Genteel CharmOn theEast Coast InWilmington,NC

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ULL OF HISTORY AND GENTEEL SOUTHERN CHARM, the riverfront city ofWilmington, NC, has found a niche as Hollywood East — or Wilmywoodas some like to call it — where film studios have been reeling out featurefilms and TV programs since 1983. But as recent retirees have learned, thistown, beautified by magnolia trees and azalea bushes, also is a gateway tomiles of beaches, golf communities and a lifestyle that is both sophisticatedand laid-back.

“We checked out the usual suspects along the East Coast, including Hilton Head,Charleston and Savannah; Wilmington was not on our A-list,” remembers Jeff Mays,

63, a retired consultant and lobbyist who had worked 33 years in theWashington, DC, area before cutting back his workload and movingto the Jersey shore with his wife, Jill, in 2005. When friends urgedthem to consider Wilmington, the couple spent a weekend here fouryears ago and then made several more trips to the city, located at theeastern terminus of Interstate 40. “We came back again and again overthe next two years and each time we liked it more and more,” Jeff says.They drove for miles around the city, looking at a number of golf

communities — a priority for Jeff, an avid player with a 14 handicap.Jill had never picked up a club in her 61 years but wanted to learn.Their Jersey shore house sold in one day in April 2011, and in June

they took up residence in Landfall, a 2,200-acre gated golf community just 10 minutesfrom the beach and 15 minutes from picturesque and entertaining downtown Wilm-ington. The backyard patiogate of their single-story,four-bedroom, four-bath,2,800-square-foot home isa mere pitching wedgefrom the practice area of aJack Nicklaus golf course,one of three courses —including a classic PeteDye-designed layout —that wind through theroughly 1,500-home com-munity and along theIntracoastal Waterway.Jill, now 63, who worked

as a special educationteacher in MontgomeryCounty, MD, for morethan 30 years, finds her lifehere more active than ever. “It’s a very open and friendly place,” she says of Landfalland Wilmington, “and we’re into so many things it keeps us busy all day.” Once intim-idated by the thought of swinging a golf club, she was won over by Landfall golf proSara Bush, whose Golf 101 course starts with “just showing up,” and nonintimidatinginitial instructions such as “how to unload your clubs in the parking lot.” Off the

PROFILE:

GREATER WILMINGTON, NCTales of America’s past, colorful azaleas, film studios and beaches are all abundant in this North Carolinacoastal area on the Cape Fear River.> BY JIM KERR

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Raleigh

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MyrtleBeach

We enjoy havingdowntown Wilm-

ington nearby, with itsmix of great restaurants,theater and plenty to seeand do, as well as lots ofyoung people around.”

— Lisa Myers

Fayetteville

Greenville

WILMINGTON

Southport

WrightsvilleBeach

CarolinaBeach

Kure Beach

Dinner cruises, kayak trips and sunset sails all can befound on the Cape Fear River, the only North Carolinariver to flow directly into the Atlantic Ocean.

Cape FearRiver

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Population: 109,922Location:Wilmington, North Carolina’s largestcoastal city, is located at the eastern terminusof Interstate 40, roughly 130 miles southeast ofRaleigh, the state capital, and about 330 milessoutheast of Asheville in the western moun-tains. Metro Wilmington extends into threecounties: New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender.Climate: January: High 57˚/ Low 36˚July: High 90˚/ Low 73˚Average relative humidity: 70%Rain: 58 inches annually Cost of living: AverageHousing cost: The median sales price of sin-gle-family homes in Wilmington was $181,279from January through July, according to theWilmington Regional Association of Realtors. Sales tax: 7% (2% on groceries)Sales tax exemptions: Prescription drugsState income tax: For married couples filingjointly, the rate is graduated from 6% of tax-able income up to $21,250 to 7.75% on incomemore than $100,000. For single filers, the rateis 6% of taxable income up to $12,750 to7.75% on income more than $60,000.Income tax exemptions: Social Securitybenefits are exempt. Residents can excludeup to $2,000 of private pensions and up to$4,000 of federal, state and local governmentpensions per person; the total exemptionclaimed cannot exceed $4,000 per individual.Estate tax: North Carolina repealed its estatetax in July of this year. The repeal is effectivefor deaths on Jan. 1, 2013, and later. Inheritance tax: NoneProperty tax: The tax rate is $1.083 per $100of assessed value, with homes assessed at100% of market value. Annual taxes on a$181,279 home would be around $1,963,without the exemption below. Homestead exemption: The state excludesfrom taxes the greater of $25,000 or 50% ofappraised value of a permanent, owner-occu-pied residence for residents age 65 or olderwho meet certain income requirements. Fordetails, contact the North Carolina Departmentof Revenue, (877) 308-9103 or DORNC.com.Personal property tax: Motor vehicles,boats, motorcycles, recreational vehicles,trailers and some other craft are taxed at thesame rate as homes and assessed at a state-determined market value.Religion: More than 100 churches of everyChristian denomination can be found inGreater Wilmington. The city also has foursynagogues and three mosques.Education: The University of North Carolina

