Wilmington Port Grows

The Cape Fear River has been dredged to accommodate many of the larger container ships, and four new cranes have been added to the port to accommodate them. In addition, a new, even larger port is to be built on the west side of the river to handle the massive container ships. A transportation center is planned for downtown, Riverwalk, more than a mile long, is nearing completion and new parks are being added.

Healthcare-wise, the area is making giant strides. The New Hanover County Regional Medical Center continues to expand at a rapid pace, both on the main campus and in outlying areas. On the main campus, the Betty H. Cameron Women’s and Children’s Hospital and a Surgical Pavilion are scheduled for completion in 2008, and the Inpatient Tower will be completely renovated. Related healthcare providers are building facilities at an almost dizzying rate.

The University of North Carolina at Wilmington has been adding to its campus and is ranked as one of the best public universities in the South. Cape Fear Community College continues to grow and improve to better serve the needs of our area for skills such as law enforcement, computers and health care.

We have an outstanding Cape Fear Museum, a thriving arts community, and a fantastic new aquarium. There’s a huge and fascinating Historic District, a fun downtown and a battleship guarding it all.

However, success has not been without cost. Our dramatic population growth has put a tremendous strain on an infrastructure never designed for it. Traffic woes have been significant, especially on often-clogged College Road and Market Street.

Fortunately for all of us, relief has arrived in the form of the new Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway and the I-140 Bypass, which have taken a lot of the congestion from city thoroughfares, especially Market Street. Also, the city is investing heavily in new computerized controls for the traffic lights, which will help traffic move more smoothly.

Businesses Grow

With all we have to offer, people believe strongly in this area and want to invest here. PPD’s beautiful new corporate headquarters is downtown on the river. Invista, a producer of chemicals, polymers and resins, is constructing a $200 million expansion to the plant here.

GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy recently moved the corporate headquarters here from California and is seeing a resurgence of orders for nuclear generating equipment for power plants in the U.S. and worldwide. The company has already announced plans for further expansion of their Wilmington facility.

Many other companies are entering the area or expanding here, new entrepreneurial businesses are forming, and companies serving small and large businesses are expanding too. All in all, the Wilmington area is a place to believe in and invest in.

Whatever businesses need, the Wilmington area can provide. The future looks very bright.