North Carolina Closes Deal on Manss Harbor Public Access Site
By North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries
Published: April 20, 2009
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North Carolina has paved the way to build a first-class public waterfront access site in Manns Harbor for anyone who wants to fish or play in the Croatan Sound.

On April 1, the State Property Office closed on the purchase of a 13.45-acre tract at the foot of the William B. Umstead Memorial Bridge that has in the past served as a vibrant working waterfront.

"I am so pleased to see the Manns Harbor purchase finalized so that it will be a working and accessible waterfront for generations to come,” said state Senate President Pro Tempore Marc Basnight. “This is exactly the type of project I envisioned when we set up the Waterfront Access and Marine Industry Fund. Protecting access to our waterfronts, and developing ways to support those industries that depend on water access, will preserve what has meant so much to our economy and our people throughout our history.”

The tract was purchased for $4.3 million, one of several waterfront properties the state has bought with a $20 million Waterfront Access and Marine Industry Fund created by the General Assembly in 2007 and administered by the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries.

Future plans call for a joint project between the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and Dare County that will include improved boat ramps and docking facilities suitable for commercial and recreational fishermen, a public fishing pier, restroom facilities and green space for canoe and kayak launching and picnicking.

Additionally, a private property owner donated land across the street to Dare County for a handicapped fishing access.

“This was the top priority project for the Waterfront Access Fund in the northeast coastal area,” said Division of Marine Fisheries Director Louis Daniel. “The diverse human uses it will accommodate were a major factor in that ranking, but there were many environmental components to the selection of this site, as well. A large wetlands area provides natural habitat for a variety of marine life and wildlife, including roosting areas for purple martin.”

Purchase of the site was the result of work from different state agencies, local governments and the Manns Harbor community.

“This is a showcase project on many levels that reflects layers of collaboration, grass roots efforts and a true departure from the traditional segregated approach to developing waterfront access,” said Wildlife Resources Commission Director Gordon Myers.

Daniel originally allotted $3 million for the project from the Waterfront Access and Marine Industry Fund. The project hit a detour when the state, in a financial crisis, took back a $1.3 million grant for the project from the Clean Water Management Trust Fund.

 “I was able to move some funds around from various projects that came in under budget to make this purchase happen,” Daniel said. Plans for building the site will not be finalized until the state budget situation has stabilized.
 
For more information contact Patricia Smith, public information officer with the Division of Marine Fisheries, at (252) 808-8025 or Tricia.Smith@ncdenr.gov.

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