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March 31, 2006
Heart of the Triad: A week-long endeavor
Next week is the start of the Heart of the Triad planning "charette" -- an intense five-day planning session that should finally answer a lot of questions about what this thing will look like.
If you're interested, there are three sessions to which the public is specifically invited: Monday night at 6 p.m., Wednesday night at 6 p.m. and Friday night at 6 p.m. The Friday session is the unveiling of three proposals, which will get winnowed to one before being taken to the six local governments for approval.
Throughout the week, people can come and watch if they really feel the need to observe planners at work.
Everything is taking place at the Girl Scout Learning Center, 1203 Frances Daily Court, Colfax.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 5:39 PM | Comments (0)
A few notes
As has been mentioned elsewhere, News-Record.com is moving to a new server. That's created problems for the links to stories in older blog posts. I won't go back through and fix them all, but I'll try to get to some of them once the move is complete.
Also, I apologize for the inactivity here this week. I kept getting pulled into non-North High Point, Jamestown, development stories.
Next week should be full of a lot of Heart of the Triad stuff.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 5:33 PM | Comments (0)
March 27, 2006
Lotto fever
So if you're like me, Thursday's an important day. That's right, I enjoy voluntary taxation. It's the forced kind I can't stand. Anyway, on Friday the state lotto office gave me a list of retailers across North Carolina that will have the games when they start later this week.
I figure a few of you out there might be just as interested as I am in playing. So in case you haven't seen the lotto signs at your favorite convenience store, I've got what you need to know about finding those tickets.
I've broken the list down for High Point and Jamestown folks. Here's the list of stores in High Point that will have the games. And here you can find the Jamestown shops. They're in Excel format.
The list for the entire state is here.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 4:45 PM | Comments (0)
March 24, 2006
On the Agenda: High Point planning
The Planning and Zoning Commission has its monthly meeting next week. It's a pretty light schedule, compared to most of the rest I've seen in my first six months here.
The only item of note in North High Point this month is a zoning request for 2 acres along Eastchester Drive. The property is at the southwestern corner of Eastchester and Meadowlark Road. A developer, Windsor Development Group, LLC, wants to re-zone for moderate intensity office use. City planning staff recommends approval since the land use plan calls for it to be used for offices.
What: High Point Planning and Zoning Commission
When: 6 p.m. Tuesday
Where: City Council Chambers, 211 S. Hamilton St.
See what else is on the agenda below the jump
Also up for consideration is Dr. Gentry's dental day spa. If you remember, he tried to get the city to change accepted uses in limited office areas to allow day spas, so that he could open a spa service in conjunction with his dental office. City Council rejected it.
Now he's trying to get his office re-zoned to allow the day spa, but city planners are opposed.
The other two things on the agenda are street closure requests: one by the city on Old Chestnut Drive to make room for the new Fire Station No. 3 and one by Marsh Furniture Company on E. Kearns Ave.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 4:03 PM | Comments (0)
March 23, 2006
Simeon Stadium
The deal city officials had been working on for months died this morning when City Council rejected a 20-year lease for Simeon Stadium.
The council voted 5-4 against the deal that would've brought control of the stadium back to High Point. It was originally built by the city in 1974 and given to High Point City Schools nine years later in exchange for the Leonard Street School, which became police headquarters.
Most of the council members who voted against it expressed a desire to own the stadium rather than lease it. Mayor Smothers argued it was better to go into the lease now and then begin working on buying it back -- a process that she said would likely require an act of the state legislature.
One of those opposed to the deal, Michael Pugh, said in effect that it was inappropriate for the city to be doing a deal with Guilford County Board of Education at a time when so many High Point residents are upset with the BOE.
See how members voted after the jump.
Against:
Chris Whitley
Michael Pugh
Latimer Alexander
Lisa Stahlmann
Bill Bencini
For:
Bernita Sims
Becky Smothers
John Faircloth
Ron Wilkins
Interestingly, three of the four who voted for it also expressed some concerns about particular aspects. Sims asked that language be added to the contract giving the city first right of refusal, should the BOE opt to sell the stadium. Wilkins said he preferred ownership. And Faircloth had some concerns about the way the lease could be renewed at the end of the initial 20-year-period. He wanted to make sure renewal was the council's option.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 3:01 PM | Comments (7)
March 21, 2006
On the Agenda: Jamestown Council
Jamestown's council has a busy agenda tonight, so I'll just hit the highlights here.
