New Hanover County Commissioners continue work on budget as cuts are considered

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — New Hanover County Commissioners discussed funding priorities for the upcoming fiscal year at another budget work session on Monday.

One item briefly discussed was the future of Port City United (PCU).

The department was created two years ago to address community violence.

But an employee charged with drug offenses last week has put the program’s future in jeopardy.

The arrest is the second of a PCU employee in recent weeks.

County commissioners were divided on how best to handle the program moving forward.

Some options discussed Monday ranged from reducing the program’s number of administrators to ending all funding.

Commissioner Jonathan Barfield Jr believes all of Port City United shouldn’t be punished for one person’s mistake, while fellow commissioner Dane Scalise is against continuing to fund the program.

“I would never take the incident of one individual and paint the whole department with that,” Barfield Jr said. “You know, you have incidents in law enforcement. Because you had one bad law enforcement officer, do you get rid of your police department? The answer to that question is no and we’ve seen throughout our other departments as well where people have made mistakes and we don’t get rid of departments because one person made a mistake.”

“My position is that it is time to cut the entirety of Port City United,” Scalise said. “I do not want to see Port City United in next year’s budget and I’m going to advocate for that case. I think it should be a unanimous determination.”

Scalise also said that education is an important part of the budget, as the county will give an additional $10 million to the county’s educational system.

The budget is expected to be approved in June.