PENDER COUNTY — Last month’s municipal elections shook things up in one Pender County town, with long-standing board members being voted off and fresh faces earning open spots on council.
READ MORE: PC Municipal Elections 2023: New faces come to Surf City council, Burgaw commissioners
Two multi-term, retired council members’ time came to an end, having served a combined 44 years. William “Buddy” Fowler and Donald Helms have been replaced by Alicia Hawley and Trudy Solomon. The latter two were sworn into the Surf City Town Council Tuesday.
Hawley and Solomon earned the top votes at 23.6% and 22.3%, respectively, out of 924 people who cast ballots in Surf City; 4,776 residents are registered to vote. Incumbent John Kolski was also elected to retain his seat, garnering 19.6% of the vote. Kolski was appointed by the council in March 2022, following Dwight Torres’ resignation.
Both Hawley and Solomon attribute the shift in dynamics to the overall change in town demographics.
“I see a growing amount of young families in the area,” Hawley said. “A big part of my focus is to make sure that kind of demographic of our community has a little bit more insight on what’s going on in our town.”
Traditionally a retirement and second-home destination, Surf City has seen more full-time residents moving to the area, specifically with kids, both ladies agreed.
When Solomon moved to Surf City and her son was in kindergarten — more than 15 years ago — she was hard-pressed to find any neighbors who also had children on the island, she said.
Today, the number of families with children under 18, compared to the total number of households in Surf City, has increased from 13% in 2010 to 25% in 2021, according to U.S. Census data.
Solomon said she considered campaigning for a council seat over the last five years based on the growing number of young residents. After attending town meetings — sometimes as the only person in the audience — and volunteering on the beautification and enhancement committee, she said it was time to give back.
A children’s ministry director at The Gathering for 10 years, Solomon said she is well-connected with local families and their needs. She also has three children who attended Surf City Schools, her youngest now a senior.
Hawley, also a newcomer to politics, has younger children in the school system where she is active in the PTA. She also participates in town happenings and volunteers with local nonprofits.
Both of their community involvement is what they think led to their support for council.
For the 2023 municipal election, 113 voters who cast ballots were ages 25 to 40, compared to only 18 who voted in 2021.
“They showed up to vote in someone of their own kind,” Solomon said of her constituents.
For ages 65 and up, 324 Surf City residents turned out to vote this year, compared to 87 of the same age group in 2021.
“Don and Buddy — some of that generation is not here as prominently as they once were,” Solomon said.
While voter turnout for an older generation was actually higher this year, the median age in Surf City has decreased from 52 in 2010 to currently 40, according to the U.S. Census. The percentage of the population 65 years and older has gone down to 18% from 25% a decade ago. During her time campaigning, Solomon said many residents were surprised Helms and Fowler served as long as they had.
“Some people believe in term limits and have thoughts on that,” she said. “And here I am having never served before.”
Fowler has served on the board since 2004 and mayor pro tem Helms has 20 years under his belt. The two were recognized at Tuesday’s meeting for their years of service to the town.
Both newly elected candidates agree their election has nothing to do with Helms’ and Fowler’s quality of work — in fact, it’s the opposite.
“They deserve a lot of credit,” Solomon said.
Most notably, they helped usher in the replacement of Surf City’s swing bridge with a $53-million high-rise structure in 2018, moved along construction of the new municipal complex in 2021, voted to procure land for the Earl G. and Inez Batts Recreation Complex and helped expand the Surf City Fire Department — the latter a personal accomplishment of Helms.
The council liaison for human resources, Helms has been instrumental in working to adopt recommendations from a recent pay study, while also updating personnel policies “for the betterment of town employees,” Breuer said.
Many people Hawley said she spoke with during the campaign knew nothing about local government; Solomon said she had to remind multiple people how many seats were open and encouraged them to register to vote.
Both new council members have expressed the desire to be available to Surf City residents and educate them on the inner workings of local government — its role and how it can help residents in their day-to-day lives. This includes council being more proactive with messages and updates that are easily accessible both on social media and the town website — making information available without a “headache” to try and locate it.
“I pray people will prioritize to know and understand what’s going on in town government,” Solomon said. “We’re not that big that everyone should be able to find information when they want it.”
She said a lot of consensus during the election was about how the town is changing but residents still want to retain its small, family-friendly appeal.
“They’re seeing growth, seeing a new neighborhood coming in next to theirs, they need to become involved,” Solomon said. “People with young children — what will this town look like in 10, 20 years from now when they’re maybe coming back and settling down here?”
