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Hearing set on adding walk-on fee at Jennette’s
State officials appear to be softening on a disputed policy allowing walk-ons to make a donation rather than pay a fee at Jennette’s Pier.
A public hearing on charging a fee will be held in August.
The owners of two private piers in Nags Head have publicly complained that officials in Raleigh had broken a promise that the state-owned pier would not unfairly compete with them.
The local Jennette’s Pier Advisory Committee and Nags Head have been pushing for a walk-on fee at the new pier at Whalebone Junction. But state officials have countered that the pier is owned by state taxpayers, who should be allowed access.
Instead, walk-ons at Jennette’s, which is run by North Carolina Aquariums, are asked to make a donation in boxes at the pier’s entrance.
Fees for fishing are higher at Jennette’s than at the Nags Head Fishing Pier to north and the Outer Banks Fishing Pier to the south. But owners of the two private piers say they were promised that all fees at Jennette’s would be higher.
Bob Muller, the chairman of the advisory committee, met recently with Secretary Dee Freeman of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources, David Griffin, North Carolina Aquariums director, and David Knight, assistant secretary of natural resources.
In a response released by Muller Wednesday, Knight said: “As part of his decision-making process, Secretary Freeman would like to hold a public hearing to receive citizen comments and input regarding the possible implementation of a walk-on fee at Jennette’s Pier.”
The hearing, he said, is scheduled for Aug. 16 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the pier.
“Comments received at the public hearing will be considered in his decision whether to implement a walk-on fee at Jennette’s Pier, or keep the current practice of accepting a donation to walk on the Pier,” Knight wrote.
On his visit to Raleigh, Muller presented the three officials with data demonstrating how free access to Jennette’s had negatively impacted the privately owned piers.
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Bubba says:
so if the pier is owned by the state and state tax payers should get to walk on free let’s carry that line of logic to the ferry system also.
Jim Denson says:
Raleigh officals do not want a walk on fee because the pier belongs to the taxpayers. The ferry system belongs to the tax payers but you pay to ride on some and they want you to pay to ride on all. The private pier owners desire the protection they were promised and I’m sure the taxpayers would like to see this multimillion dollar monster paid for. Lets do the right thing, charge a walkon fee!
S.L. says:
It always amazes me that so many businesses here in the Outer Banks are so crazed when it comes to “unfair” competition. We moved here several years ago from a larger metropolitan area, and since then I’ve seen and heard it all. From restaurant owners, stores and shop owners, the wedding industry, the advertising industry… and now the piers. It’s understood that things are very seasonal here, and there’s a shortened time for everyone to make their money. However, competition is good, people. It’s what sparks and drives creativity, new ideas, better products and better service for everyone.
John T says:
Why is public input an issue being considered???This is based on a no compete agreement between Jennette’s and the other piers and obviously Jennette’s isn’t living up to their end of the deal.You don’t think the general public(who have been walking out there for free),would actually support a walk on fee,do you?It’s a beautiful pier and I’m glad that it’s here,but allowing free sightseeing is a slap in the face to the other pier owners…..
Nags Header says:
This is ridiculous! As a taxpayer we have paid for the pier & now we can’t walk on it for free? I am also an NC Aquarium member so I shouldn’t be able to access the pier for free as well? I don’t know how the other piers can say that this new pier has impacted their business – all businesses have been impacted with the economy – why does everyone always want to blame someone else for everything – step up and get innovative to attract business! They have & they have things that Jennette’s doesn’t – music, food & adult beverages – totally different visitors to Jennette’s then the other piers.
Ray Midgett says:
I have walked out on Jennette’s Pier a dozen times since it opened and have always gladly paid the suggested donation. I have no problem whatsoever with a “required fee”, if it is needed to meet operational expenses, however, I think it is totally preposterous that a publicly funded pier should be held hostage to a small group of businessmen on the Outer Banks who think they are losing a dollar in pier fees. What if every gift shop on the Outer Banks complained about the pier gift house or the Wright Memorial Gift Shop, the Graveyard of the Atlantic Gift Shop, the Lost Colony concession, etc…Gee Whiz !!
cjs says:
This is pretty bad…. I really hope this doesn’t get ruined with fees and priced out of reach for locals to enjoy. I am not sure but I think our tax money DID go towards this…. Sorry other business owners, back to the drawing board. Come up with a marketing plan to get people to come to your pier business. Most locals and tourists think your piers are unique, nostalgic, cool and people will still support them…just relax! However, all businesses have competitors and have to deal with it. Life goes on. Summary: I think everybody needs to relax and if the locally owned piers can show a true proven “loss of income” this can be revisited down the road.
Frank from Southern Shores says:
Jennette’s Pier is a state funded gem to be enjoyed by all those who wish to visit. The majority of the people who visit the pier either pay for fishing, purchase gifts, or at least pay a donation. The success of Jennette’s Pier does not have an adverse affect on the business of the privately owned fishing piers on the Outer Banks. Business competition is healthy and benefits all concerned. If the pier in KDH cleaned their parking lot perhaps that would entice new people to visit their business.
nags head bob says:
All the walk-on fees and fishing fees will Never cover the construction and operation of the pier. It’s funded by the public. Keep it free.
