Shallotte approves permit for second Harley Davidson rally

Beach House Harley Davidson on U.S. 17 is planning its second spring bike rally for May 7-16 on the field adjacent to the store.
At last week’s town board meeting, Shallotte aldermen approved a temporary use permit for the festival. Beach House owner Rick Noyes requested the permit and proclaimed attendance at last year’s event better than he expected.
Planning director Allen Serkin brought the permit to the board’s attention. He said he spoke with Capt. Scott Branning of the Shallotte Police Department, who told him last year’s rule of two officers being on scene at all times was excessive. This year, the staff recommended dropping it to one.
“But if the officer needs back up, he can call for someone on duty,” Serkin added.
Aldermen agreed.
The Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office will again provide traffic control, and a sanitation company will provide the necessary trash receptacles.
During the meeting, police chief Rodney Gause and fire chief Paul Dunwell said they had no incidents at last year’s rally. Both called it a well-organized event.
The town seemed to be fairly pleased,” Serkin added. “I think he now has a good track record to stand on.”
“From the town’s perspective, I think everyone thing went just fine,” Mayor Buddy Kelly told Noyes. “We had no trouble whatsoever. Hopefully, it will be the same thing this year.”
“It was way above our expectations,” Noyes said about last year’s attendance. “The good part about it is they didn’t all come at once. There was a steady flow of people. … We had plenty of traffic control, and signage went well.”
The event also included a fundraising drive that raised $5,000 for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. This year’s rally will include a fundraiser for Brunswick County Relay for Life.
The board voted to approve the permit.
In other business last Tuesday, the board heard from Serkin about the town’s decision to evacuate a home at 4814 White Street due to serious hazards to life and property in the illegal multi-family dwelling.
Last Monday, Shallotte Fire Marshal Andrew Thompson served an administrative inspection warrant on the building and the inspection confirmed “an illegal multi-family condition,” numerous state fire and building code violations related to the Brunswick County Building Inspections Department, Health Department and Solid Waste Code Enforcement.
Shallotte Town Administrator Albert Hughes said the dwelling had about eight “units.” He noted the town only became aware of the problem about a week before the inspection.
Violations included inadequate means of egress, electrical wiring hazards, non-operational and non-existent smoke alarms, no fire-rated construction separations and no fire alarms or sprinklers.
Aldermen thanked the staff for its work getting the place closed and finding temporary shelter for the residents. Alderman Walt Eccard said he wanted to know what “additional remedies” the town has against the property owners.
Town administrator Albert Hughes said the towns can probably levy fines against the owner, but he would have to check with the town attorney to obtain the specifics.
“The main thing is to keep the people safe,” he said.
Serkin said the property is “largely useless at this point” without the property owner making a “significant investment” to improve the building.
“The main question is if it creates such a hurdle that the property falls into vacancy, it becomes a problem because it’s not occupied rather than because it’s over-occupied. That’s a significant issue we’ll have to tackle.”