Change in the wind: Dismantling an old landmark
Before burning down Windmill Point, the county tourism authority will try to sell off as much of the old restaurant as it can.
While the Dare County Tourism Board was making that decision Thursday, a crane was hoisting the iconic windmill behind the restaurant for its trip by flatbed truck to Island Farm.
The property, part of 17 acres on the Roanoke Sound, is also the center of discussion about the possibility of a multi-use building that can handle 1,000 to 1,200 people.
“This isn’t really a convention center because a convention center is about five times as big,” said Sterling Webster, a hotelier and member of the tourism board.
The old restaurant will be used for fire training or torn down.
The board also agreed to pay Albemarle & Associates engineers $13,400 to come up with three scenarios for a building, parking and other uses, mainly to help the board decide how much fill will be needed while prices are low. The board could also make a deal with Southern Shores to use spoil from the second phase of its dredging project in 2012.
The tourism board and Nags Head jointly own the property. Nags Head wants to use the building for fire training. But Lee Nettles, managing director of the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, said he had learned there might be a market for pieces of the building.
They would include flooring, fixtures, hardware, doors and windows. Posts and beams could also draw some takers, but the logistics of removing them might be too complicated and time consuming.
Board members urged speed in making the sales because of limits to when a controlled burn could take place. Chairman Paul Buske said the building offered a rare opportunity to train local fire crews. The burn will take pace after useable items are offered for sale.
Board member Anna Sadler, also a Nags Head Commissioner, said the building needed to be removed before other temporary uses could be considered for the site.
The building was originally a store in the 1970s that was themed to the 18th and 19th centuries, when windmills were active on the Outer Banks. The windmill itself was built using 18th-century methods, and the plan was that it would produce grain for products to be sold in the store.
Lynanne Wescott, now a lawyer in Philadephia, sold the property before the windmill started producing grain.
It later became Windmill Point restaurant and the S.S. United States Lounge. The second floor boasted artifacts from the S.S. United States, including a bar from the liner.
The United States was once heralded as the fastest liner to cross the Atlantic. The artifacts from the restaurant were donated to the Mariners Museum and Christopher Newport University in Newport News.
On Thursday, crews dismantled the windmill for the move to Island Farm, a restored 18th-century farmstead on Roanoke Island. The tourism Board helped pay for the move with a $16,000 grant, but it will take a lot more money to restore it.
Related stories:
Panel focuses on plans for Windmill Point »
Plan would use Windmill Point for fire training »
Another chapter unfolds for Windmill Point’s icon »
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ekim says:
Grant money is tax money; this was a waste of TAX money, WASTE WASTE!!!!!!
KHer says:
So let’s see. We can sell off some pieces and make a few thousand bucks (maybe) or we can allow the Fire Dept. to use it for invaluable training that could result in saved lives and property.
I’ll bet money wins. It usually does. But it’s the wrong choice.
Roanoker says:
I thought the grant money came from the occupancy tax that visitors are paying. Doesn’t the DCTB receive 1% of of that tax for tourist related activities? The nonprofit is restoring the windmill at their expense and not using grant or tax money to do this so I heard. This 16,000 is just half the cost to dismantle it and move it to Roanoke Island. Please correct me if I am wrong, but that is how I understood it.
charlie says:
“a multi-use center that can handle 1,000 to 1,200 people” If this is not a convention center or wedding reception hall, what is it? This appears to be what a business enterprise should be building with private funds. If private enterprise thinks this would be a profitable venture, then private enterprise can build it. If private enterprise does not think it is a profitable idea, why is it being considered by the tourism board? If it is not profitable, it will become a big drain on the budget of the bureau.
Refer to comments about Lowes impact and substitute this idea. Comments apply to both.
ekim says:
When did it become so important to have a place to seat 1,500 hundred people!!
Paul Buske says:
Roanoker is right, the Grant pair for 1/2 the cost to move the windmill as we, the Tourism Board, felt is was a valuable piece to save. We did not give money for the restoration.
The items that are being spoken about being auctioned off are the restaurant equipment left in the building or anything else of value to someone. the building is not being dismantled and will be used for fire training, so the comment about money winning out is incorrect.
We have also sent out 2 requests for proposals for private parties to look at the property and come to us with proposals. We did not receive any inquiries. We are hoping that with the site being cleared we may get some interest. You never know what the future holds.
Also, the Tourism Board would never take on a project that would be a negative cash flow, if a convention center that some want does not fund itself, I for one would not ever be in favor of it.