Home Care In Castle Hayne, NC

NEW HANOVER COUNTY — An affordable senior living development will break ground this week, adding to the needed housing stock in the community.

READ MORE: NHC Commissioners to consider doling out $3M in loans for affordable housing

New Beginning Christian Church, in collaboration with East Carolina Community Development will break ground Thursday at noon on construction for 68 units for residents 55 and older.

The 10-acre complex is planned for 3120 Alex Trask Drive in Castle Hayne, a property bought by the church in 2013. Eligible tenants must meet the age requirements and earn no more than 60% of the average median income. Seventeen units will be available for tenants making 30% median income and 11 will be affordable to those earning 50% AMI.

One-, two-, and three-bedroom units will be available, starting in late 2024.

The project is being funded by East Carolina Community Development, through a $1.5 million loan from New Hanover County. Commissioners approved the 20-year term and 2% interest rate associated in October.

The loan will only coverage a portion of the nearly $15 million build.

The project, dubbed The Covenant, is primarily sponsored by New Beginnings Christian Church though residents do not have to be church members to be considered.

The church started in 1993 and is led by Pastor Robert Campbell whose mission is to serve “outside the four walls of the church and into the community,” according to a press release. Campbell works with and provides financial support to several local nonprofits, advocates for improved schools, helps reduce the number of youth incarcerated and serves the under-privileged.

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WILMINGTON — Do you know how to safely and properly install a car seat? The Wilmington Fire Department is offering courtesy checks for residents at multiple locations this summer.

According to Safe Kids Worldwide, road injuries are the leading cause of preventable deaths and injuries to children in the U.S. When correctly used, car seats can reduce the risk of death by as much as 71%.

Despite this, more than half of car seats are not used or installed correctly, according to a release.

At WFD, child passenger safety technicians are ready to help ensure all children’s safety in vehicles. Seat checks will be held at the following dates and times:

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NEW HANOVER COUNTY — A Castle Hayne church is planning the second phase of its residential community in the northern part of the county, this time dedicating the units for families.

New Beginning Christian Church is looking to bring 180 multi-family units to the area on almost 11 acres along Blue Clay Road. It will join the church’s recent construction on a senior affordable housing community, Covenant Senior Community, on 10 acres at 3120 Alex Trask Drive in Castle Hayne.

Both phases will be overseen by East Carolina Community Development.

The senior community was funded in part by a $1.5 million loan from New Hanover County. Commissioners approved the 20-year term and 2% interest rate associated in October 2022. The loan will only cover a portion of the nearly $15 million build.

The church’s pastor Robert Campbell said the family phase, which will be a mix of affordable and workforce housing, is estimated at $35 million, but he has not gathered the financing yet from community partnerships.

Campbell told Port City Daily on Tuesday both communities were part of the church’s mission to ease the housing crisis in New Hanover County.

“We just want to provide affordable and workforce housing to the community,” Campbell said, though the exact terms have not been finalized.

The pastor has reached out to the county to gauge its interest in helping secure affordable housing funding from the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency, but has not received a commitment from the county.

When it opens in 2024, the senior community will be available to residents at least 55 years old who earn no more than 60% of the average median income. Seventeen units will be available for tenants making 30% median income and 11 will be affordable to those earning 50% AMI. The residents do not have to be members of the church to apply.

The church will need to secure a conditional zoning to up the density on the project.

The subject tract in Blue Clay’s 3100 block needs to go from R5 residential, which allows up to 68 homes, to RMF-17, a multi-family district with a conditional district, for the development of up to 180 homes.

According to the preliminary site plan, the development will be situated between single family homes to its north and south and beside the New Beginning Christian Church. The senior living phase is located to the southwest.

The site plan shows 16 buildings arranged in a circle near the border of the property, with parking located in the interior. Residents will be able to access the property from Blue Clay Road and from the church property on the other side of the development.

Campbell said the plan is to transfer the property into an LLC managed by the developer when complete.

