TCB Oct. 13, 2022 — A Pallet-able Solution?

A

Pallet-able

by Sayaka Matsuoka

o, some ass hole is suing Texas Pete because their hot sauce is not made in Texas.

ible that reasonable people would look down upon it and/or otherwise would despise such corporate mis conduct.”

by Brian Clarey

It’s true. Ac cording to the lawsuit, California man Phillip White allegedly bought a $3 bottle of Texas Pete at a store in Los Angeles in September 2021. Upon discovering that the sauce, which clearly says “Texas” on the bottle, was made in North Carolina, which it also says on the bottle, White “suffered injury” and “lost money,” and is seeking — am I reading this right?

— an amount “exceeding $5,000,000,” which he is willing to share with everyone who joins the class-action suit… after the lawyers take their cut, of course.

He also wants Texas Pete to stop using the name Texas Pete.

The lawsuit accuses false adver tising, unfair use of a geographic de scriptor, violation of personal rights and a nasty assessment of Garner Foods’ practices.

From page 34, lines 8-11: “Defen dant’s misconduct is oppressive as, at all relevant times, said conduct was so vile, base, and/or contempt

And I don’t know what to do with this, except to say that if the guy had a problem with his hot sauce, he should have brought it back to the store and gotten his $3 back. But I doubt he had a problem with it because Texas Pete hot sauce is delicious, if a little low on the Scoville scale

I also wonder if a class-action lawsuit is the proper remedy for one California man’s ignorance.

I will admit that I was mildly shocked when, as a young food writer who had just moved to North Carolina, I discovered that Texas Pete hot sauce was made in Winston-Sa lem.

“Huh,” I think I said.

Then, like just about every other food writer in the state, I wrote a long-ish feature about the sauce, the family-owned parent company TW Garner Foods and its long history in the Camel City that goes back almost 100 years. The piece has since been scrubbed from the internet, which is too bad, because had White read my piece, he would have known where Texas Pete comes from.

WEBMASTER

SALES

DREAMS

by MICHAELA RATLIFF

THURSDAY Oct. 13

A Midsummer Night’s Dream @ UNCG Taylor Theatre (GSO) 7:30 p.m.

SATURDAY Oct. 15

International Village Food and Music Festival @ Corpening Plaza (W-S) 12 p.m.

In honor of their Centennial Celebra tion, the UNCG School of Theatre pres ents their rendition of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In the midst of the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta, four young lovers escape to an enchanted forest where prankster fairies, mischief and games of fantasy await. Find more information and pur chase tickets at uncgtheatre.com

FRIDAY Oct. 14

Hispanic Heritage Month: Noche de Baile Pop-Up @ Stock + Grain Assembly (HP) 7 p.m.

In partnership with Truist Bank, Cor pening Plaza hosts Winston-Salem’s International Village Food and Music Festival highlighting international back grounds and heritage of Winston-Salem residents. Learn more about global cui sines, enjoy cultural performances and purchase international crafts during this entertaining, yet educational commu nity event. Visit internationalvillage.ws for more information.

SUNDAY Oct. 16

Grand Opening Celebration @ Carolina Core Wellness (HP) 2 p.m.

Hispanic Heritage Month may be coming to a close, but it’s not too late to learn Salsa, Merengue, Bachata, and more with Maria Gonzalez to celebrate it! Dance class starts at 7 followed by social dancing until 10. Food and drinks will be available to purchase from Stock + Grain. Visit the event page on Face book for more information.

Carolina Core Wellness is throwing a grand opening celebration where you can meet the providers, tour the build ing and participate in family-friendly activities. There will be food trucks to purchase meals from, an unveiling of the Artist of the Month gallery and more. For more information, visit the event page on Facebook.

Get the full events calendar by signing up for the Weekender, straight to your inbox every Thursday. pico.link/triadcitybeat

City of Greensboro votes to invest in temporary pop-up ‘pallet houses’ for homeless individuals

by Sayaka Matsuoka

Greensboro could soon join a list of cities from around the country that use pop-up “pallet houses” to shelter people experiencing homelessness during the coldest months of the year.

On Monday morning, Greensboro City Council held a special meeting in which they heard from city staff, including former city councilmem ber Michelle Kennedy, about temporary housing solutions for this coming winter. Solutions on the table include 40 units of pallet houses that would be configured to create a community, as well as a designated parking lot for people living out of their cars to do so safely.

