The county’s ABC Board will open a repaired and renovated liquor store in Castle Hayne, plus a new store for the Wrightsboro area

CASTLE HAYNE — Over seven months after it was closed due to damage from Hurricane Florence, the Castle Hayne ABC store will soon reopen. The New Hanover County ABC Board has also approved purchasing property in the Wrightsboro area for a new store.

The Castle Hayne ABC store at 6015 Castle Hayne Road suffered major damage during Hurricane Florence. According to minutes from the ABC Board’s October 17, 2018 meeting, the building “suffered tremendous damage due to flooding and sewer backup. The flood adjuster estimated 21 inches of water came into the store.”

The ABC Board contracted with Wilmington-based Paul Davis Restorations to handle the initial clean-up project, which included destroying all of the liquor that was in the store. According to the ABC Board’s records, $138,435.57 in inventory was destroyed.

After consulting with the Real Estate Committee, the ABC Board decided in February to reopen the store, as opposed to abandoning the property. Marnina Queen, the chief executive officer of the New Hanover ABC, did not respond to emails or phone calls requesting a specific reopening date.

The re-opening of the Castle Hayne isn’t the only development in northern New Hanover County. The Board also recently approved purchasing land for a new store in the Wrightsboro area.

During the February meeting, the board’s Real Estate and Finance committees approved purchasing an empty lot in the Wrightsboro Plaza shopping center, adjacent to the recently opened Nigori sushi restaurant. The ABC Board plans to spend $200,000 on the site, which measured just shy of 1 acre and was most recently appraised for $188,500.