President's Report from May 11, 2026

One theme that has emerged in conversations across our community, both online and in person: Wilmington is no longer the small coastal town it was 25 or 35 years ago. For some residents, that change has brought frustration and concern about growth and congestion. For others, it has created new investment, jobs, and momentum for the future of our region.

More people live here. More businesses are investing here. More visitors are traveling here every year. That growth has created opportunity across southeastern North Carolina, but it has also placed increasing pressure on the systems and infrastructure that support daily life.

Residents feel it through traffic congestion and longer commute times. Employers see it in the challenge of recruiting and retaining workers, especially as housing costs continue to rise. Families experience it through growing concerns surrounding access to childcare, healthcare, and schools. Business owners see it in the increasing need for infrastructure, mobility, and long-term planning that can keep pace with growth. That reality was reflected this week both locally and at the state level.

On Wednesday, May 6, the Chamber convened members for an advocacy trip to Raleigh to meet directly with state legislative leaders, including Senators Michael Lee and Phil Berger, as well as Representatives Charlie Miller and Deb Butler. Conversations focused on issues directly connected to the region’s long-term growth and competitiveness, including workforce development, housing availability, water infrastructure, transportation, and the proposed medical school program at University of North Carolina Wilmington.

At the local level, I addressed the Wilmington Planning Commission regarding adoption of the new Greater Downtown Plan. Downtown Wilmington remains one of the region’s most important economic and cultural assets. Strong downtowns create strong communities. Downtown supports small businesses, restaurants, tourism, hospitality, arts and culture, and thousands of jobs throughout the regional economy. It also plays a major role in attracting talent, investment, and entrepreneurship to southeastern North Carolina. The Chamber’s focus remains ensuring downtown Wilmington continues evolving as a place where businesses can grow, people want to invest, and future generations can build careers and opportunities.

That same long-term thinking also applies to healthcare workforce development. Last week, the Chamber’s Executive Committee adopted a formal resolution supporting the proposed UNCW School of Medicine because the future economic success of our region depends heavily on our ability to train, attract, and retain healthcare professionals locally.

Transportation infrastructure is another area where growth is reshaping daily life across our community. For many residents and business owners, discussions surrounding NCDOT construction projects are no longer abstract planning conversations. The reality is simple: if infrastructure challenges are left unaddressed, they will eventually impact the long-term competitiveness of our region.

Parents are teaching teenagers how to drive on roads that are significantly more congested and difficult to navigate than they were a generation ago. At the same time, businesses are increasingly feeling the impact transportation challenges have on workforce recruitment, retention, and day-to-day operations.

In most growing regions, employers should be able to reasonably draw workers from a 45-minute drive radius. In southeastern North Carolina, worsening congestion is shrinking that labor shed. Commutes that were once manageable are becoming less predictable and more frustrating, limiting access to talent and making it harder for businesses to recruit and retain employees across the broader region. Mobility and infrastructure are no longer simply transportation issues. They are workforce issues, economic competitiveness issues, public safety issues, and quality-of-life issues that directly affect the future growth of our community.

More than a decade ago, NCDOT identified the intersection of Military Cutoff Road and Eastwood Road through Project U-5710 as one of the region’s most significant congestion and safety concerns. When evaluated statewide, U-5710 ranked No. 52 out of 514 transportation projects in North Carolina, placing it among the top 10% of transportation needs in the state based on traffic, congestion, mobility, and safety data.

Anyone who drives that corridor regularly understands why.

The project was designed to improve traffic flow and safety along Military Cutoff Road, one of the busiest transportation corridors in southeastern North Carolina, not to direct more traffic toward Wrightsville Beach. 

At the same time, the Chamber recognizes the importance of maintaining strong communication surrounding both U-5710 and the future replacement of the three bridges connecting Wrightsville Beach. Those bridges are critical to residents, emergency access, tourism, hospitality businesses, and the broader regional economy. As these projects move forward, the Chamber will continue working alongside impacted businesses and community stakeholders to help ensure the public remembers these businesses remain open, accessible, and essential to the vitality of our coastal economy.

As these long-term plans are adopted, we must vigilantly protect those funds for the infrastructure needs in our region. Our population, visitors, and businesses continue to grow in number. It would not behoove us to stop projects which remain necessary for our quality of life. Our local and state leaders need to hear that we remain supportive of U5710 and the positive impact it will have on our local travel times and on our safety.