PENDER COUNTY — This week commissioners continued discussing next fiscal year’s budget by reviewing requests from county departments and outside agencies, as staffing shortages and an unresolved property revaluation continue to complicate spending decisions.
The county is still in the early stages of building its budget, with three work sessions scheduled in May, following two budget retreats held in March. North Carolina counties are required to adopt a budget by June 30 each year, giving commissioners roughly two months to refine spending, weigh funding needs, and set a final tax rate once revenue projections are finalized.
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In this week’s two budget meetings, Pender County Board of Commissioners heard proposals from departments including facilities and fleet, parks and recreation, the board of elections, Wallace-Pender Airport, soil and water conservation, and veterans services. The requests ranged from personnel needs and equipment purchases to infrastructure upgrades. However, few numbers were put forth on projected expenditures or revenue as the county is still reviewing department requests.
County Manager Colby Sawyer said department heads have met with Finance Director Meg Blue and his office over the past few months to review initial submissions. He said departments were instructed to submit realistic funding needs rather than inflated requests to keep expenditures at a minimum.
“We don’t want to play games with this budget,” Sawyer said Monday. “Don’t put 10 of something in there hoping we’ll get you down to five. If you need two, put two in there and explain to me why you need two.”
At the same time, staff are working through two parallel budget scenarios — one based on 2025 property values and another using the currently suspended 2026 revaluation.
“I just cannot tell you what the tax rate will be until we know exactly what values we’re working with,” Blue said Monday.
Pender County’s current tax rate of 73.75 cents per $100 of property value ranks in the higher end in North Carolina, trailing only a handful of counties like Orange (96.33 cents) and Scotland (96 cents). However, commissioners are grappling with cutting the rate if the 2026 revaluation numbers — which on average increased 110% countywide — stand. After fielding numerous concerns from residents about the high values, the board unanimously voted to suspend the reval in early April, though input from the North Carolina Department of Revenue following the decision clarified the county lacked the authority to halt the process once underway.
Though the commissioners technically suspended 2026 numbers, staff said if they budgeted based on 2026 assessed values, the tax rate would have to be cut by about half just to bring in the same amount of money as last year to remain revenue-neutral. Commissioners have said they would support a revenue neutral or lower rate should 2026 property values be utilized.
Port City Daily requested projected revenue estimates under both the current and 2026 property values, but the figures were not provided by county staff.
“Let’s focus on getting expenditures correct, then we will figure out the revenues, and then we will come back if there is still a mismatch to address those through additional cuts,” Blue told commissioners on Monday.
Commissioners are expected to address a comprehensive update on the 2026 revaluation during their next regular meeting on May 4. The board will discuss the budget at three more budget sessions on May 7, 11, and 14.
Recruitment and retention
A commonly recurring theme this week was staffing — both in the form of pay increases, new positions, and filling vacancies.
Much of the discussion centered on Human Resources Director Pam Brame’s presentation, outlining ongoing recruitment and retention pressures and the county’s efforts to remain competitive with surrounding jurisdictions. Brame said neighboring counties are continuing to raise salaries and enhance benefits.
“People are trying to compete for good employees in this area,” Brame said. “You’re never going to be consistently at the top.”
Despite ongoing efforts to improve compensation and retention, vacancies remain a continuing issue. Last year, commissioners advanced a workforce compensation effort known as the “Way Forward” initiative, designed to compare county pay scales with those in 26 other counties and identify gaps contributing to turnover and recruitment difficulties. The county uses an existing 40-step salary scale — ranging from level 1 to level 40 — which predates the initiative and is used to structure pay increases tied to tenure, education or certification levels.
For the upcoming budget year, officials are reviewing 23 proposed step increases across all departments. A 3% cost-of-living adjustment for all employees is also included in the current draft budget to offset inflation, separate from step-based increases. Last year, the COLA was slightly higher at 3.4%.
