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NHC Commissioners approve land donation for Novant Health Michael Jordan Clinic

WHQR | By Rachel Keith

Published July 13, 2021 at 4:03 PM EDT

Site Plan for 1410 South 15th Street. According to New Hanover County, the property was originally purchased for overflow parking for the Health and Human Services building. The county determined this was not needed after 18-months.

At the Tuesday, July 13th New Hanover County Commission meeting, the board unanimously approved a 2-acre land donation for one of two Novant Health’s Michael Jordan Family Medical Clinics planned in the Wilmington area.

The county bought the 1410 South 15th Street property from Duke Energy in 2018 for $200,000.

In addition to the medical clinic, Novant Health is looking into plans for a day shelter for people who are homeless. A possible limitation is the space available on the site.

Another issue, according to Commissioner Jonathan Barfield, would be potential competition for limited resources between a new homeless shelter and the Good Shepherd Center’s nearby existing operations.

“So while we have land to give, my goal is always not to water down the efforts of others in the process to make one look good and not one look as well. It’s something we definitely need to have a lens on to make sure we’re not harming other entities that are doing the same work for the benefit of receiving these dollars," Barfield said.

Commissioner Jonathan Barfield asking questions about whether other community partners were consulted about Novant Health's plans for the potential day homeless shelter.

But Barfield said he is supportive of Michael Jordan’s donation and the county giving the land to build the clinic.

Dr. Philip Brown is the Chief Community Impact Officer for Novant Health. He said, according to data provided byCape Fear Collective, this site has the highest need in the county for support services:

“That’s based on five key factors around the percentage of Medicaid and self-pay; ED [emergency department] cases for low acuity meaning they should have been seen somewhere else and probably earlier; households with no vehicles; food insecurity; as well as looking at the percentage in those communities below 300% of the poverty level," Brown said.

Dr. Philip Brown said, "Completion of construction for [the clinic] is expected to take an estimated 12-months from receipt of a building permit, resulting in an anticipated opening in 2023."

Dr. Brown said those patients under 300% of the federal poverty level threshold can receive health care and never receive a bill from Novant Health.

In the agreement, if Novant Health does not start construction within five years, the property will then revert back to the county.

New Hanover County Agenda 2021 07-13 Novant Clinic by Ben Schachtman on Scribd