New Hanover County Planning Board votes to not approve recommendation regarding development of the Cape Fear West Bank

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — The New Hanover County Planning Board met Thursday night and rejected a staff recommendation regarding the development of the Western Bank of the Cape Fear River.

The board voted 3-1 not to approve the recommendation, but members like Colin Tarrant said some issues were worth addressing.

“And I believe staff indicated during their presentation that that would pose extreme hurdles for the county, both legally and ultimately financially, if in fact that was the route that they wanted to take,” Tarrant said.

The board wants to bring in consultants to look at a master plan of the West Bank and New Hanover County as a whole and look at marketing analysis of the West Bank.

The Board also wants to look at potential rezoning of the area.

County resident Kayne Darrell said the lack of approval is a step in the right direction and that the West Bank needs to remain preserved as much as possible.

“I mean, why not make it an educational center and talk about the history and the historical content of what’s over there and put in some nature walks,” Darrell said.

She also said any development issues go beyond financial or legal concerns.

“There are a lot of issues,” Darrell said. “Its a brown field. There is, there were industries over there. That pollution needs to be cleaned up but obviously, if you look at the data that all of our experts have provided to the staff and to the planning board, you have to scratch your head and wonder who thinks developing that area is a good idea.”

County commissioners will discuss and vote on the Planning Board’s recommendation at the meeting next week.