Locals say cabana ban is better for beaches

OCEAN ISLAND BEACH, NC (WWAY) — More than a decade ago, Ocean Isle Beach banned cabanas. Locals say it was because of the number of cabanas left behind and then blown away, causing a mess.

“Sometimes a storm would blow in. The cabanas would get wrecked and the folks who owned them would tend to leave them on the beach. Which wound up being a big cleanup for the town and I thought that was unfair,” Robert Dock said.

Dock lives in Calabash but has been coming to Ocean Isle Beach for 35 years. He says Sunset Beach is better off without cabanas.

“The beaches were cleaner and the town was less burdened with cleaning up the garbage on the beach,” Dock said.

Rose Snider manages Eagles Resort Wear at Ocean Isle and says some people still come in asking for cabanas.

“When they come up to the register to purchase one, I do inform them they cannot put it down on the beach because of that law,” Snider said.

Now, she just recommends customers take something else.

“Umbrellas. We have a big variety of umbrellas and they go up to 8 feet in diameter which has a great shade. So that;s something we suggest,” Snider said.

She also believes the people in Sunset Beach will get used to the change.

“I think eventually they’ll all accept the fact that it is what it is and I don’t think there will be a problem further down the line,” Snider said.

Some other people in the area say they completely forgot about the ban on cabanas but believe a beach without cabanas is the way to go.