A community meeting has been scheduled for Aug. 23 at 6 p.m. at the New Beginning Christian Church, 3120 Alex Trask Drive to gain nearby residents’ feedback.

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A Wrightsville Beach business owner has plans to build a new business park on a wooded lot in Castle Hayne.

The project would become the third business park in the works for this northern part of New Hanover County. Neighbors say they prefer industrial to residential development on the site, but many have lingering traffic concerns.

Project developer Jarrod Covington purchased the 17.9 acres at 4012 Castle Hayne Road in July 2021, according to New Hanover County property records. Covington owns Wrightsville SUP, a paddleboard and kayak rental business in Wrightsville Beach along with several rental properties.

More:What you need to know about hundreds of new apartments, homes proposed along Blue Clay Road

More:How Castle Hayne has evolved from dirt roads to $1 million homes

When he bought the land, he didn’t really have a plan for the site, which is located north of Interstate 140 near GE Hitachi.

“I didn't know what I wanted to do with it at the time,” he said, “but I knew that there was a lot of opportunity there because it was in a great location.”

Last year, nearly 30 acres of nearby farmland were rezoned for a warehouse and office park and New Hanover County is making progress on its own Blue Clay Business Park on land east of both planned industrial parks.

For Covington's proposal to move forward, the site needs to be rezoned for commercial services. The project went before the New Hanover County Planning Board last month for a general rezoning. During the meeting, board members asked Covington for more detail about the types of businesses allowed in the park.

In response, Covington developed a more detailed plan for what he’s calling Castle Hayne Business Park. It includes 10 buildings, which range from 2,000 to 30,000 square feet. Covington plans to build the park in phases, as financing allows.

“I'm not a big developer," he said. "I don't have big finances behind me.”

Neighbors say they have concerns about the impact of additional traffic on Castle Hayne Road.

Tootie Murphy, who's lived in the area for more than 35 years, has concerns about an entrance planned on a curve in Castle Hayne Road. Murphy attended a recent community meeting hosted by Covington.

“For me, it's a safety issue,” she said. “It's a blind curve, and people are going 55, 60 (miles per hour) and they shouldn't be.”

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Lifelong resident Melvin Watkins, Jr. agreed the stretch of Castle Hayne Road sees its share of collisions.

“We see wrecks there all the time,” he said.

He hopes a second entrance along the less-busy Hermitage Road will be used for primary access.

Still, Watkins, whose land backs up to the development site, said he favors the current proposal over a neighborhood of homes or apartments.

“I'd like to see it stay wooded and all natural like it’s been all my life,” he said, “but if it's going to be built I'd rather see this than residential.”

Reporter Emma Dill can be reached at [email protected].

NEW HANOVER — The effects of PFAS contamination is far-reaching in southeastern North Carolina and for those using well water in the Castle Hayne area off Oakley and Rockhill roads, clean water is on the way.

New Hanover County commissioners unanimously voted to allocate $40,000 from its fiscal year 2023 general fund to install more water stations in unincorporated areas of the county. The money will cover connection fees, meters, plumbing, administrative costs and operation for five years minimum.

READ MORE: CFPUA files second lawsuit against DuPont, Chemours

ALSO: Catch up on more recent PFAS reporting

Staff and Cape Fear Public Utility have been working toward solutions to address groundwater contamination caused by Chemours’ Fayetteville Works facility, located 70 miles upstream from the greater Wilmington area. For four decades the global chemical company, an offshoot of DuPont, has released PFAS into the Cape Fear River, used to treat drinking water for 200,000 CFPUA customers.

PFAS persist in soils, groundwater and the air for thousands of years, earning the name “forever chemicals.” The pollutants’ effects on humans are still being researched, however, studies have shown it can lead to cancer, liver damage, decreased fertility, and increased risk of asthma and thyroid disease.

CFPUA completed the installation of its granular-activated reverse osmosis system at its Sweeney Water Treatment Plant last fall to filter water to 80%of its customer base. The remaining 20% is provided through groundwater wells. The Richardson System covers customers in Porters Neck, Ogden and other northern county areas, while Monterey Heights, a smaller system of five groundwater wells, distributes to the Monkey Junction area.

