Why Oak Island is possibly the worst town in America

Tourists see the scenic beach life, I see the devastating drug use, the extreme poverty of the locals, and perpetual drunkenness. Our county has some of the most 16 and under pregnancies in the state. We also have the second most DUI’s and DWI’s.

Though we have our picturesque views and beautiful wildlife, and mediocre (rock plagued, erosion devastated, flea ridden) beaches that continues to attract out of town visitors, we just can’t seem to get our act together. For a 20 mile island with a population of less than 7,500, we could be profiting from the tourist revenue and breathing new life into this squalid hole.

It wouldn’t be that hard to revitalize this place. But no. We don’t. Our town officials keep utility bills, and love dreaming up grand architectural upgrades, which is putting us even more into debt, and chasing away the stable retirees.

People, jobs, and food

This island is divided straight in half. We have the beach side, which is where the tourists and retired folks live, and the residential side, where the locals reside. The people here, speaking in generalizations, are lazy, always drunk or on something illegal, and are living in poverty because all their money is going to alcohol and substances. They are racist, backstabbing, and very vindictive, especially if they don’t like your accent.

Food here is absolutely horrible, mostly because the cooks are continuously being arrested for being drunk or worse. Besides breakfast food (there is one decent diner here) you have to travel ten miles off the island to get palatable cuisine.

Old Bridge Diner, a fairly decent place to eat

Besides our ragtag assortment of beach stores and bait shops, the only decent place to get a job here is the big name food store. I work there as a cashier/stocker/bit-of-everything, and people are continuously being fired for stealing cigarettes and money, or showing up high. Employees who are constantly bemoaning their money woes end up quitting after several weeks because, “the work was too hard.”

The only nightlife we have here is the “Rumors” club, a squalid little cement brick building which boasts live karaoke and sporadic showcases of the local talent. 

The bars around here all have bad reputations, and the only interesting tourist attraction we have, besides the ocean, is our golf course, and a rinky dink little putt putt place.

Rumors Nightclub

Politics

You look at the United States. You hear about the crooked politicians, the money schemes, and the bribery. You realize it is a pretty bad situation all around. Well take everything you’ve ever heard that could go bad in government, and we have had it.

Let us first talk about the sewer system, which many believe started the financial mess that we are in. A lot of residents were against it, saying we were a small town and having this expensive new system just wasn’t necessary. But after an especially suspicious scandal, where town employees were allegedly found dumping septic waste into the Davies Canal, the system passed. The entire debacle started in 2004 and wasn’t finished until 2010. To put it briefly, we are 150 million dollars in debt from this system, which went ten times over budget. We are also calculated to accrue 120 million in interest costs by the time we have finished paying everything. Utilities have gone through the roof.

As of last year, Oak Island had the third-highest water and sewer debt per capita in the state. And only eight cities have more money tied up in similar debt. The smallest of those cities – Greenville – is nearly 10 times the size of Oak Island.

One of nine pumping stations around Oak Island

Our Mayor in 2010 was kind enough to say this:

“You can only take the money out of people’s pockets in so many ways,” she said. “At what point do you make it so costly to live here that people don’t want to be here anymore?” This is the same Mayor who built a 4.5 million dollar town hall and police station. FOR A TINY ISLAND.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg for this little town. The corruption is rampart and at this point, I don’t think we will ever recover.

Oak Island Town Hall and Police Station

Crime

Oak Island is plagued with crime. Though the town employs a large number of officers, petty thievery and break-ins are rampant. Law Enforcement spend most of their time ticketing locals and tourists alike, while problem areas are ignored. During the winter season, the beach side is plagued with squatters, since nobody checks on the rental homes. Since I have lived down here, my family has had two skateboards, a bike, numerous beach and work equipment, and even our truck stolen. Only the vehicle was recovered, and it had been heavily vandalized.

I am sure every town has its ups and downs. I mean, who doesn’t? But in the scope of things, my town is one example out of many on what is wrong with our nation. If every town has debt, and every person has through the roof utility bills, and inflation is at ridiculous levels, what does this say about the stability of our nation?

Let’s get with it guys. Let’s change this!