This week, the North Carolina Department of Transportation held two public meetings — one in New Hanover County, and one in Brunswick County — to discuss two new construction projects. They're asking for public input on their plans to replace the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge and widen South Front Street.
Engineers from the NCDOT say the "functionally obsolete" Cape Fear Memorial Bridge, which was built in 1969, will need to be replaced with a significantly larger bridge to cope with projected population and traffic increases. But the new bridge will also have major impacts on downtown Wilmington, with at least 67 property owners directly impacted by proposed designs.
Here are some of the key points of these two projects.
Building a new bridge
The new bridge will be significantly larger, with space for six lanes instead of the current four lanes, as well as a median and a pedestrian walkway. Currently, the NCDOT is exploring three different options:
Alternate A is a movable drawbridge with vertical clearance ranging from 65 to 135 feet.
Alternate B is a 135-foot tall fixed bridge.
Alternate C is a 100-foot tall fixed bridge. This design's height may increase or decrease by 35 feet, depending on what the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 408 Section and the U.S. Coast Guard determines.
The most expensive option is the movable bridge, which NCDOT projects will cost $765.9 million. Alternate B is estimated to be $452.9 million. Alternate C does not yet have a cost estimate, but engineer Trace Howell told WHQR it will likely be the cheapest.
Alternate B appears to have the greatest projected impacts on property owners. Building a taller bridge requires a longer off-ramp. With this design, bridge traffic would begin at Fifth Street and continue on an overpass above Third Street and Fourth Street. Critics say that this design choice would lead to home demolitions and other negative impacts in the Historic District of Wilmington.
One outspoken opponent to Alternate B is the Historic Wilmington Foundation, whose development director Isabelle Shepherd penned an op-ed about the bridge for the Greater Wilmington Business Journal this past July.
"The bridge, ramps, overpass, supporting structures, and the traffic carried on them would create unsightly views, noise, grime, and vibrations for several blocks," she wrote. "These ill effects would dramatically reduce property values, causing urban blight, discouraging private investment and preservation efforts, and leading to the demolition by neglect of historic properties."
NCDOT's project maps include a list of 67 properties that may be directly impacted by bridge construction. Click here to view the list and other project details.
Public comment on these options will be open until October 25th. Click here to submit input on the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge.
Changes to South Front Street
The NCDOT is planning to widen South Front Street in order to cope with traffic congestion, decrease accidents and improve pedestrian safety.
The new design transforms South Front Street from a two-lane road to a four-lane road, with a median and multi-use path. It will also add traffic signals to five different intersections, and convert four intersections to right-in/right-out traffic patterns.
The total cost is estimated to be $31.6 million, with construction slated to begin in 2027. Public comment will be open until October 25th. Click here to submit input on South Front Street.