Welcome to our weekly e-newsletter - What's Up in Wake Forest. Here you'll find information about Town programs, services, activities, projects, special events, and more! If you haven't already, tell your friends and neighbors to visit our E-Notifier page to learn about our full array of free email offerings.

The Human Relations Council is soliciting youth and adult nominations for the 13th Annual Good Neighbor of the Year Award. Nominees are sought in two divisions: adult (ages 19 and older) and youth (ages 10-18). To qualify, a nominee must be a Wake Forest resident who has made a significant contribution to the community between Sept. 1, 2021, and Aug. 31, 2022. Completed nomination forms must be submitted by 5 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 31.

Mayor Vivian Jones will present a commemorative plaque to one youth and one adult winner during this year’s Good Neighbor Day on Saturday, Sept. 17. The event is scheduled from 1-4 p.m. at E. Carroll Joyner Park, 701 Harris Road.

The Wake Forest Human Relations Council (HRC) will host Good Neighbor Day on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 1-4 pm. This free, family-friendly event will take place at E. Carroll Joyner Park, 701 Harris Road.

Good Neighbor Day assembles people from all walks of life for a day of food, fun, and family entertainment. By bringing together a mix of cultures, music, ages, and ethnicities, the event celebrates diversity and promotes goodwill among all of Wake Forest's citizens.

On November 8, Wake Forest voters will have the chance to vote on four bond referendum questions totaling $75 million. The referenda will ask voters whether they approve of the Town’s use of general obligation bond financing to pay for the following initiatives: 1) $24.4 million for parks and recreation; 2) $23.7 million for roadway and transportation; 3) $14.35 for greenway improvements; and 4) $12.5 for a public parking facility in downtown.

Responding to FAQs
Over the next several weeks, we will share important information about the 2022 Bond Referendum. The Town of Wake Forest cannot advocate for a vote one way or the other on the referendum questions. Instead, all we can do is present the facts for voters to consider as they determine how they will vote.

One way we will present the facts is by providing answers to a series of Frequently Asked Questions. Starting today, we will include one FAQ in each week's edition of What's Up in Wake Forest.

What is a Bond Referendum?
A bond referendum is a voting process that gives voters the power to decide if a municipality should be authorized to raise funds through the issuance of general obligation bonds.

A general obligation (G.O.) bond is a form of borrowing in which a municipality pledges its full faith and credit (taxing power) to repay the debt with interest over a specified term. G.O. bonds are the generally the least costly financing option available to the town for funding these projects.

The Town of Wake Forest is about to begin the process of developing a comprehensive wayfinding plan, and we want your input. On Tuesday, Aug. 30, the Town will host a virtual visioning workshop at 6 p.m. The one-hour session will give residents, business owners, and stakeholders the opportunity to share their thoughts and opinions on the design of Wake Forest’s new wayfinding system, which will help people find their way around town and encourage visitors to discover local attractions and community assets.

Registration is required. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the virtual workshop.

North Wake Theatre will present You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown Saturday-Sunday, Sept. 17-18, at the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre, 405 S. Brooks St. Showtimes are Saturday at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. Advance tickets are $20 plus tax for adults and $10 plus tax for ages 12 and younger.

Happiness is great musical theatre! With charm, wit, and heart, "You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown" explores life through the eyes of Charlie Brown and his friends in the Peanuts gang. 

Charlie Brown and the entire Peanuts gang explore life's great questions as they play baseball, struggle with homework, sing songs, swoon over their crushes, and celebrate the joy of friendship. This North Wake Theatre production is guaranteed to please audiences of all ages. 

The Wake Forest Renaissance Centre will honor Suzanne Hetzel, Karen Penney, and Maureen Seltzer as featured artists for the month of August and display their work during a special Art Exhibit & Reception Wednesday, Aug 24, from 5-7 p.m. in the RC Arts Annex, 405 S. Brooks St.

The event is free and open to the public.

Anyone who is unable to attend, but would like to view the art exhibit, is invited to make an appointment.

The Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources (PRCR) Advisory Board will host an Art in the Park Painting Class for people of all ages and skill levels on Saturday, Aug. 27, at E. Carroll Joyner Park, 701 Harris Road.

