Author: Scott D. Yost

Usually, people will get arrested for painting or drawing on city-owned property. But that won’t be the case for a select few area artists who are being sought by the City of High Point to beautify some stormwater drains in a key parking lot in hopes that the move will call attention the importance of keeping pollution out of those drains.

At the Guilford County Board of Commissioners’ Thursday, August 17 meeting, the commissioners voted unanimously to approve new zoning that allows mixed use – likely to become office space – for 4 acres of land at 5805 N. Church St. in Greensboro. 

The NC Association of County Commissioners (NCACC) is hosting its 116th Annual Conference this week in Raleigh, with this year’s theme being “Momentum.”

At the start of 2023, Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTIA) raised its parking rates for flyers leaving their vehicles at the airport.

There are a host of different shower problems that can arise in jailhouse showers, and the Guilford County Detention Center in Downtown Greensboro has an interesting, expensive and recalcitrant one on its hands. 

Some Guilford County residents who don’t have medical insurance – or who qualify for Medicare Part D coverage but find they still can’t afford the medications they need – can take advantage of a county service that’s expected to see increased demand in the second half of this year.  

If you’re tired of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at the airport always checking you out as though you’re a foreigner flying one-way with no luggage on a ticket paid for in cash, then you’ll definitely want to take advantage of the TSA PreCheck enrollment sessions that will be held at Piedmont Triad International Airport from Monday, Sept. 25 through Friday, Sept. 29.

Usually, when you get an email from a Nigerian king, you mark it as spam and move on. However, Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston is careful not to do that – because he’s developed a solid friendship with King Kabiru Shotobi, who presides over a highly populated section of Nigeria.

The Guilford County Sheriff’s Department is going to discover whether or not the officers in the department have game when they put down their guns this weekend and pickup basketballs to do battle against a local barber shop – all in the name of a good cause.

The motion by Republican Guilford County Commissioner James Upchurch to have 10 county buildings inscribed with the words, “In God We Trust” did not pass at the Thursday, Aug. 17 Board of Commissioners meeting.

The Guilford County Board of Commissioners had scheduled a work session for Thursday afternoon, August 17.

The City of High Point is becoming a Bee City USA affiliate – which means the city is joining many other towns and cities across the country that are united in an effort to improve their landscapes for bees and other pollinating creatures – a category that includes hummingbirds, wasps, moths, bats and butterflies.

The Guilford County commissioners all seem to believe in God.

However, the board had a sudden change of heart this week as to whether or not the county should put the inscription “In God We Trust” on 10 prominent Guilford County buildings – as Commissioner James Upchurch has proposed.

Drunk driving can have the very worst outcome of any crime committed – human death – and local law enforcement takes the matter seriously.

Several years ago, Guilford County health officials and other county leaders realized that the county had a major problem when it came to infant mortality and they began taking steps to remedy the situation.

The Guilford County Division of Social Services is always seeking foster parents – a big responsibility – and, right now, for those who’d like something a little bit easier to handle than a new kid, the Guilford County Animal Services Department has a major need for foster families for dogs.

During the pandemic, there were a whole lot of government programs that helped people in financial trouble and, on Thursday, Aug. 17, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners is set to hear a final report on one such initiative – the Emergency Rent and Utilities Assistance (ERUA) program.

About a decade ago the term “food insecurity” became popular in Guilford County – referring to the fact that some areas of the county have little to no access to affordable, healthy food, and the county began addressing that problem through various efforts. 

The Guilford County Board of Commissioners has scheduled a jam-packed work session for Thursday, August 17 at 3 p.m.to talk about a list of issues that includes some items the board put off during the two months of budget discussions that culminated in the 2023-2024 fiscal year county budget adopted in June. 

Over the last three years especially, vaccinations have been the subject of a great deal of...

The word “God” doesn’t come up much at Guilford County Board of Commissioners meetings after Guilford County Tax Director Ben Chavis, who’s also a certified minister, finishes his prayer to open the meetings.

The One High Point Commission announced this week that it will host an information session for the public in order to update local citizens about the commission’s plans for the city to “explore community reparations for the African American residents of the city.” 

A lot of people who frequent the Governmental Plaza between the Old Guilford County Court House, the Guilford County Courthouse and Greensboro City Hall were excited to learn two years ago that Guilford County was renovating and updating that plaza as well much of the surrounding parking area.

