Author: Scott D. Yost

 On Wednesday, March 30, the city announced that Robby Stone – the deputy Public Services director – will be the next Public Services director for the City of High Point and that he’ll waste no time taking over those duties. 

Cone Health has been doing a lot of shuffling of its services and locations in recent years, and now the closure of Primary Care at Pomona at 102 Pomona Dr. in Greensboro will come as a disappointment to many in that area who used the location to get medical care.

Now, a new project by Guilford County will make a greenway section near Fleming Terrace Road in Greensboro more useable.

the Final Four game between the Duke University men’s basketball team and the team eight miles down the road – the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill – is taking place on Saturday, April 2.  There are so many storylines to the game that, even before the UNC Tarheels finished beating the St. Peter’s Peacocks to earn the fourth slot in the final four, television sports analysts were raving about the upcoming game.

The Guilford County Board of Commissioners has scheduled a special virtual work session for Tuesday, March 29, at 6 p.m. in order to allocate the $2 million committed to the International Civil Rights Center and Museum in downtown Greensboro before March 31.  

At a key point late in the game, the Duke players – mostly freshmen playing their first year of college basketball – overruled the storied coach who has five national championships under his belt and who’s been coaching for over four decades.

The project to expand the International Civil Rights Center and Museum in downtown Greensboro, and turn the entire block into a World Heritage Site, is moving along swiftly.   However, Guilford County Commissioner Justin Conrad said the museum should be cautious about counting on state money for the project because the State of North Carolina never paid Guilford County government $7 million that was promised to the county for the construction of a new mental health center.

Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston and several other commissioners recently expressed their concerns over the speed at which the City of Greensboro was using federal money meant to help address homelessness in the county.  

The 2022 revaluations for residential real estate in Guilford County have now been sent out and received by owners, and almost all of those owners are OK with the new – in almost all cases – higher assessments.  Or, at least, very few people have filed appeals with the Guilford County Tax Department. 

Those caregivers, who often try to go it alone, can access free, skills-based learning through a “North Carolina Caregiver Portal.”  The campaign promotes the portal which directs people to the free resources that are available.  Those in need of the services can visit https://get.nc-caregivers.com/basketball for more information.

It’s anybody’s guess what will happen when it comes to the men’s NCAA basketball championship this year, but area basketball fans are starting to think they could be in for what could be the Game of the Century in the state of North Carolina if the Duke Blue Devils and North Carolina Tarheels win two more games each. 

The numbers released at the March meeting are for February 2022, and one key positive stat was this one: The number of passengers flying in and out of PTIA was up 157 percent in February of 2022 over February of 2021.  

The major project now underway to make the International Civil Rights Center and Museum in downtown Greensboro into an internationally recognized World Heritage Site has support from two important backers: The Georgia State University World Heritage Initiative that’s working hard toward the nomination of historically important civil rights sites in the US, and Downtown Greensboro Inc. (DGI) President and CEO Zack Matheny – who’s focused on enhancing the vitality of downtown are both supporting the effort.

After almost exactly two years, Guilford County government looks like it’s finally moving past COVID-19. The county has removed the Plexiglas barriers that separated the nine commissioners from each other at the dais in the meeting room in the Old Guilford County Court House, mask requirements on almost all county employees have been lifted, and, there was zero sign of any social distancing when the Board of Commissioners met last week for their annual retreat.

In Guilford County, opioid deaths – especially in the High Point area – have been all too common in recent years and, on Monday, March 21, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) reported that that was true across the state.

The International Civil Rights Center and Museum is getting a $250,000 discount on the purchase of the old First Citizen’s building next door because Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston, a founder of the museum, is refusing to take a quarter of a million-dollar commission on the $10.5 million purchase.

The group “Friends of the High Point Public Library” is holding its spring book sale on Saturday, March 19 at the High Point Public Library. The library at 901 N. Main St. in High Point will hold the sale from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.  

In the coming months The Guilford County Soil and Water Conservation District is promoting several events meant to raise community awareness about the environment and increase participation in conservation efforts.

The International Civil Rights Center and Museum at 134 S. Elm St. is planning to buy the building next door, expand its offerings and programs, and applying to become a World Heritage Site – an exclusive landmark designation from United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).  

Oak Ridge Town Councilmember George McClellan is seeking the District 3 seat on the Guilford County Board of Commissioners.  He’s not running for the Guilford County Board of Education, but that didn’t stop him from making the school system and its spending one of his key areas of focus this week.  On Wednesday, March 16, McClellan called publicly for the state auditor to audit the Guilford County school system.

Say Yes Guilford President and Chief Executive Officer Wendy Poteat dropped a bombshell on the Guilford County Board of Commissioners when she spoke to the board at the commissioners’ annual retreat on Thursday, March 17. 

NC Rep. Jon Hardister sent out a statement endorsing the proposed funding for the Civil Rights Museum and announcing that state funding for the museum may also be in the works.

March is an extremely busy time for the board, and, on Thursday, March 17 and Friday, March 18, the commissioners were clearly earning their pay. 

The agenda for the Guilford County Board of Commissioners’ upcoming 2022 Annual Retreat has a motion included on that agenda calls for Guilford County to give $2 million in taxpayer money to the International Civil Rights Center and Museum at 134 S. Elm St. in Greensboro.  

