Like castles made of sand: Dauphin Islanders ponder whether or not to rebuild ... again

By Kevin Lee Associate Editor

“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

“And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

“And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:

“And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.”

-Matthew 7:24-27, King James Bible

For some, it’s a subtropical paradise; for others, a headache. Dauphin Island, the barrier island to the immediate west of the mouth of Mobile Bay has confounded and delighted residents and visitors for centuries and its future looks to be the same mixed picture.

Spanish explorer Tristan de Luna described the island in detail in mid-July of 1559, but didn’t leave any type of settlement there. In 1698, French explorer Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville examined the island and dubbed it Massacre Island, inspired by the large number of bones found in the native ceremonial mounds. The French used the island as a base for operations and the first capital of the French Louisiana Territory was in Cadillac Square on the eastern end of the island. In 1711, they renamed it Ile Dauphine after Marie-Adelaide de Savoye, Dauphine of France.

Years passed and the island’s importance diminished somewhat. Most operations were moved up to Mobile as the city grew. But Dauphin Island’s location at the mouth of the bay still provided it with a certain amount of strategic significance.In the mid-19th century, Fort Gaines was erected on the easternmost tip and was involved in one of the seminal battles in American naval history in 1864.

Dauphin Island settled into a tranquil existence for much the following century. A few families led quiet lives there, letting livestock roam freely and living off the resources offered by nature.

In 1954, a bridge to the mainland was built over the Mississippi Sound and automobile access changed that all.

The development plans were hardly happenstance. The Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce made plans to push the island as a weekend and summer destination, aided in full-force by the regional periodicals.

Before long, the island was apportioned out into 1,300 lots and sold.The eastern end of the island, a combination of pine and hardwood forest, tupelo swamps and artesian springs, had always been the center of habitation and human activity prior to the bridge’s completion. The shell mounds created by indigenous people were there as was Cadillac Square and the residential developments prior to completion of the bridge.

In stark contrast, the western half of the island is mile after mile of sand, and scattered grasses. However, with the boom created by new access, development crept in that direction. Beach houses and hotels sprang up in the subsequent decades until they reached the end of the paved road. Unsheltered by trees or large dunes, the structures were bare to the elements and the harshness that could leap from the Gulf of Mexico.

Hurricanes are nothing new to the island. One such storm in 1717 convinced the French to move things further north and onto the mainland. Hurricane Camille destroyed a casino facility adjacent to the golf club in 1969. Hurricane Frederic, in 1979, damaged the bridge between the island and Cedar Point, the first landfall on the other side of the sound. It also destroyed the island’s Holiday Inn and several homes.

The beaches on the south side of the island have shrunk considerably over the years, blamed by some on the hurricanes, by others on the development destroying sand dunes. Others reiterate the fact that the beach is merely doing what it has been over a much longer time. Residents frequently note that barrier islands aren’t static, that they migrate as a course of existence.

Dauphin Island is no exception. “Yeah, the whole island is moving north and west,” said Carolyn Wood, a council member for the Town of Dauphin Island. “A lot of people just don’t want to face that fact.”Wood, an employee of the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, has seen a lot of changes on the island, but few have been as dramatic as what has occurred under her term. “I was elected in 2004,” she laughed, “just in time for two hurricanes.”

And what a pair they were.

Hurricane Ivan, in September of 2004, brushed the island and carved channels through the western end, connecting the Gulf with the sound north of it. Numerous houses sustained considerable damage. When Hurricane Katrina, one of the nation’s most devastating natural disasters, came calling in 2005, it capitalized on the prior damage from Ivan. Once again, the Gulf tore through the sands on the western end and flowed into the Mississippi Sound. Houses were torn from their foundations, roofs tossed and walls smashed.

“I had about 10 inches of water in my house for Ivan,” said Dauphin Island Mayor Jeff Collier. “I had twice that for Katrina.”

