Sofia Dinka

This week, on The Newsroom, reporters Sofia Dinka and Kelly Kenoyer dig into the current status of the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge, after a private company’s bid got rejected last month. While the specifics for the replacement aren't nailed down, a toll bridge is looking more and more likely. We'll look at the history of 1898 with Reporter Rachel Keith and how it was framed by the media at the time. She attended an educator’s summit in Wilmington that made that history come alive. And we'll look at Kelly Kenoyer's top stories in the past five years before she leaves WHQR and Wilmington.

Wilmington city officials signed an agreement to satisfy federal historical preservation requirements for the controversial Cape Fear Memorial Bridge replacement. At Tuesday’s meeting, city council members agreed to join a Programmatic Agreement (PA).

Wilmington Metropolitan Planning Organization officials discussed updates on the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge replacement project at a board meeting Wednesday, July 29. Board members heard presentations on a rejected unsolicited proposal and a historical property impact agreement.

The deadline to give public comment on bids to build a new hospital in New Hanover County is coming up. North Carolina’s last State Medical Facilities Plan identified a need for 225 more hospital beds in the county within the next few years.

Officials will hold a community meeting on the cleanup of a Superfund site in Navassa this week. Representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency and the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality will discuss plans to remove a pile of contaminated soil from the Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp-Navassa Superfund Site by November.

Wilmington city council members are weighing two funding requests for $100,000 each. At a board of council members meeting on Tuesday, city officials discussed requests from the New Hanover County Community Justice Center (CJC) and the Film Partnership of North Carolina.

In Brunswick County, a wildfire in Shallotte is 65% contained. According to officials, last Friday, a lightning strike started a 283-acre fire that officials are calling the Quarry Road Fire.

The New Hanover County Board of Elections approved the early voting schedule for the 2026 general election yesterday. The schedule still needs final approval from the North Carolina State Board of Elections.

The New Hanover County Board of Commissioners has created a new affordable housing lending fund. Commissioners unanimously approved the creation of the workforce housing investment fund yesterday.

The Carolina Museum of the Marine opened early last month in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Built in the Lejeune Memorial Gardens, its goal is to preserve the legacy of Marines and sailors from the Carolinas, telling the history of places like Camp Lejeune and Montford Point.