THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, May 27, 1995 TAG: 9505270410
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY LANE DEGREGORY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NAGS HEAD LENGTH: Long : 153 lines
The summer season that starts today could be the hottest yet for Outer Banks businesses, if spring activity is an accurate barometer.
Cottage rental reservations are up 10- to 14 percent for most local real estate companies. Hotels and motels have received more advanced bookings than they had this time last year. And dozens of new attractions, homes and restaurants have sprung from the sand between Corolla and Ocracoke Island.
``We've gotten 40,000 telephone inquiries since January from people who want to vacation down here,'' Dare County Tourist Bureau Director Gene O'Bleness said as early arrivers began pouring down the bypass in preparation for Memorial Day weekend. ``Our marketing efforts seem to be paying off. And the wonderful weather has helped tourism tremendously.''
Each summer, travelers pay an estimated 4 million visits to the Outer Banks beaches. Most come from Hampton Roads, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and the suburbs of Washington, D.C. Others travel from as far away as Canada and California.
Traditionally, this holiday weekend has kicked off the summer season. But during the past five years or so, people have begun arriving as early as Easter. In April, occupancy tax receipts from hotels and rental cottages were up 23 percent over 1994 figures. Meals tax returns jumped 13 percent during the same period. March receipts also increased between 5 percent and 6 percent.
``Americans seem to be spending more money traveling this year. The economy has stabilized. And that's good news for vacation destinations,'' said Dare County Tourist Bureau Marketing Director Rebecca Moore. ``I think retail businesses could expect to see a good increase in sales this year.''
On Friday, most real estate company and hotel spokespersons said they still had cottages and rooms available to rent for this summer. Walk-in customers traditionally account for 5 percent to 10 percent of the bookings, industry leaders said. But advance reservations seem to be soaring.
Sun Realty manages more than 1,000 rental homes on the Outer Banks. Reservations for those properties have jumped at least 10 percent over last Memorial Day, rental manager Betsy Taylor said. The number of rental properties in Corolla has doubled since the summer of 1994.
``There's been tremendous growth in Corolla and the northern beaches. There's also been quite a lot of building going on along the oceanfront in Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head,'' Taylor said. ``Most of those new houses are large, with private pools. They're renting really well so far. The big ones all seem to be going first.''
Resort Realty Property Manager Robin Newton agreed. Her company manages 325 rental cottages between Corolla and South Nags Head. Listings are up at least 20 percent since last summer, she said.
``This spring was busier than the last two springs. And summer is shaping up real nicely,'' Newton said Friday from her Duck office. ``The bigger homes are definitely the most popular rentals. Mostly, we have economically priced properties left - from $800 to $1,000 a week. We've got more places to rent, and more advance reservations, than we've had in several seasons.''
On Hatteras Island, Midgett Realty manages 325 rental cottages. There, too, homes that sleep 16 to 18 people seem to be the most popular properties. ``The larger the home, the better it's renting right now,'' Midgett Realty owner Tim Midgett said Friday. ``But all our rentals are coming in very strong. I think we'll have a real good summer. A lot of people seem to be interested in vacationing down here.''
Returning visitors to the Outer Banks will find new attractions - and accomodations - this year.
The first one many will notice is the additional two lanes on the Wright Memorial Bridge across the Currituck Sound. The $20 million addition doubles the traffic capacity and should sharply decrease back-ups coming into and leaving the barrier islands at Kitty Hawk.
In Corolla alone, building permits have been issued for 74 new structures in 1995. A new, upscale restaurant has opened near the Food Lion. And several additional retail stores have moved into Tim Buck II shopping center.
The first hotel opened on Currituck County's barrier island beaches this spring. The Inn at Corolla Light offers kitchenettes, video cassette recorders and cable television in every room.
Visitors can stay for two or more nights if they don't want to rent a cottage for an entire week. Many of the rooms have fireplaces, whirlpool tubs and sleep sofas. All the Corolla Light amenities - including tennis courts, bike trails, bass-stocked ponds, a swimming pool and jacuzzi - also are available to guests at the inn.
