Posted on July 23, 2018
Information has been clarified about where the spoils were hauled after being dredged, and the earth that vanished is from town-owned property.
The N.C. State Auditor’s Office has requested interviews with 11 current and former Manteo town officials as part of a recently opened investigation into the dredging of Dough’s Creek Canal last fall.
The canal runs around the north side of Roanoke Island Festival Park and was dug in the early 80s to maintain access to Roanoke Sound for property owners who were cut off by construction of the Cora Mae Basnight Bridge between downtown Manteo and what was once known as Ice Plant Island.
The sand was barged to a lot near McDonald’s on U.S 64 in Manteo owned by Klimkiewicz Family Manteo I, LLC.
While no buildings are located on the 331,100-square-foot parcel, a 450-foot-long canal from Shallowbag Bay with a bulkhead and boardwalk on one side runs down the middle.
After initially being taken to the Kilmkiewicz site by barge, the spoils were hauled to the town’s wastewater treatment plant.
But the earth that was dug out to create a pit for the spoils disappeared, with at least 70 truckloads hauled away by unmarked vehicles according to surveillance video.
The nearly $649,000 project was paid for with appropriations in the state budget from the Shallow Draft Navigation Channel Dredging and Aquatic Weed Fund and money held by the now-dissolved Roanoke Island Commission.
An additional $88,000 came from a grant obtained by Manteo to cover unexpected expenses incurred by the town.
Robert Olman and Kevin Thomas from the Auditor’s Office will conduct the interviews between Monday and Wednesday with Town Manager Kermit Skinner, current Mayor Bobby Owens, Jr., former mayors John Wilson and Jamie Daniels, town commissioners Darrel Collins, Richie Burke, Eddie Mann, Hannon Fry, Nancy Peele and Christine Walker, and Town Clerk Becky Breiholz.
“Mr. Olman has requested information regarding the lease of the Klimkiewicz property that was used as the barge landing site for the dredging project,” said Shannon Twiddy, assistant Town Manager and Finance Director, in a July 10 email.
“Staff researched the files at the Town Hall and were not able to find an executed lease,” Twiddy said.
“I advised Mr. Olman I did not have a signed lease and I reached out to Quible and Associates as they were hired for project management to ask if they could provide a copy of the lease to Mr. Olman,” Twiddy said.
Warren Eadus with Quible and Associates responded to Olman’s request the same day.
“The Klimkiewicz family does not live in the area and their local representative, Lee Tugwell was approached to find out if the property could be used,” Eadus said.
“I believe we were told verbally heading into the new CAMA Major Permit process in the spring of 2016 that we would be allowed to use the property, but we didn’t iron out any details until later in the permit process,” Eadus said.
“I do not know if there were any additional talks between the Town and the Klimkiewicz’s representative after that meeting but we walked away with a verbal agreement and moved forward with the project,” Eadus said.
Town commissioners have held a pair of closed sessions since March to discuss the matter of the missing sand, but details of those proceedings are protected under state statutes.
An anonymous letter from someone claiming to be a “whistleblower” sent to several state agencies, including the State Auditor’s Office, may have spurred the investigation.
The letter makes accusations that local CAMA officials granted the permit in collusion with the town, some current and former town leaders may have personally benefited from the dredging of the canal, and that the sale of the sand was inappropriate.
The town is now trying to recoup money from dredging contractor Carolina Marine Structures for the lost dirt as a civil matter after consulting with the District Attorney’s Office.
Source: The Outer Banks Voice
