With the potential expansion of the convention center and the redevelopment of several city-owned parcels, the northern end of downtown Wilmington is primed for future growth, according to city officials. Elected leaders from the city and New Hanover County highlighted their priorities for downtown on Wednesday during Wilmington Downtown Inc.’s Economic Developmen ...

The city of Wilmington is evaluating the future of land near Skyline Center to accommodate potential improvements at Live Oak Bank Pavilion and Riverfront Park. Last summer, the city solicited bids for the 3.26-acre property at 1001 and 1021 N. Front St., before pausing the process to evaluate the city’s potential needs for the site. Now, planning for the site&rsq ...

I recently read a former colleague’s op-ed on Wilmington’s current budget discussions, and I’ll admit I was surprised less by the position taken and more by the level of generalization and the absence of key context. Ironically, I had shared not long ago that I missed aspects of his approach to leadership. This, however, is not one of them. This budget ...

Not long ago, I wrote about green space and the fleeting opportunity to preserve land for future generations before it's gone forever. That piece was about vision and collaboration, about what a community can build together when leaders are willing to think boldly and act with urgency. This piece is about what happens when they don't. The city of Wilmington i ...

As Wilmington and the surrounding areas continue to grow in popularity, so does the demand for improvements to the area’s infrastructure.   While construction on projects like the Greenville Loop Trail, Greenville Loop Park and Wrightsville Beach Bridge Replacement causes short-term disruption, city leaders have said the end result will be well worth the tempo ...

The state of North Carolina assumed ownership of Serenity Point, or The Point, an area of nearly 100 undeveloped acres on Topsail Island’s southern end, earlier this month.  Last year, the N.C. Coastal Land Trust, a land preservation organization, closed on the Pender County property in a $7.5 million deal. Community members had pushed to save the property fr ...

Since the beginning of the year, lawmakers in Raleigh have been considering a proposal that would fundamentally change how local governments operate. A House committee has proposed putting a constitutional amendment before state voters that would give legislators the authority to limit how quickly local property taxes can grow. I understand where this is coming from. Ma ...

In Wrightsville Beach, officials are navigating a complicated transportation conundrum. The N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has set the wheels in motion to replace three of the town’s aging bridges. For the estimated $105 million project, crews will build a new bridge on Causeway Drive, crossing Banks Channel, and two new bridges on West Salisbury Street ...

The town of Wrightsville Beach’s proposed budget, expected to be presented to the public in April, won’t include a tax increase, officials said at a budget workshop in late March. “The budget was created using the same tax rate as FY 26 (5.31 cents per $100 assessed tax value),” said Haynes Brigman, Wrightsville Beach town manager, to the Wrights ...

New Hanover County’s library system has changed significantly over the past few years, with the addition of two new branches.  The new downtown library branch, which opened in October 2025 as part of Project Grace, ushered in a new era for the public library system.  "Since opening the new Main Library in October, we’ve received an overwhel ...