Outer Banks Style, a new mail order catalog, opened a Corolla retail outlet this month in the old U.S. Lifesaving Station on N.C. Route 12. Offering a collection of crafts, souvenirs and original art from the barrier island beaches, the catalog and store sell everything from lighthouse replicas to T-shirts.
In Duck, several new shops have been built along the east side of N.C. Route 12. Argyle Bakery and Deli opened in Kitty Hawk this winter, with a sit-down restaurant attached to the bypass store. There's also a new Hawaiian restaurant at the Dunes shopping center, and a smoke-free restaurant and night club, The Blue Moose, opened near the Kitty Hawk Post Office this spring.
Kill Devil Hills has seen its Nags Head Hammocks store expand considerably since last summer, with a new room for working weavers and more than double the previous area of retail space. Soon, JK's Ribs will open at the Grass Course in Kill Devil Hills. And restauranteur Mike Kelly plans to open a new eatery, Mako Mike's, on the bypass by mid-June.
``Preliminary indications for this summer are very positive,'' said Kelly, who also is opening the Outer Banks first country and western bar and restaurant next month in Nags Head. ``This area has seen a 6 or 7 percent increase in food sales during each of the last couple years. I expect that trend will continue. And we're trying to fill some new niches with these two new restaurants.''
In Nags Head, in the former Restaurant by George building on N.C. Route 12, ``George's Junction'' will feature an all-you-can-eat country buffet, 170-seat restaurant, 125-seat bar, live bands and a large dance floor.
A few miles south, on the bypass, the area's first ``Paint Ball Palace'' is scheduled to open in early July. Part of the planned ``Village Playhouse,'' the warehouse war zone will have sand floors to absorb multi-colored paint propellants. Video arcades, Skee-ball games and other family entertainment also will be included in this 13,000 square foot facility across from the Nags Head Links golf course.
Also on the bypass, a new go-kart track will open by the end of June in Nags Head. This attraction will include two tracks - an oval and figure 8-shaped one. At least 30 karts will speed around the concrete lanes.
An Italian seafood restaurant is being built near the Centura Bank in Nags Head. It's scheduled to open in early July. On the beach road, in the old Bell's Grocery building, a Mexican restaurant with evening jazz and blues entertainment should open within a week.
``We've also got dozens of new homes that have gone up since last summer - especially in the Village at Nags Head and South Ridge subdivisions,'' said Nags Head Planner Gary Ferguson. ``And work just began this month on a new concrete bike path between Whalebone Junction and the National Park Service property in South Nags Head.''
In Manteo, a new bed and breakfast, White Doe Inn, opened just in time for summer visitors. Scarborough House also provides new, additional accommodations for folks vacationing on Roanoke Island. Advance ticket sales for ``The Lost Colony'' - the nation's longest-running outdoor drama - already are up 30 percent over this time last year.
Hatteras Island has expanded its ferry docks considerably, with more than 100 extra parking spaces that should help reduce traffic congestion in the village.
Even the National Park Service has opened new attractions this year, with updated displays at the Wright Brothers National Monument, the Bodie Island Lighthouse and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site.
``I think this will be the best summer we've seen in a decade,'' said Dare County spokesman Charlie Hartig. ``The building boom is back. Now that the new bridge is open, people won't be as hesitant about traveling here and getting stuck in back ups.''
Near the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse on Friday, Dmitri Shiry and three of his friends from Pittsburgh already were enjoying an annual retreat. They sat on surfboards in the sultry afternoon sun, waiting for waves and celebrating two decades of Outer Banks vacations they'd taken together. For them, North Carolina's barrier islands have become the site of an eagerly anticipated excursion.
``We keep coming back here because of the hospitality of the people and the beauty of the natural surroundings,'' said Shiry, 37. ``Having a sound on one side of the islands and the ocean on the other really diversifies the sports activities you can participate in down here.
``There's a part of tradition built into this trip for us,'' Shiry said. ``When we come to Hatteras, our summer officially begins.''
KEYWORDS: TOURISM OUTER BANKS by CNB