The Town has long discussed having a pedestrian/bicycle pathway near the headwaters of Whittaker Creek to connect two parts of town. What would you suggest be done?
Charlie Overcash: Since the town has a limited amount of money to spend on this project, we must actively pursue grant money to study, recommend and implement a pathway.
Allen Price: This has been on the drawing board for a long time and it is moving along very slowly. It will be very expensive for the town without a grant. I believe a TownDock article showed multiple paths that have been considered. One of these paths seems to be a good option. Recently the town manager and the Park and Rec committee reached out to the NCDOT. A representative visited Oriental and rode her bike around town. I would be glad to listen to those interested in this project to discuss ways we can help and move it forward. We have openings on the Park and Rec committee. Here is a chance for someone really interested in the bike path to get involved. I would enjoy working with them on this project.
Dianne Simmons: It’s a great idea and I support it. I am a cyclist myself and I would like to ride to Dolphin Point without having to get on highway 55 and Straight Road. I understand that there is a tentative plan in place and that some work has been done. I would suggest that a specific person or committee contact all those parties whose participation is necessary and hammer out an agreement. If that fails, we must seek a different plan.
David White: You are correct in that a bike path has been in the planning stages for many years. For this to become a reality, it needs to be elevated to a must-do project. As stated above, we have a limited budget and need to decide where those limited funds are to be spent. To make a bike path a reality, the Board, with public input, needs to vote to make this a priority, or not. If the vote is “no,” we move to other projects. If selected, the steps that need to be taken are: 1) develop a plan 2) determine the cost to complete, 3) build an implementation plan with steps or phases, 4) determine funding sources (grants, Town budget, private donations, business donations, etc.) and then finally construct.
J. Martin Barrow: I am in favor of developing bike and pedestrian trails and pathways. Like many, I enjoy both walking and biking and would like to see this project completed. The funding necessary to complete the pathway will need to be identified.
Sally Belangia (Candidate for Mayor): We must get a committee together and work on this project. Once designed then we must apply for a grant.
The Town received a grant to study the periodic flooding of Hodges St. What are your ideas for solving the flooding problem?
Allen Price: There have been several ideas floated around and I have talked to an engineer about the flooding. We should wait for the professionals doing the study to report their findings and then discuss options.
Dianne Simmons: My idea for solving the periodic flooding on Hodges St. would be to use the grant money to consult a qualified engineer who would determine the best steps for the Town to take. The Town could then seek out the most economical path to making the suggested changes. This would include finding out what government funds or grants might be available to offset the cost. Any work done on Hodges Street should be done with the least amount of interruption to traffic and local businesses.
The major problem with the flooding for most of us is that it presents an obstacle to getting to the Bean. If large engineering projects turn out to be too costly, perhaps the Town could consider a raised walkway to enable access to Bean. One must have one’s morning coffee and conversation.
David White: Our Town Manager Diane Miller has done an outstanding job in securing a grant to study our flooding issues in and around Hodges Street. I very much support this study and look forward to the final report. It would be easy to say let’s raise Hodges Street or enlarge the Duck Pond, but that would be very premature. I have dealt with water issues on my own property in the past and one thing I have found out is water will go where it wants to and fixing one problem area may quickly cause another water issue somewhere else. Let’s see what the study recommends and then make plans based on those recommendations.
J. Martin Barrow: Obtaining the grant was the first step in addressing the flooding. The second step should be using the grant funding to hire a licensed engineering firm to study and propose viable solutions to minimize or mitigate the flooding. As a Town Commissioner, I would expect the study to identify a range of possible solutions and associated costs to consider. As with other initiatives, priorities and funding sources would directly effect execution of any recommendations.
Charlie Overcash: This question has come up at each election. At this point the suggestions made, such as raising Hodges Street at the harbor have been unattainable because the town just does not have the money to spend. Money keeps coming back up, but it is a reality that Oriental just does not have that much extra money after all the "have to have" budget items are taken care of. I look forward to the results of the grant study and sincerely hope the results include ways to pay for those results.
Sally Belangia (Candidate for Mayor): Hopefully the grant will help us design a plan for the flooding.
