Once-coveted Coast Guard land sits in sea of doubt

BUXTON, N.C.

A once-coveted housing complex and its land are at risk of becoming more of a white elephant for the Coast Guard than its golden goose.

Vacant and minimally maintained for five years, with no usable wastewater treatment and vulnerable to ocean overwash, buildings at the former Group Cape Hatteras base have lost their attraction to Dare County.

Earlier this month, the county had informed the federal General Services Administration, which is charged with disposing of the Coast Guard property, that it no longer wanted to acquire the 45 housing units, the eight acres on which they're situated, or any of the Coast Guard's 12 buildings on National Park Service land.

Then county officials last week told the National Park Service Outer Banks Group, which owns 40 other acres of the base's land, that it would like to use just those 40 acres for public recreation after the 12 buildings on it have been demolished and it is cleaned up.

"As you know, there is a significant need for public access to the beaches on Hatteras Island," Warren Judge, Chairman of the Dare County Board of Commissioners, wrote in a letter last week to park Superintendent Mike Murray.

Judge said the county would be willing to repair and enhance existing paved and play areas, and would consider future construction of a bath house and restoration of the pool.

"The roads and parking areas," he wrote, "will provide the sorely needed parking for beach access and the ball field will provide recreation areas for those who may not want to access the beach and for our citizens."

The 40 acres of park property the county is interested in is adjacent to the Cape Hatteras Light Station and is a popular surfing area.

The Coast Guard owns the housing complex and its eight acres, as well as the buildings on park land, none of which the county is now interested in.

The Park Service has "conceptually" agreed that the county's proposal would be a good use of their land, said Steve Thompson, special park uses/lands coordinator for the Outer Banks Group.

"We see eye-to-eye on this," he said.

Demolition of the structures on park land, including the inoperable wastewater treatment plant, he said, must be done by the Coast Guard.

Kris Carson at General Services Administration declined to comment last week on details about the disposal of the Buxton property. The agency is responsible for managing and supporting federal properties.

Built in the 1990s for $8.5 million, the housing complex was home to about 50 personnel and their families stationed at Group Cape Hatteras, the Coast Guard's Outer Banks headquarters.

In 2005, the base relocated to Fort Mason in Atlantic Beach. The year before it left, the Coast Guard spent $100,000 to relocate the wastewater plant away from the eroding beach.

When the county learned about the Coast Guard's plans to leave, it expressed interest in acquiring the housing to use for affordable housing for teachers or other public employees.

Based on past experience, the expectation was that it could be had for public purposes at little or no cost. About a year into discussions, the county was shocked to learn that the GSA wanted market value for the units - as much as $12 million.

Eventually, the price - never officially named - seemed to settle on about $5 million, county officials said.

Negotiations stalled. The real estate market crashed. County coffers thinned. Meanwhile, the salty, moist air and constant wind worked away at the neglected houses.

Dare finally decided that acquisition of the property, which some say may need about $1 million in repair and upgrades invested in it, was more trouble than it was worth.

"Basically, when it's all said and done, it didn't make sense for us," said Dare County manager Bobby Outten. "We would be taking on a pretty huge financial obligation without any idea that we would be able to get a return on it."

In 2007, the county changed the zoning at the site to natural historic district, which made the housing nonconforming and more difficult to market.

County planning director Ray Sturza said that the designation restricts use to single-family residential structures, so if the units were demolished, new construction could not be as dense. It is also not clear where a new wastewater treatment plant could be built.

Laurette Tully, realty specialist at the Coast Guard's Cleveland office, said that the Coast Guard only has enough funds to do minimal maintenance of the Buxton buildings. The GSA, she said, is planning to update the property's appraisal.

"We put in hours and hours talking to these people," said Allen Burrus, the Dare board's vice chairman.

"We've done everything in the world to work with them. I'm stunned that they're letting it sit and letting it go."

Catherine Kozak, (252) 441-1711, cate.kozak@pilotonline.com