James River fishing pier to be torn down
The project, which city officials hope to wrap up by spring 2015, will close the last chapter in the 84 year life of what patagonia fleece vestwas once a 4.8 mile bridge connecting Newport News and Ipatagonia better sweater fleecesle of Wight County.
As officials were contemplating tearing the bridge down an area businessman, Jim Wharton, convinced them to leavepatagonia down hoody review2 a section of bridge jutting into the river as a pier.
Since opening in 1976, it has been popular with fishermen, drawing 50,000 to 60,000 visitors a year. It has also been a local claim to fame, marketed as one of the longest recreational fishing piers on the East Coast
The replacement pier won t be luxuriously wide as a two lane road, and it won t stick out as far.
Our best estimate is it ll be 1,200 feet long, said City Manager Jim Bourey. But we re pushing to get the design done so it s only closepatagonia down hoody review0d for one year.
The pier closed in late December after an outside inspector brought in by the city deemedpatagonia store quebec it unsafe, according to several officials. But by their accounts it had been going downhill for some time before that.
Over the last few years the city has really been holding it together with something akin to baling wire to keep it in sound enough patagonia down hoody reviewcondition for people to be on, Bourey said.
Now, as prime fishing season approaches, there s been renewed interest in the pier s fate.
Parks, Recreation and Tourism Department Director Michael Poplawski said Wednesday that not replacing the popular pier was never an option in his mind.
In addition to being a draw for local anglers as well as visitors from across the region and other states, the facility has generated revenue for the city, which leases it to an operator and takes a cut of the proceeds.
But questions remain whether the new pier will be as attractive to the fishing community as its predecessor, which extended almost to the shipping channel and gave fishermen a greater chance at striped bass and flounder inpatagonia adze hoody jacket review addition to species like croaker, spot, red drum and speckled trout.
City Council members discussed the ppatagonia women's full zip better sweater jacketroject last month. A few raised concerns that after a $2 million demolition and a $2.4 million pier construction project the city will be left with a new product that s half the length to which fishermen have become accustomed.
It s really a community asset and it s going to patagonia outlet store mebe very shocking to a lot of people who use it frequently, Pat Woodbury said at a council meeting last month.
Poplawski said the new pier will be shorter but there s a little wiggle room on the length.
In the coming months city officials will start to get a sense of whether they can push the new pier beyond 1,200 feet. They could do that, he said, if contractor bids come in below their expectations or if the design team opts to build a skinnier pier than whatpatagonia discount code just one sports s been talked about.
Documents put together by the city s Engineering Department describe the new bridge as a concrete structure that would sit on concrete pilings.
One company that is already watchpatagonia discount code zalesing the process with interest is James River Fishing Pier Inc., which is run by Jim Wharton s son, Bobby, and which has a long term lease on the pier and the restaurant next door.
Wharton declined to comment for this story through an employee at the restaurant, the Crab Shack, which will remain open as the pipatagonia down hoody review1er is dismantled and replaced.
But Poplawski said Wharton has asked to rework the company s lease as a result of the reduced receipts associated with the pier.
The current lease is set to expire in 2016, Poplawski said, and under its structure the city receives $25,000 in rent for both the pier and the Crab Shack and then receives 10 percent of sales at both businesses over $150,000.
Poplawski estimated the city has received between $210,000 and $260,000 annually throughpatagonia down hoody review3 the concession, with as much as $52,000 of that coming as a result of fishing pier customers., who pay either $6 or $8 for entrance.
We re certainly amenable to negotiating their lease, Poplawski said, but he added that he s waiting for the comppatagonia guide pants justinany to propose amendments to the terms.
It has to start with them because they know what their revenue loss might be, he said.
Shapiro can be reached at 757 247 4744.
This article was updated to reflect that city revenues from the pier and restaurant has ranged in recent years between $210,000 and $260,000. An earlier version said revenues were between $2 million and $2.5 million.