The Summerfield Town Council heard an interesting speaker from the floor the other night when it held its Tuesday, Aug. 8 meeting where the subject of a proposed casino in Rockingham County came up. – despite the casino item not being on the council’s agenda. 

Life has pretty much returned back to normal since the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions that brought the state and the world to a standstill and forced people to wear masks.

This week, Cone Health announced that it would appeal a decision by the State of North Carolina to approve a Certificate of Need for Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist’s plan to build a hospital facility in northwest Greensboro on Horse Pen Creek Road.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the Boston Celtics basketball team had an incredible dynasty – staying at the top of the NBA with 11 championships in 13 years and eight straight titles. 

One large developer in Summerfield – farmer David Couch – is reportedly trying to get much of his property de-annexed from the town in order to build a large residential development.

The State of North Carolina has agreed to a request from Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist to build a new hospital in Greensboro.

The economy has been up and down lately, but one thing is for sure: Money has been flowing into The University of North Carolina at Greensboro – which is seeing surprisingly good donation and research grant money coming in. 

On Tuesday, Aug. 8, at a meeting of the Summerfield Town Council, the town officially entered into the debate over a proposed casino that would be built just north of Summerfield in Rockingham County near the Guilford County line.

This summer, Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston put out a proposal for school funding that didn’t go over well with some. 

It has been highly common for people in Greensboro and the surrounding area to drive to Raleigh-Durham International Airport or Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, and start their round trip from there – and, when the trip is over, fly back to that airport and drive the hour and a half or so back to Greensboro.

There’s a hot debate going on about a request to rezone agricultural property on North Church Street to a mixed-used designation that would allow both higher density housing and commercial development.

Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston – one of the leaders in the effort to end homelessness in Guilford County – said this week that progress is being made, but that things are going slower than he had hoped. 

Guilford County has been conducting a major effort to fight opioid addiction and other drug addiction and substance abuse in the county, and now Guilford County has put its money where its mouth is in that fight.

During its annual retreat in late July, the North Carolina A&T State University Board of Trustees welcomed four new members: Jasmine Amaniampong, Gina Loften, Gregg Lowe and Jini Thornton – who, of course, all happily accepted the oath of office delivered by trustee Judge Paul Jones.

Guilford County’s Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTIA) took a big hit in passenger traffic over the last three-plus years due to the pandemic and the restrictions.

For a seventh year, the Guilford County Family Justice Center is hosting Camp HOPE America – North Carolina – a camping and mentoring program that’s a big hit every year with the kids and everyone in county government involved with the program.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) is teaming up with the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities to educate the public, caregivers and workers regarding some changes in state programs and the effect of those programs on residents with developmental issues.

The 100 sheriffs in the state of North Carolina do more than just catch bad guys and protect county residents – they also collectively have a lot of say when it comes to shaping the state’s laws and funding decisions enacted by the NC General Assembly. 

The Guilford County commissioners usually have a pretty relaxed schedule in summer – as many North Carolinians do – but some of the commissioners will be back at work doing government business later this month.

Guilford County has run through quite a few Security Department directors in recent years, and that trend is now continuing with the departure of Guilford County Security Director Amanda Vutsinas, who’s leaving the county less than a year after she took the job. 

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) is hosting a live fireside chat and tele-town hall on Thursday, Aug. 3 from 6 to 7 p.m. during which state health officials will talk with people of all ages about substance abuse and overdose prevention – especially as it applies to teens and young adults in the state.

The 2023 statewide Fall Litter Sweep is about to happen and NC Department of Transportation (NCDOT) officials are asking North Carolinians to start getting ready for the event that runs from Saturday, Sept. 16 to Saturday, Sept. 30.

Way back in November of 1992, Guilford County government and the City of Burlington entered into an interlocal agreement to jointly operate Guilford Mackintosh Park in eastern Guilford County.

On Monday, Aug. 7, the American Red Cross will begin accepting donations from a host of newly eligible blood donors – including many in the LGBTQ+ community who’ve been ineligible until now. 

In recent years, Guilford County government has been highly focused on improving the health of newborns and infants during the first years of life and preventing infant mortality through proper newborn care. 

Summer temperatures near 100 degrees, with “real feel” numbers even higher than that, are hard on everyone – but they’re even harder on those who can’t pay the bills in order to cool down their homes.

A new report regarding the state of health in Guilford County reveals that, just as in many other recent years, the two leading causes of death in Guilford County in were cancer, which caused 891 deaths, and heart disease ,which took the lives for 867 people in North Carolina.