Wake Forest has been celebrating our nation’s birthday for 51 years, and this year’s events will equal those before it. It begins on Wednesday evening at the Heritage High School stadium. The gates open at 5:30 p.m. The entertainment begins around 6, when the Tyson Brothers will take the stage followed by the Band of Oz at 7. The fireworks cannot begin until darkness, so there will be a wait until 9:30 or so, but the music and other entertainment will fill the gap. The Children’s Parade down North Main Street and around to Holding Park begins with the lineup at 10 a.m. Dawn Nakash and the Wake Forest Optimist Club are the organizers of this year’s parade. At Holding Park the Wake Forest Woman’s Club and the Wake Forest Fore Department will provide refreshments and entertainment. ###

The Wake Forest Police Department will host a Touch-A-Truck fundraiser for Special Olympics NC on Saturday, June 22, from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at The Factory, 1839 S. Main St. Families and children of all ages will be granted an all-access pass to police cars, fire trucks, a helicopter, boat, Humvee, military vehicles, and more. The cost is $5 per person and $20 per family of any size. All proceeds will benefit Special Olympics NC. Throughout the event, Wake Forest Police officers will also be selling 2024 Special Olympics NC Torch Run T-shirts for $20, and Two Roosters Ice Cream will be onsite selling sweet treats. For more information, contact Sgt. J. McArthur at 919-554-6150 or jmcarthur@wakeforestnc.gov. ###

The Wake Forest Police Department (WFPD) and Wake County Health & Human Services are partnering to make sure small children are safe in the car by offering a free Car Seat Check & Installation Event on Saturday, June 29, from 9-11 a.m. at the Wake Forest Library, 400 E. Holding Ave. Certified Car Seat Safety Technicians will be on hand to answer questions and assist parents and caregivers with the proper installation of their child’s car seat. Technicians will also let you know if your children are in the right seats for their ages and sizes and explain the importance of registering car seats with the manufacturer, so you can be notified if there is a recall. No appointment is necessary. For more information, email diana.browndiaz@wake.gov or call 919-250-3989. Anyone who is unable to attend the June 29 event but would like assistance installing their child’s safety seat can set up an

Morgan Corporation, a contractor working on behalf of the Town of Wake Forest, has closed the greenway that connects the Flaherty Park Community Center, tennis courts, and pickleball courts, 1226 N. White St., with the Flaherty Park Dog Park, baseball fields, playground, and Wegmans Outdoor Fitness Court, 1100 N. White St. The closure is necessary to allow crews to repair the Flaherty Park Dam. Signage and barricades have been posted to inform the public of the closure. The greenway is scheduled to reopen later this year. During an inspection of Flaherty Park Pond in 2017, Freese and Nichols, a contractor hired by the Town, identified concerns regarding a potential dam breach and subsequent flooding. To address these issues, a comprehensive repair plan was developed that includes fortifying the dam with approximately 3,200 cubic yards of fill dirt. The total cost of the project is estimated at $951,277 and will be

Work on an NCDOT Bridge Preservation Project will continue to require overnight closures along Dr. Calvin Jones Highway/NC 98 Bypass through October. American Contracting & Services, Inc., a private contractor working on behalf of NCDOT, is alternately closing all lanes along eastbound and westbound Dr. Calvin Jones Highway/NC 98 Bypass from Ligon Mill Road to Galaxy Drive weeknights and (some) weekends from 9 p.m.-5 a.m. The lane closures are necessary to allow crews to preserve the bridge over Richland Creek. Detour signage will be in place each evening to manage traffic flow and safely direct traffic around the work area. Delays are expected, so motorists are encouraged to avoid the area if possible and plan an alternate route. The bridge rehabilitation project consists of milling and repaving the bridge approaches, repairing the concrete deck, substructure, railing, and bridge joint, epoxy coating the concrete girder ends, and treating the bridge deck. The