For those who aren’t CFPUA customers, the county is proposing installing four water stations for roughly $10,000 each. Two similar stations were put into place in Ogden and Veterans parks five years ago, when the contaminated drinking water was first discovered locally. Both stations are still operational and procure water from CFPUA’s two groundwater systems.

“Some residents are eligible for remedies outlined in the Chemours’ consent order or live adjacent to existing lines where connection is possible on the residents’ dime,” Rebekah Roth, planning and land use director, presented to commissioners Monday.

A consent order in 2019 filed by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and Cape Fear River Watch had the company remediate and reduce downstream contamination, as well as decrease emissions in air, soil and groundwater. Chemours is required to sample and test well water for anyone who requests it in the region.

Expanded in 2021, the consent order now reaches more people in the Lower Cape Fear, including in New Hanover, Brunswick, Columbus, and Pender counties. It denotes households with contaminated groundwater would be able to receive bottled water or have a reverse osmosis system installed, paid by Chemours. The latter applies if the combined quantifiable concentrations of certain PFAS exceed 70 parts per trillion or qualified individual PFAS are beyond 10 ppt.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s health advisory for GenX chemicals is 10 ppt, though there is nothing yet in place enforcing the guidance. EPA has proposed the regulation of six PFAS compounds in public water systems, including PFOA and PFOS at 4 ppt and GenX chemicals including PFNA, PFHxS and PFBS (the public can comment here ahead of a public hearing slated for May 4).

The county has been working with CFPUA to pinpoint areas that would benefit from additional water stations. CFPUA representative Cammie Bellamy confirmed to PCD that Rockhill community members began inquiring about availability of utility services in the Castle Hayne neighborhood at the end of 2022.

“Several homeowners had received letters from Chemours alerting them that testing services were available for their private groundwater wells,” Bellamy wrote in an email to PCD.

The Rockhill-Oakdale communities have been outspoken about water safety for six months. Roth relayed to commissioners, “given the relationships and community support,” it seemed a logical place for one of the installations.

Increasing public water stations is part of a larger strategic plan the county is working with CFPUA toward implementing. Roth said it includes expanding utility infrastructure, but that will require reworking the sewer and water revolving loans program that started 20 years ago.

Administered by the county’s planning and land use department, the program helps connect low- and moderate-income households to public water and sewer with zero interest loans. It’s only available to qualifying households in unincorporated areas, normally up to $4,000 and to be paid over five to 10 years.

“Guidelines are not aligned with current infrastructure costs and community needs,” Roth said.

Commissioners voted to approve its restructuring; as staff works through changes, no applications will be accepted for the program until new guidelines are established.

In the meantime, CFPUA has provided insight on where the other three stations could go, Roth told PCD. However, it’s still early in the process to firm up those details. Locations depend on a variety of factors, including accessibility and convenience for community members, locations within reach of public water hookups and a property owner’s “capacity to serve as partner.”

“Additional water station partnerships will be based on CFPUA’s and NCDEQ’s groundwater quality data about the communities most in need of the short-term solution and would be developed and administered by the county’s housing program team,” she told the board.

Commissioner Rob Zapple asked staff to consider expanding the pilot program even farther north into the county, specifically to Northern Regional Park.

“It was recently brought to my attention that there is no water source up there in that park that we are expanding, including more multi-use fields and more soccer fields,” he said. “They don’t have a drinking fountain … so if you can, please, add that on your list.”

[Ed. note: More information about Chemours’ well-sampling is available by calling (910) 678-1100 or learn more here.]

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NEW HANOVER COUNTY — A new business park could soon add to the growing commercial and residential developments in the north end of New Hanover County.

Paramounte Engineering and property owner Jarrod Covington have set the date for a community meeting to discuss a 17-acre business park proposal. Paramounte, responsible for several high-density housing projects in the county, has designed a 10-building park totaling nearly 100,000 square feet of commercial space.

