My Ocean Isle

I moved to Ocean Isle Beach in 2002, and since then have worked in the community as a Realtor. It has been my pleasure to impart to residents, visitors, and investors the efforts our Township and OIB Property Owners’ Association has made to make Ocean Isle Beach a place of beauty and comfort.

In six years I’ve seen the installation of the causeway sculpture of the girl reaching towards the birds; the initial planting of the Crepe Myrtles; the planting of Palm trees just about every year; the installation of a new boat ramp; the creation of new entrance and exit points to and from Sheffield’s, ABC, Sharkey’s and The Giggling Mackerel; the creation of a new bike path on West Third Street; the creation of a number of new beach access points; the installation of new sidewalks and street lights; the repaving of our streets; the addition of the OIB Community Center; and the installation of new foot showers at several of our beach access points.

Also some less visible enhancements have been made: the installation of a secondary Hatteras ramp over the dune for emergency beach access; the Verizon, Alltel, and AT&T communication towers at our East End water tower, and the Nextel tower at our West End water tower; and without meaning to end on a sour note, the installation of a new sewer plant and the expansion of our spray fields.

This year, a beautifully landscaped new traffic circle or roundabout takes center stage at the Causeway and the pier; our Fire Station became a municipality of Township; our airport, Odell Williamson Municipal Airport, became a fueling airport and will have a Fixed Based Operation for amenities.

We also honored the memory of those who died in the fire last fall with a memorial cross and granite plaque at the start of the bridge in front of the fire station.

More projects are scheduled for this fall. We will have a new park, to be called The Shallotte Blvd. Recreation Area. This project is a collaboration between Ocean Isle Beach Land Conservancy and Township, and will be at Shallotte Blvd and the ferry landing at the East end of the island. The recreation area will have a gazebo, picnic tables, a fishing pier, and a walkway and steps to the sand.

Brunswick County will also break ground on a mainland park at the intersection of 904 and Old Georgetown Road. I believe it will be named after OIB, as Township donated the park’s 58 acres. I understand that the park will have an abundant array of amenities, such as an amphitheater, festival grounds, ball parks, and biking trails to note a few. I am pulling for a doggie park.

This fall, the grant awarded to Township by the state will allow for further beautification on the mainland side of the bridge, with the installation of landscaping at the intersection of 179 and 904.

And in the next years, we will see our zoning offices, our meeting hall, our police station, and our ABC all move to the mainland side of the bridge.

In my time here, the beautification and installation of amenities can only be described as robust and long-sighted. I’m proud to be associated with such a dynamic and beautiful place and enjoy calling Ocean Isle Beach home.

2009 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Township of Ocean Isle Beach. We will have much to celebrate.