Still, officials reported a total of 74 vacancies across county departments:
- 20 in the sheriff’s office
- 15 in the Department of Social Services
- 9 in the jail
- 9 in the tax office
- 6 in the health department
- 5 in utilities
- 4 in finance
- 2 in IT
- 2 in inspections
- 1 in planning
- 1 in the library system
Several departments are also operating without permanent leadership, including the tax office, which remains under interim management — Jessica Hudson and Takia McIntire currently in the role — when former administrator Melissa Radke left her position in March 2025; she now serves as tax administrator for Brunswick County. The county is working to fill the tax administrator position, along with vacancies for a public utilities director, planning and community development director, and assistant finance director.
Intending to improve retention, Commissioners Jimmy Tate and Brent Springer said Monday they want a countywide employee climate survey to gather updated feedback on retention issues beyond pay, including workplace conditions and morale. A similar internal employee survey was conducted last year, though participation was limited, with just under 200 of roughly 800 employees responding. The results pointed to compensation, career advancement, and work-life balance as the primary concerns driving retention issues.
“Sometimes it’s not money that causes people to feel appreciated and valued and stay at an organization,” Tate said Monday. “I think that a climate survey will help us identify areas we can improve upon as an organization as a whole, as well as things that are going right that we can use from a recruiting standpoint.”
On top of filling roles, County Manager Sawyer also asked commissioners to consider adding a second assistant county manager position, citing increasing administrative demands tied to county growth. Pender County has experienced a 41% population surge in the last fifteen years, rising from 52,000 in 2010 to an estimated 74,000 in 2026. Sawyer didn’t provide a cost estimate for the position.
“We are taking a very hard stab into economic development, utilities expansion, legislative work — things that can take away from the day-to-day running of the county,” Sawyer explained, noting someone fulfilling those roles would allow him to “take more of a 20,000-foot approach and manage the larger departments,” like public safety and utilities.
Under Sawyer’s proposed structure, the current assistant county manager position held by Blue would continue overseeing finance and administrative services. A second assistant county manager would be assigned to community and development services, including planning, permitting, inspections, and parks and recreation.
Chair Randy Burton said the proposal would be considered, but emphasized filling existing leadership vacancies remains the immediate priority rather than creating a new position.
“I would rather see us focus on that [assistant] finance director first before we look at another assistant county manager,” Burton said. “That would free up Ms. Blue to get a little bit of pressure off of her, even though she’d still oversee the finance department.”
Facilities and fleet
Some of the largest budget requests came from facilities and fleet, which manages maintenance, repairs, and upkeep for county buildings and vehicles. The department oversees dozens of county-owned buildings, including the new Health and Human Services Facility in Burgaw. The department asked for about $130,000, mainly for building and equipment upgrades.
One of the key items was a new generator system at the Pender County Animal Shelter in Burgaw. Staff said the current setup requires someone to manually switch power during outages, and the proposed upgrade would install an automatic transfer system so staff would not have to be on-site during emergencies.
Assistant director of the department, Troy Moore, pointed to ongoing maintenance needs across county buildings, especially older facilities such as the former Department of Social Services building, the library annex, and aging Pender Fire and EMS stations. Moore said ongoing maintenance demands across county buildings are contributing to continued reliance on outside contractors. Contracted services are currently budgeted at about $404,000 for the department, covering plumbing, HVAC, electrical, and other repair work the county does not handle in-house.
Moore said having more in-house skilled staff could improve efficiency and reduce reliance on outside vendors over time. Commissioner Brent Springer questioned whether the county should invest more directly in training staff to handle some of the work internally.
“How long are we going to keep kicking the can down the road before we put somebody in place, somebody qualified?” Springer asked. “Can we send somebody to training to learn some of this stuff to save money?”
The county has previously paid to train employees in skilled trades, though Moore noted retaining individuals can be a struggle once they obtain certifications, often looking for work elsewhere. The county’s education reimbursement program provides up to $7,500 per employee each year for staff looking to grow and fill needs within county departments.
Parks and recreation
Parks and recreation requested a new special events coordinator position to expand programming for seniors and county events, such as their summer concert series in Burgaw, Hampstead, and Topsail Beach. Director Chris White said the role could be offset through sponsorships and partnerships.
