On the waterfront

 Here I go as an architectural critic, for which I am supremely unqualified.

Over the past half century there has been a movement of financially successful folks to waterfront properties along the coast. It's an exclusive club, and I ain't a member. But that's OK, I do have a unique view as I poke along the intracoastal waterway, sandwiched between the barrier islands and the inner shoreline. And what I see isn't pretty. In fact, it is a shockingly ugly sight. Trashy, I believe, would be the best descriptor.

Coming around a bend yesterday, I beheld about 2 solid miles of development on the one side of the canal. It looked like a scene from a waterway in Bangladesh. But I bet Bangladesh has more character. This waterway scene was just soul suckingly gross. For 2 miles a thicket of pressure treated pilings and lumber predominated with complete disorder the overarching rule. Basically, every home had a dock that protruded out about 200 feet into the canal. There were literally many thousands of pilings, and at the end of every dock there was some sort of pavilion, as well as a lift for a bright and shiny boat. As you looked down the line it looked like a crazy assemblage of pick up stix. The boats were typically of the center console variety and I would guess that the average value was around 100 grand. It did not appear that any were in use on this weekday morning.

Rising above the chaos of the pilings you could see the 3rd or 4th story of the associated house, a structure built at considerable expense. In the narrow space between each dock you could see that the shoreline had been bulkheaded, to stamp out any vestige of nature. The lots were very narrow so that the houses were very close together. The ends of the docks had only 10 to 15 feet between them. The ugliness was astounding. And these people are well to do. I bet these are million dollar properties.

Then, I saw an anomaly. Out of probably 300 to 400 homes, there was ONE with no dock. No bulkhead. No boat. Just about 50 feet of natural shoreline. That is the person I would like to meet.

I feel the built environment is of critical importance to the human psyche. People react in a visceral way to that environment and when it is bad it can be very bad. But this architectural eyesore will have a limited lifespan. Sooner or later it will be removed by a hurricane and hopefully not be rebuilt in its present form. I mean really, building on a coastal barrier island? Are you kidding me?

From Carolina Beach, all the best, Charlie

PS Carolina Beach is not the locale I have just described, although it shares in the shame