While the parking-lot solution seemed to be quickly accepted by council as a whole, the pallet houses, created by Seattle-based company, Pallet, were met with more questions and concerns.

According to the proposal presented to council, the 40 pallet shelters, which can house two people each, would cost the city $535,014. Rather than being construct ed, the shelters can be quickly assembled and would be arranged with anywhere from six to 15 feet between them. In total, the community would sit on about a quarter of an acre, Kennedy said. The units would also be insulated and have 1500-watt heaters as well as air conditioning and ventilation for circulation. The structures are made to be pest-proof, mold resistant and withstand up to 110+ mph winds.

There would also be two bathrooms on site, each with two sinks, toilets and showers for the 80 individuals living there.

The entire project is being called the “Doorway Project” by the city and is meant to provide interim housing for people with the highest needs, according to city staff. During the meeting, Kennedy said that there are approximately 200-250 chronical ly homeless people — those who are homeless for at least a year — in the city. She also said that the pallet houses would carry the city through “the next eight to nine months as [they] finalize permanent, supportive housing.”

The city recently approved about $535,000 in funding to purchase pallet houses, like the ones above, to offer shelter to homeless people during the coldest months of the year.

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Both the Doorway Project as well as the safe parking initiative would be in ad dition to endeavors that the city already has in place for the homeless community, including hotel assistance for families through the Greensboro Urban Ministry and the winter shelter at the Regency Inn, as well as the white-flag shelter which opens when temperatures drop below 25 degrees.

As both staff and city council members mentioned throughout the meeting, the pallet shelters are not meant to be a long-term housing solution, but rather a tem porary living situation for those who will, hopefully, eventually obtain permanent housing.

Many on council saw the proposal as a concrete step in the right direction to helping the homeless community, especially given council’s recent approval of ordi nances that community members saw as criminalizing homelessness.

“As you take people’s stuff away downtown, they need somewhere to land,” said councilmember Sharon Hightower, who alluded to one of the ordinances that passed on Oct. 5.

Hightower was among the four council members who opposed the changes to the ordinances.

On Monday, seven members of council voted to support funding for the pallet homes and the parking lot, with councilmember Zack Matheny as the sole oppos ing vote.

Kennedy, who now works as the neighborhood development director for the city, said that the units have a 10-year lifespan and would be a good beginning.

“A combination of all these programs will allow us to accommodate between 200-250 individuals,” she said. “We know the number is much greater than that but in terms of an immediate action step, ideally this gets us a long way down the road with addressing those numbers.”

Pallet company new, questions about safety raised

While most council members appeared to be on board with the proposal from the beginning of the meeting, one of the recurring questions about the viability of the pallet houses was its overall safety.

One of the public speakers at the meeting was Scott Jones, executive director of the Tiny House Community Development, Inc. which builds tiny homes in the area as long-term housing for homeless people. Jones is also a part of Guilford County’s Continuum of Care or the CoC, which is a “planning body… that coor dinates the community’s policies, strategies and activities toward ending homeless ness,” according to the county’s website. The group is made up of nonprofit service providers, county officials, city representatives, healthcare providers and more.

Councilmember Sharon Hightower is the city’s representative in the group. And like Hightower, Jones mentioned that he was caught off guard about this proposal, saying that no one in the Continuum of Care had been notified about the pallet houses as an option.

“I’m pretty disturbed,” Jones said. “I serve on the CoC. I am the housing resource committee chair and my charge is to find out what housing is being built, what housing is available in Greensboro and Guilford County…. What’s disturbing is the CoC was not a part of this conversation from the very beginning.”

Jones urged city council to rethink this proposal, stating that the company who makes the pallet homes, Pallet, had only been around since 2016 and that they were “not up to code.”

While city staff said that they wouldn’t approve the final contract until they got more details about the fire-safety rating about the shelters, a few news reports show that the shelters have caught fire in the past.

According to an article by Curbed from March, three pallet shelters caught on fire earlier this year in Oakland, Calif. The outlet reported that other shelters burned down in Oct. 2020 and in Dec. 2020. After the latter incident, Pallet changed its materials from high-density polyethylene to fiberglass-reinforced plas tic, but the company denied that the change was due to the fires.

A source quoted in LA Magazine, also stated that the shelters had a three-year lifespan rather than the 10-year lifespan noted on the company’s website.

