Wilmington council votes to oppose aspects of Cape Fear Memorial Bridge replacement plan

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - Wilmington City Council voted unanimously Tuesday, Sep. 1, to recommend that one design option and one option to pay for a new Cape Fear Memorial Bridge be taken off the table.

Council wants NCDOT to eliminate the 135-foot, fixed bridge option, also known as Alternative B. According to council, the issue is where that bridge would land.

“It would land in Wilmington at 5th Avenue. We’re looking at upwards of 15,000 additional cars moving north on Fifth Avenue with that alternative. And Fifth Avenue just does not built for that level of traffic,” councilmember Cassidy Santaguida said.

The second largest part of Wilmington’s official recommendation is eliminating tolls as a way to pay for the project.

“A toll is going to impact the workers in our community who cross the bridge every day,” Santaguida said. “It’s going to impact people who come into the city for recreation, for health care appointments, to go to school.”

The resolution does not make any official changes. The North Carolina Department of Transportation is taking public comments on the project, and the resolution will serve as the city’s official comment for the public record.

The Cape Fear area is one year out from a deadline to secure a large chunk of funding for the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge replacement project. There are still many unknowns about the project, including how the bridge will look and how it will be paid off.

“It’s the biggest swing that we’re taking from a transportation infrastructure investment. We want to make sure we get it right,” Public Affairs Officer for Wilmington Chamber of Commerce Megan Mullins said.

City council’s resolution also recommends DOT look at more options and delay any final decision until reviews are done on environmental and historical impacts.

The Wilmington Chamber of Commerce’s position is to keep the project moving forward.

“We have federal and and state grant funds to to the sum of $327 million that are tied to a deadline next September,” Mullins said. “We need to meet this deadline to keep that grant funding in play. It’s important that we get it right and that we keep the process moving.”

NCDOT’s public comment period goes until Oct. 15. There will be two public hearings on the bridge replacement project:

• Monday, Sept. 14, at 6 p.m. in Daniels Hall at Cape Fear Community College’s downtown Wilmington campus
• Tuesday, Sept. 15, at 6 p.m. at the Leland Cultural Arts Center

Public comments can be submitted via phone, email or through NCDOT’s public input portal until Oct. 15.

Click here for more information on the bridge replacement project.