Outer Banks property owners refused entry during pandemic are now treated as residents
Out-of-town property owners barred from visiting their beach houses on the Outer Banks at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic sued the county arguing their constitutional rights had been violated.
Now they’ll be given the same rights as residents — with some exceptions.
Under the terms of a settlement agreement approved by the Dare County Board of Commissioners during a special session Monday, property owners who don’t live at the Outer Banks will have the same rights as full-time residents during future public health emergencies, OBX Today reported.
That means they will be allowed the same entry into the county, according to The Outer Banks Voice.
It does not, however, “extend to natural disasters” — including hurricanes and tropical storms, OBX Today reported.
Six out-of-state property owners from Virginia and Maryland with vacation houses or second homes on the Outer Banks sued Dare County in federal court in April saying its March 20 order preventing non-residents from entering the county violated the Constitution, The News & Observer reported.
The order was included in the county’s second state of emergency and set up checkpoints requiring permanent resident permits, a state driver’s license or government-issued ID proving residency in Dare, Currituck, Tyrrell or Hyde counties.
Concerns about allowing nonresidents onto the barrier islands had been the source of significant controversy on Outer Banks social media pages in the weeks leading up to the order, The N&O reported.
Dare County Commissioner Steve House posted in March urging everyone to “stay calm.”
“We are getting several reports of people being accosted both verbally and physically. Just because citizens assume they are from out of the area,” he wrote, according to The N&O. “One was the wife of a Coast Guardsmen stationed here. This is unacceptable!!!!!”
Raleigh attorney S.C. Kitchen, who represents the out-of-state property owners, told the N&O “it’s their property.”
“You can get the virus anywhere. They have cases in Dare County now,” he said when the lawsuit was filed. “Our clients simply don’t believe the risk is greater with them being able to come in.”
Kitchen was pushing for an injunction that would prevent the county from enforcing its emergency order.
But mediation between both parties on June 18 resulted in a “complete settlement of the case,” a federal judge said in court filings.
The Dare County Board of Commissioners met with an attorney behind closed doors during a special meeting Monday at 8:30 a.m. to discuss the settlement, according to the county website.
It was approved unanimously, The Outer Banks Voice reported.
Under the terms of the settlement, the county does not admit any fault or liability and will pay $16,500 in legal fees, according to The Outer Banks Voice. Dare County Manager Bobby Outten also clarified the settlement terms only apply to public health emergencies defined by the World Health Organization.
He said the county was initially concerned non-resident property owners returning to the area “would have overloaded the health care system here,” The Outer Banks Voice reported.
“In hindsight, the number of people who would have returned as non-resident property owners would not have been significant,” he said.
In response to the settlement being approved, Kitchen — representing the property owners — said they “weren’t questioning the coronavirus restrictions in Dare County” but “simply wanted access to property they own and pay for,” OBX Today reported.
“We’re happy to see the Constitution is still in effect, even during a pandemic,” he said.
