New Hanover County Commissioners greenlight agreement for Northside grocery store

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — The Northside community in Wilmington is on the brink of welcoming a long-awaited addition: a grocery store. New Hanover County commissioners took a significant step forward by approving an agreement during their recent session.

The agreement delineates the funding structure for the grocery store, which is slated to be managed by the Northside Food Cooperative. The store will occupy a two-and-a-half-acre plot of land located at 10th and Post Streets in downtown Wilmington. this land was donated by the City of Wilmington to the county, with the stipulation that it be utilized for a grocery store.

Commissioners had previously earmarked over $2 million in 2022 to facilitate the construction of the store. This year, the efforts received a substantial boost when the New Hanover Community Endowment awarded an additional $6 million to cover construction costs. The agreement also outlines that the county will allocate $1.55 million to help the grocery store stay afloat for the first five years.

Despite the generally positive outlook, commissioners did express some reservations regarding one aspect of the agreement. Specifically, there was concern about the potential scenario in which the grocery store might fail, leading to the return of the land to the city. Vice Chair Leann Pierce addressed these concerns to County Manager Chris Coudriet.

“Is there a land lease between the county and the city on that land because I know we all want it to succeed and wish it the best and hope that it does but I always like to prepare for the worst and if we build a $9 million building on that piece of that we don’t own, I’m concerned about that,” said Pierce.

Despite these concerns, commissioners ultimately voted to approve the agreement under the condition that the city agrees to allow the county to retain ownership of the land should the grocery store cease its operations.