Paddlefish says:
S.L.: Let me explain what is “unfair” about the advantage that Jennette’s Pier has over the other piers in Nags Head. A pier is a business with a uniquely expensive infrastructure. Not only does the pier need to pay for oceanfront property and infrastructure, but the maintenance on a pier is uniquely different than that of a normal brick & mortar commercial enterprise. In order to stay in business, a private sector pier owner must generate enough revenue to pay for the cost of the land plus the cost of the infrastructure and the cost of the maintenance and operation. In Jennette’s case, the government spent tens of millions of dollars to construct a pier which is bigger, more attractive and fancier than the other piers in the area and the government pier does not have to service the debt of the cost of the land and infrastructure. Going forward, all the government pier has to pay for is its maintenance and operation. Furthermore, if the government pier had a bad year and didn’t make enough money to pay for their maintenance and operations, there is an implied guarantee that even more tax money will be made available to close the gap.
The private pier owners helped pay the taxes that were used to then build the government pier which now competes with them. That tax money was taken from them under the threat of violence (don’t pay your taxes for long enough and see what happens – men with guns will come to take away your freedom) and then was used to build a competing “business” with a financial advantage over their businesses. I would label that “unfair.”
Phil from Nags Head says:
I think these other pier owners need to stop whining. Offer the people something special and they’ll come to your pier. I fish at Jennette’s often and pay the fishing fee no problem. I also walk out sometimes just to look around and figure that I’ve already made my donation via the fishing fees. Using the gub’ment to try and force another fee on us who have already put money into the pier is crazy. Plus, having to collect the fee means probably having to raise staffing to be able to handle the load of all the people doing walk-ons. Not to mention causing more people to be stacked up in that small space putting a crunch on the gift shop and people trying to get in to fish. This would probably end up being a net loss for Jennette’s.
Frankly hearing them boo-hoo over this is enough to make me want to avoid going to their piers. They already cried big crocodile tears about Jennette’s not charging high fishing fees and got those raised back up. It’s like a 4-year-old when they say “that’s not fair!”
Frank Moore says:
As a taxpayer I have already paid my fee to walk out on the pier, end of discussion. The private pier owners can continue to cry or do something to make their pier more appealing.
tb97 says:
If Gray and Andy would do some repairs to there piers, then people would visit there piers. I have been on every pier and grew up on the island. They have never taken care of the piers, now they have competition they want to cry. Stop crying and fix your pier
junkman says:
cjs said it very well. All businesses have competitors – both old and new – and have to deal with it. If the old piers can create and hold an image of nostalgia, tradition, old OBX feel, cool. Market it. Jennett’s Piers is none of that. Its new, environmentally focused, and somewhat touristy. Different image, different market.
I’ll bet some of these people are “free market” types except when the free market becomes a reality, then they look for government protection (you know… big gub’ment). Get a plan and strategy.
I suggest “Marketing Management” (14th edition) by Kotler and Keller. Its been the authoritative marketing text for decades.
south nags head says:
It is ridiculous. The public pier is already publicly funded. The report that “…owners of the two private piers say they were promised that all fees at Jennette’s would be higher” is blatant price fixing. Jennette’s fish fees should be lowered in fairness to the public. Price fixing is illegal no matter who promises it.
ed62 says:
I think it’s about time to sell the pier and let the new owners fight with everyone. THen if they want to let poeple on for free Garry and Andy can’t cry about it.
Frank Moore says:
Paddlefish – thousands more people paid taxes to be able to walk free, already paid a fee, on Jennett’s pier than the two owners of the private piers who are crying now. Should these thousands of taxpayers be penalized just because of two private owners; that doesn’t seem quite fair, now does it ?? Your argurement works better for the fee free concept as opposed to the fee concept. Think about it.
Paddlefish says:
Frank – I was responding to S.L.’s comments which implied that what was being done to the private pier owners wasn’t unfair. I disagree – it was inherently unfair to those business owners for the State to go into business against them. When the State did, they made promises that they now want to break. I also agree with the sentiment that our tax money paid for the pier and so we should have free and open access, but I believe that the State’s earlier promises are more important. Our livelihood isn’t dependent on being able to walk on Jennette’s pier for free, but the private pier owners livelihoods are directly impacted by this.
The simple answer to all of this is that the State had no business building a pier in the first place. However, since they did it anyway (spending over 20 million of our money), they should honor the promises that they made when they were playing the politics to get it approved. By the way, I wonder how many teachers could have gotten cost of living raises with that 20+ million. Our priorities are way out of whack and Jennette’s Pier is a shining example of our “leaders” folly.
