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Board approves Salty Spit bulkhead repair with revised‑drawing requirement
Summary
The Wetlands Board approved repairs to a deteriorated Salty Spit bulkhead owned by Scott Banning (JPA 2025‑2321), conditioning approval on revised drawings that keep work in the existing footprint (reducing impact to 14 sq ft) and show how the new work ties into a neighbor's bulkhead.
The Accomack County Wetlands Board granted conditional approval to a bulkhead repair at Salty Spit, owned by Scott Banning, requiring revised engineering drawings and VMRC coordination before construction.
Paul Wasson described a long, deteriorated bulkhead where a 36‑foot section and a 14‑foot return are proposed; staff noted parts of the existing wall are gone and that the applicant had discussed a possible two‑foot channel work with VMRC. Representative David Higgins told the board a dredging contractor’s prior work contributed to the corner’s deterioration and that the owners prefer to keep repairs within the existing footprint if VMRC does not approve channel work.
Higgins said the applicant is "amenable to keeping in the same spot that it is now," reducing non‑vegetated wetland impact from 36 square feet to 14 square feet if done in the existing footprint. The Nature Conservancy and an adjoining neighbor were cited as stakeholders in later discussions about longer‑term shoreline solutions for adjacent properties.
VMRC staff (Claire Gorman) advised the board that revised drawings will be needed to explain why any channel work is necessary and to show the final footprint. The board voted to approve the application on the condition that the applicant submit new drawings tying the repair into the neighbor’s existing bulkhead and clarifying whether any channel work is requested and justified.
The permit was approved for a two‑year period; the board reiterated that its approval does not grant authority to encroach on others' property and that VMRC or the Army Corps retain independent authority over subaqueous/encroachment decisions.
