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CAPE FEAR MEMORIAL BRIDGE CLOSURE: UPDATES, RESOURCES, AND CONTEXT

Port City Politics: Week of August 2 - Toll bridge, Tru Colors, gun violence, Live Nation

On this episode, toll-bridge to nowhere, Tru Colors and gun violence, and Live Nation leaves a mess and gets someone else to pick it up.

Following several weeks’ worth of discussions the Wilmington Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization voted not to pursue the idea of replacing the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge with a toll bridge. The suggestion came after a private company submitted an unsolicited proposal to help speed up the bridge replacement process. While the vote was split, ultimately the idea did not have enough support from local area leaders to move the proposal forward.

The first story this week surrounds the ongoing gun violence in Wilmington. The most recent spate of shootings started with the double homicide off Providence Road in northern New Hanover County, owned by George Taylor III, COO of Tru Colors Brewing.

In another shooting, 50-year-old Tracey Lee McKoy of Wake Forest, NC was shot and killed in the shooting on South 13th street. Just one day before that shooting, police investigated shots fired at Fifth Avenue and Grace St.Police say two vehicles, one of which was occupied, were struck by the gunfire.

Chief of Police Donny Williams spoke with WECT’s Frances Weller about the ongoing violence and whether or not people should be worried about their safety. Williams explained he could not predict the future and said that people should be aware of their surroundings.

Riverfront Park is finally open and shows are underway, while things have been touted as a success, one concern of residents was the amounts of trash left behind by concertgoers, as well as the use of volunteers to clean up.

Want to watch the episode? Find it here from WECT.

Ben Schachtman is a journalist and editor with a focus on local government accountability. He began reporting for Port City Daily in the Wilmington area in 2016 and took over as managing editor there in 2018. He’s a graduate of Rutgers College and later received his MA from NYU and his PhD from SUNY-Stony Brook, both in English Literature.