The safety section on Pallet’s website notes that the shelters are “independently inspected and approved by local fire marshall” and that each unit comes with a fire extinguisher, smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector.

Instead, Jones said he wants city council to consider contracting with more local hotels to house homeless individuals during the winter months.

Matheny, who voted against the pallet homes, pushed for a similar solution. He said that he’d like to know more about how the city was spending its money on the Regency Hotel before spending more money.

“I don’t see how we can support just spending another million dollars to buy something else when we’re not taking care of what we own,” he said.

However, Kennedy, who was part of the team that came up with the proposal, pushed back on Jones and Matheny’s assertion that housing people in hotels or empty businesses would be cheaper. She said that during COVID-19, when they housed about 85 people in hotels for five months, that it cost the city approximately $800,000. And as other council members pointed out, the pallet homes could be used over multiple years for the same amount of money.

“We have investigated everything that is available to us,” Kennedy said.

Despite the fires, Pallet’s shelters have increased in popularity over the last few years, particularly during the pandemic. According to its website, the company now has more than 1,700 cabins in 63 “shelter villages” across eight states in the country. Many news reports also state the positive effects that the shelters have had on their municipalities including creating shelter for those most in need, decreas ing encampments and offering support. While the option was not included in the initial proposal, Pallet also makes community rooms which could also be added to the villages for people to hang out in during the day.

“I think that’s a necessary part of it,” said councilmember Goldie Wells. “Home less are getting on folks’ nerves and so where can they go? There is no place for them.... We need a gathering place for them also.”

Kennedy said that she’s asked for the numbers on the community room options and would send the info to council for further consideration. In response to Jones’ and Hightower’s comments about the lack of the Continuum of Care’s involve ment on this project, Kennedy said that it was to move the process forward more quickly.

“There comes a time, I’m just speaking really frankly here, where we can contin ue to meet and plan the next meeting or we can act, and we are at a place that we need to act,” Kennedy said. “Unfortunately the movement in terms of partnership will likely come as it relates to longer term solutions. There have been very little interest in immediate solutions that are actually moving forward.”

In the end, most of council agreed with Kennedy, opting to vote in favor of the proposal under the condition that city staff come back with more details on how the shelters are constructed and that they are safe.

“I don’t want to wait for action; I think we need to do something,” said Mayor Nancy Vaughan. “I understand that this solution was just identified in the last few weeks. I don’t want to wait just to talk about it some more, we need to do some thing. This is not the end all solution. This is just a short term solution, but we have to get people sheltered.”

If the solution doesn’t work, then someone will take accountability, she said. “Whoever used them should be looking for work elsewhere,” she said.

Other things to note:

● The safe parking pilot program will allow a max of 35 cars to park in a designated area safely

● Homeless families will be prioritized for hotel stays through Greensboro Urban Ministry.

● The white flag shelter will open again this year, but the threshold tempera ture, which has historically been 25 degrees, may be raised. The shelter does not have beds and is just a place for people to stay warm.

● The areas for the pallet shelters and the parking lot have yet to be deter mined.

If you or someone you know is experiencing homelessness in Greensboro or Guilford County, they can find resources on the county’s website or by calling 336-373-7960.

An image from Pallet’s website shows an example of the interior of a pallet home.

Forsyth County Commission race attracts seasoned politicos

by James Douglas

Forsyth County Commissioners are responsible for adopting the county budget, setting the property-tax rate, acting on zoning and land use and enacting county policies. The partisan board also appoints members of citizen boards, committees and other commissions. Four commissioners are elected from District B, two from District A and one is voted at-large. Each member serves a 4-year staggered term, and partisan elections are held in even-numbered years. Each December, the board chooses its chair and vice chair. Don Martin, a Republican representative for District B is the only candidate running unopposed.

In the upcoming general election, the candidates who made it through the primaries (and those who didn’t have to) will face off, separated by party. Triad City Beat con tacted all of the candidates for this story and received answers from most of them. Their answers have been consolidated for print but full answers will be linked online.

AT-LARGE

The at-large race features former city council member Dan Besse, a Democrat, and Terri Mrazek, a Repub lican political activist and former head of the Forsyth County Republican Women.