Two classes will be offered according to the following schedule:

9:30-11:30 am - Children, ages 6-11 (This class is full)
1:30-3:30 pm - Youth/Adults, ages 12 and older

Online registration is open to the first 30 people to register for each class via RecDesk (search Art in the Park). 
 
The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department and the Wake Forest Pickleball Club will host the Wake Forest 2nd Annual Fall Classic Pickleball Tournament Friday-Sunday, Oct. 7-8, at the Flaherty Park Tennis Complex, 1226 N. White St.
 
The entry fee is $45 per player, plus $10 for each additional event. The registration deadline is Friday, Sept 30. No registrations will be accepted on the day of the tournament.

Spend an evening with family and friends while enjoying some foot-tapping, finger snapping good times during our 2022 Concerts in the Park.
 
The Nigel Experience Band will perform Sunday, Sept. 4, while Heads Up Penny will take the stage Sunday, Sept. 11. These free performances are scheduled from 5:30-7:30 p.m. in the E. Carroll Joyner Park Amphitheater, 701 Harris Road.

Also, on September 11, the PRCR Advisory Board will host Wake Forest Unplugged in Joyner Park from 5-7 p.m. 

On Sunday, Sept. 18, from 3:30-5 p.m. a Benefit Concert for the Northern Wake Senior Center will be held at The Forks Cafeteria, 339 Brooks St. in downtown Wake Forest. Hosted by the Friends of Wake Forest Senior Center, tickets are $20 with all proceeds supporting the programs and activities of the Senior Center.

Featuring the Dulcimer Tapestry Players, this band’s unique sound includes five dulcimer players and one guitarist. Not a rock band and not a bluegrass band, their name describes their multi-part harmonies and instruments that weave notes and melodies into a tapestry of music.

The 2022 Friday Night on White concert season concludes Friday, Sept. 9, at 6 p.m. with Crush.

Following a competitive solicitation process and careful developer proposal evaluation, the Town of Wake Forest has selected Triangle Real Estate Company (TREC) from Cary, NC, as the developer for the 353 South White St. Redevelopment in downtown Wake Forest.

The project is expected to include ground floor retail, approximately 110 apartment units, and a Town-owned parking deck.

The US Department of Transportation announced Thursday that it will provide $3.4 million to fund the planning of mobility hubs in Wake Forest and six other communities along the S-Line, a rail corridor between Raleigh and Petersburg, Va.
The funding is part of an award to six North Carolina projects, totaling $60.2 million from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program.

The $3.4 million in RAISE funds will go toward planning and preliminary design of mobility hubs in Wake Forest, Norlina, Henderson, Franklinton, Youngsville, Apex, and Sanford. Activities include feasibility and site assessments for all the communities and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance and preliminary engineering for four of the seven communities. The project will lead to increased access to active transportation options for each community, better connecting rail transit and other services.

In the coming months, the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre will host several first-rate concerts and performances, including North Wake Theatre’s “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” The Chairmen of the Board, “Plaid Tidings,” and “One Christmas Night in Memphis” – just to name a few.

While these events offer residents the chance to experience and enjoy top quality artists and performances, they also present opportunities for scammers to sell fake and/or higher-priced tickets.

That’s why the Renaissance Centre (RC) is encouraging patrons to be diligent and exercise safe ticket-buying practices by always buying tickets from the source. To be certain that online tickets for RC shows are valid and that the price paid is the face-value price, purchases should always be made through the RC website.

The RC utilizes Etix as its exclusive online ticket seller. It is not affiliated with and does not cooperate with any resellers and cannot confirm the validity or stand behind tickets purchased from broker/resale sites.

The Town of Wake Forest is in the process of updating its Unified Development Ordinance (UDO), and we need your input. As a follow-up to the UDO Open House sessions on June 9, Wake Forest residents, business owners, and stakeholders are invited to visit Engage Wake Forest and complete the online survey on additional types of development standards. Available through Friday, Sept. 2, the survey takes less than 10 minutes to complete.

The PRCR Department is accepting team registrations for Adult Co-Rec Fall Kickball throughout August.

