RiverLights, New Hanover, Pine Valley and Trask top committee priority list; members propose county‑wide safety and technology funds

Committee staff presented a weighted tally of members’ ranked priorities. Dr. Carter Barnes summarized the compiled ranking: “River Lights came out as the first project. New Hanover High School was the second, Pine Valley, and then Trask.” Committee members discussed removing Isaac Baer from the top five because of unresolved funding and ownership questions; the committee approved a motion to remove that item from the list.

Several committee members argued for a bond package that spreads visible benefits around the county rather than concentrating a large share of the ask on a single campus. One member recommended building in recurring pots for county‑wide needs — $10,000,000 for safety upgrades and $10,000,000 for technology upgrades — so every school sees an identifiable benefit on the ballot. The proposed list discussed by members included RiverLights, New Hanover High School (hybrid or renovate options to be decided), Pine Valley, Trask Middle and Porters Neck.

Committee members asked staff to prepare cost estimates for the prioritized list, bring detailed scope descriptions to the next meeting, and produce voter‑impact materials (signage and plain‑language one‑pagers) that show what a yes vote would fund at each site.