Dan Besse (D)

Dan Besse served for 19 years on the Winston-Salem City Coun cil starting in 2001, successfully running for election and re-elec tion five times. Two years ago, he was recruited by the NC House Democratic Caucus to run for a Republican-leaning swing seat for the state House, a contest which he narrowly lost to Republican Jeff Zenger. Besse has also been actively involved in work for the Democratic party, from serving as a precinct chair to serving on the national board of Democratic Municipal Officials. This is his first time running for county commission.

Besse is community-oriented, and wants to be avail able to the public.

“I understand that this work is year-round, and that people need to see and speak with me as their repre sentative on a regular basis, not just every four years at election time,” he said. “No matter how smart you think you are, you’ll learn more in one afternoon on neighborhood streets talking and listening than from a month sitting in your office.”

Besse points out a multitude of issues, from disparities in educational opportunities, healthcare and housing affordability, as the biggest challenges facing Forsyth County

He pointed out the need to increase teacher pay, offer more extensive health outreach, increase in communi ty policing and work towards energy efficiency. Besse’s opinions concerning law enforcement funding and control are varied and nuanced, related to his time on city council.

“I adamantly oppose reducing law enforcement funding,” he said. “Good community policing with well-trained and managed law enforcement officers is essential, and it’s not cheap.” He continued, “At the

same time, I fully recognize that the experience with law enforcement in many communities has not been positive historically.”

He insists on high standards of police conduct and accountability and acknowledges the difficulties of the job.

“None of these crises will solve themselves, and we can’t fix them with social media hand-wringing,” he explained. “All of us who care about the well-being of our communities must get out of our chairs and get to work on rebuilding civic engagement and the demo cratic process.”

Terri Mrazek (R)

Terri Mrazek has worked as a political activist and assisted in many campaigns, most recently serving as the president of the Forsyth County Republican Women. She has worked on the campaigns of NC Dept. of Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey and state Sen. Joyce Krawiec. If elected, Mrazek expressed a desire to provide a voice to the constituents. She also is interested in budgetary concerns.

“Finding revenue sources other than property taxes is a key to success,” Mrazek said. “The population demands more services and at the same time, they are not willing to pay additional property taxes.”

Public safety is a major priority for Mrazek. “I believe in programs that promotes [sic] a healthy relationship between Communities and Law enforce ment,” Mrazek said. “Our responsibility as County Commissioners is, ‘Our County Sheriff Department’ and foremost the safety of our people in Forsyth County and visitors.”

A devout Christian, Mrazek is also vocal about her support of the Republican Party and Donald Trump.

When asked, Mrazek initially denied and then acknowledged being in Washington, DC on Jan. 6. Mrazek was adamant about not attending the Capitol Insurrection following the rally at the Washington Monument.

“I found the actions of others who entered the Capital [sic] was very wrong as well as the actions of those who months before destroyed people’s prosperity,” she

said, referencing the worldwide protests against police brutality that were sparked by the murder of George Floyd in 2020. “Months before in Washington, there was burning, Vandalizing and loitering of peoples businesses and even a Historic Church was vandal ize[d]. How soon that was all forgotten.”

Mrazek hopes to represent the community through lower taxes, a strong public safety system, and address ing the different financial needs of the county.

DISTRICT A

The District A race has two seats available with two Democrats, Malishai Woodbury and Tonya McDaniel, running against the two Republicans, Reginald Reid and Michael R. Owens. Owens and Reid did not respond to TCB’s candidate questionnaires.

Tonya McDaniel (D, i) Tonya D. McDaniel was first elected as a county commis sioner in 2018. She received her undergraduate degree from Winston-Salem State University and graduated with a bachelor of arts in political science. In 2016, she graduated from NC Central University with a master’s in public administration. She is also the goddaughter of former commissioner and community leader, the late Earline Parmon.

“For over 14 years, I have worked at the precinct level, worked for the board of elections, managed several federal, state and local candidates’ political cam paigns,” she said.

She believes that she is one of the most experienced candidates with a clear vision.

“Forsyth County has invested a total budget of $65 million in the sheriff’s department,” she said. “We have approved approximately $3.5 million in the Juvenile Intervention Team, and $1.5 million to work alongside the Cure Violence Initiative to combat gun and gang violence.”

As for schools, they “have $150 million for infrastruc ture, which includes funding for teachers, assistants and staff,” she said. She plans to work alongside state

representatives and the school board to ensure a cohe sive budget.