“If I’ve got somebody that I can dedicate and say, ‘you can go eight or 10 hours this week just go and solicit sponsorships’ … we can actually pay for all of our special events that we do with this position,” he suggested.
The department also asked for funding tied to growing maintenance demands as the county has added roughly 100 acres of park land in the past year — including Central Pender Park in Burgaw — increasing pressure on mowing and upkeep. Equipment requests included a $29,156 sand pro field groomer for county baseball fields and a $70,000 skid steer loader, which staff said would support field maintenance.
A major maintenance request included $100,000 to replace deteriorating rubber surfacing at Pender Memorial Park’s playground. White said the surface is failing faster than expected and has required about $10,000 annually in patch repairs.
He also pointed to ongoing issues with athletic field lighting, noting the county has spent about $27,000 this year alone on repairs to keep fields playable. White explained aging fixtures continue to shift in wind, affecting game conditions, with full replacements needed.
“I think it’s a disservice to the citizens when you have to shut a ball field down because of lighting,” Springer stated. “That’s not something I’m willing to hear or entertain.”
Veterans services
Veterans services presented a stable budget for the coming year, with the main request for an additional staff position due to rising workload. Director Michelle Leach said the department has had increased demand, which she said is limiting outreach work.
“We have gotten very busy this year compared to last year,” Leach said. “It is having us be in the office more, but not out in the community as much.”
Leach reported 438 compensation claims so far this year. The office helps veterans access federal benefits, which collectively brings in about $78 million in compensation, $3 million in widows’ benefits, and $6 million in education support annually for Pender County vets.
“We appreciate all the hard work you and your team do for veterans,” Burton said. “That’s very important, helping them navigate that system, especially on the federal level.”
Board of elections
The board of elections, led by Director Greg Jackson, is requesting funding for two main items: replacing aging precinct laptops and adding an election technician position.
“We were able to get some patchwork done by IT,” he said, “but at this time, they’re going to all need to be replaced.
Jackson explained the laptops are used during early voting and on Election Day to run polling site operations. A total cost to replace them was not put forth.
As to the additional position, Jackson said another person is needed to keep up with workload escalation and prevent staff from being overextended during busy election periods. The election technician would handle tasks, including updating precinct information for new subdivisions and housing developments, maintaining voter district assignments, and assisting candidates with campaign finance filings.
Wallace-Pender Airport
Commissioners help fund Wallace-Pender Airport through an interlocal agreement with the town of Wallace to provide a 10% match for state and federal grants; the county spent $41,500 in 2024-2025 for its share of general operating expenses. The airport is a general aviation facility for private and corporate use.
Airport manager Ben Jones said the facility continues to see steady growth in aircraft activity as infrastructure upgrades move forward to support larger jets and increased demand.
Jones reported airport operations have nearly tripled over the past five years, rising from 3,299 takeoffs and landings in 2021 to 7,890 in 2025, with projections for the next few years exceeding 9,000 annually.
Goals for 2026 include beginning the runway extension project in late summer, increasing length from about 4,150 feet to 5,500 feet to accommodate larger business jets. Longer term, he said the airport is also planning to add more hangar space to keep up with demand.
The goal is to have 20 smaller hangars for light aircraft, with two larger ones for mid-size jets. Hangars generate revenue through rentals, with additional income from on-site fuel sales. Revenue numbers for renting and sales were not provided at the meeting.
“My phone rings off the hook for hangar space,” Jones said. “I get three calls, four calls a week for that.”
Soil and water conservation district
The soil and water conservation district, which works with landowners on agriculture, drainage, and environmental management projects, presented a largely steady budget request focused on continuing existing programs.
Supervisor Jim Burns expects $57,000 in agricultural cost-share projects and more than $300,000 in stream restoration funding. He reported removing 860 nuisance animals — beavers, nutria, and muskrats — and clearing 164 dams from waterways to improve drainage and reduce flooding.
Officials said the county has roughly 855 miles of creeks, with about 77 miles cleared so far through ongoing efforts.
The department is asking for about $116,000 in county funding for the upcoming year, an increase of roughly $13,500 over the current budget, with expenditures balanced against $33,000 in expected state and federal funding contributions.
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