The city of New Bern obtained a hotel market study that proposes a 135-unit hotel with a restaurant, bar, garage, and other things on a lot that’s currently owned by Craven County.
The Craven County Board of Commissioners and city of New Bern aldermen have publicly talked about the possibility of redeveloping the city-owned parking lot across from City Hall at the corner of Pollock and Craven Street and the Craven County Register of Deeds and Tax Office at 226 Pollock Street as a mixed-use property over the years.
On May 1, 2017, City Manager Mark Stephens “presented the Craven/Pollock Analysis and a proposal for an interlocal agreement generated by a study conducted by the UNC School of Government’s Development Finance Initiative” to County Commissioners Thomas Mark, Scott Dacey, Jason Jones, George Liner, Theron McCabe, Johnnie Sampson Jr. and Steve Tyson and asked for a joint work session with the both boards and the consultants to discuss a proposed joint project that would utilize the aforementioned properties “to create a mixed-use structure that would include a parking garage. Uses such as hospitality, residential and retail would be considered. The city has proposed to acquire the county’s building for approximately $300,000 and to provide for project development via private enterprise but would ultimately own the parking garage. The city and county would benefit from the ad valorem taxes on the privately owned portion of the project; however, it was proposed that the County would forego its tax distribution until the debt service is retired, approximately 15 years,” according to meeting minutes. The minutes say, “Craven County spent $580,000 to purchase the building in 1998 and $1.1 million to renovate it.”
On Feb. 13, 2018, representatives from the NC School of Government DFI presented an overview of the potential project to then aldermen Sabrina Bengel (Ward 1), Jameesha Harris (Ward 2), Robert “Bobby” Aster (Ward 3), Johnnie Ray Kinsey (Ward 4), Barbara Best (Ward 5), Jeffrey Odham (Ward 6) and Mayor Dana Outlaw (of Ward 6) on Feb. 13, 2018, according to the meeting package.
The details are unclear as we didn’t regularly attend local government meetings at that time.
For years, the city rented spaces to the county until the Board of Aldermen decided to convert the lot into a pay by hour lot with “Contactless Parking Payments” (image below), as reported here.
A “Copy of Contracts List 2026” obtained by NewBernNow.com notes a “Market Study for analysis of proposed hotel.” The Hotel Study shows a proposed New Bern Hotel with 135 units, a restaurant, bar, garage, and other things at 226 Pollock Street — the current Craven County Register of Deeds and Tax Office.
The city received the results of the study a few months after Sabrina Bengel — former alderman, chairman of the Housing Authority of the City of New Bern, vice-chairman of the city’s Municipal Service District Advisory Committee, and North Carolina Restaurant & Lodging Association board member — touted “we are trying to attract developers to…” on her radio/internet reality show.
The study notes the date of inspection was Jan. 1, 2025, with an assumed opening date of Jan. 1, 2029.
We reached out to city and county officials and the reality show host for more information on July 31, 2026, but we have not received a response by press time.
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The Craven County Board of Commissioners will cover several topics on during their Aug. 3, 2026 meeting including holding a public hearing “to receive comments on Craven County’s proposed issuance of Limited Obligation Bonds in an aggregate principal amount not to exceed $25 million. The proceeds would finance several County capital improvement projects, including governmental facilities, parking improvements, a maintenance facility, replacement of the Judicial Center chiller, renovation of the Public Defender’s Office, expansion of the Cove City Library, and improvements to the Department of Social Services facility. The proposed financing is expected to be secured by County property, and no increase in the ad valorem tax rate is currently anticipated to be necessary to repay the bonds,” according to the meeting packet.
The Board of Commissioners will meet at 6 p.m. in the Commissioners Meeting Room on the second floor of the Administration Building at 406 Craven St. in New Bern, NC.
Meeting agendas, minutes and packets can be found here, and videos can be found here.
Editor’s note: The article was updated to correct a typographic error regarding the date of the commissioners meeting in 2017.
By Wendy Card, editor. Send an email with questions or comments.