Mayor Alan Holden addresses questions about Holden Beach’s Town Manager David Hewett

"I am freaking tired of it, and now you all have fired the best manager that any town could ever have."

BRUNSWICK COUNTY (WWAY)–Following last night’s termination of Holden Beach town manager David Hewett, we reached out to Mayor Alan Holden to see how the commissioners reached this decision.
After a 3 – 2 vote, the town of Holden Beach commissioners unexpectedly fired 16-year veteran David Hewett as town manager, which upset a few residents.

“I am freaking tired of it, and now you all have fired the best manager that any town could ever have,” exclaimed one Holden Beach resident.

Over at “Re/Max at the beach,” I met with the town’s mayor, Alan Holden, to hear the reason for this decision.

Reporter: “Why did the town decide to terminate David Hewett?
Holden: “I have no idea.”
Reporter: “Did anything happen during the closed session?”
Holden: “I can’t talk about that. I’ll just tell you there was very little discussion. It was just wham bam thinking.”
Reporter: “Before the end of the meeting, you said, ‘This is the most unprofessional– whatever. What did you say?
Holden: “To bring him in, in front of the public without his knowledge of why he was being brought in, and being told he was being fired before they made a motion and embarrass him in front of the crowd, I thought it was very unprofessional.”
Reporter: “Does this decision upset you?”
Holden: “It did.”
Reporter: “The feelings are still the same today?”
Holden: “They are.”
Reporter: “So, what’s next from here?”
Holden: “I have no idea what those three commissioners are going to do.”

Residents speculate the decision involves the Holden Beach Pier, which was in discussion to be renovated. They also believe the board can never agree on decisions since three new commissioners were elected.

“It’s not the entire board. It’s the three newly elected – from what I can tell, it’s the three newly elected that have a different shift and different vision of what this local town should be,” says resident Keith Smith. “They are very good at identifying issues that need to be taken care of.”

WWAY reached out to David Hewett and every commissioner on the board for comment. We have not heard anything back yet. We will keep you updated on air and online as we learn more.