We have been discovered. After decades of relative obscurity, sitting quietly in the peaceful surf and secluded dunes, Topsail Island has recently emerged from its original scenic dormancy into the national beach resort spotlight. Let's hope we can collectively resist the urge to become a world class resort by retaining our small-town Mayberry by the sea persona.
For longtime locals who have been suffering for decades with the economic malaise of being a small, out of the way fishing village, there is the understandable temptation to attract never ending numbers of tourists in order to fill their long empty bank accounts.
The prospect of year-round beach resort businesses cranking their cash registers without interruption for 12 months is indeed a compelling motivation for unlimited exposure. And we cannot blame those local business owner families for turning an unprofitable seasonal side show into a lucrative year-round profit center. They justifiably see the heights of the American dream on their doorstep.
Major national travel news sources have recently identified Topsail Island as one of the very few affordable beach resorts remaining on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. The secret is out in bold print in vacation publications around the country, which has funneled increasing hordes of tourists to our pristine salty shores.
What once was a sleepy getaway for a few fishermen is now being promoted nationally, regionally and locally as the last chance for middle America to have an affordable family beach vacation. They are coming with VISA cards in hand ready to fill rental houses, restaurants and gift shops for a week of fun in the sun. Their spending is a welcome change from the empty coffers of years past, however, that profitable exposure comes with a price.
We pay for our new found popularity with more crowds, more traffic, higher prices, more crime, less privacy and an all around faster pace of living than what our island was originally founded on. The 30 minute line of cars at the Surf City bridge on Highways 210 and 50 to and from Hampstead and Holly Ridge on a weekend portends the kind of weekly gridlock that our future holds for us. Eating in local restaurants after 5:00pm can be an hour wait for waitresses that have already been treed for hours. Shibumis clutter the beach with noisy incessant flapping. Conflicts between fishermen and families are common. And crazy jet skis and boaters pulling inflatables clog sandbars in Topsail Sound with dangerous high speed insanity.
The more we clamor for increased economic activity driven by more tourists, the more we invite what we now see as glimpses of the madness that will eventually overtake our quiet ocean paradise. Please resist the temptation to flatter the almighty dollar. Don't allow Topsail Island to become just another rowdy exclusive world class resort. Don't ruin the scenic simplicity that makes us so attractive, like they did in Nags Head and the Colorado Rockies. Keep it simple; keep it pure; keep it quiet; keep the secret!