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

The Town of Wake Forest, the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre, and Resources for Seniors are partnering with Village of C.A.R.E. to offer a free Expressive Arts Series at the Northern Wake Senior Center, 235 E. Holding Ave., from 10 a.m.-noon on the following Saturdays in May and June: May 4, 11, 18 and June 1, 15, 22, and 29. Open to families and people of all ages, the intergenerational arts classes will encourage participants to discover how expressive arts can be therapeutic and foster meaningful connections by creating their own music, paintings, poetry, ceramics, quilting, dances, and more. Online registration is required at www.ohwci.com/events. For more information, call 919-714-3854. This event is part of the Town of Wake Forest’s “Focus on Mental Wellness” series. For more information about the Town’s commitment to mental wellness, visit https://bit.ly/FocusonMentalWellness or email Community Outreach Manager Andrew Brown, Jr. at abrown@wakeforestnc.gov.  The Town of Wake Forest, the Wake Forest

We are getting into summer and our vegetable garden is thriving. The local housing market hanging in there and is tracking about the same as it has for the last many months.   The local numbers are in for May 2024 and here is what is happening: The average price of single-family homes continues to increase and available homes for sale remains low. The mortgage rate for a 30-year fixed is not changing much, staying above 7%. Consequently, current homeowners holding mortgages with significantly lower interest rates have been reluctant to sell.   I do not expect significant home price decreases as long as listing inventory remains low. Here is an update for the end of May: A year ago, the average sale price of a single-family home in the Triangle was           $518,575 and increased $ 17,798 to $ 536,373 by the end of May.

The Wake Forest Inspections Department issues a monthly report about all new building permits and new businesses. The department issued permits for 40 single-family houses, 51 townhouses, 14 multi-family dwellings, and one swimming pool. There were five fit-up inspections and 11 pre-occupancy inspections. Fit-ups: UPS Store at 12520 Capital Boulevard, 401 Sweets Boxing Gym, 1839 S. Main Street, 374 Mavis Tires & Brakes (old NTB), 2200 S. Main Street Wake Forest Plastic Surgery, 3319 Heritage Trade Drive, 201 Five Guys Restaurant, 535 NC 98 Bypass, 110 Preoccupancy: Katie Dunn Massage Therapy, 10520 LIGON Mill Road, 112 Cook Out (for power only), 11690 Northpark Drive Divine Holistic Wellness, 500 Wait Avenue, 02 Flora Fauna WF, 12247 Capital Boulevard Myra’s Angels Foundation, 12339 Wake Union Church Road, 103

Based on the March 2024 Monthly Development Report, WF Planning Updated May 29, 2024 Hooray! The March 2024 Monthly Development Report is available on the Wake Forest Planning Department page — and it is a bit of a disappointment. Only one new project — the special use permit for a Whataburger on the NC 98 Bypass in the Wegman’s project — and one deletion — the Christ Our Hope church under construction on North White Street. The updated Wake Forest population as of July 1, 2023 was 56,681. That figure included the new homes which were approved for occupancy. When all the currently approved apartments, townhouses and single-family homes are built the population will rise to 69,956. The town keeps a running tally of approved projects with counts of those completed. The best inspections current estimate is that between seven and eight people move to town each day, moving into