Fishing pier set for this summer at site of old swing drawbridge

From the Chincoteague Beacon | Written By Carol Vaughn

Visitors to downtown Chincoteague should have a new recreational fishing pier to enjoy this summer.

The Chincoteague Town Council approved the award of a bid to Fisher Marine Construction Inc. to build the pier at the end of Bridge Street, near the Robert Reed Downtown Park. The 154-foot-long, 8-foot-wide wooden pier will be constructed on an existing concrete bridge fender left after the old drawbridge was demolished.

The contract calls for the pier to be finished by Memorial Day, just in time for the summer tourist season.

“It should be a good fishing area,” said Chincoteague Town Manager Robert G. Ritter Jr., adding, “It’s all part of trying to bring visitors to the downtown area.”

The Virginia Department of Transportation donated the bridge fender to the town as surplus property, Ritter said.

The 1940 swing drawbridge across the Chincoteague Channel was demolished after a new drawbridge to the north was completed in 2010.

The town several years ago began the process of obtaining the numerous permits required for the pier, including from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Virginia Marines Resources Commission. The town now has in hand all permits needed before construction begins.

Chincoteague appropriated $232,111 in the fiscal year 2014 budget for the fishing pier.

The town was awarded a grant of $129,000, with a match up to $103,000, from the Virginia Marine Resources Commission’s Saltwater Recreational Fishing Development Fund to help pay for the project.

Councilman Terry Howard made the motion, seconded by Councilman Gene W. Taylor, to award the contract to Fisher Marine Construction, which submitted the lowest of three bids, in an amount not to exceed $112,000.

The council at a budget workshop later in January briefly discussed whether access to the new fishing pier should be free — concluding it should, similar to the pier at Memorial Park.

Similar to the Memorial Park pier, those who use the new pier will have to call a posted telephone number to register — a federal requirement, ¬Ritter said.

Hours of operation and other rules regarding the new pier will be discussed by the Parks and Recreation Committee.

The new pier will have lights and will comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, according to written plans.

This article was published by Chincoteague.com on 3/3/2014.
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