adam.wagner@starnewsonline.com
WILMINGTON, NC (StarNewsOnline.com) -- A meeting meant to kickstart the building of another crossing of the Cape Fear River between Brunswick County and Wilmington put the option of a tunnel on the table while showcasing local officials’ wariness of the North Carolina Department of Transportation.
About 25 citizens attended the NCDOT officials’ presentation and the question and answer session that followed in Wilmington City Hall on Monday morning.
A tunnel built between Independence Boulevard in Wilmington and southern Brunswick County would cost $88 million more than a bridge while likely costing a similar amount to maintain, said Bobby Lewis, NC DOT’s chief of staff. A tunnel near the existing Cape Fear Memorial Bridge isn’t as feasible because the river is narrow enough there that it would emerge around 12th Street in Wilmington, forcing the city to upgrade several roads in the area.
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