CAROLINA BEACH — Pedestrians may have six more blocks of sidewalk to utilize should Caroline Beach receive funds.
The project is already approved by town council but at its July 23 meeting, the council unanimously voted to follow staff recommendations and apply for a USDOT grant through the Wilmington Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (WMPO). The grant would help fund a 1.3-mile sidewalk on Lake Park Boulevard that stretches from Lake Drive to Alabama Avenue.
The DOT’s Surface Transportation Block Grant Program (STBGP) aims to fund projects that enhance and maintain the conditions and performance of federal-aid highways, bridges, tunnels, pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, and transit capital projects, including intercity bus terminals.
The sidewalk is projected to cost $1.48 million, with the NCDOT covering $183,118 and the STBGP grant covering $1,037,505. This leaves the town to pay the remaining balance of $259,337 and any additional overages. The cost includes the design, project management, and construction. The town council approved the budget to include these funds at its meeting last month.
At the June 11 meeting, council member Mike Hoffer said the sidewalk improvements swayed him to vote for the recent property tax increase, which went up by 9% — from 21.5 cents to 23.5 cents per $100 valuation. Hoffer said he has never voted to raise taxes since serving on the board.
The sidewalk is being built for safety reasons, as pedestrians have made a man-made grass pathway, also known as a desire path or goat path, on the side of Lake Park Boulevard.
“It’s just bad. I don’t have to say it any other way,” Mayor Lynn Barbee said at Tuesday’s meeting.
He referenced a personal experience driving down Lake Park Boulevard, noting he takes the route home daily. Over the July 4th weekend, he witnessed a woman walking with a baby stroller in the road due to a lack of sidewalk.
“People were literally just walking down the center,” he said. “It’s just bad. There needs to be a sidewalk in my opinion.”
The sidewalk project has been in development for a year, with NCDOT initiating its need after seeing the man-made path along the roadside.
Barbee said at the June meeting: “They came to us and said ‘holy.’You know, they saw the — what they call — goat-path going along the road.”
In July of last year, the NCDOT announced funds would be allocated for t 0.3 miles of sidewalk from Lake Drive to Carolina Sands Drive. In November, a plan was presented to staff.
At the council’s June 11 meeting, town manager Bruce Oakley said the project has been “frustrating for everyone — staff included,” referring to discrepancies in the plan since it started.
Staff identified several issues with NCDOT’s first site plans for the sidewalks along Lake Park Boulevard. These included interference with existing power poles, mailboxes, utilities, and signage. Additionally, the cost of acquiring the necessary right-of-way was a major concern. There were also issues with equipment in the original plan no longer being manufactured.
The town staff collaborated with the DOT to develop an alternative plan that would remove the curb and gutter, avoiding conflicts with existing structures. DOT representatives then revisited the proposed sidewalk site with the staff and confirmed there was sufficient drive aisle width to implement this new plan.
“This project will provide a safer travel experience for those to reach their destination by further separating pedestrians from the roadway and providing a solid, level path,” the 2023 NCDOT press release read.
Both staff and the DOT agreed to split the sidewalk building into sections for cost purposes.
“This is saying, ‘Hey, this doesn’t really solve the whole problem,’” Barbee said. “so what you guys are doing is now backing up and saying, ‘With this new grant opportunity, let’s try to do the whole thing.’”
Council member Jay Healy asked if extending the sidewalk project will interfere with the repaving of Lake Boulevard, funded by DOT. The project has been delayed. Ed Parvin said DOT requested to keep both projects separate and did not indicate which would come first.
“The one great thing about the state managing this is we have seen what has happened on Ocean — the back and forth between us and the DOT, our engineers, and their engineers — but this will be all on them,” Barbee said. “Go make this happen.”
If approved, the grant funds will be awarded in October. A construction timeline for the sidewalk has not yet been established.
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