The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department will commemorate “National Physical Fitness Month” in May by offering a 50-Mile Walking Challenge for area residents ages 11 and older. The concept is simple. Parks and Rec is challenging area residents to walk a total of 50 miles in May and use tracking cards to record their progress. Walking locations may include neighborhoods, schools, churches, parks, and greenways – just to name a few. There is no cost to participate, and online registration is open through Friday, April 29, at https://wakeforestnc.recdesk.com/Community/Program (search “Walking Challenge). Tracking cards will be emailed to all registered participants and available for pickup at Joyner Park Community Center, 701 Harris Road. Everyone ages 11 and over who registers, completes 50 miles, and returns their tracking cards to the Joyner Park Community Center by Friday, June 3, will receive a commemorative T-shirt (while supplies last) and be entered into

Taylor Street Park Sprayground at 416 North Taylor Street opened for the 2022 season on Saturday, April 23, at 10 a.m. Free and open to the public, the sprayground will operate according to the following schedule through June 9:   Sundays, 1-8 p.m. Monday-Friday, 4-8 p.m. Saturdays, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Please Note: The sprayground will be open Memorial Day (Monday, May 30) from 10 a.m.-8 p.m. The facility will extend its hours beginning June 10. To view the full schedule for the 2022 season, visit https://bit.ly/TaylorStParkSprayground. The Taylor Street Park Sprayground is a dynamic, zero-depth aquatic play area designed to provide endless hours of fun for the entire family. The sprayground combines the sensations of different water movements – flowing, misting, and jetting – with several diverse features for an unequaled aquatic play adventure. For more information about the Taylor Street Park Sprayground, contact Athletics & Aquatics Superintendent Edward Austin at 919-435-9562

The Town of Wake Forest and several local veterans’ organizations will continue their monthly flag-raising ceremonies in Town Hall’s Centennial Plaza on Monday, May 2, at 11 a.m. The 39th Wake Forest Memorial Flag-Raising Ceremony will honor Thomas Wright who served his nation in the U.S. Army during World War II. Members of Wright’s family have been invited to participate in the service, which will include patriotic songs, special remarks, a memorial wreath laying, and the ceremonial flag-raising by the Wake Forest Fire Department Honor Guard. In honor of Wright and his service to our country, both the American flag and the U.S. Army service flag, in recognition of the military branch in which he served, will fly in Centennial Plaza throughout May. Photographs and other remembrances of Wright will also be displayed in Centennial Plaza during the ceremony, then in the Town Hall lobby through the end of the month.

The Town of Wake Forest will accept applications through Saturday, April 30, from food truck vendors interested in participating in the 2022 Fireworks Spectacular for this year’s Fourth of July celebrations. The online application is available at http://bit.ly/WFFireworksSpectacular. The fee is $175, and the event includes space for up to 14 food vendors. This year’s Fireworks Spectacular is scheduled for Sunday, July 3, at Heritage High School, 1150 Forestville Road. Gates open at 5:30 p.m., but food trucks are required to arrive and set up between 3 and 4 p.m. Participating food trucks are required to obtain all necessary Wake County permits, including a Mobile Food Unit (MFU) permit and ServSafe certificate. Each vendor must also complete a background screening and provide a copy of its Certificate of Insurance designating the Town of Wake Forest as an additional insured for the event date. A minimum of $1,000,000 in insurance is required. The

The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department is offering a limited edition water bottle highlighting E. Carroll Joyner Park as the first in a series of “Health & Wellness” merchandise available for purchase. As part of its mission to promote health and wellness in our community, the PRCR Department plans to sell various items over the next several months as a way of encouraging citizens to stay active. Available for $20 each (while supplies last) at https://bit.ly/PRCRMarketplace, the “Find Joy in Joyner Park” water bottle reflects the rustic charm of Joyner Park with a special emphasis on the park’s pecan grove. Water bottle orders must be picked up at Joyner Park Community Center, 701 Harris Road, during normal operating hours (Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-8:30 p.m.; Saturday, 8 a.m.-noon). Please present a copy of your email receipt as proof of purchase. Proceeds from merchandise sales will help support the PRCR Department’s specialized programming for

Updated March 23, 2022) Plans under review at the Wake Forest Planning Department The March issue of the Monthly Report is listed below. *White Street Townhomes is a plan for 82 multifamily units and 30 townhouse lots on two lots owned by David Smoot at the intersection of South White Street and East Holding Avenue. This is a major change from the original plan for 79 townhouse lots. *Wake Union Church Road is the name for this proposed project but it is the former Parker-Hannifin (Schrader) site with a federal brownfield designation because of the trichloroethene (TCE) and other chemical and petroleum contamination in the groundwater, a contamination which has spread. Parker-Hannifin has committed to remedy the problem. The plan submitted by Kimley-Horn is for 193,000 square feet of commercial space, 300 apartments and 89 townhouses along with streets and parking areas which cover almost all of the 50 acres.

*The Wake Forest Farmers Market will be open from 10 a.m. to noon – winter hours – this Saturday, April 30, in the employee parking lot along South Taylor Street behind Wake Forest Town Hall. Local farmers and artisans will have meats, seasonal vegetables, bread, baked good and other local wares for sale. See the market’s Facebook page for information about the vendors and sign up for a weekly notice about the offerings that Saturday. Remember the Wake Forest Farmers Market is unusual in that it is owned by the farmers who sell their wares there. *Tri-Area Ministry Food Pantry at 149 East Holding Avenue is open from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. every second and third Saturday and every Monday and Wednesday for food pickup. It serves more than 800 families in Wake Forest, Youngsville, Rolesville and their surrounding areas. Call 919-556-7144 for information about receiving food, volunteering and