As of April 7th 2020, there have been 10 positive tests of Coronavirus on the Outer Banks. 5 of the 10 cases are already fully recovered, and 3 are asymptomatic. Community spread is likely at this point, so there’s some anxiety among residents. I’ve lived here on the Outer Banks for many years, and it’s a tight-knit community that rallies together after hurricanes, tragic deaths, or economic downturns. Many of the families have a long history in this area, especially on Hatteras Island where you will find many Scarboroughs and Midgettes in the phone book. So how are the locals, the non-resident property owners, the visitors, and the businesses handling the issue of coronavirus on the Outer Banks? I was surprised by the responses when I spoke with these groups.
The Locals
There’s a sizable population of residents here age 65 and up. The median age in Nags Head alone is 5 years older than the median age in the state of North Carolina. And they are rightly concerned about the spread of the coronavirus, given the increased risk of complications among this age group. I believe this is the primary reason that the Control Board voted to close off access to visitors and non-resident property owners. They are attempting to mitigate any potential harm that this group would suffer if we had an outbreak of coronavirus on the Outer Banks. Many other locals work in the vacation rental industry, and this has been hit especially hard by the choice to close off the area to visitors. Imagine taking dozens of bookings per day for week-long vacations and then suddenly one day the phones stop ringing. And then, because visitors aren’t allowed into the Outer Banks, you refund hundreds of thousands of dollars to people who couldn’t take their vacation. So not only does money stop coming in, but you are paying a significant amount of money out. Several vacation rental companies have had to furlough or even lay off employees as they attempt to survive this crisis. For realtors like myself, I can’t show properties to people interested in moving here – because they can’t get here. Restaurants have had to delay openings or reduce staff (especially wait staff) because they’re only allowed to offer takeout. This has created more of an economic strain on the locals than anything else, we still get to walk on the beach or go fishing, we can still play golf in the sun, so our recreation and leisure opportunities are more or less the same. But the unemployment filing system is difficult to navigate, and not all mortgage companies are offering the same level of loan payment forgiveness or forebearance. There are definitely some stressed-out locals on both sides of the issue – those who want to keep the OBX closed off until the coast is clear, and those who want the OBX opened up immediately.
The “NRPO”s
Non-resident property owners are a huge reason the Outer Banks is such a great place to live and work. There has been a lot of negative chatter on social media sites between two groups – “the locals” and “the NRPOs.” Some locals (a minority, but a vocal minority on the internet) are making mean-spirited comments about owners who wish to ride this crisis out in the beach house they own as a second home. Some non-resident property owners view this as a constitutional or legal issue – they feel as though they are being taxed (on their beach home) without representation, and I’ve seen a couple of comments where they are threatening legal action to access property they pay taxes on. As a realtor, I have tried to make calls to everyone affected by this crisis and offer to help in any way I can. And my conversations with locals are always positive and the overwhelming theme is we’ll make it through just fine. My conversations with NRPOs are also positive, and owners always say it’s a bad situation right now (as many have lost significant rental income), but they always ask “How are you guys holding up?” I can’t tell you how awesome it is to hear an owner who is dealing with a bad hand suddenly stop in the middle of describing it to ask about how we are doing at the beach. And many owners actually support the Control Board’s attempt to mitigate coronavirus on the Outer Banks, several have come out and said it’s a great idea and they want us to be safe here at the beach. While vacation rental companies have to refund guests, these property owners are also refunding any rent that has been disbursed to them by those vacation rental companies. They are taking a significant financial loss, and I hope we all remember that this crisis is affecting all of us. So if you’re a local reading this or a NRPO reading this, please know that there may be some vocal “fringe” groups on social media, but we as locals appreciate you and I am always amazed during these phone calls by how much you truly care about the residents of the Outer Banks.
The Visitors
You are the people who bring life and vibrance to the beach. I spend quite a bit of time on the Facebook pages of local businesses, and the overwhelming theme of your comments has been “This stinks.” It does! But so many of you have said you can’t wait for things to open back up so you can spend a week in your “happy place.” And I hope that when we reopen to visitors, you will start planning those vacations. I love walking out on Jennette’s Pier and seeing fathers and sons catching that first fish. When I see kids boogie boarding in the surf or flying kites on the beach, it reminds me of when we used to vacation on the Outer Banks and I was that kid. You bring so much energy to our area and the Outer Banks really comes alive when our vacation rental companies are 100% booked, our restaurants are packed and our beaches are full of laughter. So as badly as you miss being at the beach, we miss having you here with us. Several people asked on a company’s Facebook page “What can I do to help locals who are struggling right now?” That’s simple – come visit us at the beach as soon as you can!
The Businesses
I won’t sugarcoat it – some of our businesses are being hit hard by this. One of my favorite places (and maybe one of your favorite places), Coastal Provisions in Southern Shores has decided to close up shop for good. Vacation rental companies, restaurants, fishing piers, mini-golf courses, and many other businesses that cater to OBX visitors don’t have any visitors right now. Charter fishing boats are docked, and sites like Jennette’s Pier and the NC Aquarium in Manteo are closed as well. Possibly the only business that is booming right now is the grocery business, but that’s mostly on the toilet paper aisle. Stores here always have meat and bread and the basics, so we are definitely faring better than other communities when it comes to finding groceries. Locals have been supporting restaurants here, I went to the Blue Moon Beach Grill a couple of days ago for takeout (filet mignon for me and crab & shrimp alfredo for my wife, with 20% off all orders) and they literally brought it out to my truck in the parking lot. I was there and back in 5 minutes total. And Rooster’s Southern Kitchen is doing a community curbside suppers program to provide free meals to locals a couple of days a week, which has been amazing. We have some great owners who have invented creative ways to not only keep their doors open, but serve the community in some way. Every business owner I’ve spoken to is optimistic about a great summer, and that positive outlook is a welcome break from some of the negative and gloomy coverage the crisis receives in the news.
Looking Ahead
Will we have more cases of coronavirus on the Outer Banks? It seems inevitable that we will. Time will tell if the actions taken by federal, state and local governments were the right move. But this too shall pass. The beach will open back up, things will get back to normal, and hopefully during this process we can all take a deep breath and remember that the crisis affects all of us. There’s no reason to burn bridges or create animosity between groups of people when we all depend and rely on each other for the success of the Outer Banks. I will throw a huge party when they announce the reopening of the Outer Banks, and I’m already excited about what lies ahead. I’m not the only one in the United States feeling a little bit of “cabin fever” and thinking about places to go or things to do when these restrictions are lifted. I hope you still view the Outer Banks as your “happy place” and I hope you’ll come visit us soon.
Things just aren’t the same without you.