WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH — Hank Miller, president of of Miller Realty Associates Inc., M&N Equipment Rentals Inc. and senior vice president for Cape Fear Development, is hoping to retain his seat on the Wrightsville Beach Board of Aldermen.
A lifelong resident of Wrightsville Beach, Miller has family-ties to the beach town dating back to the 1940s. He has served as an alderman for 12 years and six as mayor pro tem. Before that, Miller also was on the Wrightsville Beach Planning Board, which he said has given him “first-hand” insight into how the town’s land use decisions affect residents.
He also served on UNCW’s Board of Trustees for eight years and currently is on the Wilmington Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization board.
“My motivation has never wavered: to protect our small-town community while preparing for the challenges ahead,” Miller said. “With major projects coming — bridge replacements, beach renourishment, and infrastructure upgrades — experienced leadership is more important than ever. I’m running to ensure residents’ voices remain at the center of every decision.”
Though the alderman race is nonpartisan, Miller is a registered Republican. He will face off against Margaret Baggett (R), Todd Schoen (U), Lee Williams (R), and David Wortman (R) for two open seats.
Port City Daily asked all candidates a slate of questions about topics that are tracking high with voters and residents currently. Miller’s answers have been edited below for clarity.
- A few things to consider this election season: A valid ID is required to cast ballot in North Carolina
- Election Day is Nov. 4, 2025, with voters required to go to their assigned precinct locations
- Early voting opens Oct. 16 and closes Nov. 1, and voters can cast a ballot at any of these four sites: Northeast Library (1241 Military Cutoff Road), Carolina Beach Town Hall’s Police Training Room (1121 N. Lake Park Blvd.), Cape Fear Community College’s McLeod Building, (411 N. Front St.), and New Hanover County Senior Resource Center’s Multipurpose Room, (2222 S. College Road). See all hours of operation here where you can also track the wait times at each early voting location.
Anyone who wants to register to vote can do so here through Oct. 10 or register and vote in one stop during early voting,
The paywall has been dropped on candidate profiles to help voters make informed decisions ahead of the election. Candidate opinions and statements are not a reflection of Port City Daily.
Port City Daily: What makes you qualified for a seat and sets you apart from other candidates?
Hank Miller: Experience and trusted relationships. Over the years, I’ve built credibility at the local, county, state, and federal levels. Whether it’s securing grants through the Wilmington Metropolitan Planning Organization (WMPO), negotiating with NCDOT on traffic solutions, or serving on the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority board to improve water/sewer reliability, I know how to get results.
Just as important, I understand how Wrightsville Beach operates day-to-day and what it takes to be prepared for the seasonal pressures we face — traffic congestion, hurricanes, and the influx of thousands of visitors each summer.
Beyond the seasonal challenges, I’ve worked through economic struggles, storms that temporarily closed our beaches, long-term water supply planning, staff and management transitions, COVID’s impact, and the ongoing fight to secure sand for beach nourishment. One concrete example: My experience and relationships helped land the funding from the State of North Carolina that secured the agreement for Wrightsville Beach to merge its water and sewer systems with CFPUA. That partnership ensures our long-term water supply and system resilience.
Through these experiences, I’ve learned that you can’t just push past the system when it’s in the way—you have to understand the process, the agreements, and the steps it takes to actually put ideas in place. Real leadership is about navigating those constraints to deliver results that work for residents.
PCD: Parking and congestion continue to plague tourists and residents during peak season, and with population growth continuing locally, what do you think Wrightsville Beach should do to help lessen the burden of tourist traffic on the town?
HM: We need both short-term and long-term answers. In the short term, we are working with our parking vendor to identify smarter tools that can make an impact today. That includes using technology to gather better metrics — such as sensors or counters to track occupancy and turnover — so we know where the real problems are and can respond quickly. Sharing that data with residents and visitors through apps or signage will reduce circling, improve turnover, and ease congestion. We are also reviewing variable rate parking in certain locations, where pricing shifts based on demand, to better manage traffic in high-use areas.
For the long term, Wrightsville Beach is participating in the regional Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) plan through the WMPO and NCDOT, which is still in the planning stages. That plan envisions real-time parking data, wayfinding apps, and dynamic signage placed off the island — tools that will make a meaningful difference once fully implemented.
In addition, the town should engage outside experts to help us think bigger: developing safe walkability and biking connections so people can move around the island without relying solely on cars, and exploring how off-island parking areas with wayfinding could help shift some demand. By combining immediate fixes with a long-term vision, we can balance visitor access with resident quality of life.
PCD: These issues will be compounded further when NCDOT begins to build the new bridges on Wrightsville Beach in 2028. What should the town be doing to prepare residents for this project’s impact?
HM: This project will be disruptive, but it is essential to the long-term safety and functionality of our community. The town has already taken important steps to prepare by forming a Bridge Committee in 2024, made up of residents from different sections of the beach, to ensure all perspectives are heard and incorporated into the town’s response. In addition, we’ve engaged a traffic consultant, an emergency consultant, and included representatives from Wrightsville Beach Elementary School, the Wrightsville Beach Chamber of Commerce, police, fire, and myself as part of the committee.
