– The Town of Wake Forest is introducing a new opportunity in the process of updating its Downtown Plan (formerly known as the Renaissance Plan for Downtown Wake Forest). HOAs, book clubs, youth groups, and other community organizations are invited to host Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Workshops as a way of encouraging even greater public participation in the planning for the future of Downtown Wake Forest. As part of the initiative, the Wake Forest Planning Department will provide participating groups with the tools and information necessary to conduct their very own community workshop, including facilitator instructions, workshop discussion questionnaires, workshop agenda and ground rules, and more. “We want to make it as easy as possible for the community to participate in our Downtown Plan Update,” said Assistant Planning Director Jennifer Currin. “These small group discussions will help us reach Wake Forest residents and ensure that the updated plan is well-informed by our

The Wake Forest Woman’s Club is pleased to announce the continuation of offering a scholarship competition for both male and female seniors attending Franklin Academy, Heritage High School, and Wake Forest High School, who are in the top 25% of their class and will be attending an in-state, four year college or university in the fall of 2023. The winner of the Wake Forest Woman’s Club Continuing Education Scholarship will receive a one-time $2,000 award from our club. Please encourage all seniors who meet the criteria for consideration to contact their guidance counselor for an application.  The application period commences November 6, 2023 and the deadline for the application submission is January 12, 2024. Finalists will be interviewed in person or virtually on January 20, 2024. For more information, please visit www.wake-forest-womans-club.com ###

The Wake Forest Woman’s Club is sponsoring its third Scholarship Poinsettia Fundraiser during the month of October. Proceeds will support a Continuing Education Scholarship awarded to a graduating Wake Forest area student. The beautiful red poinsettias with red foil container covers are locally grown by Homewood Nursery and will be available for pickup in Wake Forest on November 30 from 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm at the Wake Forest Baptist Church Sanctuary, 10 E South Avenue. Only preordered plants will be available at pickup. No sales that day. The plants are 6 1/2” pots, 16-20” tall with six to eight blooms per plant and are offered for sale at $17.50 each. For more information about the club and to order and pay for your poinsettia, please visit www.wake-Forest-womans-club.com. ###

The Wake Forest MLK Celebration will be held Thursday, January 18, 2024 at 6:30 PM at Friendship Chapel Baptist Church, 237 Friendship Chapel Road, Wake Forest, North Carolina. The 2024 theme is: “Be the peace you wish to see in the world”.  The students in the Wake Forest/Rolesville schools will have the opportunity to showcase their talents in a contest for creative performance, art and writing based on the theme.  The contest winners will be recognized on the program. The keynote speaker will be the Rev. Sarah Phelps, the pastor at St. John Episcopal Church in Wake Forest. Additional information about the Wake Forest MLK Committee and contest details can be found on the website:  https://www.wakeforestmlkcelebration.com. ###

Based on the October, 2023 Monthly Development Report, WF Planning Updated November 29, 202 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 current 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 current estimates are that between seven and eight people move to town each day. New plans on the list Item #1 on the list for at least two years has been White Street townhomes SP-21-06 requested by the landowner David Smoot with The Nau Company drawing the plans. The planning board members recommended 7 to 0 it not be approved, and instead the town board sent it back to the planning department and the owner for revisions. Since then