Wilmington has more than 13,500 studentsand is recognized as a top public undergradu-ate institution and one of the best values inthe country. While the school is known for itsnatural science programs, high-profile pro-grams in the arts, creative writing and filmstudies are popular. Business programs alsoare strong, and the school’s Osher LifelongLearning Institute offers short, noncredit cours-es, seminars, lectures and travel programs.Other area schools include Cape Fear andBrunswick community colleges, Shaw Universi-ty and Mount Olive and Miller-Motte colleges.Transportation: The recently renovated Wilm-ington International Airport has daily nonstopservice to Atlanta; Charlotte, NC; New York;Philadelphia; Washington, DC; and Orlando, FL.The city is largely dependent on automobiletransportation, but the Cape Fear Public Trans-portation Authority (Wave Transit) offers routesthroughout the city and into portions of NewHanover County from transfer points down-town. Adult fares start at $2 with free trans-fers. Students and seniors ride for half-fare.Walk Score: Wilmington has an overallwalkability rating of 44 out of 100, or “cardependent,” according to WalkScore.com.Neighborhoods will vary. Health care: The 628-bed New HanoverRegional Medical Center, the area’s leadinghealth-care facility, has three locations andemergency services. The nonprofit is the ninthlargest health-care center in the state withroughly 5,000 employees, 600 physicians and800 volunteers. Cape Fear Hospital, with 133beds, serves as the regional hospital’s home fororthopedic care, and Pender Memorial Hospital,with 86 beds, provides a wide range of services.Housing: The Wilmington area real estatemarket is highly diverse and covers manysquare miles as well as four centuries. Historicmansions and bungalows are in leafy, quietneighborhoods in the city, and many condos aredowntown, some in restored buildings or abovebusinesses in the heart of the action. The oldsuburbs of Carolina Heights and Forest Hillswere streetcar communities developed in the1920s, where long-defunct rail lines deliveredcommuters to work downtown. New suburbsinclude gated golf communities such asBrunswick Forest, (888) 371-2434, withhomes from the $300,000s, and Landfall, (800)227-8208, where homes start in the $300,000sand others along the Intracoastal Waterway goup into the millions. Developments within 30minutes of downtown include St. JamesPlantation, (800) 245-3871, in Southport;Porters Neck Plantation, (800) 423-5695,

