Town board candidates should consider this

The Town of Wake Forest is now accepting applications for its second annual Citizen’s Academy. The online application is available at www.wakeforestnc.gov/citizens-academy through Friday, July 14. The Wake Forest Citizen’s Academy is a seven-week course designed to offer participants an educational and interactive experience on the workings of Town government. The curriculum will cover current Wake Forest programs, services, and procedures, and offer an inside look at several departments, including Public Works, Police, Fire, Communications, Finance, Planning, Engineering, Wake Forest Power, Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources, the Renaissance Centre, and Downtown Development. (Editor’s note: This is the year when we will elect three town commissioners. The academy would be an excellent way for any candidates who have not served in a local elected office to learn about the town and be more prepared if elected. There are now three announced candidates: first-term Commissioner Adam Wright, Joe Kimray and Faith Cross.

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How to eat in Wake Forest

In the midst of plenty . . . we all do not fare equally at all times. These are the places all, adults and children, can find one of the greatest gifts, a shared meal. Wake Forest Community Table serves nutritious and delicious meals at 5 p.m. on Monday nights at Hope House (334 North Allen Road) and at 6 p.m. on Wednesday nights at Olive Branch Baptist Church (326 East Juniper Avenue). All ages are welcome to stop by for dinner and for fresh produce from the Wake Forest Presbyterian Giving Garden. We are thankful to all of or volunteers and the donors who make this organization possible. To learn more about our program and mission and to learn how you can partner with us see our website http://www.wakeforestcommunitytable.com. ####

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Residents’ input needed for Miller Park upgrade plan

The Town of Wake Forest is initiating a study to identify potential upgrades for Miller Park, 401 Elm Ave. The initiative will also propose greenway improvements and address water quality and erosion issues involving two streams within the two-acre park. A wooded oasis in the heart of downtown Wake Forest, Miller Park features picnic tables and a half-mile of paved trails that loop throughout the park. Citizen input is the cornerstone of the Miller Park Upgrades & Stream Restoration Study, so we want to hear from you. Residents and visitors to Miller Park are invited to visit https://engagewakeforest.org/miller-park-upgrades-stream-restoration and provide their input via an online survey. Available through Friday, June 30, the survey takes less than five minutes to complete. For more information, email CIP Manager Steve Meyer at smeyer@wakeforestnc.gov. This project is supported by a grant from US Treasury as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Coronavirus

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Applicants needed for two planning board seats

The Town of Wake Forest is inviting residents who live in Wake Forest and its extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) to apply for two vacancies on the Planning Board. One seat must be filled by a Wake Forest resident, while the other is reserved for someone who lives in the ETJ. Applications will be accepted through Friday, July 28. The online advisory board application is available on the Town website at http://bit.ly/TOWFAdvBoardApplication. Anyone without computer access is invited to complete the application by using a computer kiosk in the lobby of Town Hall, 301 S. Brooks St. Hard copies are available upon request by contacting Deputy Town Clerk Ella Dowtin at 919-435-9436 or edowtin@wakeforestnc.gov. Planning Board candidates will be introduced to the Board of Commissioners during its regular meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 15. Appointments to the Planning Board will also be announced during this meeting. The new terms will commence immediately following

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WFPD lists six most dangerous intersections

The Wake Forest Police Department recently announced the top six high-risk intersections in Wake Forest based on the number of accidents that occurred in these areas from 2021-2023: 1. Capital Boulevard (US 1)/South Main Street/New Falls of Neuse Road – 61 2. Capital Boulevard (US 1)/Agora Drive/Wake Union Church Road – 40 3. Capital Boulevard (US 1)/Dr. Calvin Jones Highway (NC 98 Bypass) – 39 4. Capital Boulevard (US 1)/Burlington Mills Road – 32 5. Dr. Calvin Jones Highway/South Main Street (US 1) – 30 6. Capital Boulevard (US 1)/Stadium Drive/Jenkins Road – 25 Failure to reduce speed, inattention, and distracted driving were the most often cited contributing factors in these accidents. Police officials are taking this opportunity to urge motorists to be alert and proceed with caution through these and all intersections. To try and make the intersections safer, officers will continue conducting enforcement campaigns in and around these

