Starting in late July, several listeners and readers noted that social workers with New Hanover County’s Getting Home Street Outreach Program were spending more time near the entrance to the downtown library and the recently opened new location for the Cape Fear Museum, which the county refers to as the Grace District.
The Getting Home program was launched as a pilot in 2022 with federal Covid-relief funding. The county hired four social workers and a supervisor under its Health and Human Services Department, with plans to work with the Wilmington Police Department, Wilmington Downtown Incorporated’s homeless advocate, and the regional ‘coordinated entry’ program for the unhoused. The county is currently looking to expand this team by hiring for two Family Support Specialist positions.
Some asked if the social workers had been diverted away from one-on-one case management with the area’s unhoused population and instead tasked with moving homeless people away from the county’s new museum and library. However, the county maintains that those social workers are helping people access services and keeping up with their existing case management.
A county spokesperson denied claims that these social workers are essentially ‘babysitting’ people or moving them to other areas away from the county’s newest buildings, writing, “Staff are not being diverted from their work.” They also added that they are not “security or law enforcement.” The county spokesperson also refuted the claim that these social workers were focused on preventing loitering, saying New Hanover County does not regulate it.
The county did acknowledge it had changed the focus of the Getting Home team.
“Since late July, the team, four social workers and a supervisor, has increased its presence in the downtown corridor, including near the Grace District,” a county spokesperson told WHQR, saying this had improved access to people experiencing homelessness – who do sometimes congregate on the benches and areas around the county property.
According to the spokesperson, New Hanover County Manager Chris Coudriet has directed the team to be physically present outside normal business hours. These four social workers — and a supervisor — on average, earn $38.23 an hour but are earning overtime at $57.34 an hour in front of the new buildings. From late July until mid September, the county paid those four social workers an additional $7,981.
The area in front of the Cape Fear Museum and Main Library is “where the need for services is highest,” a spokesperson said.
They added that staff not stationed in front of the library and museum maintain an office at 320 Chestnut to help connect people with services such as housing support. They also noted work done by offices located at the county’s Health and Human Services building on Greenfield Street.
Since the program rolled out, officials say it has directed 468 unhoused people into services; of those, 214 have been connected to permanent housing. They also say they’ve helped make 437 employment connections. Overall, the team has recorded 15,536 outreach and case management interactions.
More specifically, since July 2026, the team has recorded 798 interactions with people downtown, and 22 people have secured housing since coming into contact with the county’s social workers.
WHQR requested records documenting in more detail the types of services they’re providing (i.e. documents that list things like counseling, case management, appointments, with redacted personal information) in front of these two buildings – and was only sent statements from a county spokesperson. The county added that it does not track a daily count of unsheltered individuals or a breakdown of people accessing services for the first time versus repeated requests.
A note on restricting begging
A side note: Chapter 38 of the county code states that people are prohibited from “beg[ging], solicit[ing] or otherwise canvass[ing] the public for contributions for the private benefit of the solicitor or any other person while upon the premises of any county building.” Violation of this can be a misdemeanor.
North Carolina passed laws in the early 1970s, authorizing cities and counties to regulate begging. But more recently, several U.S. Supreme Court and Court of Appeals rulings have found begging is generally protected under the First Amendment.
In 2022, the City of Wilmington updated its ordinances, noting that “North Carolina and Federal courts have subsequently issued multiple rulings to clarify that panhandling and solicitation of charitable contributions are forms of protected speech under the First Amendment, and that public streets and medians are traditional public forums.” The city added language more specifically banning begging and solicitation that was ‘aggressive or intimidating,’ or within 21 feet of an ATM.
The county said it has not faced any legal challenges over its code language, and has no current proposals to amend it. However, a spokesperson said that “in light of case law,” it only enforces the code when it becomes certain kinds of disruptive behavior.
“Courts have recognized that asking for money or food is protected by the First Amendment in traditional public forums, including streets, sidewalks, and parks. Many of the county's outdoor spaces fall into that category. The county allows someone to hold a sign or ask for help in those spaces and does not prohibit it simply because they are asking. The line is conduct independent of the request. If the conduct turns into harassment, blocking access, or disrupting traffic, the county can address that behavior,” a county spokesperson said.
