The candidates’ responses are presented without edits (except for formatting).
Below are the responses from unaffiliated candidate Bob Fulton.
Many residents worry that infrastructure in the Cape Fear Region can’t keep up with the rapid pace of development. What strategies do you suggest to improve infrastructure and manage development?
The first would be to turn to our Brunswick County Planning Department, the professional staff, and ask how we got where we are. They are the experts and would facilitate identifying and prioritizing the efforts to close the gap on infrastructure caused by overdevelopment. The other primary concern is funding. I would undertake to get consensus from the Board of Commissioners to lobby the NC legislators to remove the suspension on “access” fee assessment and restore the statutory ability to allow county governments to assess developers to help offset the costs to the county to maintain public services at the appropriate level to sustain growth.
Rampant development is creating concerns around stormwater flooding in existing areas of Brunswick County. How will you address the problem of flooding in the unincorporated areas where you manage development?
Planned developments need to submit and obtain an approved stormwater plan. Inspections need to be conducted, not just reviews of submissions. A priority needs to be placed on updating our dated Uniform Development Ordinances to include protecting wetlands, to bring Brunswick County up to a standard which will prevent the potential for flooding. This would serve to protect not only new residents moving into the county but also those who already live here adjacent to proposed new development.
New Hanover County leadership have suggested it’s the role of neighboring counties to accommodate the rocketing population growth in the region. What role should Brunswick County play in accommodating expected regional population growth?
Honest, objective participation in the planning effort for the region without succumbing to lobbying or pressure of special interest groups. Everyone should have a voice, but one voice should not be accepted without weighing the value of others. Our county does have an approved blueprint for growth, it just is not being followed. We must assess that plan and coordinate its implementation with others in the region to support a manageable, integrated scheme of sustainable growth without overtaxing existing infrastructure.
Housing Affordability is top of mind for many voters this election – housing is driving up the cost of living for many North Carolinians. What steps will you take to address the housing crisis and provide more affordable housing?
We need to be honest about addressing “affordable”, or “workforce housing”. Our house vacancy rate is triple the national average and yet we have no viable workforce housing. I will work to get consensus among the Commissioners to direct county management to address the need for housing for public service and other families who need true affordable housing. Other counties have found collaborative ways to make this work. We can too, we just have to agree to do it.
What’s your stance on taxes? When is it appropriate to raise them, and if you’d like to lower them, where do you expect to find cuts?
I can appreciate that the current Commissioners are praised for not raising taxes. I do not think that was in the best interest of the citizens of Brunswick County. Without an influx of new revenue, the cost of inflation necessitates either higher taxes or a reduction of services and stresses on infrastructure. One source of additional revenue is to reinstitute development access fees which I would support.
Responsible and accountable government is a necessity to avoid raising taxes. That responsibility starts at the County Commissioner level and must be applied to every department, every board, every employee to work to the benefit of the residents of Brunswick County.
While I am willing to assess suggestions to reduce taxes, I would have to be assured that essential and necessary services would not be reduced.
Traffic is a serious problem in Brunswick County, particularly over the bridge into New Hanover County. What future do you see for public transit in Brunswick County, and will it be tied in with Wave Transit to create a regional network?
Traffic, especially the increased volume of traffic associated with the state’s highest growth rate, is a problem which must be dealt with. Commissioners must use their position to leverage NC DOT action to alleviate habitual traffic and road repair issues such as recurring bridge and road closures due to major rain events and emergency evacuation questions in Brunswick County. The bridge into Hanover County is an economic issue which is of great concern. How and when this bridge is improved and expanded affects commerce and working individuals equally. I honestly believe this critical bridge sustaining commerce into and out of the Port of Wilmington is crucial in sustaining the projected growth the entire region, if not the state. The public has spoken and is against a commercial toll bridge as the remedy. Generations have paid into sustaining the major roadways of this state and the maintenance of this particular bridge has been passed along far enough. To suggest that now taxpayers, especially those who commute to work, should shoulder the responsibility by paying tolls to use the bridge is unfair. As this coastal region grows, there must be a concerted effort to establish a transit system to move us towards a regional mass transit system.