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The Bridgewater South lots cost $90,000 to $500,000 each, depending on size and location; home prices start at $350,000 (including lot) for a 2,500-square-foot ranch with granite kitchen. In addition, the Raleigh native has contracts for two homes costing $1.5 million each and plans to build a waterfront spec house around the same price.
But it's not the Journal report or rumors the infamous Blackbeard buried booty in his old plunder grounds that sparked homesite sales. Months before the Journal list was published, part-time Bath resident Maurice Hampson purchased 24 lots in Bridgewater South. In fact, the real estate investor owns 150 lots in Beaufort County.
Hampson, also a builder and developer, was attracted by Bath's treasures (the ones that aren't buried) like the town's rich history, friendly people, and miles and miles of water for recreational activities as well as transportation. “The water is quiet and unspoiled, not like some of the other waterfront towns,” explains Hampson, a skilled sailor. “You can go out there in your sailboat and not see anybody else for miles.”
Baldwin, who owns a speedboat and 42-foot ocean racer, agrees. “The water is beautiful and alive, much more alive than a lake. I have spent over 1,000 hours on the waterways in the Bath area and still have not seen them all.” That water offers a bounty of fish that includes bluefish, trout, flounder and red drum.
A fisherman as well, Baldwin has built a 150-foot pier on his 2.5 acre family lot in Bath and plans building a pier on each of Bridgewater's waterfront homesites. He will also build some community docks for the other Bridgewater owners.
But even though most of those lots are owned by investors, they could eventually be sold to buyers who might live there at least part of the time and expect some town services and amenities.
Dal Boyd, a fourth generation Bath resident, has mixed feelings about the development. “It's good that people are finding out about the quiet beauty of Bath, but as more people come in, the town might lose its appeal,” notes the owner of Old Towne Country Kitchen, one of the two restaurants there. Bath natives Ruth Smith and son Charles Smith Baldwin's aunt and cousin favor some changes that include industry. “I would like to see Bath grow into a larger small town where we can have the necessary services but can still afford to live here,” Ruth Smith explains.
But the 85-year-old widow believes the town's priority should be a clinic that might be staffed with retired doctors now living in Bath. Other doctors who live in the town practice medicine in Washington or Greenville.
“The problem is that Bath has no infrastructure to support the town,” notes Charles Smith, a Realtor at Bath's Century 21 agency. “A lot of people who came down here (earlier) and got beautiful places on the water are trying to prevent others from doing the same.” He says only good can come from the new development and that includes jobs.
“As people start moving into town, things are going to get better,” he explains, pointing out the new residents might want the town to build a hospital. He would also like to see more shops and restaurants there.
But some things are better left untouched. Hampson, the investor, says Bath has done an excellent job in preserving it's past, including historic buildings like St. Thomas Church, Palmer-Marsh House and Bonner House dating back to the 1700s. “It's always a hard job to balance the incoming people and keep the historical integrity of the town,” Hampson notes.
Now mates, if ye can just find out where Blackbeard hid his booty, or at least that bottle of rum . . .
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