-
Camille Mojica/WHQRAlpek is the source of a large proportion of the 1,4 dioxane in the Cape Fear River. Its closure in July will increase water quality for residents downstream. -
Benjamin Schachtman/WHQROn Thursday evening, New Hanover County commissioners approved the 2025-2026 budget in a party-line 3-2 vote. The budget, which came together on the eve of the agenda review meeting, is based on a 30.6-cent tax rate, and cuts $36 million from staff's earlier 35-cent version. To achieve that reduction, the budget makes significant cuts, eliminating funding for affordable housing and nonprofits, cutting funding for the Northside Co-op, scaling back pre-K and social workers, and removing roughly 100 positions, including 70 active employees. Commissioners debated budget priorities for hours before taking a tense vote, which had initially been slated for Monday's regular meeting next week.
-
Recently, two cetacean bodies, a bottlenose dolphin and a whale, were tampered with, and the federal law enforcement arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is investigating. Local scientists have the resources to respond to these cases because of federal regulations, such as the Endangered Species and Marine Mammal Protection Acts. These laws help to protect these animals, but the Trump administration and the Republican-controlled Congress are signaling possible changes to them, and the funding goes along with it, which researchers say is cause for concern. -
The Wilmington Police Department initiated a traffic stop on a stolen vehicle just after 3 a.m. Monday morning. -
A new call-in center launched on Monday to expand access to legal support across the state. -
The first day of summer is Friday, June 20, which means it’s time for fun in the sun, but New Hanover and Pender County District Attorney Jason Smith wants to remind families to ‘look before you lock’ as temperatures rise. -
The parents of a JV football player at Laney High School say their son was benched at the last moment before the season opener, replaced with a student whose family had recently made a significant donation to the school. Afterward, they say their son was iced out by coaches, who refused to explain their decision. The family filed a grievance, which went nowhere. While they were initially offered a chance to appeal to the school board, officials later changed their mind — as the parents ramped up their allegations against the administration. -
From this week's Sunday Edition: WHQR News Director Benjamin Schachtman does a little housekeeping, with some notes on the Trump Administration's attack on the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the growing pains of public-private partnerships, and the recent efforts to cut local budgets around the Cape Fear region. -
An invasive species of algae is driving increases in mercury levels in the food chain. The algae is also contributing to erosion. -
On Thursday, narcotics investigators with the Wilmington Police Department executed a search warrant in the 1200 block of South 8th Street as a result of a months-long investigation into 41-year-old Lavar Wright. -
City of Wilmington issues stop-work order at Galleria site over ‘discrepancies’ in tree removal planImages of oak trees being removed from the property on Wrightsville Avenue were shared by numerous residents, as well as by City Councilman Luke Waddell. According to the city, the tree removal plan — including several significant oak trees — was approved under an older land development code, and was exempted from stricter regulations that have been added since. -
Leila Fadel, host of NPR's Morning Edition and the Up First podcast, came to Wilmington last month for WHQR's luncheon. On this episode of The Newsroom, we've got her keynote speech, a Q-and-A session with the audience, and a one-on-one interview with WHQR News Director Ben Schachtman.
