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Just before dawn, the first orange and pink streaks of morning shoot out from the horizon. The sleek 28-foot dive boat slices through the glassy surface of the Intracoastal Waterway.
James and Sarah Doss, the proprietors of RX Chicken & Oysters, make this trip a couple of times a week to keep their restaurant stocked with fresh fish. Today, they are setting their sights on one of the Atlantic’s most invasive species: lionfish.
The rapacious eaters feast on native fish populations, particularly reef-dwellers like snappers and groupers, altering local ecosystems in devastating ways. And they generally can’t be caught with a rod and reel—you have to dive 100 feet to spear them.
The lionfish dishes are so popular that they sold out in minutes at a recent farmer’s market. And each fish taco or ceviche helps preserve the balance of North Carolina’s coastal waters. For The Assembly, Kevin Maurer serves up a palate cleanser.
Lionfish: Invasive and Delicious
Wilmington restaurateurs take to the sea to spear lionfish, a voracious predator—and now a signature dish.
“They’re venomous,” Sarah Doss says. “They’re invasive. And they’re delicious.”
Choo Choo
The Port of Wilmington saw its highest-ever rail volume last fiscal year, a trend transportation officials hope continues. Recent federal funding and policies are incentivizing ports nationwide to divert cargo volumes away from trucks and onto trains to alleviate traffic congestion and reduce carbon emissions.
The port facilitated nearly 17,000 rail yard container moves for the fiscal year ending in June. Most containers were shuffled through the port’s most popular route, the Queen City Express, which connects to an inland yard in Charlotte. About 1,000 containers moved along the Wilmington Midwest Express, a route that opened in 2021 and leads to a new inland terminal in Rocky Mount.
The Port of Wilmington is operating its rail yard at its limits. Construction will begin soon on a project to build a new rail yard that will more than triple the current capacity. A federal grant will pay for 80 percent of the cost, at $22.5 million, and the North Carolina State Ports Authority will cover the rest. The new rail yard should open by 2026, and port officials say it will divert nearly 250,000 containers from trucks to rail over the next decade.
The record rail volume was a highlight of the ports’ performance this year amid softening consumer demand. As of July, ocean-related container volume was down 23 percent year-over-year, at nearly 11,000 monthly moves.
But all of those container moves could soon come to a halt. Port employees at three dozen ports along the East and Gulf Coast are threatening a labor strike as contract negotiations stall between the International Longshoremen’s Association, a union backing 45,000 employees, and United States Maritime Alliance Ltd., a group representing employers.
The impasse is prompting shippers to transport goods ahead of schedule anticipating the contract’s expiration on Sept. 30. The Wilmington port will host extended hours on Saturday and will close on Oct. 1 if a work stoppage occurs, the port authority shared in a release.
–Johanna F. Still
Read this newsletter online or contact The Dive team with tips and feedback at wilmington@theassemblync.com.
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Lean on Me
As we reported last month, incoming New Hanover Community Endowment CEO Dan Winslow has a colorful political past and solid business acumen, but no experience leading a philanthropic organization. The board of the $1.3 billion Endowment, formed from the sale of New Hanover Regional Medical Center, has faced some criticism for its selection of Winslow.
Winslow told me he’s a “quick study” and that he’ll “lean heavily” on the endowment’s current staff to help him learn the ropes. But that staff dwindled by a third this week.
Executive Vice President Lakesha McDay, who has been holding down the fort since former CEO William Buster was ousted earlier this year, resigned Monday. The next day, communications director Kevin Maurer (a journalist who has worked with WHQR and The Assembly) and program coordinator Alison Cheng also resigned. Endowment Chairman Bill Cameron said the turnover wasn’t unusual, although he admitted he didn’t know if more resignations were coming and hoped they would be “minimal” if they were.
McDay agreed to stay on as a consultant to help Winslow for “several months,” according to Cameron, who said that was a testament to her dedication. That’s likely, given she assumed all the responsibility, but not the title, of CEO after her boss was pushed out.
But kudos for McDay aside, the question is, will a few months of consulting make a difference?
Cameron invoked Winslow’s magic words “quick study” and his time as a business executive in defense. He also pushed back on claims that Winslow lacked experience, saying “he’s been on the asking side many times, and he has worked with a number of philanthropic organizations.”
But applying for grants is not the same as overseeing $65 million in grantmaking every year. And it remains to be seen if a few months of consulting can substitute for a reliable second-in-command.
It’s another wait-and-see scenario for the endowment, but we won’t have to wait long. Winslow starts next week on Tuesday.
– Benjamin Schachtman
Around the Region
Toxic Ruling: A judge recently ruled against the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality in a case surrounding whether regulators could enact more stringent guidelines for a toxic chemical solvent. The judge’s wife works for the group opposed to the rules, Port City Daily reports.
Voluntold: Brunswick County Schools leaders are facing criticism after its storm workday policy left 70 teachers stranded after flooding from the no-name storm, State Port Pilot reports. The school board is asking lawmakers to forgive the teachers’ lost work time.
Second Gent: Doug Emhoff was in Wilmington Wednesday campaigning for his wife, Vice President Kamala Harris. The StarNews detailed the Second Gentleman’s visit.
Not Again: Leland is considering altering its building code after a no-name storm inundated some areas, including Stony Creek, which also flooded in Hurricane Florence. One council member proposed banning flood-zone development, Port City Daily reports.
Around the State
Changing An Election, One Conversation At a Time
Research shows that deep canvassing can sway voters much more than standard methods of persuasion. But can it change votes in Alamance County?
An Abiding Robinson Mystery: What’s a ‘Minisoldr’?
Many are wondering what the online handle tied to Republican candidate for governor Mark Robinson actually refers to. We attempted to figure it out.
Why We’re Suing Columbus County
Columbus County’s handling of public records “evinces a pattern of ongoing and willful defiance of our state’s transparency laws.”
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