WILMINGTON — Several conversations over funding lines turned sour at Wilmington City Council’s budget workshop last week, including the fate of the city’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion division and the Wilmington Police Department’s mounted patrol unit.
READ MORE: WPD mounted unit to be cut, as city staff gets close to net-neutral tax rate
ALSO: Wilmington council grapples with revenue deficit, capital projects in budget meeting
As part of budget cuts requested by City Manager Tony Caudle, the city has removed the specialist position in the DEI division, which falls under the city manager’s department. The $65,000 position has been vacant.
Also vacant: the director position, unannounced by the city until Friday’s workshop. Kimberly Carson started in May 2024 upon the first director, Joe Conway, leaving for a position at UNC Health after two years on the job.
Port City Daily asked the city Tuesday when Carson left and if she was fired; on Wednesday after publication, PCD was informed it would need to file a public records request for this information.
Council member Luke Waddell questioned the division’s place in the budget, absent its two positions.
“We basically have a $250,000 line item in this budget for an empty division that we hope to mold into some sort of behavioral training person for the city … I’m opposed to that,” Waddell said.
The council member suggested the division’s budget be shifted to cover the cost of the WPD’s mounted horse unit. The $351,656-unit supports four horses and their officers who frequently patrol downtown.
As part of budget cuts requested by the city manager, the WPD identified the unit along with another option the city manager wouldn’t go for — ShotSpotter, used to detect gunfire ahead or even in absence of 911 calls.
“We were looking for sustainability over time, not something that could be reduced one year and come back the next,” Caudle said.
Caudle said the mounted unit was decided on for various reasons: The unit mainly acts as a public relations tool, the horses can only be used when temperatures aren’t too hot or cold, and mounted units have been phased out in every other North Carolina municipality.
Still, the move hasn’t come without pushback.
“I’ve heard a lot from the community that they’d like to see mounted police stay; it’s been a real net benefit for our downtown populace,” Waddell said.
The council held a public hearing on the budget at its regular Tuesday night meeting; one person spoke in favor of keeping the mounted horses and three others spoke against it.
“The fate and welfare of these intelligent, sentient creatures should override a reduction in city expenditures that would result from cutting this program from the WPD budget,” resident Alena Schmott said.
However, two speakers argued the mounted unit is dangerous for the horses, one speaker pointing to now-retired horse Elton, who was struck by a drunk driver in 2022. Only one speaker spoke to the elimination of DEI versus the mounted unit.
“I like horses, horses are great and it does add to the charm of our city,” Rebecca Trammel, resident leader of the advocacy group Community Conversations, said. “However, charm is deceitful and beauty is vague. What matters most is the DNA of our city, the people of our city.”
She argued bikes could accomplish the same goals and promote community relations.
Back at Friday’s budget workshop, council member Kevin Spears didn’t like the swapping of DEI for the mounted unit.
“Horses over people: that’s what we want to do, right?” Spears said. “We want to go with horses over people — please, be clear on that.”
Waddell replied he prioritizes public safety and has heard from downtown business owners about the increased concerns. Spears said he’s also heard from people, but they told him they questioned how humane it was to use horses for patrols. Council member Charlie Rivenbark pushed back, saying he’s only heard complaints about the horses that pull trolleys downtown.
Rivenbark also noted there have been no reports on the DEI division’s accomplishments since its creation.
“From two white males, of course, you don’t see the need,” Spears responded to Waddell and Rivenbark’s criticisms.
Council member Salette Andrews chimed in supporting the removal of the unit, but wasn’t in favor of eliminating the DEI division.
“There’s a need to have some sort of service to the community,” Andrews said.
However, city staff have already begun transitioning the DEI director position into a role less focused on what that acronym stands for.
“We have reviewed the job description and are trying to retool it so it will be more focused on internal service delivery issues,” Caudle said. “We have not finalized that yet.”
Caudle said his team was already working on the conversion before the federal and state governments began targeting DEI programs. However, no law has been passed restricting local municipalities from DEI initiatives or departments, which Spears pointed out.
“We see it taking place all around us, but it doesn’t mean we need to follow the trend, especially in Wilmington, North Carolina,” Spears said.
According to staff, the new positions will work in conjunction with human resources to provide employee training and oversee conflict management, with the goal of improving culture for its employees. Still, Waddell was quizzical, along with council member David Joyner.
“Respectfully to the staff members in this room who have been working on that, I have not been satisfied with the answers that I’ve gotten to that question [how the position is changing]” Joyner said. “I am not seeking to eliminate [DEI], I am not criticizing it as a concept; we do need clarity and a concrete action plan moving forward.”
Mayor Bill Saffo suggested adjusting the proposed tax rate to cover the mounted unit without having to cut DEI, though Caudle said that wouldn’t be necessary, as staff could find another area of the budget to pull from.
Waddell has been adamant against increasing the tax rate any more than necessary, another sour note in last Friday’s conversation.
Budget staff presented several projects that need to be deferred in the city’s capital improvement plan due to funding gaps. This includes:
- Pine Grove North (intersection improvements at Pine Grove and Oleander drives and Pine Grove Drive and MacMillan Avenue)
- Riverwalk North Marina
- Downtown Trail Phase 1
- Olsen Park Phase 2
- Water Street improvements and bulkhead
Rivenbark was disappointed with the deferments, tying their delays to the lack of will to raise the proper funds for them by city council.
“They crow and raise hell at us all year long because that pothole has not been fixed, this intersection is overwhelmed, or our police and fire are not being compensated fairly,” Rivenbark said. “This is where we can take care of those problems. We just have to have the political will to do it.”
Waddell pointed out the city has been raising taxes since he took office in 2021, and like he’s said before, council could have chosen to postpone its improvements to council chambers in the Skyline Center.
“We spent six-and-a-half million dollars, up in our offices that could have taken care of a lot of this stuff,” Waddell said.
Rivenbark interrupted him, calling the city’s purchase of the Skyline Center a “steal.”
“You crow every time we talk about what it’s taking to do it; this is the best deal that this city ever got, and ever will get us,” Rivenbark said.
The council member went on, saying he didn’t want to hear Waddell speak about the Skyline Center deal’s merits anymore: “We have raised taxes. But you know what? If you look at our tax break compared to everybody else in the state, we’re middling. Nobody’s down here screaming and hollering. A few conservatives will come down and raise hell at me, and you’re their guy. And while we’re keeping the tax rate, and as a result, we have the CIP that we can’t do because we won’t raise a penny or two pennies on the tax rate.”
Waddell stood by his view.
“Respectfully, I’ll crow as much as I want to,” he said.
After Tuesday night’s meeting, council will hold another budget session on May 30 before the 2025-2026 document heads to a first reading on June 2.
Reach journalist Brenna Flanagan at brenna@localdailymedia.com.
Want to read more from PCD? Subscribe now and then sign up for our newsletter, Wilmington Wire, and get the headlines delivered to your inbox every morning.
