Lake Access Debate now in Federal Hands

Della Batts, Herald Staff Writer

LAKE GASTON— The environmental assessment for East Oaks, LLC requesting permission to build a new boat forklift pad at the end of the peninsula adjacent to Morningstar Marina is under review by the  Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The assessment includes a letter of support from Dominion Power.

The document names Ronald Duane White as owner of the company and John Pitrelli as representative of East Oaks. White has been at the center of controversy for some time after being sentenced to 24 months in prison for bank fraud. White was incarcerated in August at the Federal Medical Center in Butner. He is now at the Morgantown Federal Correctional Institute in West Virginia, according to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

According to the assessment, the boat forklift pad will accommodate an existing dry dock facility to regain direct access to Lake Gaston. The report says that there will be no significant impact to the lake or the wildlife it supports.

Morningstar Marine officials beg to differ on the issue and spoke out at a public meeting held by East Oaks, stating that the development of the boat launch will add to traffic on an already congested cove. The cove is located at the southern end of Eaton’s Ferry Bridge, and is narrow, though according to the report it fits within Dominion’s guidelines. Lake traffic flows into the cove from the main lake and includes marina customers, residents and visitors.

Morningstar also submitted a now “comatose” ordinance amendment to Warren County Planning and Zoning stating that Marinas must be located no closer that one half mile to each other. That request was denied because of jurisdictions issues with Dominion.

East Oaks’ property is sandwiched between the new Planned Unit Development, Eaton’s Crossing and Morningstar Marina (formerly Eaton’s Ferry Marina). Morningstar presented a boat traffic study of the cove from consulting firm ARCADIS showing that the forklift pad would interfere with existing boating traffic patterns. Only four other letters of objection were recorded in the request. They expressed concerns of navigational hazards, that the facility will create a heavily utilized recreation facility with plans to house, launch and recover 200 boats, and boater safety issues.

East Oaks answered each of these concerns, assuring the public and FERC that the ramp will create minimal impact on the area. East Oaks further asserts that it should be allowed to regain its access rights to the lake, that its prior use has not changed, seeing that it was once a part of the “Eaton’s Ferry Marina” complex, and that “the only change to this facility is the location of the access point where the boats will gain access to the lake.”

In a letter dated Nov. 24 to Kimberly D. Bose of the FERC, Dominion North Carolina Power “submits a request for approval for the expansion of a marina” on behalf of East Oaks, LLC. Dominion said that “upon reviewing the permit request (from East Oaks) it determined that the permit request was beyond its authority granted by Article 426 to approve the planned development.”

The letter cites that there was significant opposition to the project, mainly related to boater safety and navigation issues. According to Dominion, East Oaks addressed all concerns “to Dominion’s satisfaction in the required environmental assessment.” The letter further states, “In Dominion’s review of the attached EA, it concluded that there will be no adverse environmental impacts (including safety) to the project. This development will also improve public access to the project waters. Therefore Dominion is requesting that the Commission approve the development as a non-project use of project lands.” The letter is signed C. D. Holley.

According to Dominion spokesperson Bryant Brooks, Dominion has made it’s decision concerning the request, but it can change its mind. Brooks statement concerning any project was, “We would assess at the time we see their plans, and would make sure it complies in every way. We would look at all the perimeters and would make a decision concerning what is appropriate as far as construction. If there are new perimeters concerning the project we will look at the request again. Unless there are overriding circumstances telling us there is another reason why we should look at the project we will follow the FERC ruling or go back to them if there is new information that has come to light.”

Brooks also said that public opinion is an important part of Dominion’s ruling on any project. “Public opinion is a big part of what we look at. It is carefully reviewed and assessed.”

If you wish                      to speak out

According to FERC procedures, once the environmental assessment is posted on their Web site, there is a 30-day period in which people can lodge their opinions and concerns.

That can be done on the FERC web site, located at www.ferc.gov/for-citizens. This page on the commission’s extensive web site gives information on how and what you can do to get involved when a proposed project is going to effect you. It provides links to forms for filing and contact information if you prefer to write your opinions. All submissions must be in written form, whether it is through e-mail or regular mail. It also provides information on how to intervene through the court system if you disagree with a ruling by FERC.