Early College Update - June 23, 2025

Site work has begun at both the main campus location, as well as north satellite parking area. Once the initial site work is complete, concrete footers will be poured and the vertical walls will begin to be constructed. A groundbreaking ceremony is being scheduled for mid-July. Further information regarding the groundbreaking ceremony will be announced as details become available.

Early College Update - May 13, 2025

Barnhill Contracting Company submitted the Guaranteed Maximum Price contract in April 2025 and was approved by the Dare County Board of Commissioners during the board’s regularly scheduled May 2025 meeting. The bond sale is scheduled to take place in July 2025. Mobilization of equipment and materials will begin in late June 2025, with sitework for the Early College tentatively scheduled to begin shortly thereafter.

The Manteo Planning Board approved a Special Use Permit during the board’s March 2024 meeting to allow for an early college to be built on the proposed parcel in Manteo. Sub-contractor bids were opened on March 13, 2025. The next round of bids will be opened on March 21, 2025. Connex storage boxes have been delivered onsite with the approval of College of The Albemarle (COA) and the Town of Manteo. Dare County is tentatively aiming for a GMP to be received and approved during the April 2025 Dare County Board of Commissioners meeting, which will be held at 9 a.m. on Monday, April 7, 2025. Further updates will be provided once additional information becomes available. 

During the Dare County Board of Commissioners meeting that was held at 9 a.m. on Monday, December 2, 2024, the Dare County Board of Commissioners approved the capital project ordinance for the Dare County Early College and authorized Dare County Manager Bobby Outten to sign the pre-construction contract with Barnhill Contracting Company, which was selected as the construction manager at risk for the project at the board’s November 4, 2024 meeting.

During the Dare County Board of Commissioners meeting that was held at 9 a.m. on Monday, November 4, 2024, the Dare County Board of Commissioners approved Barnhill Contracting Company for preconstruction and construction services for the Dare County Early College building that will be built on the College of The Albemarle - Dare Campus on Roanoke Island. The Capital Improvements Planning Committee recommended Barnhill after reviewing five proposals for qualifications at their meeting on October 7, 2024. 

During the Monday, October 7, 2024 Capital Improvements Planning Committee meeting, the committee voted to recommend the Barnhill Contracting Company as the preferred construction manager at risk firm for the new Dare County Early College project. Proposals were received by Barnhill, Whiting Turner, A.R. Chesson, Sussex and Cooper Tacia. The committee members agreed that each proposal was very well done and provided a considerable amount of good information about each company and the projects they have completed. 

Ultimately, Barnhill was selected because of their past success in Dare County, their proven track record of being able to drive subcontractor participation, and their ability to deliver projects on time and under budget. Barnhill’s scope of services will include aiding in design and constructability, pre-construction services, and managing the overall construction process. 

The new Early College will be located on the same parcel of property where the College of The Albemarle - Dare Campus is located; Barnhill was also selected as the construction manager at risk for the College of The Albemarle project in 2020. The estimated timeline of construction begins in the summer of 2025 and is complete in the winter of 2026.

Alligator River Bridge Replacement Project Overview 

The Lindsay C. Warren Bridge ("Alligator River Bridge")—a 2.8-mile two-lane swing-span that was built in 1960 and connects the western edge of Dare County’s mainland to the eastern edge of Tyrrell County—is being replaced by a new 3.2-mile high-rise span thanks to a $110 million federal grant that was announced in January 2023. 

The project, which began in 2025, is one of only nine in the country to receive funding through President Joe Biden’s Mega Grant program that is designed to provide funding for projects that are too large or complex to be completed through the use of traditional funding programs.

The Alligator River Bridge replacement project was selected to receive the $110 million Mega Grant by President Joe Biden’s $1.3 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law due to its status as an essential corridor that serves as a vital transportation lifeline and essential hurricane evacuation route for Dare County residents, visitors, property owners and commuters. 

Receiving funding from the mega grant award will significantly speed up the projected timeline of the critical bridge replacement project, which has been under discussion by state and local officials for several years due to the age and condition of the 65-year-old bridge and is estimated to cost a total of $450 million.

