WILMINGTON — The U.S. Coast Guard, the permitting authority for the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge replacement, has issued a height determination for the impending new structure — 135 feet for a fixed bridge or a replica of the current bridge, which is 65 feet for a drawbridge that can open to 135 feet.
READ MORE: WMPO takes another vote on CFM Bridge toll, local leader speaks against it
Those two options were under consideration by the North Carolina Department of Transportation, alongside a 100-foot (plus or minus) fixed span bridge. The 100-foot option is now off the table, according to NCDOT spokesperson Lauren Haviland.
“NCDOT is not permitted to build a fixed bridge option less than 135 feet,” Haviland wrote in an email to Port City Daily on Friday.
NCDOT learned of the Coast Guard’s preliminary approval via a letter dated May 28. It also states the agency “does not not foresee anything that would prevent a bridge permit from being issued” based on NCDOT’s submittals to the agency. NCDOT has three years to submit the permit for final approval.
Also on May 28, the Coast Guard informed Mike Kozlosky, executive director of the Wilmington Urban Area Metropolitan, of its decision. This came the same day WMPO held a board meeting and vote to continue exploring all funding options, including a toll. The letter did not come up, however.
The WMPO is the locally led arbiter of federal funding for the bridge and ultimate decision-maker on whether the project moves forward at the state level. Kozlosky shared the emailed correspondence from the Coast Guard with the elected leaders from Brunswick, Pender and New Hanover County that make up the WMPO board on May 29.
The Coast Guard’s decision follows, and was informed by, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ recommendation made on May 15.
In a letter to the North Carolina Department of Transportation USACE said any bridge with a vertical clearance under 135 feet would be “injurious to the purpose” of its Wilmington Harbor Navigation Project. The project maintains the harbor channel at 38 feet from the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge to the Hilton Railroad Bridge.
USACE also suggested the replacement of the current bridge would be a good opportunity to increase the height of the bridge to its preferred clearance of 147 feet. In a feasibility study of the harbor navigation project in 1996, USACE noted its example vessel used to determine harbor depth had a length of 712 feet, a width of 106 feet, and up to 75,000 gross tons. USACE reported a vessel with these dimensions typically needs a height range between 120 feet and 147 feet.
NCDOT has not been considering a bridge design higher than 135 feet and plans to make its decision between the remaining two studied options by late fall, per Haviland.
The 100-foot option was the preferred choice of many residents concerned about reducing the impact of the new bridge on downtown Wilmington — particularly its footprint impacting homes along Fifth Avenue — and its cost. The Historic Wilmington Foundation rallied behind the 100-foot for those reasons, while also pointing out the reduced large boat traffic north of the bridge in recent years meant a 135-foot clearance was no longer needed.
Proponents of a higher bridge, now backed by USACE and the Coast Guard, have argued a lower bridge height would limit the harbor’s economic potential for the future.
So far, NCDOT only released the price point for the 135-foot bridge — $1.1 billion — with the 65-foot movable bridge expected to cost more due to its more expensive parts. The 135-foot bridge cost escalated by more than half since last year, after it was announced NCDOT received a $252-million federal grant from the Biden administration to help pay for it. The Trump administration currently has the grant on pause to ensure it complies with the new president’s policy and spending priorities.
Even if the grant is reinstated, NCDOT indicated last month the only option currently available is to fund the remainder with a toll, unless additional grants and alternative revenue sources aren’t available. At its board meeting on May 28, the WMPO affirmed its decision to explore all funding options, including a toll, in an 8-4 vote despite community — and some local leaders’ — disdain for a tolled bridge. WMPO originally voted in 2022 and 2024 to do so as well.
The WMPO can ultimately choose not to move forward with a tolled bridge up until the point NCDOT goes to issue a construction contract. However, this would almost certainly result in no replacement bridge at all.
Reach journalist Brenna Flanagan at brenna@localdailymedia.com.
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