Wilmington City Council held its second regular meeting for the month of October.
First up, council received two presentations: first, the Wilmington Urban Area MPO annual update (watch here) and an update on the Cape Fear Navigating Change 2050 long-range metropolitan transportation plan (watch here), which will guide all manner of transportation projects in our region over the next 25 years.
“This plan is the blueprint for our region. It is the gold standard of transportation planning,” said Vanessa Lacer, senior transportation planner for the WMPO. “Please take the survey, which you can find at WMPO.org. This is our tool, our strongest tool to understand what the community wants and needs. So, if you haven’t taken it, please do.”
Next, council awarded a construction contract for the MLK Community Center upgrade.
This $4.5 million upgrade, which is a voter-approved Parks Bond project, includes the addition of a commercial kitchen, lobby, restrooms, office space and high school regulation-sized gymnasium.
Because of rising construction costs, council also approved an additional $1.15 million dollars of funding.
Next, council authorized the Wilmington Housing Authority to issue up to $16 million in bonds towards the development of 104 affordable rental housing units known as Tidewater Townhomes.
While the city is not financing this project, its approval is required because the project is located within city limits.
Finally, council authorized agreements with multiple organizations to narrow the digital divide in our community through job skills training and workforce development.
City Council will meet again on November 8 at 6:30 p.m. For more on this meeting, visit WilmingtonNC.gov.