At Monday’s meeting of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners, the Commissioners were provided with the latest information on work being done by the Wilmington Housing Authority to help residents return home, informed of the county’s financial solvency and approved a budget amendment to ensure wastewater can continue to be treated effectively and efficiently at the county’s Landfill.
Here are a few of those highlights in this edition of the Commissioner Meeting Recap:
Wilmington Housing Authority Remediation Update
Tyrone Garrett, Executive Director of the Wilmington Housing Authority, provided the Commissioners with the latest information on the work to address mold issues stemming from Hurricane Florence. Of the 150 housing units that were impacted by mold, 67 have been addressed allowing families to return home, with the potential to have another 46 units in habitable conditions by the end February. Back in June of 2022, New Hanover County provided $1.65 million in funding to help this process, which was also bolstered by $1.65 million from the City of Wilmington and more than $2 million from the NC Office of Recovery and Resiliency.
Review of Audit Report for 2021-22 Fiscal Year
Commissioners also received a report from accounting firm Cherry Bekaert with an audit of the county’s financial statements from the past fiscal year. After a thorough review of New Hanover County’s financial records and processes, the county had a clean audit with no irregularities, which the Commissioners unanimously approved. You can view the county’s finance documents and budgets at any time at Finance.NHCgov.com.
Wastewater Treatment at Landfill
Commissioners unanimously approved a budget amendment to reallocate existing funding for Recycling and Solid Waste to help replace the Leachate Membrane Bioreactor plant, which filters and treats the wastewater generated by the New Hanover County Landfill. The current plant was constructed in the early 1990s and needs replacement to properly treat the contaminated water at the landfill, which is as much as 55,000 gallons per day. The county’s landfill is one of the most innovative in the entire state, and among the only one that treats leachate completely on site. Learn more about the landfill and the county’s recycling and environmentally forward initiatives at Recycling.NHCgov.com.
That’s not all …
Commissioners also approved a lease agreement with The Healing Place of New Hanover County, updated its code of ethics with the board’s current members, and approved three planning items for new development in the unincorporated county, among several other items. The group also took a moment to wish Commissioner Jonathan Barfield a happy birthday! You can view the entire January 9 meeting here and below.
The next regular meeting of the Board of Commissioners is set for 9 a.m. on January 23.
The New Hanover County Board of Commissioners holds its regularly scheduled meetings on the first and third Monday of each month, unless otherwise noted. These meetings take place at the New Hanover County Historic Courthouse (24 North 3rd Street, Room 301). A schedule of the 2023 meetings can be found here.
All meetings are broadcast live on NHCTV.com, through the New Hanover County YouTube channel and on Spectrum channel 13. For meeting agendas, minutes and exhibits, visit Commissioners.NHCGov.com.