More than 4,000 boats pass through the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway each year, forcing both eastbound and westbound traffic to stop frequently as the swing-span opens and closes in order to accommodate the passage of each vessel. 

Construction of a new 3.2-mile two-lane fixed-span bridge with a 65-foot vertical clearance just north of the original structure will make it possible for motorists to continue to their destinations unimpeded rather than waiting for the swing-span to open and close—or having to embark a 99-mile detour when the span gets stuck in the open position for several hours or even multiple days due to electrical or mechanical issues.

In addition to replacing the outdated Alligator River Bridge bridge with a safe and reliable structure that improves mobility and aids in hurricane evacuations, plans are also being put into place to use $16 million from the grant to install broadband infrastructure along U.S. Highway 64 through this critical corridor in eastern North Carolina from Rocky Mount to Nags Head that would bring high-speed internet service to the area.   

On Thursday, March 9, 2023, Dare County Board of Commissioners Chairman Bob Woodard joined Federal Highway Administration Shailen Bhatt, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper and North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Secretary Eric Boyette, as well as numerous state and local officials, at a press conference that was held at the Alligator River Marina in Columbia to share information and express their excitement about the highly anticipated project.   

“On behalf of the Dare County Board of Commissioners, I’d like to express our excitement about this remarkable grant opportunity for a new and much needed Alligator River Bridge,” said Woodard. “It will provide a pathway to work for countless people earning a living. It will provide access to advanced medical care for people in the rural counties of northeastern North Carolina. It will provide safe transportation for young people seeking educational opportunities, and, as you've heard, it will be a life-saving tool in the event of hurricane evacuations. The people of Dare County are grateful for this grant from the federal government.”

NCDOT Receives Federal Grant from Federal Highway Administration

In January 2023, the Lindsay C. Warren Bridge replacement project, also known as the Alligator River Bridge on U.S. 64 between Tyrrell and Dare Counties received a $110 million federal Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant from the Federal Highway Administration.

This grant not only funds the Lindsay C. Warren Bridge replacement; it provides for broadband installation infrastructure between Interstate 95 in Rocky Mount and N.C. 12 in Nags Head, an area historically underserved by internet access.

The existing bridge will remain open during construction and will be removed once the new bridge is open to traffic. Construction of the new bridge will also avoid interrupting the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge.

The replacement bridge will include:

• Modern two-lane, fixed-span bridge
• 65-foot vertical navigable channel clearance
• Two, 12-foot travel lanes with 8-foot breakdown lanes 
• Located less than 1,500 feet north of the existing bridge

Construction Begins for Lindsay C. Warren Bridge

The first concrete pile in a $450 million project to replace the Lindsay C. Warren Bridge on U.S. 64 was driven into the bed of the Alligator River between Tyrrell and Dare counties on Feb. 19, 2025.

The bridge pile is one of hundreds to be used as a foundation for the new bridge, which will replace the aging swing-span drawbridge with a modern, two-lane fixed-span bridge just north of the current one.

The new bridge is expected to open to traffic in the fall of 2029.

Please Note: Updates from from the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) will be posted on this webpage as information becomes available. To access press releases published by NCDOT regarding the Alligator River Bridge Replacement Project, please click here. 

February 19, 2025 Update from NCDOT: 

"First Pile Driven for Alligator River Bridge Replacement"
COLUMBIA, N.C. – The first concrete pile in a $450 million project to replace the Lindsay C. Warren Bridge—commonly referred to as the “Alligator River Bridge”—on U.S. Highway 64 was driven into the bed of the Alligator River between Tyrrell County and Dare County in the early evening of Tuesday, February 17, 2025. A video of the first bridge pile being driven can be viewed by clicking here.  

The bridge pile is one of hundreds to be used as a foundation for the new bridge, which will replace the aging swing-span drawbridge with a modern, two-lane fixed-span bridge just north of the current one. The new bridge is expected to open to traffic in the fall of 2029.

The current bridge, completed in 1960, is the main route to access the Outer Banks from the west, and a critical hurricane evacuation route. The aging swing span is maintained regularly but is prone to occasional mechanical failures which force motorists onto a 99-mile detour.