The entry fee is $225 per team, and the league is limited to participants ages 18 and older. League games will be played primarily on weeknights and Sunday afternoons from mid-September through late October.

Anyone interested in participating who does not have a team can sign up as a free agent, then be assigned to a team in need of players.

The Northeast Community Coalition, Faith Tabernacle Church, and Garner 5th Avenue Pharmacy are partnering to offer flu vaccine shots on Tuesday, Oct. 11, at 10 a.m. at Faith Tabernacle Church, 741 E. Juniper Ave.

The cost is free for anyone who has insurance, and $24 for those without insurance.

Pre-registration is required by emailing the Northeast Community Coalition.

The Public Art Commission, Wake Forest PRCR Department, and ARTS Wake Forest are inviting all Wake Forest residents to a special Community Celebration of the Arts on Saturday, Oct. 1, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Alston-Massenburg Center and Taylor Street Park, 416 N. Taylor St.

Open free to the public, this family-friendly event will include food, music, and a variety of indoor and outdoor arts activities for children of all ages, including rock painting, chalk art, and “do it yourself” kits to assemble on-site or take home.
 
The Town of Wake Forest and several local veterans’ organizations will continue their monthly flag-raising ceremonies in Town Hall’s Centennial Plaza on Monday, Sept. 12, at 11 a.m.
 
The 43rd Wake Forest Memorial Flag-Raising Ceremony will honor Bruce Keith, Sr. who served our nation in the US Marine Corps.
 
Members of Keith's family have been invited to participate in the service, which will include patriotic songs, special remarks, a memorial wreath laying, and the ceremonial flag-raising by the Wake Forest Fire Department Honor Guard.

The PRCR Department is offering residents the opportunity to reserve rental facilities both in person and online.

Please note the following online rental procedure: 

  1. Call the facility you wish to rent to confirm availability.
  2. Following confirmation, complete the online rental agreement;
  3. Once the agreement has been submitted, reviewed, and accepted, you will receive confirmation via email or telephone, followed by an invoice for the rental deposit or full rental fee.
  4. Pay rental deposit or full fee via RecDesk. If you do not already have a RecDesk account, set up an account.

Please Note: Submitting a rental request does not guarantee approval. All requests are considered “tentative” until the entire process has been completed, including payment of the rental deposit or full rental fee.

The Wake Forest Renaissance Centre is selling tickets for its 2022-23 fall and winter performances - and tickets are going fast.

Visit our website or view/download our program guide for information on upcoming shows, including You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, A Fall Evening Motown Cabaret (SOLD OUT), Party to a Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre (SOLD OUT), The Chairmen of the Board, Plaid Tidings, One Christmas Night in Memphis, Comedian Jen Kober, Shana Tucker, Croce Plays Croce (SOLD OUT) & more!
New RecConnect is now available, registration is open 
 
The September 2022-February 2023 issue of RecConnect, the Wake Forest PRCR Department's fall and winter program guide, is now available. Click on the image above to view the latest edition in digital format. RecConnect is also available in Adobe Acrobat Format (PDF).

RecConnect includes information about all programs, classes, special events, sports programs and registrations offered by the Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department. Registration opened August 1. To learn more, call 919-435-9560 or visit us online.

The Town of Wake Forest is in the process of updating its Unified Development Ordinance (UDO).

The UDO combines into a single document the Town's zoning, subdivision, land use, grading, storm water management, and historic preservation regulations. It outlines the requirements for all development activity.

The UDO was first adopted in 2013, along with the Manual of Specifications, Standards and Design (MSSD). With the update and adoption of several comprehensive plans, including the 2022 Community Plan and 2021 Northeast Community Plan, as well as several other comprehensive plans that are underway, the UDO and MSSD must be updated to implement the policies and recommendations of the plans.

In addition to reflecting the goals and actions of the comprehensive plans, the UDO needs to maintain compliance with state, federal and case law, which are constantly evolving. Finally, the update will exam best practices and trending topics.

The update process will involve multiple steps and take approximately two years. The updated UDO and MSSD will set the development rules for Wake Forest.

