DEN 24-01 S. Water St LLC

January 24, 2024

CERTIFIED MAIL 7016 1370 0002 3231 9973 DEN24-01
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED

Electronic Delivery to: [e-mail]

S Water St., LLC
901 W. 4th Street
Winston Salem, NC 27101

RE: DENIAL OF CAMA MAJOR DEVELOPMENT PERMIT
DEN 24-01

Dear Ms. Wilson,

This letter is in response to your application for a Major Permit under the Coastal Area
Management Act (CAMA), in which authorization was requested to install eight (8) removable
polyvinyl panels on the three (3) open sides of an existing covered deck and dining area, located
over public trust waters. The subject property is located adjacent to the Cape Fear River, at 128
S. Water St. in Wilmington, New Hanover County. Processing of the application, which was
received by the Division of Coastal Management’s Wilmington Office on October 30, 2023, is
now complete. Based on the state’s review, the Division of Coastal Management has made the
following findings:

1) Major Permit No. 149-98 was originally issued September 12, 2002 for the construction
of a two story building, with a partially covered deck and floating dock. Condition No. 3
of the permit stated, “the roofed portion of the deck shall not be enclosed by partitions,
plastic sheeting, screening, netting, lattice, or solid walls”. Major Permit No. 149-98
expired on December 31, 2003.
2) The Division received notification that panels had been installed on the existing covered
deck in conflict with previous permit conditions. The applicant promptly removed the
panels at the request of the Division and applied for a new Major Permit to re-install the
panels.

3) The proposed project would involve development within the Estuarine Waters, Estuarine
Shoreline, and Public Trust Areas of Environmental Concern by the N.C. Coastal
Resources Commission. The property is located within a designated Urban Waterfront
[15A NCAC 07H .0209(g)].
4) The applicant proposes to install eight (8) removable polyvinyl panels on the three (3)
open sides of an existing covered deck/dining area that is currently situated completely
waterward of Normal High Water.
5) Based upon the above referenced findings, the Division has determined that the
proposed project is inconsistent with the following Rules of the Coastal Resources
Commission:
a) 15A NCAC 07H .0209(g)(4)(B)(iii)(II), which states in part that “new structures
built for non-water dependent purposes are limited to pile supported, single-
story, unenclosed decks and boardwalks” and “may be roofed, but shall not be
enclosed by partitions, plastic sheeting, screening, netting, lattice or solid walls
of any kind”.
Given the preceding findings, it is necessary that your request for issuance of a CAMA Major
Permit under the Coastal Area Management Act be denied. This denial is made pursuant to
N.C.G.S. 113A-120(a)(8) which requires denial for projects inconsistent with the state guidelines
for Areas of Environmental Concern or local land use plans.

If you wish to appeal this denial, you are entitled to a contested case hearing. The hearing will
involve appearing before an Administrative Law Judge who listens to evidence and arguments of
both parties before making a final decision on the appeal. Your request for a hearing must be in
the form of a written petition, complying with the requirements of §150B of the General Statutes
of North Carolina, and must be filed with the Office of Administrative Hearings, 6714 Mail
Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-6714, within twenty (20) days from the date of this denial
letter. A copy of this petition should be filed with this office as well as with the Coastal
Resources Commission's agent for service of process at the following address:

William F. Lane, General Counsel
Dept. of Environmental Quality
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601

In the alternative, you may petition the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission for a variance to
undertake development that is prohibited by the Commission’s rules (Note- a Commission
variance cannot be granted if your project was denied due to an inconsistency with a CAMA
Land Use Plan or other statutory provisions of the CAMA or NC D&F Law). Applying for a
variance requires that you first stipulate that the Division of Coastal Management applied the
Rules properly in issuing this denial. Applying for a variance means that you agree that the legal
restrictions are valid but request an exception to the restrictions because of hardships resulting
from unusual conditions of the property. In seeking a variance, you are requesting that the
Commission vary the rules at issue, and you must state how you believe your request meets the
four criteria found at N.C.G.S. § 113A-120.1. To apply for a variance, you must file a petition

for a variance with the Director of the Division of Coastal Management and the State Attorney
General’s Office on a standard form, which must be accompanied by additional information on
the nature of the project and the reasons for requesting a variance. The variance request may be
filed at any time but must be filed a minimum of six weeks before a scheduled Commission
meeting to be eligible to be heard at that meeting.

You may either appeal the permit decision or seek a variance. These are two separate paths and
cannot be pursued simultaneously. If the appeal of the permit decision is denied, you may still
seek a variance. However, you may not first seek a variance and if that is denied attempt to
challenge the decision to deny the permit. Information about both a permit appeal in the Office
of Administrative Hearings and the Variance process may be obtained at
https://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/coastal-management/coastal-management-permits/variances-
appeals.

Members of my staff are available should you desire assistance in the future. If you have any
questions concerning this matter, please contact Mr. Cameron Luck at [phone] or
[e-mail].

Sincerely,

Braxton C. Davis
Director, NC Division of Coastal Management

cc: Greg Curry, Project Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington, NC
Richard Rogers, Director, NC Division of Water Resources, Raleigh, NC
Stephanie Goss, 401 & Buffer Permitting Branch Supervisor, NC Division of Water
Resources, Raleigh, NC
Holley Snider, Environmental Specialist, NC Division of Water Resources, NC