When to abandon a street?

That is the question being considering at tomorrow's meeting of the Nags Head Commissioners concerning Surfside Drive in south Nags Head. The northeaster' of Oct. 23-34 left the road destroyed and in worse condition than it was after Hurricane Isabel. There are 14 homes which have their only access from Surfside Drive. Most of Nags Head's commissioners believe that it is foolish to repair the road when there is no dune left to protect it. Once the formal declaration of abandonment is issued, the property on the oceanside of the homes fronting Surfside vests in those property owners. They will then have to find their own way of granting easements to one another to access the properties in the middle of the block. According to the Coastal Area Management Act files, the erosion rate in that area is between 7 and 10 feet per year.
The following photo shows Surfside Drive after Hurricane Isabel in Sept. 2003.