. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. Carolina Cape Fear Corporation, That was the start of a 10-year battle with government agencies and en- vironmental groups. As a peace offering, Carolina Cape Fear gave Bluff Island and about six miles of oceanfront beach to the state. But by then, the com- pany was drained. Mortgagors foreclosed, and Tar Heel native and Texas millionaire Walter Davis bought the island. Davis continued the development, building a marina and Bald Head villas. In 1983, Kent Mitchell and his brother visited the island. They c
. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. Carolina Cape Fear Corporation, That was the start of a 10-year battle with government agencies and en- vironmental groups. As a peace offering, Carolina Cape Fear gave Bluff Island and about six miles of oceanfront beach to the state. But by then, the com- pany was drained. Mortgagors foreclosed, and Tar Heel native and Texas millionaire Walter Davis bought the island. Davis continued the development, building a marina and Bald Head villas. In 1983, Kent Mitchell and his brother visited the island. They con- vinced their father, another wealthy Texan, to buy the island. At the time, the senior Mitchell was described as one of the ten wealthiest men in the country Kent Mitchell, a Harvard architec- ture graduate, found himself caught almost immediately between his belief that the island should have been preserved and his desire to turn it into a model resort. "We fell in love with the island before we bought it. We still love the island, and that's the tough battle," Mitchell says. "It's a tough com- promise between making money and maintaining the balance with the ; The result has been Mitchell's own version of a beach community Bald Head lacks the characteristic bright lights, neon signs and high- rise condominiums of a typical resort. Aside from the glow of two streetlights, the only night light on the island comes from the moon and stars. Neon is taboo, and height is scorned. Visitors drive electric golf carts because gasoline-powered vehicles are forbidden. And the roads are narrow asphalt paths that wind through the lush canopy of live oaks. Before Carolina Power & Light Company brought electricity to the island in 1981, homeowners relied on individual generators for their power, prompting early residents to form a Generator Society Until recently, the only contact with the mainland was by CB radio. Phone service should be available by 1
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookcollectionunclibra, booksubjectoceanography
