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here may be a change in the Town’s plans to build a second Town Dock in to Oriental’s harbor at the end of South Avenue.

A press release put out by the Mayor’s Office on January 26 speaks of Chris Fulcher making “a proposal to donate property” on the harbor. In his letter to the Town, dated January 23, Chris Fulcher proposes what is in effect a swap of harbor front land.

A diagram from Town Hall showing the lands involved in the proposed deal on Oriental’s harbor, aka Raccoon Creek. The yellow lot is the one Chris Fulcher would give to the town in exchange for the Town abandoning its right of way claims to the end of South Avenue and Avenue A — the streets depicted in dark green. Those would become Fulcher’s property. The light green lots represent property that Fulcher owns and would continue to own. The property in white above the yellow lot is the Oriental Marina. Town Manager Bob Maxbauer says this is not drawn to scale but is a conceptual representation.

Fulcher proposes that the Town abandon its right-of-way on South Avenue. The right-of-way there is 60 feet wide and includes not only the asphalt street but strips of land on either side of the asphalt. Under the law, abandonment of the right-of-way means that that land – asphalt and side strips – goes to the property owners on both sides of that right-of-way. In this case, that would be Chris Fulcher himself, and, as he notes in his letter, a company “in which I have a controlling interest.”

In exchange, Fulcher’s letter says, he would provide the Town with a nearby harborfront lot that is adjacent to the Oriental Marina and the Toucan Grill. Unlike the South Avenue right-of-way, that lot has already been bulkheaded. A partially built dock extends from the lot over 80 feet of water. According to the mayor, it does not require dredging.

The lot that Chris Fulcher proposes giving to the Town in exchange for the Town abandoning rights-of-way on two streets. This lot includes a dock that needs planks. To the right, on the other side of the fence, is property belonging to the Oriental Marina. To the left, is the lot, next to South Avenue, that Fulcher is not offering in the deal.

A Mostly Built Dock

The proposal suggests that the Town could use that as its new Town Dock.

Mayor Bill Sage says that would save the Town the money it would spend to build a town dock and dredge the waters off of South Avenue. (Town Manager Bob Maxbauer pegs the cost of that at about $56,000. The plan has been for that dock construction and dredging to be funded to be via the Town’s Occupancy Tax fund and from CAMA grants that the Town hopes to be hearing about in March.)

In an interview, the Mayor also notes that the Fulcher lot being offered to the Town already has sewer and water hookup, which would enable the Town to install public restrooms. (The Mayor has said that the Town couldn’t install such facilities on land that is only a right-of-way; owning the land outright allows that.)

Mayor Sage says that he thinks it offers “a good deal of potential benefit” to the Town.

He says that by donating the land, the donor “may” enjoy a tax benefit.

The proposal calls for the town to “abandon” the right of way on South Avenue leading to the harborfront. The Town has been planning to dredge that water and build a second Town Dock there at an estimated cost of $56,000, which would come out of an Occupancy Tax fund and, the Town hopes, thru a grant from the state. In the proposal, the Town would instead get a lot next to Oriental Marina where a dock is mostly built already.

At the moment, the Town’s South Avenue right-of-way is the only property that Chris Fulcher does not own on the waterfront between Oriental Marina, around the breakwater and to Wall Street, on the Neuse River.

Chris Fulcher recently purchased some lots that had belonged to Lacy Henry, whom the Town successfully battled in court over the issue of control of that South Avenue right-of-way. Those newly acquired lots from Henry are near the Point Pride Seafood operation that Fulcher runs at the entrance to the harbor, where a roofless building has stood on site for a decade.

As seen from Oriental’s harbor, at far left, a dock at the Oriental Marina, then behind the dolphin cluster of pilings, the dock and lot that Chris Fulcher proposes giving to the Town. Next is the dock that he would continue to own next to the end of South Avenue. At far right is Fulcher’s roofless building.

How Big A Lot?

The Town’s South Avenue right-of-way is 60 feet wide (and because of the angle of the land where it meets the water, is approximately 88 feet at the waterfront.) The lot that Fulcher proposes giving the town is 46.47 feet wide at the water’s edge. It is listed as being 5,001 square feet. (That’s one square foot bigger than the minimum lot size needed for building in Oriental.)

The lot Fulcher proposes to give to the Town is not yet 5,000 square feet, however. As drawn, some of that lot – 890 square feet – would consist of land that, at this moment, is in the Town’s right-of-way. The Town would have to first abandon that right-of-way and let Fulcher claim it before he could “donate” that portion of 890 square feet to the Town.

Under Fulcher’s proposal to the Town, he would keep the smaller lot between the South Avenue right-of-way and the lot he would give to the Town. (It’s the sharply angled lot the immediate right if one is standing at South Avenue looking at the harbor. The dock off of that lot is where barges and large fishing boats have tied up from time to time.)

There are two small wooden buildings on that lot and Fulcher proposes that the Town can have them if the Town will pay to have them moved. The lot underneath them, though, would remain his.

Other Proposals In The Letter

The Town would give up not only the right-of-way on South Avenue in the deal. All of Avenue A would be abandoned, too. (That’s the left hand turn off of South Avenue leading to Fulcher’s Point Pride complex.) As with the abandonment of the end of South Avenue, once Avenue A is abandoned, the land under the right-of-way would become Fulcher’s as well since he owns the property on both sides of that street.

The proposal does not spell out how much square footage in right-of-way that the Town would be abandoning. However, it appears that Fulcher is proposing giving up some 4,100 sq ft that he now owns, in return for the town abandoning rights-of-way and street surface area that well exceeds 10,000 sq ft.

Fulcher also proposes that “both parties .. would agree to waive the CAMA setback requirements to each other, agreeing that development is not to limit pedestrian traffic along waterfront.”

From the harbor, a view of the dock and lot that Chris Fulcher proposes giving to the town in exchange for the town abandoning rights of way on South Avenue where it meets the waterfront and on Avenue A. The dock is behind the dolphin – cluster of pilings – which Fulcher says he would remove. Fulcher would retain the lot to the right and its dock.

Several years ago, when he was on the Town Board, then commissioner Dave Cox pressed the Town to pursue the court case in which the Town ultimately re-gained control over the South Avenue right-of-way. Cox says that he’s generally positive about this proposal from Chris Fulcher.

The proposal, says Cox, “has the potential of being a significant improvement for the town” because it could attract more transient boaters to Oriental. Cox notes that the almost-built dock could quickly be pressed in to service as a place for transients to tie up their boats, maybe even this spring. He also notes the possibility of the Town installing a pump out station there, something not otherwise available on the harbor.

In weighing the proposal, Cox says that he’d “like for it to be a bigger lot.” He says he hopes the Town looks closely at “what it is we are agreeing to” and hopes that the Town “retains an effective negotiator.”

On The Agenda February 7

Mayor Sage’s press release says that the board “would likely hold public sessions seeking to elicit public input into the consideration of the proposal.” The press release says that “The Town Board will take up the matter at its February 7 Board meeting at which public input will be welcomed.”

Related Info:

• The press release put out by the Mayor’s Office on January 26.

• Chris Fulcher’s letter to the Town, proposing the exchange.

Stories On The Land Swap Proposal

Chris Fulcher Proposal To Town – January 31

Questions Arise On Fulcher Land Swap Proposal – February 7

Mayor Says Relationship With Fulcher A Benefit Of Land Swap – February 9

Town Board Accepts Fulcher Land Swap In Principle – February 12

Letters On The Land Swap

Posted Tuesday January 31, 2012 by Melinda Penkava