In the aftermath of two hurricanes seemingly back-to-back, Orange County has been working – along with the rest of North Carolina – to rebuild and repair.

“The Town of Chapel Hill has reached out to businesses in specific that were affected by the hurricane, that were flooded,” said Dwight Bassett, Economic Development Director for Chapel Hill. “We’ve tried to expedite a permit process to get them back in business. As long as they’re replacing like-for-like, it’s a pretty simple process … They can get a permit within a day and get it finalized within a day or two. We’re just trying to reach out and figure out how we can help others that are going to be more difficult.”

Some businesses, such as the Starbucks and Bruegger’s Bagels in Eastgate Shopping Center, are facing larger challenges after significant flooding damage. Flooded interiors and full renovations following storm damage are difficult to itemize and account for under a “like-for-like” policy.

“The good news is, for people who aren’t aware, the town has been talking about how we can improve the condition of what happened at Eastgate,” said Bassett.

Eastgate in general suffered a great deal of damage from flooding in the wake of Florence, though potential development of an enhanced stormwater retention pond could help in future storms – a project that Mayor Pam Hemminger has referred to as “a top priority” in the past.

“We try to be incredibly friendly to those businesses,” said Bassett. “We know they didn’t bring this on themselves, and we want to do everything we can to facilitate them getting back open.”

Outside of assisting local businesses getting back on their feet following the recent series of storms, Bassett also works to enhance the economic growth of Chapel Hill and surrounding areas. Listen below as he speaks with WCHL’s Aaron Keck about ongoing economic development efforts in Orange County, including some thoughts on the recent Orange County Economic Development Summit!

(feature photo via Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership)

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