Sneads Ferry booming these days
Reprinted with permission The Daily News - Jacksonville, NC
July 18,2005
JOE MILLER DAILY NEWS STAFF
SNEADS FERRY - For about 200 years, Carl Duff's family has made Sneads Ferry home. So it seemed logical when Duff opened Tom Dooley's Cafe and General Store on N.C. 210 last year.
Duff, 48, remembers growing up in the 1960s, when his father operated one of only two stores in the area.
"You felt like you were a long ways from anywhere," Duff said.
But that's not the case anymore. The once tiny fishing village of Sneads Ferry is reeling in more and more residents and businesses. Builders are constructing new homes at a fever pitch as people want to reside next to the water. The Four Corners area, at the intersection of N.C. 172 and 210, is increasingly becoming the business hub with a mix of stores, restaurants and even a topless club.
Yes, Sneads Ferry is growing up, and rapidly - nearly matching a similar boom on nearby Topsail Island.
"You got subdivisions that are going to be retirement homes, and you also got there along Highway 210 leading to the beach, there's a lot of commercial development supporting the beach," said Onslow County land use administrator Angie Manning. "North Topsail Beach is predominantly residential, so those people that are staying on the beach will come to the Sneads Ferry area for the (businesses)."
Local real estate brokers said demand for land is high, which is driving the price way up.
"You've got a doubling in the price of land because of all the builders that have come in," said Richard Baker, president of Treasure Realty. Baker estimates home sales are up 400 percent in the last two years.
He said new homes in the area typically go for $185,000 to $275,000.
One reason for the residential boom: Troops stationed at Camp Lejeune are moving into Sneads Ferry, a community without city government or an infrastructure.
"Our officers and captains wanting to be near the beach are paying to be on our waterfront properties," Baker said, noting proximity to Jacksonville and Wilmington is part of Sneads Ferry's appeal.
"It is the last developable waterfront area on the coast that's got major road access," he said.
With more residents come more businesses. People don't have to travel to Jacksonville or Wilmington to do the bulk of their shopping like they did decades ago.
You can buy groceries at Food Lion, eat a sandwich at Subway and fill your gas tank all at or near Four Corners - an area largely vacant more than a decade ago.
"Basically, the center of Sneads Ferry is starting to move away from down here by the water and out that way," said Mike Gallagher, chief of the Sneads Ferry Volunteer Fire Department.
The rampant growth concerns Gallagher. He said about 600 lots are being added to the fire department's coverage area, which is in an unincorporated section of the county.
"I don't know how I'm going to service them," Gallagher said. "At the funding we're getting right now, I do not see how we're going to provide the level of services that we provide right now."
Gallagher said his department gets about $64,000 per year from the county with the rest from private donations. He said if funding doesn't improve, the department's fire prevention program may have to be cut.
"We cannot stop putting out fires, so we have to save money other places," he said. "The county's going to have to decide what level of fire protection they want."
Business in the area isn't limited to strip development. Several "mom and pop" stores line N.C. 172.
Dean and Jean Hudson grew up in Sneads Ferry and came back two years ago from Virginia. They opened up Sea Witch Antiques.
Jean Hudson said their business has grown tremendously, especially in 2005.
"A lot of new people are coming in here every day looking for houses and property, places to live, and we're getting a lot of that business," she said. "We get people from all over, not just the United States, but the world."
Dean Hudson said Sneads Ferry is appealing to a lot of people because it is a neat community.
"It's near the water," he said. "It's a great vacation place. It's a great place to live all year long."
Contact staff writer Joe Miller at jmiller@freedomenc.com or at 353-1171, Ext. 236.