It was lights, camera, action at a supposedly defunct Danbury campground this past weekend. Mike Fulp’s riverside campground that had been shut down due to the lack of an operating permit appeared to have been reopened as of Friday, August 13.

The site on the banks of the Dan beside Moratock Park had been the source for much heated discussion in Danbury for over a year. Fulp had begun allowing campers on his property in August 2009, at which point the Town of Danbury began to send him letters ordering him to cease and desist operations.

When spring 2010’s warm weather kicked in, however, Fulp’s campground was open again. More orders to shut down followed, resulting in the closing of the operation by midsummer. A criminal summons relating to the illegal campground had been served against Fulp in the meantime, but his court case was dismissed.

Just as it appeared everything had been resolved, campers suddenly abounded at Fulp’s non-campground. As late as 1:06 a.m. on Saturday, August 14, construction-style lights glared across the property, lighting up the night skies in Danbury. The sounds of voices resounded through the night air, and campers could be seen playing games such as corn hole.

Byron Ellis, Danbury Town Administrator, notes that the Town will move forward with the filing of a lawsuit against Fulp for running the campground without ever having applied for a permit. The rules and regulations for running a campground in Danbury are part of an amended campground ordinance passed by the Danbury Town Council in May 2010. The ordinance is a matter of public record and can be accessed by would-be campground owners.

Fulp’s statement is that the campground is not open to the public but that he had had some friends up to tube and play games, such as soccer. He added that some of them comprised a film crew that had come to Danbury from Lynchburg, VA, to film a documentary on the river, the town and how small politics works, hence the bright lights.

Fulp listed some of the other guests he claims were there: four members of the attorney general’s office, doctors and nurses. He said that some of them had been referred to him by a friend, but that he knew most of them. He insisted that they did not pay to camp, simply to tube.

According to Fulp, he had run into a deputy from the Stokes County’s Sheriff’s Department who said the noise was not such that anyone had called to complain. Fulp also said that the lights were not an issue.

A spokesman from the sheriff’s department does verify that no calls were received over the weekend to complain about the noise at the campground.

The only issue Fulp recalls was an uninvited guest who was drunk and disorderly. He says that the man’s car keys were taken away and one of his friends had been called to come and get him, but that the intoxicated man refused to leave until the sheriff’s department was called.

As for the future, Fulp indicates that he will keep the campground closed to the public, but that his family and friends will be allowed to camp if they choose. “There’s not a better place,” he states. “It’s home.”

Fulp declares his beliefs about allowing friends to camp on his acreage on the river, “It’s private property I own. I pay the taxes. It’s my right.”

Ellis points out that a campground is defined as two or more campers (tent, pop-up camper, RV, etc.). “This has nothing to do with who knows whom, if the campers pay or not, if they're relatives, friends or whatever,” Ellis states. “This is a land-use issue, and land-use issues are regulated by local municipalities and counties. . .The bottom line is that if you are going to have people camping on a parcel of land, you must provide proper sanitation facilities, running water, garbage collection—it must have proper ingress and egress, and it must be operated in a responsible manner—all of the things that are laid out in the town's zoning ordinance.”

Wendi Uselton, Danbury Town Council member, lives very near Fulp’s property. She has concerns that reach beyond the legality of the campground, “When the river floods, that area is completely underwater.”

Uselton recalls a tragic incident earlier this summer in Arkansas when several people were killed while camping near a river when floodwaters suddenly rose and swept them away. The town councilwoman remembers that the Dan flooded overnight at about that same time.

“If anyone had been camping, they would have been swept downriver,” Uselton says, adding that Fulp’s campground was several feet underwater. “Several times this summer the river has been up (not flood stage—just high), and people have been camping.”

In fact, according to Uselton, the water was so high this past weekend that canoeing and tubing were not allowed on Stokes County’s portion of the Dan River. “Were the campers aware of the potential danger?” Uselton questioned. “This weekend it didn't rain much here, but we got the water from other areas that made the river swell—people could potentially be hurt.”

Uselton is also concerned about sanitation and safety: “I see that there are port-a-potties in the field. Where do people wash their hands? Where do people dump their scraps? How are we protecting the river?”

She wonders about the big campfires she has seen down there and how they are ensuring that the fires stay away from the trees. “Are there regulation firepits built so that the people and the land are safe?” Uselton asks.

Fulp stresses that he doesn’t want to cause trouble. “I want to be remembered as someone who made a difference,” he explains.

Uselton clarifies her position: “I do want to see progress and growth in Danbury, and I don't want to negatively affect anyone’s business—but I do want to make sure that people are as safe as possible. I do want to make sure that our river is protected.”

She adds: “I do want to make sure that the rights of our other citizens are protected, too. We all have a right to live here, and it is mutual respect and consideration that makes living here pleasant.”