Dare County outlines beach nourishment plan for Buxton and Avon, cites pending federal permits and funding uncertainty

Dare County Manager Bobby Outen and engineers updated residents Feb. 13 on a planned beach nourishment project for Buxton and Avon, saying state permits arrived this week, a National Park Service draft permit is in hand and the county is awaiting U.S. Army Corps of Engineers federal approvals before awarding contracts.

The county’s consultant, Steven Trainham, president of Coastal Science and Engineering, said the work will use offshore sand—likely via hopper dredges—to place dunes where landward space permits and to nourish the berm along the National Seashore. “Final volumes are still to be determined based off the amount of funding that we do receive from FEMA,” Trainham said, adding that the design shown in current permits could change depending on the federal contribution.

Outen told the assembled residents that bids for the combined projects came in “higher than we expected,” and that the county bid the work with and without FEMA money to understand options. He said FEMA has committed to paying a portion of the project but the county has not yet received the funds. If federal permits and funding fall into place on the schedule Trainham outlined, the county could issue a notice to proceed in early April and begin sand pumping as early as May, with completion of the overall construction targeted by August under an ideal scenario.

Property owners pressed county officials about where dunes would be placed and how the project might affect private lots. Outen said the county has mailed easement requests to oceanfront owners and had received easements for all but four lots at the time of the meeting. He warned owners against assuming nourishment changes legal buildability: citing the statute referenced at the meeting (recorded as GS 146-6), Outen said publicly created oceanfront land does not make a previously unbuildable lot buildable. “Beach nourishment is not gonna make a property that's unbuildable today buildable,” he said.

Residents also asked about sequencing and whether contractors will work north to south. Trainham said sequencing is typically the contractor's call within permit windows but that the county will provide input, especially because the planned jetty is intended to retain sand and improve long-term project life. A contractor in the audience urged concurrent procurement steps to avoid missing the summer construction window; Outen explained state public-bid rules and the legal risk that permit-driven scope changes can require rebids.

Trainham described the groin repair work planned at the lighthouse site as a composite structure: sheet piles landward—expected to be buried over time—transitioning to larger armor stone seaward beds set on mattress foundations to limit settling. He estimated that groin repair work would take roughly three months and said design/permitting coordination with federal agencies was under way.

On long-term costs, county leaders said their beach-nourishment fund—supported by occupancy taxes—has sustained past work but faces pressure because costs have risen faster than revenues. Chairman Woodard and Outen said the county is pushing the Coastal Resources Commission and state legislators for additional tools and funding; Woodard described steps to ask the state to fund the statewide beach-nourishment account and to review NC 12 planning. “We spent $275,000,000 to date,” Woodard said, arguing that maintenance must be prioritized if the county is to preserve prior investments.

Residents raised practical questions about houses that are not currently occupiable because of overwash or septic damage. Outen said the health department can issue permits if a property can meet current code and separation requirements, but nourishment alone does not change permit eligibility where there is insufficient land. He also explained that property taxes are assessed based on the condition on Jan. 1: if a lot is gone after that date, the assessor would classify it a washout lot in the next tax year.

Officials said they will post a project web page with frequently asked questions and drone imagery of proposed dune alignments, and that staff would meet individually with affected property owners. They encouraged residents to return signed easements and to contact their legislators about state funding. The meeting closed with county staff offering to respond to follow-up questions.

What happens next: county leaders said they expect a Corps federal permit decision in about March (timeline subject to agency review), followed by contractor selection and a possible May start if permits, funding and weather windows align. If federal funding or permits are delayed, the county said it will adjust sequencing or postpone activity.

Sources: statements and Q&A at the Dare County public meeting on beach nourishment, Buxton, Feb. 13, 2026. All quotes come from attendees and officials recorded during the meeting.