North Carolinians are flocking to the coast. The schools are catching up. – Spectrum News

North Carolinians are flocking to the coast. The schools are catching up.  Spectrum News

Pender County is one of the fastest-growing counties in North Carolina, and a new K-8 school under construction in Hampstead is years in the making. HAMPSTEAD, N.C. — The construction cranes rising off U.S. 17 tell the story before anyone says a word: Pender County is growing, and it is growing fast. According to 2025 U.S. Census data, Pender County is the fourth-fastest growing county in North Carolina with nearby Brunswick County ranked first. Both are drawing people relocating from across the state, many of whom choose the coast for more space and lower costs while commuting to Wilmington or Jacksonville for work, according to county officials. The growth has put pressure on roads, schools and services.

Pender County Manager Colby Sawyer says the strain has been building for years. “We are a rapidly growing community, and that makes sense,” Sawyer said. “Pender County is a great place to live and a great place to work. We have beaches, we have farms, we have small towns, historic towns. There’s really something here for everybody.” But keeping up has not been easy. Sawyer says schools on the eastern side of the county have been over capacity for some time, and the county has limited control over how quickly it can respond. “As a county, a lot of the infrastructure challenges that