As a small business owner herself, Hawley — who owns a marketing company with her husband — agrees and wants to ensure as the town continues to develop, mom-and-pop inclusivity remains a priority. While the town is still reliant mostly on tourism revenue, the days of remote work and side hustles have changed employee demographics as well.
Hawley said she plans to utilize her communications skills to garner more interest in local government by a younger generation as well.
“Making sure we’re making it where people want to click, want to dig in a bit more and want to figure out what’s going on and getting the word out in a better way is a big part of that,” she said.
Long-time residents of Surf City, both women have seen firsthand the “ebb and flow” of the morphing town and pointed to a number of large projects underway they have a vested interest in coming to fruition. Both specifically want to focus on making sure future investments take into consideration the impact on families with children.
For example, Surf City is undergoing a parks and recreation master plan and is working on developing a new 60-acre complex.
CATCH UP: Surf City’s recreational park to expand by 60 acres, include one-of-a-kind skate park
The Earl G. and Inez Batts Recreational Complex, which was bid out for construction in October, will include a one-of-a-kind skate park, something Hawley’s family is heavily involved in. Her husband’s an avid skater and part of the local surf and skate scene.
“We want to make sure we’re listening to what people who utilize that type of stuff have to say,” Hawley said.
Solomon also has a passion for improving parks and amenities, noting former council member Fowler laid the groundwork for the town.
“Many of the higher-level goals will be the same,” she said.
Fowler led the charge on expanding recreational offerings in Surf City and guiding special events as the council liaison for parks, recreation and tourism, town manager Kyle Breuer told PCD.
Hawley also pointed to the need to expand the town’s multi-use paths and trails as a viable, safe transportation option. While there are plans underway to expand bicycle and pedestrian paths, Hawley plans to work on speeding up the timeline.
“With traffic, it’s a concern for a lot of people,” she said. “A lot of us would love the opportunity to get out and ride bikes or walk to not deal with traffic but there’s not really a bike path from the center of town to south of Topsail.”
Currently, she said bikers have to share the sidewalk with pedestrians — “the whole situation is really not the safest to use.”
For example, resident Heather Allen spoke during the Aug. 1 council meeting requesting a bike path along N.C. 210, noting middle-schoolers are having to ride in the streets.
Solomon noted she hopes to improve public infrastructure and coordinate with the North Carolina Department of Transportation on ways to construct safe, accessible roads, as well.
The Topsail Turtle project volunteer geared her efforts during campaigning to “meet people where they are.” Realizing how busy young families can be these days, she went door-to-door to meet people.
She hopes to keep up that interaction and be more proactive with town messaging, more frequent social media posts and website updates to keep residents involved.
“So the mom juggling kids’ schedules can get a vibe for what’s going on without having to attend a council meeting,” she said.
Solomon added it’s difficult for working parents to show up in person as well, when town council meetings start at 4:30 p.m. She wants a consideration to shift the time to accommodate people for more in-person involvement — though noted that also means town staff working later (meetings livestream on YouTube, though, and can be watched after the fact).
“We’re trying to be creative in ways to be available and listen to residents,” Solomon said. “It’s the whole point of the job — to be a true representative.”
She pointed to an example, such as coffee with council, that could take place on weekends so working parents can share their concerns and speak one on one with members.
Hawley, Solomon and Koloski will join Jeremy Shugrats — appointed mayor pro tem Tuesday — Hugh Cannady and Mayor Teresa Batts, also were sworn onto council Tuesday.
An elected council member since 2016, Batts was appointed as interim mayor following Doug Medlin’s resignation for health reasons last December.
“It’s an honor and privilege to sit here not only as mayor but with the council people beside me,” she said Tuesday. “We sit here to listen to what you have to say and it’s not taken lightly. Your voice, it matters.”
She also offered special recognition to Helms and Fowler for their years of service.
The two both gave remarks Tuesday, thanking the town and its supporters over the years and genuinely wishing the best for the new members.
“I’ve enjoyed my time and as everything, you must move on,” Fowler said. “Time, progress waits for no man, or woman. As we transition tonight, I hope you give some support to the new council members coming in that you gave to us.”
Helms said time has “flown by” but he’s thankful to be able to spend some more time at home.
“There are a lot of difficult decisions to make but they’re all for the good of the town,” Helms said.
Hawley and Solomon are encouraged by the skills of the current council combined with the assistance of town staff to hit the ground running.
“I love the fact that we have this varying age and demographics on [council] at this point,” Hawley said, referencing business owners, families with grown children, retirees. “There’s a good mix of things up there, which allows us to have a lot of different ideas and a lot of input.”
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