Four months later, the damage is still incredible. Swaths of empty sand sit in neighborhoods where houses stood. Frayed stumps of twisted pilings splay upward from white drifts as the only evidence a vacation home once stood there.

Carolyn Wood pointed. “There was a house right over there that had a huge hole in it from where a boat went through the roof,” she said.

Wood also takes note of a massive fresh water cistern. “I don’t remember that being here,” she said. She later postulates that she never noticed before because it was covered by fence, but it’s hard not to see it now. The foundation beneath it has crumbled and washed away, the cistern bent and pitched at a harsh angle in the sand. When full, it would have weighed several tons. “We lost about 50 homes during Ivan,” estimated Collier. “We lost about 250 from Katrina.”

Collier said its difficult to get a firm handle on the cost of the damage right now. “We’ve done some temporary road repairs right now and have crews working on the power and water, but we’re still dealing with FEMA on itemizing damages.”

Collier said they hope to have the water and sewer work completed by the spring of ’06.

The side streets flanking Bienville Boulevard – the main thoroughfare to the western end – are gone on the Gulf side and damaged on the north side. The beaches on the south side of the road have shifted across the street.

“We have lots here that were 200 feet deep that are now 1,200 feet deep,” explained Wood. Behind one house facing the sound, a pier stretches out 60 yards before ending in a covered landing perfect for docking or fishing except that now the beach extends another 15 yards beyond the pier’s terminus.

The eastern half of the island has fared considerably better. Few trees are down. Facilities and utilities are operable. Collier said there was some flooding, and a bit of damage to the large dunes guarding the bird sanctuary and its fresh water pond, but it still seems far ahead of the west end.

Both Collier and Wood believe the permanent population of the island – estimated at beyond 1,300 – wasn’t as affected as those who owned vacation homes.

They also said that evacuation plans went smoothly as the storms approached. Only about 100 people stayed on the island for the maelstroms.

“In a way,” said Collier, “it’s like we lost a hotel because of all the rentals that are gone on the West End. We won’t see the effect on the revenues from that for another year, though.”

The marina, just to the west of the bridge’s island landing, was destroyed, but the revitalization project there is back on track with it estimated to be open by the springtime of 2006.

The biggest concern is over development. “We have those new condos going up on the West End,” Collier said. “They’re about ready.”

Collier also mentions a federal buyout plan for property owners that will end soon. “You know,” he said, “we have a lot of owners that are determined to retain ownership.”

A lot of that may be due to the fact that, remarkably, property values haven’t dropped. “It’s really odd,” Wood said, “but a lot of the time, the property value will go up when things have been cleared away by nature because it’s ripe for any kind of development at that stage.”

The building codes, which were strengthened following Ivan, may be addressed yet again. “We’ve already taken a lot of steps in the right direction,” Wood said. “We’ve increased the diameter of the pilings required and percentage of piling below ground. We’ve changed the codes for the windows so that they have to be stronger now. We’re getting rid of those concrete foundations under the houses because all they do is wash loose and tear all the pilings out from under the house.”

Wood also mentions the latest seven-story structures, but notes that a lot of locals aren’t very thrilled about them. “I was amazed we let anyone build something that high. A lot of the people here don’t want to see this get like Gulf Shores. We want to be a lot simpler and more laid back.”

Wood goes a step further in her candor. “I personally wouldn’t encourage anyone ever developing anything on the West End,” she said.

The island, though, seems as if it is in capable hands. “I’d give all the credit for the way we’ve been able to handle this to Mayor Collier,” said Wood. “The guy’s a workhorse.”

Plans for the island’s future include the council’s wishes for a project to build a berm offshore, something to possibly bear the brunt of the sea’s force in the future. “We’d like to have a dredge boat, too,” Wood said. “That way we could take care of a lot of this ourselves.”

Above all else, both seem utterly confident in the community’s ability to weather storms. “Dauphin Island will definitely survive,” Collier stated. “Always has.”

Kevin Lee is Lagniappe associate editor. Contact him at klee@lagniappemobile.com.

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