north of the city; and River Landing, (888)285-4171, about 45 miles north off I-40 at Wallace. In the heart of Wilmington, optionsinclude stately period homes, such as one formerly owned by a 19th-century sea captainpriced at $1.8 million, and one- to three-bed-room downtown condos ranging from $69,000to $365,000. In Wrightsville Beach, the medianprice for homes is $650,000. Carolina Beachhas single-family homes and condos oceansideas well as vintage cottages and condos inlandwith resale prices starting at $100,000. KureBeach has many old-style cottages as well asnew construction. Two- to three-bedroom cottages 6 to 8 blocks off the beach run in thehigh $100,000s. Homes closer to the beach cango up into the millions, but one-bedroom resalecondos at older complexes start at about$100,000. Rentals:Wilmington has plenty oflong-term rental properties, from affordableone-bedroom apartments to condos, town-homes and single-family residences. Monthlyrents range from about $600 for a one-bedroomapartment to $3,000 or more for a five-bed-room home. Headwaters at Autumn Hall, (910)392-1222, a 236-acre complex minutes fromdowntown, is perfect for outdoor lovers, withwalking trails and a kayak launch. Monthlyrents begin at $1,029 for apartments.Visitor lodging: Downtown Wilmington offersa wide variety of accommodations, withoptions ranging from historic bed-and-breakfastinns to sleek hotels. The well-located Wilming-tonian has 26 suites with kitchens or wet barsstarting at $79, (800) 525-0909. Or step back intime at the Rosehill Inn Bed and Breakfast,which dates to 1848 and is nestled in Wilming-ton’s beautiful historic district. Rooms rangefrom $119 to $199, (800) 815-0250. Beachaccommodations offer a vacation feel and varywidely in price depending on the season. Enjoya commanding view of Carolina Beach and itsold-time boardwalk from the 144-room Court-yard Carolina Beach by Marriott, from $79,(910) 458-2030. At Kure Beach, the mom-and-pop Admiral’s Quarters Motel offers 37 rooms,most oceanfront, from $70, (855) 276-6835.Information: Wilmington Chamber of Com-merce, (910) 762-2611 or WilmingtonChamber.org. Wilmington and Beaches Convention andVisitors Bureau, (877) 406-2356 or WilmingtonAndBeaches.com. Wrightsville Beach VisitorsCenter, (800) 650-9106 or VisitWrightsvilleBeachNC.com. The Pleasure Island (Carolinaand Kure beaches) Chamber of Commerce andVisitor Center, (910) 458-8434 or PleasureIslandNC.org. Town of Kure Beach, (910) 458-8216 orTownOfKureBeach.org.

QUICK FACTS GREATER WILMINGTON, NC

course, Jill tutors adults as a volunteer forthe Cape Fear Literacy Council. Jeff vol-unteers in a career mentoring program atthe University of North Carolina Wilm-ington, and on slower days, the coupleoften bike to Wrightsville Beach for aswim.Located a few miles away, across the

Intracoastal Waterway, WrightsvilleBeach is the most heavily visited andpopulated of three distinctly differentbeaches near Wilmington; the other twoare Carolina and Kure (pronouncedCURE-ee). Since Highway 74 is the onlyway to get to Wrightsville Beach, trafficcan back up for several miles, especiallyin summer months — one reason whyJeff and Jill prefer to ride their bikes.Multimillion-dollar homes and pricey

condos abound in this beach communi-ty. During a four-day stay in fall 2010,Lisa and Wayne Myers bought a lot atBrunswick Forest, a gated golf commu-nity near Wilmington. Exactly sixmonths later, they moved into a three-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bath homethat Wayne designed himself. “We enjoyhaving downtown Wilmington nearby,with its mix of great restaurants, theaterand plenty to see and do, as well as lots ofyoung people around,” Lisa says.

When Wayne, 63, retired 11 years agoas a news photographer for the CBS affil-iate in Washington, DC, the couple firstmoved from their home in Fairfax, VA, toRockledge, FL, near Cocoa Beach, to becloser to Wayne’s parents. But after hisparents passed away in 2010, the couplelooked north for someplace closer totheir two sons, who lived in northernVirginia. Their Brunswick Forest homehas plenty of guest rooms, plus an officefrom which Lisa, 58, still telecommutesin information technology services.Wayne has found his niche here as well.

He’s an avid golfer and former presidentof the North Brunswick Kiwanis Club. Hevolunteers as a tutor in elementaryschools and he has gone back to playingthe drums in a local band. Wilmington, aColonial city that dates to 1739, still is amajor port on the Cape Fear River, whichflows into the Atlantic at Southport,about 30 miles away. Capturing thisstrategic Confederate town and Fort Fish-er, which guarded it downriver, was cru-cial in ending the Civil War. The city itselfwas spared major damage, and today itholds one of North Carolina’s largest col-lections of historic buildings and homesin a National Register Historic Districtthat spans 230 blocks. Several remarkablypreserved examples, including some thatdate back almost three centuries, are openfor tours, along with ever-blooming gar-dens that flourish in Wilmington’s mildyear-round climate.

In early morning hours, long beforethe lunchtime crowd arrives at the river-side and garden restaurants, downtownWilmington can be a quiet and contem-plative place. Conductors of horse-drawn trolleys water their magnificentPercherons and a few visitors stroll alongthe Wilmington Downtown Riverwalk.Across the water looms the mighty USSNorth Carolina, the country’s most dec-orated battleship, which fought in everymajor battle in the Pacific during WorldWar II and today is a popular year-round

museum. Visitors can tour the sailors’bunks, mess hall and gun turrets. Asnoon approaches, the Riverwalk area fillswith tourists, workers and residentsshopping and having lunch. The down-town area also includes the Cape FearMuseum of History and Science, Thalian

The Wilmington Downtown Riverwalkbustles with bistros and shops aplenty.Plans call for the walkway to beextended to reach the two majorbridges in the city.

