KITTY HAWK, N.C. — A license plate agency is coming back to the Outer Banks, this comes after the Manteo LPA closed up shop at the end of 2024. The North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles oversees license plate agencies, but they are run by private contractors or local governments.
“It's not been too bad for me, but it has been for others," said Dock Sawyer, owner of R.D. Sawyer Motor Company in Manteo.
Dock Sawyer has been running R.D. Sawyer Motor Company for decades. Dock previously was just blocks away from the only license plate agency in Dare County that closed in December. Since then, anyone needing to do license plate business has had to leave the island and go to Columbia, Elizabeth City or Moyock.
“I would take the car deals and the paperwork and put it in envelope and drop it off to the lady in Columbia. She's our closest place to Dare (County). It's a 38-minute drive from here to Columbia," said Sawyer.
Locals we spoke with say the only real inconvenience is the travel time, their experience at the other LPA locations has been successful. But we received good news this week, a new license plate agency contract has been awarded and will be coming to Kitty Hawk.
“The location has now been selected, and so now we're scheduling the install of the IT circuit for the location. That's what takes the longest bit of time, that's usually up to a 120 day process. We're looking to reopen the license plate agency out there in August," said Marty Homan, DMV communications manager at NCDOT.
The two operators will be Josh Bass and Denise Hall who are both currently with the Currituck County Chamber of Commerce. Bass shared this statement with me about his and Denise's excitement to bring this service back to the Outer Banks.
"Denise and I both have a heart for public service. We felt called to step up and see how we could help when we saw the announcement that Dare County needed this service.
Becky Luton, who previously ran the LPA in Manteo, left behind big shoes to fill. It's clear how much the community loves her and the office she ran. She has been incredibly generous in answering our questions and offering guidance. The team at DMV has also been phenomenal and wonderful to work with.
We’ve seen some concerns on social media about parking at the new location. Since the office is larger, we’ll be able to have a bigger staff, which should reduce wait times. With shorter visits, we hope to keep parking more accessible throughout the day.
We are excited about opening and are fully committed to providing the high-quality customer service that the people of Dare County deserve."
As Outer Banks locals are excited to have a license plate agency again, Dock feels not having it in Manteo will have an impact on the town.
“There's a lot of people in Kitty Hawk, Southern Shores, and a lot of people south of Oregon (Inlet) Bridge that would come up here and get their tag renewed. When they come up here, they would come to the town of Manteo and spend money. I'm selfish when I say I would like to have the DMV here, not for me to get our tags easy, but for the lost revenue," said Sawyer.
