Montgomery Is Determined To Keep Moving Up: From City Hall, To The General Assembly, To Congress

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-Updated 2/25/2020, 1:30 pm

Derwin Montgomery is a man of many titles. He’s Reverend Montgomery to his congregation at First Calvary. He’s CEO to the board of the Bethesda Center, and he’s Representative Mongomery to his constituents in NC House District 72. Montgomery is also a co-owner of The Chronicle. If Montogomery finds a way to defeat four other contenders in the NC 6th District Democratic Primary, then he’ll be well on his way to becoming Congressman Montogomery.

2020 Hasn’t Turned Out Like Mayor Joines Promised

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Downtown Winston-Salem’s main traffic artery, Salem Parkway, opened on Sunday, February 2. It had been closed since November 17, 2018. I will remember the roughly 14 months that Business 40/Salem Parkway was closed, as the long 2019. The absence of four lanes of highway running from Peters Creek to Highway 52 wasn’t catastrophic. But it was a constant annoyance.

“The City Is A Business, A Big Business.”

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“With this vote, the four hard-working members of the Finance Committee just saved the City $11 million. That’s about three million each. That’s pretty good for a day’s work.” Those were Finance Committee chairman Robert Clark’s comments on refinancing water and sewer revenue bonds. Total debt load, water and sewer revenue bonds outstanding are about $400 million.

City Funds New Walkertown Road Project

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Last night a two-vehicle accident occurred at the intersection of Cameron Ave and E. 14th St. One vehicle hit the side of Titanic Food Mart but didn’t appear to do much damage. On the other side of that building, there is an impressive mural honoring East Winston’s history. I don’t know what possessed anyone to change the 14th Street Discount Store to Titanic Food Mart. A building that reads Titanic on one side and displays a mural of East Winston’s history on the other side, sends the message that East Winston is a sinking ship.

Black History Expo Reaffirms Happy Hills Historic Importance

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“Happy Hill!” “Black history!” The voice of Ben Piggott rang through the Sims Recreation Center Saturday. Ben Piggott, a longtime rec center manager and organizer in Happy Hill, served as MC for the first-annual Happy Hill Black History Expo. The Happy Hill Neighborhood Association hosted the event.

The People’s Business: February 17, 2020

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Monday

Winston-Salem City Council meeting, 7:00 p.m. City Hall, Room 230, 101 N. Main Street.  

Thursday

Forsyth County Commissioners meeting, 2:00 p.m., Commissioners’ Meeting Room, located on the 5th Floor, Forsyth County Government Center, 201 North Chestnut Street. The Activist Agenda

Tuesday

Neighbors for Better Neighborhoods’ organizing circle, featuring Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough. 12-2 p.m., at the Jordan/Malloy East Winston Library. https://nbncommunity.org/events

State behavioral health officials town hall.

Three Years After It’s Final Report Was Issued, The Poverty Thought Force’s Recommendations Have Not Been Implemented

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Thursday, Mayor and Winston-Salem Alliance President Allen Joines held a press conference announcing a new privately-funded initiative. Educators, business people, and a member of the clergy, all praised Joines’ new workforce development and internship program for high school juniors and seniors who qualify. This new internship program is in addition to the Winston-Salem College Guarantee program that was announced late last year. Thursday was an important day. It was the beginning of early voting in our state.

Nina Turner And Susan Sarandon Cranked Out The Truth At Krankies!

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Early Thursday morning, a billionaire former mayor, with presidential ambitions briefly spoke at Footnote Coffee & Cocktails. Two sources told me that mayor “stop and frisk” only spoke for 10 minutes. On the other side of Downtown Winston, Thursday afternoon, Krankies hosted a Community Meeting with Senator Nina Turner and Susan Sarandon. Turner and Sarandon were joined at Krankies by local Democratic activist, Jenny Marshall. All three women gave substantive reasons why we need Bernie Sanders in the White House (affordable housing, the environment, jobs, health care for all, Wall Street accountability, etc.).

What Should Be Done To Aid East Winston?

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On February 1, the five candidates running in the East Ward City Council race participated in a debate at the Delta Arts Center. I encourage folks to watch the entire debate at their leisure. The two-hour-long event got me thinking about what should be done to aid East Winston? East Winston has the highest poverty rates in the city and the lowest amount of financial resources. I don’t have any magic answers, and I admit that local solutions will be challenging to implement without support from the state and local government.

The East Winston Library: A Jim Crow-Era Time Capsule

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“East Winston, how can I help you?” That’s how a young white woman at the Malloy/ Jordan Library answered the phone when I was there recently. The Malloy/Jordan Library was built in 1954, one year after the Central Library on Fifth Street was constructed. But its history dates back to February 1927 when the first library branch was opened in East Winston. Last year, the East Winston Library celebrated its 65th anniversary. Recent upgrades to the Malloy/Jordan or East Winston Library have brought it into the 21st century, but there simply isn’t enough space for patrons at the East Winston Library.