Strong Percheron horses pull trolleystouring Wilmington’s downtown andhistoric districts.

the area,” M.L. says. In April, the groupsold the Kure Beach condo, and in Maythe Smiths bought a townhome as theirpermanent retirement home in thisquiet beach town.“I’m really the beach person,” says

Sara, 65, a former administrator at atechnical community college. “As kidsgrowing up in the Northeast outsideBoston, we shared the beaches with100,000 of our ‘best friends.’ Here it’s notat all crowded and the people who comehere really are our best friends.”“Calm” is a word Sara uses to describe

Kure Beach. Traffic does pick up fromApril to November, but the rest of theyear, when dogs on leashes are allowedon the beach, tranquility prevails here.Soon after Sara and M.L. moved to

Kure Beach, they had a moment thatstopped them in their tracks. “We realizedwe actually owned property in a townwith one stoplight!” Sara says with asmile. “Where else in the country will youfind a beach town with one stoplight?”

Jim Kerr is a Raleigh, NC-based freelancewriter who loves exploring the history andculture of the North Carolina coastline.

has become a pastime.While Wilmington takes the spotlight,

its three area beaches also are star attrac-tions in the region. Wrightsville is about 5miles from downtown Wilmington and130 miles from Raleigh. Carolina andKure beaches to the south are a 10- to 20-minute drive from downtown Wilming-ton, with populations of about 5,800 and2,000, respectively. Both towns areknown for relaxed lifestyles and quaint-ness of character, although each has seensignificant growth in recent years withnew hotels, houses, condos and commer-cial establishments, most catering to theresort casual set. Carolina Beach has amajor hotel and a 761-acre state parkwith camping, nature trails and a boatramp. The even more laid-back KureBeach, a town with only one stoplight,features a long fishing pier, new munici-pal park, swimming pool and a Civil Warmuseum at Fort Fisher, a National His-toric Landmark. The fort also is thehome of the North Carolina Aquarium,which recently underwent a $15 millionrenovation and expansion.In Kure Beach, “there’s a lot of oppor-

tunity for cultural, recreational andconservation activities,” says M.L.Smith, 69, a retired college administra-tor from Indianapolis who first visitedin 2004 with his wife, Sara, when theyjoined with several other couples inbuying a condo. “We love the KureBeach lifestyle, with the nearby ocean,aquarium and overall historic nature of

Hall Center for the Performing Arts andWilmington Railroad Museum. EveryApril, when Wilmington holds its popu-lar North Carolina Azalea Festival, sever-al downtown streets jam with vendorsand thousands of visitors.

On a normal day, however, Wilmingtonreflects the ambience of a medium-sizeSouthern city, although now-welcomeYankees continue to advance in ever-increasing numbers, and further growthis inevitable. According to data from thecity’s chamber of commerce, metroWilmington, with more than 370,000 res-idents in New Hanover, Brunswick andPender counties, is projected to grow 5.8percent from 2012 to 2017. That means8,800 new households. Major employers in the area include

New Hanover Regional Medical Centerwith about 5,000 employees, GE Wilm-ington, the University of North CarolinaWilmington and PPD, a pharmaceuticaland biotech company. The growing filmindustry, which started here at OrtonPlantation with the 1983 filming ofStephen King’s “Firestarter,” has pro-duced more than 11 TV series and 300feature films. EUE/Screen Gems Studiosnow is one of the largest productioncompanies east of Hollywood with 10sound stages, and hundreds of retirees inthe Wilmington area have participated asextras in these productions. Spottingfilm and TV actors in local restaurants

Jill and Jeff Mays found their retirementhaven at Wilmington’s Landfall golfcommunity, which is a bike ride awayfrom the beach.

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Area residents have been flocking to Wrightsville Beach since 1887 when Shell Road, nowknown as Wrightsville Avenue, was built to connect the serene shore to the mainland.

Reprinted from Where to Retire. Copyright 2013. For subscription information, call 713/974-6903, or visit www.WheretoRetire.com.