OBX Resident says:
I am a resident of Dare County, and I pay local, state and federal taxes. Based on the arguments that many have cited herein that since they pay NC state taxes, and NC taxes paid for “our pier” they should not have to pay any reasonable fee to walk onto Jennette’s Pier. Based on this argument, when I visit the Roanoke Island Aquarium a Division of the NC Division of Water Resources, Roanoke Island Festival Park and any state funded production at the Park, Special Exhibits and Programs at North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, State owned Grandfather Mountain, Tryon Palace in New Bern, or any other State owned site, I am not and should not be required to pay the required entrance fee because I have already paid NC State taxes that created and continue to fund these sites. Why should I even pay the fees to visit federal sites (Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Frisco Campground, Wright Brother Monument) since I have already paid federal taxes? If no fees are required to visit these sites, their budgets will loose needed funding and increased state and federal funding will be required, hours of operation may need to be reduced, sites may be forced to privatize, or like the Bodie Island Lighthouse they will simply fall into disrepair due to lack of funding.
Most of the visitors to Jennette’s Pier are tourist and have not paid any NC taxes that fund the pier. What is wrong with charging these visitors a reasonable fee of $1 or $2 to walk out onto the pier? At this time the operation of the pier is not financially sustainable. Where should the pier look for increased revenue? If 100,000 people visit the pier and pay $2, the pier would generate $200,000. The pier needs this income. For locals set up volunteer days to earn yearly free passes (pick up trash on the beach, shovel sand from the parking lot, landscape the pier grounds, etc).
Also, NC State regulations under the Umstead Act state “it shall be unlawful for any unit, department or agency of the State government, or any division or subdivision of any such unit, department or agency or any individual employee or employees of any such unit, department or agency in his, or her, or their capacity as employee or employees thereof, to engage directly or indirectly in the sale of goods, wares or merchandise in competition with citizens of the State, or to engage in the operation of restaurants, cafeterias or other eating places in any building owned by or leased in the name of the State or to maintain service establishments for the rendering of services to the public ordinarily and customarily tendered by private enterprises, or to contract with any person, firm or corporation for the operation or rendering of any such business or services on behalf of any such unit, department or agency or to purchase or sell to any person, firm or corporation any article of merchandise in competition with private enterprise.”
By not charging a fee to visit the pier the state is in violation of this Act. This is just another screw up by Perdue, her administration, and mirrors the ideals of the Obama administration. The private pier owners are working class people. The current administration is intent on destroying the working class in order to support the mooching class. Pay a reasonable fee and carry on.
Rick says:
Jennette’s Pier was sorely needed. All the other piers are in poor shape and even a moderate storm could take them out. Then where would we be without a pier since a large number of folks vacationing on the OBX come to fish? Imagine the lost revenue for all the other businesses on the island. When that storm does come I hope the pier then lowers its prices. $12.00 to fish and $2.00 to walk on is just too much.
George S. Tidwell says:
“Frank from Southern Shores says:If the pier in KDH cleaned their parking lot perhaps that would entice new people to visit their business.”
———
I say: No one from the KDH pier is complaining. They seem to be doing just fine. Why bring them up? DA.
———————————————
“OBX Resident says: Umstead Act state “it shall be unlawful for any unit, department or agency of the State government…”
———
I say: Read the fine print:
” The provisions shall not apply to the Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources.”
Q. What is the NC Aquarium?
A. The North Carolina Aquariums are a division of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
That was the only legal way this project could be implemented—by involving the Aquarium.
Milton says:
So, I’ve spent $500 for an annual fishing pass for me and my father and now they want my wife or mother or children or friends, or whoever to pay when they walk out to see how we’re doing or to bring us a pepsi, on a pier payed for in part by our tax dollars! One of the benefits of the pier is its positive promotional aspect. I’ve fished there a couple of weekends a month since the day it opened and I always here positive comments from visitors from around the country. Many are surprise at how nice the pier is and say they would like to comeback and fish there. Now the powers-that-be are considering charging 2 bucks a head for a family to walk out just because that’s the way other piers do it, how short-sighted.
OBX visitor says:
I get what folks are saying about “their tax dollars” already paying for the pier…..but you all missed the bigger picture here. TAX DOLLARS SHOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN USED TO BUILD A PIER RUN AS A BUSINESS!!!!! If we are talking a private business person here instead of the government, then there is no arguement….charge what you want…..undercut your competition. But for the government to be the one doing the undercutting?, Those are not the principles this country was founded on!
obx lover says:
As a regular to OBX 3 -4 times a year, I find the privately owned piers to be in dire need of need of repair and updating. For starters the private piers bathrooms are usually disgusting, & the owners harass you if they think you are using their parking lot for beach purposes.
I think the private pier owners need to re-think their approach and possible think about updating their pier. Making the presentation of their piers a little more appealing and not harass potential visitors if they “think” they are using their parking lot for beach purposes.
I have found Jeannette’s be family friendly and appealing due to the public bathrooms and parking.
eggcelent says:
Cartels and collusion on the OBX? Say it ain’t so…