READ MORE: $500K, 35 jobs: NHC approves 2 sales in Blue Clay Business Park

The vacant tract sits near the General Electric plant at the intersection of Hermitage and Castle Hayne roads, bordering single-family homes and a couple other vacant parcels. The park will be accessible from both roads.

Covington requested a straight rezoning of the property in March and didn’t have a plan attached to it; however, the county’s planning board and community members requested a detailed proposal to clarify his intent.

With Paramounte’s site plan, Covington is requesting a conditional rezoning from the acreage’s R-20 single-family residential to a commercial district, CS. A majority of the buildings will be for industrial flex use, a type of commercial real estate that offers a variety of uses and amenities to tenants — offices, warehouses, or retail. One building will be reserved for office and building services.

Covington told Port City Daily the development originated with his search for warehouse space to accommodate his kayak and paddleboarding business, Wrightsville SUP, located in Wrightsville Beach. He bought a space in Dutch Square Industrial Park but became inundated with requests to rent it.

“That is when I saw the huge need in our area for similar small businesses, the trades, and storage,” Covington said. “[I’m] just trying to help fulfill and resolve some of that need from friends asking.”

All businesses that fit the zoning and flex space — office, retail, storage — will be welcome. Buildings range from 2,000 to 30,000 square feet, with rental units comprising 2,000 to 10,000 square feet. There is also an option to build to suite.

If the county approves the rezoning, Covington said he plans to phase tenants as building construction completes, with less than six at a time to start. The first phase will include the site’s infrastructure, including a stormwater pond and onsite septic area; utilities will be provided by Cape Fear Public Utility Authority. The front office building will also be constructed in phase one.

“I am not a big developer and can only do so much at once, but the co-tenants will certainly help make it happen,” Covington said.

The community meeting for the park will take place next week; the developer will discuss potential impacts on surrounding neighbors. According to the site plan, the business park includes a minimum of a 35-foot buffer — vegetation-only or with a combination of fencing.

A traffic analysis is not required for the development; however, Covington said the estimated impact is light, with around 30 peak morning and evening trips per day.

A stream runs down the middle of the property with a buffer between it and the development. Almost 4 acres of wetlands are present in one corner; the site design calls for a 0.88-acre stormwater pond near the wetlands.

According to the site plan, the parcel is located in a Federal Emergency Management Agency-designated Zone X flood zone, posing minimal flood risk.

Covington’s placement of the business park is aligned with the county’s desire to see this area — adjacent to the Hermitage Industrial area, General Electric, state property — rezoned to commercial rather than residential use, he said.

“It fit all the boxes for the perfect site, affordable for a small business like myself and in a fast growing area with potential,” Covington said.

The northern end of the county has been targeted for other business parks, such as the county-owned Blue Clay Business Park 4 miles away; county commissioners approved two more land sales within the 120-park Monday. The sales to Coastal Millwork Supply Co. and FTT Cabinetry are projected to generate 35 jobs and make a $15-million economic investment.

The county also approved a rezoning for 130,000-square-foot business park on Hermitage Road, less than a mile from the Castle Hayne proposal, in April 2022. Also designed by Paramounte Engineering, the plan calls for 11 buildings, each housing about three to four units ranging in size from 9,000- to 12,000-square-feet. The structures will take up 14% of the site and likely accommodate mostly warehousing, with a small front portion withholding offices.

In October 2022, commissioners also approved a 50-acre property donation from Sidbury Land and Timber as the foundation of a proposed business park on Holly Shelter Road. The county will fund the completion of water and sewer to the property by 2026 and pay for the construction of an access road to the area, completed three years after the utilities are installed.

The Holly Shelter business park came to fruition due to commissioner Bill Rivenbark securing the deal. He said he was inspired by the expansion of Pender Commerce Park in the late 2000s.

The community meeting for feedback on the Castle Hayne Business Park will take place on April 27 at 6:30 p.m. at picnic shelter 1 near the playground at Northern Regional Park, 4700 Old Ave. in Castle Hayne.

Reach journalist Brenna Flanagan at [email protected]

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