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The Growth Rate

There are still no updates as of June 21 for the Monthly Development Report Based on the March 2023 Monthly Development Report, WF Planning Updated April 12, 2023 There were no changes between the February and March reports. There were no additions and no deletions. The updated Wake Forest population as of July 2022 is 54,274. In 2021 the population was 50,244. How rezoning and development requests are now heard Planning Director Courtney Tanner gave this response to a query: All legislative cases (rezonings) have a public hearing at the Commissioner meeting and a public comment session at the Planning Board. A special use permit has a public hearing at the Commissioner meeting. Administrative (correct zoning and comply with the UDO) cases are approved at the staff level. What town board approval means now Senior Planner Patrick Reidy explained what the town board’s approval of new subdivisions means under the

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Please subscribe

The editor knows there are many readers who do not subscribe to The Wake Forest Gazette and is urging those people to subscribe. There is no charge, but you do get a weekly notice from the editor each Wednesday announcing a weekly update is on line. All you have to do is go to the first page, find the box for subscribe and enter your name and email address. If you have been a subscriber to the Gazette and find you are not receiving weekly notices that the new issue is on line, the problem lies in the software for the paper’s email service, Mailchimp. If a subscriber’s inbasket is full or if there are other reasons why the email would not accept the Gazette notice, it will be listed as bumped. If that condition continues, Mailchimp will list that subscriber as unsubscribed and stop sending notices. To remedy the

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Clubs and organizations

Below is a list of groups – and if your group is not included and should be – please send a note with the information to cwpelosi@aol.com. If the information about your group is wrong or out of date, please send a note with the corrections to that same email address. Aren’t we lucky to have so many groups that benefit our town and its resident! *American Legion Post 187 meets the second Thursday at 7 p.m. in the American Legion Hall at 225 East Holding Avenue. The dinner begins at 6 p.m. and costs $5. For information and membership, call Commander Dave Goetze at 569-0471 or visit www.alpost187.org. *American Heritage Girls (AHG) meets at 6:30 p.m. at Hope Lutheran Church on Rogers Road on the second and fourth Thursdays. Get in touch with Amy Minor at chrisnamy34@hotmail.com or see the website, www.hopelutheranwf.org. *The General James Moore Chapter of the

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3 of 4 Capital Blvd. projects not funded

During last week’s work session, Mayor Vivian Jones, the five town commissioners and Town Manager Kip Padgett learned that the North Carolina Department of Transportation had funding for only one of the four planned segments to turn Capital Boulevard into a freeway. That funded segment will transform the current road from I-540 to just north of the Durant Road/Perry Creek intersection into a controlled access 70 mph freeway with six 12-foot lanes for traffic with service roads. Director of Engineering Brandon Jones said DOT will buy the necessary land during 2024 and construction will begin in 2025. During DOT’s presentation, North Carolina Senator Mary Wills Bode was in the front row in the meeting room in the Wake Forest Town Hall. The reason DOT has had to pare back what it can do is the same thing afflicting the town’s electric utility Wake Forest Power: the enormous inflation in the

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Editorial: Skunked again!

Let’s count the ways. First it was the NC DOT project to transform Wake Forest’s traffic signals to “smart” signals that came to a screeching halt because DOT had “messed up” the paperwork and had to begin again. That dropped ball delayed the project by several months and has not gotten underway as of now. Second it was a another delay in the much-needed vehicle traffic bridge over the CSX rail lines on Rogers Road because some change required paperwork from Raleigh’s water and sewer department. Who had been looking at the plans and OKed them without this tiny piece? And now we learn we can see (maybe) real construction on the very first part of making Capital Boulevard into a freeway. There is no money for parts two, three or four. And without the whole set, what do we have but a traffic mess just north of the Durant

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