* A public hearing will be held on a rezoning request for 404 W. Main Street. The planning board already recommended approval.
* Assistant Town Manager Kathryn Billings is asking the council to consider hiring a town planner -- a position the town has not had in the past -- and a finance officer -- which is a job Billings held until her duties were merged with the Assistant Town Manager position. Billings is set to become the Town Manager when John Frezell retires in May. The assistant town manager job would not be filled.
* Council will consider an amendment to town code that allows the town manager to sell property worth up to $30,000 without council approval. The move would match what state law allows and does not cover real estate, just things like old vehicles, furniture, etc. Current town rules set the limit at $5,000.
* A public hearing will be held on modifying the town code to match state planning laws.
What: Jamestown Town Council
When: 7 p.m. tonight
Where: Jamestown Town Hall
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 10:28 AM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2006
Just a reminder
The Eastchester development near Big Lots, the one that has twice been recommended approval by the planning board and failed once in front of the City Council, is up for a fourth public hearing tonight. This time it's back in the City Council's court. It failed to win a super-majority after neighbors filed a protest petition last fall.
Tuesday update: Council delayed making a decisoin on the development until April 4, when it will continue the hearing started last night.
What: Public hearing on mixed-use development
Where: City Council Chambers, City Hall, 211 S. Hamilton St.
When: 5:30 p.m. tonight.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 2:06 PM | Comments (3)
March 15, 2006
What's the real future of the youth prison?
It's hard to tell. The state withdrew it's plans, but won't elaborate on the decision.
The "youth development center," as the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention likes to call them, is one of several around the state that are planned to be built in the near future. Guilford County was identified in a 2004 plan as one of four sites that should get a 32-bed facility.
Since the Sandy Ridge area is part of High Point's growth area, it's something North High Point folks might want to pay attention to. Much of the land near the proposed site is slated for light industrial zoning and likely to become corporate office parks. The noise plan precludes much land in the area from being developed for residential uses, but if you look at the map, there is an odd-shaped jag in Zone 3 that encompasses the prison property-- and allows new residential uses there.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 4:30 PM | Comments (4)
March 13, 2006
It's all about the music
Liberty Steakhouse & Brewery ran afoul of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers last year. Now they're suing.
ASCAP is one of the big-three, along with BMI and SESAC when it comes to performers' rights and licensing. Basically, if I'm a songwriter and I want to get paid for other people performing my song, I join one of these groups. And if I'm a business owner and want to have music in my joint, then I'm supposed to make sure it's original or come to some kind of licensing agreement with these groups.
ASCAP claims Liberty didn't have a license when five of its songs were played there last summer. Now they're seeking damages. And Liberty's not alone. ASCAP filed 24 similar cases around the country last month.
One of Liberty's co-owners talked with me about it last week. He wasn't too happy about the suit, as one might understand. But he also said he doesn't want to cheat songwriters out of their due.
As someone who has worked in bars and restaurants that I'm pretty darn sure didn't pay any licensing fees (let's just say if there was any extra money to spread around it wasn't going to a licensing group in New York) when we had the occasional band, I can see how easy it would be to land in hot water. And in a way it seems tough to require a joint to get an expensive license to have the occasional cover band.
As someone with friends who've tried and are trying to make it as professional musicians, it's nice to know there are groups like ASCAP that vigorously protect copyrights. If someone was playing my work and I wasn't getting paid, I'd be a might bit hot.
I guess what I'm saying is that this is one of the stories where I think it's easy to understand both sides.
Anyway, check out tomorrow's paper for a story on it.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 8:15 PM | Comments (3)
March 12, 2006
The school redistricting story ...
... that many of you were asking for, ran in today's paper.