“I am also looking forward to recognizing our LGBTQ+ communities in the future and continuing the work on supporting the state goal of 100 percent clean renewable energy by 2050 and creation of green jobs,” she explained.

In her work with a federal non-profit, McDaniel main tained a budget of over $2 million in human resources over a period of nine years. Citing the $500 million budget she has overseen as a commissioner, she’s excit ed to help put more resources in her community.

“I am excited Forsyth County has written a resolution to utilize 80 percent of the $74 million ARPA dollars in the census tract of the marginalized communities,” she said.

McDaniel recognizes a need for local law enforcement, stating, “[F]rom my own personal experience dealing with domestic violence and gun and gang violence, I would have to admit law enforcement agencies are necessary in serving and protecting our citizens. I am grateful to live in a county where our sheriff’s depart ment understands the need for behavioral health. It has to be an all-inclusive body of work.”

Malishai Woodbury (D)

Malishai Woodbury has served on the WS/FCS Board of Ed ucation for almost four years, with three of those years as chair. Notably, she is the first Black school board chair in Forsyth County history. She received her bachelor of arts in communication studies from UNC-Chapel Hill and received her master’s degree in history at NC A&T State University. She later taught history at A&T. “Teaching political courses is a great way to authen tically experience the exchange of ideas and beliefs regarding political issues and the behaviors of political leaders,” she said.

This is her first run for county commission.

Focusing on District A, Woodbury wants to “help make Forsyth County the best place to live in NC no matter which side of 52 you live,” she said. “In order to make our county the best, we must strengthen District A.”

Woodbury thinks schools are still insufficiently funded, Pre-K accessibility needs attention and her experience on the school board helps inform her belief.

“I have experience working with the school district’s budget, which is comparable to the county’s budget,” she explains. “As of 2021, the school district received a ‘0’ error audit and increased our fund balance.”

Her thoughts on other ways that the budget could be utilized is similar.

“The county should invest more money in increasing educator pay supplements, Pre-K accessibility, and re storative juvenile justice, to name a few,” she said. “I

think Forsyth County should spend less money on luxurious amenities for certain parts of the county.”

Woodbury’s views towards law enforcement are similar to those of her colleagues who are running for office.

“I agree with law enforcement reform that is a collab orative effort between community members, elected officials and law enforcement leaders,” she said. “I think policing has a negative connection to the history of slavery in this country; however, I believe all citizens want to live in a safe community that is protected by men and women who serve to keep the peace.”

She’s also expressed her opinion about the current state of the nation and its myriad of social issues.

“I am concerned about the future of this country if we don’t authentically deal with the core issues that hinder our progress, like racism, sexism, elitism, etc.,” she said.

As an elected official, Woodbury said she wants to emulate the past leaders who also served as longtime public servants.

“I will work to uphold the legacy and commitment of servant leaders like Mazie Woodruff, Earline Parmon and Walter Marshall,” she said. “In my opinion, their work to justify human and civil rights was the greater mission that benefitted all citizens of Forsyth County.”

at the county level of government who understand the power they have OVER the federal government,” the “need to educate local officials of the Constitutional limits of the federal government,” and “at the County level, to learn to prosper without federal intrusion.” Owens wants more state options concerning health care and believes the Affordable Care Act “is not something the federal government has any Constitu tional authority to legislate.”

Owens is also a proponent of the belief that education is strictly a state issue and that the Federal Dept. of Education is unconstitutional.

From his website: “[W]hat I do have, is the willingness to make tough decisions for the good of Forsyth Coun ty, North Carolina… and the Republic itself.”

Reginald Reid (R)

Reginald Reid is a Forsyth County resident. Reid has run in previous elections, most notably, the NC Senate in 2012 and NC House races in 2018.

There is currently no campaign page or social media page that we can definitively tie to Reid.

Michael R. Owens (R)

TCB attempted to con tact Mr. Owens multiple times for this story and received no response. All information is sourced from his campaign website and other media, where noted.

A lifelong resident of NC, Michael Owens has lived in Winston-Sa lem for more than 20 years. From his website: “I didn’t go to medical school, and I’ve never owned my own business. I’ve spent my adult life working regular jobs, just like everyone else.”

A staunch believer in the Constitution, Owens wants “men and women

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North Carolina’s election deniers

Myriad issues are rising to the fore in the days preceding the upcom ing election: reproduc tive rights, police brutality, racial reckoning, LGBTQ+ acceptance.

