The 43rd annual N.C. Shell Show will return to Wilmington in September, this time in a new location.
 
For the first time in 10 years, the event will not take place at the Cape Fear Museum of History and Science, relocating to the Coastline Conference and Event Center, 501 Nutt St.
 
The N.C. Shell Club’s top public outreach event, according to club officials, is educational as well as visual. The need for additional space prompted the venue change of the exhibit-style show.
 
“Cape Fear Museum was not able to provide a large enough contiguous space where we could fit in large exhibits in 2018,” said N.C. Shell Show co-chairman John Timmerman. “Several of our regular exhibitors bring exhibits that are 30-50 feet in length. The museum did not have a space large enough for several exhibits of this magnitude for 2018.”
 
Featuring shells in more than 20 categories, the event features a judged competition. Shell exhibitors include those from North Carolina and Florida, to New Jersey, Kentucky, Maine and the Midwest.
 
“Our exhibits are awarded for accurate scientific approach, recording the living mollusks and the environments in which they live,” Timmerman said. “The show also promotes sustainable practices in collecting shells.”
 
Meanwhile, slated renovations of the Coastline Conference and Event Center may be underway at the same time as the September 28-30 event. However, construction work won’t take place on the weekends, according to event center officials.
 
The renovations will signal the start of construction of a seven-story Aloft Hotel at the 501 Nutt St. property. While portions of the event center will remain a part of the Aloft’s ground floor plans, nearly half of its meeting space square footage will be lost.
 
It’s too soon to tell if the loss will cause the N.C. Shell Show to move again next year.
 
“We are actively exploring options for the future but have not made any commitments, so I hesitate to state plans for 2019,” Timmerman said. “Right now where the show will be in 2019 appears to be a moving target, but I am confident the show will land at a good destination.”
 
While exact numbers weren’t available, attendance for the 2017 N.C. Shell was about 800, Timmerman said.
 
For hours and more information on the 2018 N.C. Shell Show, visit ncshellclub.com.