so it was suggested to add a 6-inch curb in order to improve pedestrian safety. The 6-inch curb is a North Carolina Department of Transportation standard for route lines, and though this part of Canal Drive is not an NCDOT street, council wanted to use the same standard.
Away from the 400-feet one-way proposal, Benson said four projects on the northern side of Canal Drive are also ongoing to fix flooding by addressing stormwater drains and currently defective irrigation systems. The projects are in various stages, from engineering and planning to actual construction. Two stormwater and flooding projects have already been completed at the end of Myrtle Grove Sound and Starfish Lane; the other two at Scotch Bonnett Lane and Clam Shell Lane are to be completed within three months or earlier. The money for these projects are covered by a FEMA grant for the past three years, according to Benson.
Barbee said Tuesday one of the solutions in the past to fix the northern side of Canal Drive, often “ground-zero” for flooding from King Tides, was to just re-pave the street. But Barbee didn’t think it would work without the completion of flood mitigation first.
Barbee noted in the past stormwater and other related water issues were never addressed wholly, which led to further deterioration of the street, compounded by more flooding. Barbee and other council members at the meeting stressed the importance of fiscally responsible solutions that provided well-rounded remedies.
“I worry that we’re just going to pave it again, which is throwing money away,” Barbee said. “[Canal Drive] is not horrible. It’s not good, but it’s not the crisis that people want you to believe.”
The next council meeting is set for Nov. 12, when the proposal will be brought back for a vote.
[Ed. note: The piece was updated after press to clarify loading zones will turn into four parking spaces and specifics of the bike lane are yet to be determined.]
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