Climate Strike! Young And Old Gathered At Five Points To Demand Climate Action

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If the future of the planet depends on Richard Burr, we are all in trouble. North Carolina’s senior senator has been in D.C. for 25 years, first as a Congressman, then-Senator. In two and a half decades, Burr has done practically nothing to protect the people of North Carolina from rapacious corporate interests. Despite the long odds of getting Richard Burr to stand-up to the likes of Exxon, over 100 protestors (by the Journal’s count) gathered at Five Points Friday. We were part of a global Climate Strike, inspired by Greta Thunberg.

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Wall Street Is Questioning Billy Prim, The People Of Winston Should Do The Same

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The Journal recently reported that an activist investment firm is going after Billy Prim, Primo Water’s founder, and current Executive Chairman. Legion Partners LP of Beverly Hills is aggressively targeting the Yadkin County native and his chums on Primo’s board in a just-released, 11-page open letter. The “small-town entrepreneur [who] tackled Wall Street and came away with a $400 million deal” may get tackled by Wall Street this go-round. In the 11-page document, Legion Partners LP argues that Primo has underperformed under Prim. Legion expressed outrage that Prim stacked Primo’s board with his know-nothing friends from his former business, Blue Rhino.

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“Think Orange” Month…Winston Applies A Band-aid To A Broken Arm

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Thoughts and reports, that’s what the poor get from the City of Winston-Salem. Sure, the City distributes a great deal of money to local non-profits, that do some decent work addressing the immediate needs of the poor. But the City of Winston-Salem is by no means marshaling the resources at its disposal to address poverty in the Twin City. At the start of Monday’s City Council meeting, Mayor Joines proclaimed September,  “Think Orange Month” in Winston-Salem. The Mayor and W-S Alliance president first announced his “Think Orange” campaign in August 2018.

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The People’s Business: Week of September 16, 2019

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Monday

W-S City Council, 7:00 p.m. City Hall, Room 230, 101 N. Main Street. View/Download Agenda

Tuesday 

WSFCS Board of Education, Curriculum Committee, 4:00 p.m. in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Education Building, Room 223, 4801 Bethania Station Rd. No agenda available

Thursday

Forsyth County Commissioners, 2:00 p.m., Commissioners’ Meeting Room, located on the 5th Floor, Forsyth County Government Center, 201 North Chestnut Street. No agenda available

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Breaking Crystal: HAWS Has Assets, Move HAWS And Save Crystal Towers!

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“The Housing Authority of Winston-Salem is not your traditional housing authority. It’s the only one in the state that’s also a certified real estate firm. It’s a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers…” -Owen Covington, Triad Business Journal, Feb 18, 2011

Last August the Winston-Salem Housing Authority announced that it was putting Crystal  Towers on the market. Our local housing authority loves the market; HAWS hates public housing, they’re ‘innovative’ like that.

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Hanes Park Celebrates Centennial, But Proposed Stadium Threatens It’s Next 100 Years

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In football, there is a 100 percent chance of injury. Supporters of Hanes Park are legitimately concerned that a proposed new sports (football) stadium at Wiley Middle (spilling over to Hanes Park) will mortally injure one of Winston’s most cherished public parks. Located in the center of our city, Hanes Park is “the front yard of the West Highlands and West End neighborhoods.” Its central location makes it accessible to the entire city. That’s what P.H. Hanes had in mind 100 years ago when he gave it to the citizens of Winston-Salem.

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Viceland’s The Devil You Know, Episode 1

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Here’s a much-delayed review of Viceland’s The Devil You Know, Episode 1. It’s bullshit; well-crafted, hipster, true-crime bullshit. But, The Devil You Know entertains as it spins Pazuzu Algrad into a Charles Manson, complete with groupies. The truth is that Pazuzu Algrad was a severely mentally ill drug addict who rarely left his mother’s house. The Devil You Know took geographical license; blending images of Clemmons, Downtown Winston, East Winston and elsewhere into a concocted location that looks like everywhere else.

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Recently Resigned School Board Member Makes For A Contentious WS/FCS Board Meeting

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Tuesday night’s Board of Education meeting was a tense one. Let’s hope that our new Superintendent, Dr. Angela P. Hairston isn’t tempted to move back to Georgia and beg for her old job back. Lori Goins Clark’s recent resignation dominated Dr. Hairston’s first BOE meeting. Goins Clark’s racist text to a fellow board member (and inadvertently to Dr. Simington-the object of the text) divided the board. Board Chair, Malishai Woodbury was ready to move on and let the County’s attorneys handle the matter.

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The People’s Business: Week of September 9, 2019

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Monday

W-S City Council, Finance Committee: 4:30 p.m. in the Committee Room, City Hall, Room 239, 101 N. Main Street. View/Download Agenda

W-S City Council, Public Safety: 6:00 p.m. in the Committee Room, City Hall, Room 239, 101 N. Main Street. View/Download Agenda

Tuesday

W-S City Council, Community Development/Housing/General Gov. Committee, 4:30 p.m. in the Committee Room, City Hall, Room 239, 101 N. Main Street. View/Download Agenda

W-S City Council, Public Works Committee, 6:00 p.m. in the Committee Room, City Hall, Room 239, 101 N. Main Street. View/Download Agenda

WSFCS Board of Education, 6:30 p.m. in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Education Building, 4801 Bethania Station Rd.

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Disunion Station

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“Union Station is a project without a purpose.” -Robert Clark

Winston’s Union Station closed in 1970. After decades operating as Davis Garage, and years spent acquiring and rehabilitating the property, Union Station is finally open to the public. After spending a mere $20 million on the project, the City of Winston-Salem now owns a marvelous, historic building. But what exactly the City is going to do with Union Station is still anyone’s guess. Sadly, after yesterday’s grand opening, the building closed and won’t be open to the public for a while longer.

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The Winston-Salem City Council’s Dixie Debate Word-For-Word

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Monday night’s Winston-Salem City Council meeting was one for the history books. The resolution to rename the Dixie Classic Fair passed by a 4-2 margin, with one abstention, effectively the resolution passed 5-2. Denise Adams, Dan Besse, Vivian Burke, and Annette Scippio voted yes. John Larson and Jeff MacIntosh voted no. And James Taylor, who was the first politician to suggest that the Dixie Classic Fair’s name should be changed in 2015, abstained.

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One Morning In Court…

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Monday I went to court to support a friend who was recently issued a citation for panhandling. It was interesting to see how justice is made in the basement of the Forsyth County Hall of Justice. Once the courtroom doors opened at 9:00 am, defendants flooded in. The gallery was comprised of average looking joes and janes, disproportionately low-income and people of color. I didn’t see anyone in the crowd that looked like they had money.

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Has Winston-Salem’s Confederate Statue Hit A Snag On Its Way To Salem Cemetery?

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Monday, the City Council will vote on whether or not to change the name of the Dixie Classic Fair. The second-largest fair in the state has had many names over the years. It’s been known as the Dixie Classic Fair since 1956. I’m all for changing the name. The name “Dixie” was a reaction to desegregation efforts.

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Aggressive Panhandling Or Aggressive Policing?

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Earlier this week the City of Winston-Salem held its monthly Public Safety News Conference. Chief Catrina A. Thompson announced when and where the WSPD’s backpack program and Cookies With A Cop events would be held. Assistant Chief, Wilson Weaver II announced that this year’s Dixie Classic Fair would have added security measures: bag checks and electronic scanners, to deter weapons from coming into the fairgrounds. Weaver ended his comments by asking the City’s residents to “please continue to attend our events and have fun. We will be there to keep you safe.”

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