Education reporter Jennifer Fernandez talked to parents in the Parkview Elementary School area about how they feel now that their children are slated to attend Southwest schools instead of Andrews and Welborn. It's worth a look if you didn't see it already.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 12:43 PM | Comments (1)
March 10, 2006
The youth detention center
Folks up in Sandy Ridge have been awfully upset with the state's plan to open a youth detention center at the old prison on Sandy Camp Road.
If you've driven out there you've seen all the signs.
On Sunday they're holding an organization meeting and petition-signing drive to protest the planned youth camp before the Guilford County planning board votes on it in April. To sign the petition you need to live in the county outside city limits and be 21. If you live in city limits, I'm sure they'll take your moral support.
When: 6 p.m. Sunday
Where: Community Center on Joe Dr. behind the Methodist church.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 5:43 PM | Comments (0)
March 9, 2006
Dangerous intersections
High Point police released its annual report today. It's a "State of Policing in High Point" kind of statement.
There's some interesting stuff in there about violent crime rates dropping in the city, and the effectiveness of the High Point Violent Crimes Task Force in the West End. The police report a 5 percent drop in violent crime from 2004 to 2005, and an 18 percent drop in the murder rate. The bad news: property crimes climbed by 3 percent.
Probably of greatest interest to North High Point though is the traffic data. Why? Because half of the city's most crash-prone intersections (if you consider Eastchester at Main Street to be the far edge) were in North High Point.
The top 10 after the jump:
1) Fairfield Road and Main Street -- 23 accidents
2) Eastchester and Skeet Club Road/Wendover Avenue -- 22 accidents
2) Eastchester/Westchester and Main Street -- 22 accidents
4) Eastchester and U.S. 311 Bypass -- 19 accidents
5) English Road and Main Street -- 18 accidents
6) Kivett Drive and Main Street -- 16 accidents
7) Centennial and Eastchester -- 15 accidents
8) Gordon and Hoskins Street -- 14 accidents
8) Hoskins and Kivett Drive -- 14 accidents
10) Penny Road and Wendover Avenue -- 13 accidents
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 5:15 PM | Comments (2)
March 7, 2006
Carolina Bank @ Deep River
I looked at the newest plans today the city has for The Shoppes at Deep River.
Carolina Bank is looking to build a 3,600 square foot bank on 1 acre off Brian Jordan Place. The property faces Wendover Avenue, but to get there you'd have to turn on Penny Road or Samet Drive and then onto Brian Jordan. As proposed it would have four-drive through lanes.
This corner -- just north of Samet Drive an Wendover -- of the Shoppes at Deep River property was adjusted at December planning commission and City Council meetings.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 6:02 PM | Comments (0)
March 3, 2006
Sadie May's
If you haven't heard yet, tomorrow will be the last day Sadie May's Ristorante in Jamestown is open for business.
We're running a feature tomorrow about folks trying to get that one last Sadie May's entree. Update: Here's a link to the story.
So I had lunch there, for the very first time, today and am quite disappointed I won't be able to return. It was excellent.
The owner's daughter said too much business has been siphoned off by the new restaurants in the Skeet Club/Wendover and Eastchester area.
Since word first started spreading two weeks ago, though, business has been crazy. Maybe a lot of folks forgot Sadie May's was there, what with all the new options in town? I talked to a few who were like me: new to the area and had it on their list of places to check out, but hadn't quite made it there yet.
I know from my own experiences in the restuarant business, 32 years is an awfully long time for one place to stay open.
Anyway, I'm sorry they're closing up shop. If you've never been or want to go one last time, they'll open tomorrow at 5 p.m. for dinner. I'd expect a long line.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 5:09 PM | Comments (5)
March 2, 2006
I scream. You Scream. We all scream for...
... no this isn't about redistricting. It's free ice cream.
The new Bruster's at The Palladium/Shoppes at Deep River is offering free ice cream Saturday and Sunday to folks who show up in their pajamas. Sure it's a gimmick to drum up business. But it's also free ice cream.
Angela Townsley is helping her brother, the owner, open the new shop and said they're expecting 1,000 people this weekend.
Posted by Jonathan Jones at 10:28 AM | Comments (0)