On Tuesday, March 15, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department reported the incident that occurred nine days earlier:  On Sunday, March 6, Bryant William Hairston, a 54-year-old High Point man, attempted to bring a gun into the Guilford County jail in downtown High Point as he was being booked into the jail.

On Tuesday, March 15, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners released the agenda for the board’s two-day retreat that will be held on Thursday, March 17 and Friday, March 18.  

On Wednesday, March 15, Guilford County announced that it’s sending out an “Invitation for Bids,” for the jail in downtown Greensboro. The Guilford County Purchasing Department handles these types of matters, in this case “Water Heater Replacement at the Guilford County Detention Center.” 

The Piedmont Triad Airport Authority – the board that oversees Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTIA) came close to having a member vote “No” on something for perhaps the first time in modern history. 

At the Thursday, Feb. 17 Board of Commissioners meeting, the motion authorized county staff to execute a contract with a computer security firm “to upgrade information security projects and services in the amount of $139,361 annually, totaling $418,085 over a three (3) year term beginning March 11, 2022, for the purpose of improving information security protections.”

Stokesdale Mayor Pro Tem Derek Foy spoke at a Guilford County Board of Education meeting last week and he argued that schools in the northwestern part of the county are being shortchanged when it comes to school funding.

Guilford County government has used the same auditor for over two decades. However, the Board of Commissioners’ Audit Committee has called a meeting for Tuesday, March 15, to discuss whether that arrangement should change or remain the same. 

Tillman, who is the District 3 Guilford County Board of Education member having served since 2016, is now hoping to make the jump to the Guilford County Board of Commissioners.

Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston said this week that the county commissioners’ annual retreat will be about “following through” on current board plans – like school funding and construction projects now in the works – as well as about seeing that fiscal year 2022-2033 moves the county forward in new ways. 

 On Thursday, March 10 from 6 to 7 p.m., NC health officials are hosting a live “Fireside chat and Tele-town Hall” to discuss COVID-19 vaccines for children ages 5 and older.

The Guilford County Board of Commissioners sent out a public notice this week that, at the commissioners first meeting in April – on Thursday, April 7 – the board intends to authorize the county’s “lease or rental” of property at 5440 Millstream Road in McLeansville for a period of five years.  The price the county is paying for the space each year?  $1. 

Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston and other commissioners were scheduled to tour Grimsley High School on Wednesday, March 9. However, the county announced the night before that it would not be happening due to a “scheduling conflict.” 

The High Point Economic Development Corporation (HPEDC) has always taken great pride in its...

On Wednesday, March 9, at 4:30 p.m., a group of commissioners will take a tour of Grimsley High School and take note of the problems with the school’s buildings.

On Monday, March 7, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners officially announced its two-day annual retreat and, if anyone wants to go and watch in person, they’re welcome to do so.  For much of the past two years, those who wished to watch their county government in action had to do so in front of a smartphone, computer or television screen.

Now, with the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the mounting tensions emanating from that conflict, it makes sense to educate oneself on the proper response to a nuclear attack and to review preparation methods.  Guilford County government has plans for an attack and provides information on the county’s website as to proper preparation and response strategies for individuals and families in the county during a nuclear attack.

On Friday afternoon, March 4, with the candidate sign-in book finally sealed and delivered, Guilford County Board of Elections Director Charlie Collicutt said that, despite the court battles and delays, the filing process in Guilford County went relatively smoothly.

After the Board of Commissioners Thursday, March 3 meeting, Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston said that the revaluation cycle question would be addressed during the upcoming budget talks, and Alston added that he very much wants to see the county move from a five-year revaluation cycle to a four-year cycle. 

The candidate filing period for the May 17 primary ended at noon on Friday, March 4, but, before it did, former county commissioner Steve Arnold shocked a lot of county officials past and present when he filed to run for the District 2 Board of Commissioners seat now held by Guilford County Commissioner Alan Perdue. 

On Friday, March 4, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department reported that on Sunday, Feb. 27, an inmate was found unconscious in his cell. However, the department either did not have, or chose not to provide, many of the details surrounding the incident, which put the man in the hospital.

The county is hiring hourly summer staff for Bur-Mil Park, Gibson Park, Hagan-Stone Park, Northeast Park, Southwest Park and for the department’s “Passive Parks and Trails” team.

On Thursday evening, March 3, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners didn’t save the most important business for last – instead, the board got to it at the very start of the meeting.  After the opening prayer and Pledge of Allegiance, the board voted unanimously to approve the appointment of Frankie T. Jones Jr. to the District 7 commissioner’s seat.  

The tax department assigns a new value for the purpose of determining property tax bills for the coming five years. The department, of course, has to inform homeowners of the new values and even give some explanation of the reasoning behind them. One interesting consequence of the process is that it allows anyone who wants to see the values and other details of any property. Anyone can use the web database with the newly assigned values to check on the updated value of any property in Guilford County –  as well as view information such as new additions, renovations, square footage, number of bathrooms, etc.

On Wednesday, March 2, the city announced that High Point Public Library is hosting the aptly named “Community Festival,” which will be an outdoor event in the parking lot of the High Point Public Library at 901 N. Main St. in High Point. 

According to a Thursday, March 3 press release from Guilford County government, the Veteran’s Administration intends to include the rare respiratory cancers in the list of disabilities that may be connected to military service. This move would apply to Veterans who served any amount of time in the Southwest Asia theater of operations as well as for some other areas.