The new bridge will also improve river traffic, as more than 4,000 boats pass through the swing span each year. For more information, please contact Tim Hass at tdhass@ncdot.gov or 252-423-5109. For further project details from NCDOT, please click here.

January 8, 2025 Update from North Carolina Department of Transportation: 

"Work to Begin Soon on Alligator River Bridge Replacement"

Contract awarded; new fixed-span bridge to open in 2029

COLUMBIA, N.C. – Work will soon begin on a replacement for the Lindsay C. Warren (Alligator River) Bridge on U.S. 64 in Tyrrell and Dare counties, under a contract approved today (January 8, 2025) by the N.C. Board of Transportation.

The $450 million contract, awarded to Skanska USA, will replace the 65-year-old swing-span bridge with a modern, two-lane fixed-span bridge just north of the current one.

Funding is aided by a $110 million grant from the Federal Highway Administration under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021.

Workers from Skanska will begin driving bridge pilings in the next several weeks, weather permitting, and begin other activities such as clearing soon thereafter. Under terms of the contract, the new bridge will open to traffic in the fall of 2029, with demolition of the current bridge to begin in the spring of 2030.

The current bridge, completed in 1960, is the main route to access the Outer Banks from the west, and a critical hurricane evacuation route. The aging swing span is maintained regularly but is prone to occasional mechanical failures which force motorists onto a 99-mile detour.

The new bridge will also improve river traffic, as more than 4,000 boats pass through the swing span each year.

For more information, please contact Tim Hass at tdhass@ncdot.gov or 252-423-5109. For further project details from NCDOT, please click here.

July 23, 2024 Update from NCDOT:

COLUMBIA, N.C. – A test pile project in the Alligator River between Tyrrell and Dare counties was completed earlier this month, with 11 large concrete test piles driven into the riverbed at various depths.

The test piles, large posts that are typically used as a foundation for a structure such as a bridge, will help engineers learn about soil layers and depths and soil consistency in the riverbed as they design a replacement for the 64-year-old Alligator River Bridge on U.S. 64.

COLUMBIA, N.C. – N.C. Department of Transportation contractors will soon begin driving as many as 18 concrete test piles into the bed of the Alligator River, an important step in the project to replace the Lindsay C. Warren (Alligator River) Bridge on U.S. 64 between Tyrrell and Dare counties.

April 18, 2024 Update from NCDOT: 

"Test Pile Project to Begin at Alligator River Bridge" 

COLUMBIA – N.C. Department of Transportation contractors will soon begin driving as many as 18 concrete test piles into the bed of the Alligator River, an important step in the project to replace the Lindsay C. Warren (Alligator River) Bridge on U.S. 64 between Tyrrell and Dare counties.

Outer Banks Dare Challenge—a residential substance abuse rehabilitation facility located in Wanchese—is in the process of completing a $2 million expansion project.

The project will include the construction of a nearly 10,000-square-foot multipurpose building featuring a full industrial kitchen, dining room and four additional classrooms. Two additional dormitories that will each house 16 individuals will also be constructed, more than doubling the number of clients Dare Challenge staff members can provide assistance to. 

The expansion—which was approved by the Dare County Board of Commissioners in January 2021—is funded by a $200,000 grant from Dare County, a $900,000 grant from the state of North Carolina and a $400,000 private donation. For more information about Outer Banks Dare Challenge, please visit OuterBanksDareChallenge.org.

To view the video detailing the project on Dare County’s YouTube channel, please click the video below.

Several projects are planned to renovate and modernize the 80-year-old Dare County Regional Airport facility using funding received from two grants in 2023.

The first grant ($2.3 million) is for new LED airfield lighting, as well as a beacon, windsock, precision approach lights and a generator. This work is currently expected to be completed by summer 2024.

The second grant was awarded through the State Capital Infrastructure Fund. The Dare County Regional Airport received $2 million for the construction of additional hangars. This work is currently expected to start at the end of 2024.

Additional information about these projects will be posted as it becomes available.