These efforts give us a head start on planning for detours, emergency access, school impacts, and business continuity.
My commitment is to keep pushing for communication — frequent updates to residents about timelines and detours and traffic planning — coordinating with NCDOT and our consultants to minimize cut-through impacts, offering business support and helping our business community prepare for the economic strain during construction. By acting early and involving residents directly, we’re ensuring Wrightsville Beach is ready to face this challenge head-on.
PCD: Wrightsville Beach is perennially confronted with questions and concerns over beach access, particularly with escalating parking costs and no public transportation offered. What options would you recommend to improve beachgoers’ access to the shore?
HM: The goal is balancing visitor needs with resident quality of life.
- Expanding off-island wayfinding to direct visitors to available parking.
- Exploring ways to move people around the island more safely by fast-tracking improvements to walkability and biking, guided by our updated Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan.
- Continue to invest parking revenues back into infrastructure and resident services so the burden doesn’t fall solely on property taxpayers. We must continue to work with the experts to find ways to improve our seasonal traffic issues.
PCD: Last year’s parking revenue was nearly $6.7 million; it’s almost double what the town brings in from property taxes and yet parking expenses total less than $2 million. Do you think this financial setup is justified? Why or why not? Do you think the town should raise, lower or keep parking rates the same?
HM: Parking revenue is high because Wrightsville Beach absorbs the impact of thousands of daily visitors. These revenues provide critical funding for services like beach safety, police, sanitation, and infrastructure — costs that would otherwise fall more heavily on residents through property taxes.
It’s important to note that our rates are consistent with other New Hanover County beaches. Carolina Beach charges roughly $5 to $6 per hour and $25 per day, while Kure Beach charges $6 per hour and $25 per day. Wrightsville Beach’s structure is in line with these, which shows our system is both fair and competitive.
I believe rates should remain stable for now, with adjustments only as needed to reflect market conditions and seasonal demand. Our priority should be maximizing the efficiency of the system, not constant increases.
PCD: If you had to rate the status of the town’s infrastructure — streets, stormwater and water systems, sidewalks and bike paths — how would you do so? What projects do you think the town should prioritize?
HM: I would rate our infrastructure as “aging but improving.” CFPUA has now officially taken over the town’s water and sewer system and has plans to update and modernize it over the next several years. At the same time, we’ve continued to reinforce stormwater systems, replace bulkheads, and invest in pedestrian and bike improvements.
Priorities moving forward include: replacement of bulkheads protecting key areas, continued investment in sidewalks and bike paths guided by our updated Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan, and ensuring undergrounding of utilities is part of long-term planning. Strong, resilient infrastructure is critical to protecting residents and property values.
PCD: Beach renourishment is already on the plate for sustainability of Wrightsville Beach, but how else should the town address environmental mitigation against erosion, susceptibility to storms, rising sea levels, etc.?
HM: Renourishment remains our most important defense, but we must complement it with preserving and restoring natural dunes, elevating vulnerable infrastructure where feasible, partnering with state and federal agencies on long-term resiliency planning for sea level rise, and supporting stormwater best practices to reduce runoff impacts. Resiliency requires planning ahead, not waiting until after the next storm.
PCD: Wrightsville Beach has endured a lot of turnover in the last year with the resignation/turnover of its fire chief, police chief and town manager. What do you want to see these leaders in their new positions achieve for the Town of Wrightsville Beach and what priorities do you want them to put first?
PCD: I wouldn’t describe the past year as “turnover” so much as a strengthening of our leadership team. The board unanimously hired Town Manager Haynes Brigman a year ago, and in that time he has proven to be a steady, effective leader. Both our Police Chief Jason Bishop and Fire Chief Matt Holland were promoted from within after long service to Wrightsville Beach, which means residents benefit from continuity and institutional knowledge rather than disruption.
All three are doing excellent work, and together they put the town in a stronger position than we’ve been in years.
My priorities for them are clear: keep public safety strong, improve communication with residents, and ensure that staff and resources are aligned with the big projects ahead—like new bridges, beach renourishment, and infrastructure upgrades. With this leadership team in place, Wrightsville Beach is well-positioned to do extraordinary things.
PCD: What is one other issue not discussed above that you have a plan to address if elected and how would you do so?
HM: The simple answer is communication and resident engagement. One of the things I’m most proud of is helping lead the effort to hire our town’s first full-time communications manager. Since then, she’s launched “The Loop,” our new monthly newsletter that highlights town projects, community events, and key updates — and it keeps getting better with each issue.
Looking ahead, I want to continue expanding those efforts with quarterly Community Conversations — small, neighborhood-based meetings where residents can meet directly with board members and staff. These meetings could rotate across Shell Island, Harbor Island, and the South End, giving everyone a chance to be heard in a conversational, accessible setting. In a small town, communication isn’t optional — it’s the foundation of good governance. My goal is to keep residents informed, connected, and confident in the direction we’re heading.
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