The Wrightsville Beach Board of Aldermen and staff may discuss buying space in the New Hanover County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at Thursday night’s regular board meeting.
Town access to the mainland EOC during evacuation-level hurricanes, for instance, would allow the island’s government to continue its functions and enable response coordination. The town has a few options the aldermen are expected to explore at Thursday’s 6 p.m. meeting at Town Hall, 321 Causeway Drive.
If the board decides it wants an exclusive, permanent spot in the EOC—it would be a 220-square-foot space adjacent to the center’s main room—the town could pay a one-time fee of $70,000, either in full or financed through the county, according to information from the town.
In another option, the board could explore a ten-year lease.
New Hanover County Emergency Management uses its EOC, located at the government center at the old Marketplace Mall off S. College Road, as its hub for disaster response. “From this one location, staff members are able to coordinate fire, law enforcement and emergency medical service personnel to provide assistance to those parts of our community that need assistance,” the county’s website explains.
Wrightsville Beach’s current disaster response plan considers the second floor of First Citizens Bank on Eastwood Road as the town government’s emergency site. Though it’s on the mainland, it “does not provide the element of survivability essential for the town’s leadership to continue to function in a disaster situation,” town staff wrote in a memo to Mayor David Cignotti and aldermen. “Having a safe and survivable location to orchestrate both our response and recovery to a natural disaster is critical.”
Staff has recommended the board pursue the one-time payment option for permanent access to the county’s EOC.