For nearly 20 years the Town of Wake Forest has been introducing ways for residents to stay up to date on its programs, services, and events. Those offerings range from our website, email notifications via E-Notifier, and various social media platforms to our text/phone notification system and Town app.

Despite our best efforts, there are still some who complain about not knowing what is happening in our community. That's why we thought it might be useful for Talbot the Town Crier to again offer his "olde school" overview of all the ways you can stay informed.
WFTV 10 is off the air - except during live meeting broadcasts

WFTV 10 is off the air (except during live meeting broadcasts) due to malfunctioning equipment that controls scheduled video playback.

Officials are in the process of ordering a replacement but experiencing significant delays due to supply chain issues.

Until the new equipment is received and installed, Channel 10 broadcasts will continue to be limited to live meetings.

In the meantime, residents are urged to visit our Public Meetings Portal to watch replays of Town meetings.

Holding Park Aquatic Center (HPAC) is open for the 2022 season. To help ensure an enjoyable experience for everyone, patrons must register and pay online in advance. No walk-ins will be allowed. Pre-registration opens 14 days in advance, and closes when full, or within one hour of the session. For example, a patron must register by 7:59 a.m. for a 9 a.m. session. 

Taylor Street Park Sprayground, 416 N. Taylor St., is open for the season.

Free and open to the public, the sprayground now operates according to the following schedule:

  • Monday-Saturday, 10 am-8 p.m.
  • Sunday, 1-8 p.m.

To view the full 2022 schedule, visit our website.

The Town of Wake Forest is inviting individuals, families, churches and civic clubs to join the “Show Some Love, #KeepWFclean” campaign by picking up trash in their neighborhoods and along local streets and roadways. The initiative allows volunteers to pick up litter on a one-time or ongoing basis. Participants may also choose the area they wish to clean or request direction to high need areas around town.

To aid the effort, volunteers may reserve litter kits at no charge by completing the online reservation form. Each litter kit includes reflective vests, gloves, buckets, grabbers, trash bags, data collection sheets, hand sanitizer and litter education materials. A special thanks to B&W Hardware for donating the litter kits.
 
Loose trash in trucks creates litter along Wake Forest roadways.
 
Help keep Wake Forest roadways clean by securing any trash in your truck bed. When you throw trash in the back of your truck, it inevitably blows out and becomes litter on the roadside. In fact, half of all litter is blown, not thrown! Roadside litter costs millions of dollars to remove, decreases property values and has a negative impact on tourism.
 
The NC Department of Public Safety reports that an even bigger problem is unsecured loads in the back of trucks. At high speeds, even large items can fly out and hurt or startle other drivers causing accidents. Put trash into built-in containers. Use tarps, cargo nets and tie-downs to secure any loads. #KeepWFclean
 
The following monthly meeting schedule is now in effect:
 
Board of Commissioners Work Session
First Tuesday/month - 6 p.m.

Joint Public Hearings
First Tuesday/month (as needed) - 7:30 p.m.

Planning Board Meeting
Second Tuesday/month - 6 p.m.

Board of Commissioners Regular Meeting
Third Tuesday/month - 6 p.m.

Related
 

The Town of Wake Forest has launched a comprehensive public education campaign on proper recycling behaviors.

#RecycleRightWF introduces and emphasizes a series of easy-to-understand messages aimed at simplifying the recycling process and improving the quality of materials residents place in their rollout recycling carts.

The Northern Wake Senior Center, 235 E. Holding Ave., offers adults age 55 and older a full schedule of recreational activities. Programming at the center is provided by Resources for Seniors, Inc. The organization serves senior and disabled adults in Wake County by providing home and community-based services and information, thereby allowing them to maximize their choices for independence, comfort, safety, security and well-being.
Stay In Touch
You have received this e-mail because you are subscribed to E-News – part of the Town of Wake Forest’s e-mail subscription service. E-News keeps you up-to-date on Town of Wake Forest news, information, events and services. If you believe you have been subscribed in error, or would like to cancel your subscription to The Week Ahead, you may unsubscribe below.
 
If you have questions or comments about the Town of Wake Forest website or E-News, please contact Bill Crabtree by email or call 919-435-9421.