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Wachapreague council reports grants for flood resiliency, energy resilience; historic district nomination timeline delayed; dredging concerns raised
Summary
Councilman Bob Bilicki reported awards of a $50,000 CFPF flood-resiliency grant and a $10,000 Virginia Energy Resilience grant; Planning Commission delays the historic-district nomination to bolster the state submission and Army Corps correspondence about dredging of Bradford Bay & Finney Creek was discussed.
At the July 10 Wachapreague Town Council meeting, Councilman Bob Bilicki reported two recently awarded grants intended to support town planning and emergency communications.
Bilicki said the town received a $50,000 grant from the CFPF fund (noted in the minutes as from Gov. Youngkin) to prepare a Flood Resiliency Plan; he said the town’s small size may exempt it from Virginia public procurement requirements and that the plan would be presented to council before seeking public funding for implementation. Bilicki also reported a $10,000 award from the Virginia Energy Resilience fund to support communications during power outages expected to last 12 hours or more; he said he is coordinating that work with Fire Chief Sean Fate.
Jim Bell, Planning Commission president and Technology Committee chair, briefed the council on the historic-district nomination. He said contractors working with the Department of Historic Resources requested more material to strengthen the "period of significance" and the nomination narrative; the commission moved its public hearing target from August to November and is now aiming to submit to the State Board in December 2025 to improve the application’s chances.
Councilmembers also discussed navigation concerns tied to dredging in Bradford Bay and Finney Creek. Vice Mayor Sandie Puchalski said local captains had not reported problems with recently dredged areas; Councilman Aileen Joeckel said John Joeckel had provided an Army Corps of Engineers letter alleging the area was not dredged properly and that the Army Corps would typically provide a certified drawing once work is complete. Council members said that certified documentation was expected.
Other brief reports included maintenance updates, Powell Park tennis court repairs, marina electrical work and a port-a-potty winter strategy discussed in connection with a petition to winterize Marina restrooms; no council action was taken on restroom winterization at this meeting.
What happens next: the Flood Resiliency Plan will be completed before the town seeks implementation funding; the Planning Commission will gather the additional documentation requested by DHR before rescheduling the public hearing and state submission; council expects final Army Corps documentation regarding the dredging complaint to be produced by the Corps.