But truly, the most pressing issue on the ballot — on every ballot — is the defeat of those who would dismantle our gov ernment. We’re talking about the seditionists who with their words and actions abetted the Jan. 6 Insurrection, the ones who voted to overturn the 2020 election, the ones who still maintain the Big Lie. These are planks in the plat forms of almost 300 Republicans vying for high office this year.

earned him a full-throated Trump endorsement. That race is too close to call.

The same cannot be said for Rep. Virginia Foxx, whose raspy support of Trump includes voting against impeachment — twice — and to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Her 5th Congres sional District was drawn just for her; she should easily prevail over Democrat challenger Kyle Parrish.

Most of the election deniers running for

According to a report in the Washington Post this week, there are 299 election deniers running in state and local elections in 48 of 50 states — thank you Rhode Island and North Dakota. Ten of them are running right here in North Carolina, and at least one of them will be on our ballots in the Triad.

office — 174 of 299 counted by the Post — are in safe districts.

Most of the election deniers — 174 of 299 counted by the Post — are in safe districts just like Foxx. In NC, districts 3, 7, 8 and 9 will also almost certainly go to people who are lying to everyone’s face: Reps Greg Murphy, David Rouser, Dan Bishop and Richard Hudson, respec tively. Throw in Bo Hines in the 13th and Sandy Smith in the 1st, both of whom have a fighting chance against their Democrat rivals, and we’re looking at possibly eight enemies of the state that we could send to Washington.

That would be Rep. Ted Budd, now running for Senate, whose disdain for democracy has been well documented in our publica tion and many others. His high lights include voting against im peachment — twice — in the face of a preponderance of evidence that the president committed im peachable offenses, and his vote as a member of the US House to overturn the 2020 election, which

Understand, this does not include downballot candidates in county commission and school board races, which hold many dozens of election deniers across our 100 counties. This makes the picture look pretty grim.

But here in the Old North State, we still believe there are more of us than there are of them. Though those numbers only matter if everyone comes out to vote.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 8. Get registered now at ncsbe.gov.

From ‘Frankenstein’ to fabulous: New Airbnb, event spaces jazz up Winston-Salem’s Industry Hill

by Kat Bodrie

At the top of the sitting room in the Huntley House hangs a chandelier with dangling emerald green pendants and a delicate floral design on two glass globes. Like many things in this place — which is owned by husband-and-wife team Will Spencer and Christy Cox Spencer — it’s a throwback to an older era. History lurks in every corner of the Huntley House, a new Airbnb space in Winston-Salem’s Industry Hill neighborhood, as well as in the adjacent private event spaces of Robert Hall. All of the rooms in the house, including the sitting room off the entrance, blend cozy family heirlooms with modern wallpaper, linens and bathrooms. It feels like stepping into the 1920s — which was when this part of the building was built. Cox Spencer, president of marketing company JKS Incorporated, says she should have gone into interior design.

“My passion is aesthetics,” says Spencer. “I love creating a space where people step in and say, ‘Oh, this is fantastic.’”

Spencer was close to her mother-in-law, Ann Spencer, who passed away unexpectedly last year. To keep Ann’s memory alive, she wanted to “put in family pieces to honor her.” Guests will see personal touches everywhere, from cross-stitched initials to framed samplers that were made for fam

ily weddings dating back to 1921. Each of the five rooms is named after someone in the Spencer family, who are featured in photos that line the stairwell.

“This is a place for people who want Winston-Salem history, who want something different from a hotel room, something with character,” Spencer says.

Named after BF Huntley, Will Spencer’s great-grandfather who owned a furniture factory in this part of town, the Huntley House is just one new component of the revitalization happening north of downtown. Other recent developments include Winston Junction Market, the Ramkat and Radar Brewing. Although gentrification may be a concern in the future, this specific area above Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive is removed from residenc es, with the Bethesda Center for the Homeless, a neighborhood stronghold, just around the corner.

The 1920s theme of the Huntley House continues when guests step through the door to Capone’s Bar, one of the private event spaces in the aptly named Robert Hall. Robert (Bob) McCormick owned a machining company in this building, which was previously a sign company — and before that, at various times, a cafè, doctor’s office, grocery and residence.

All of the rooms in the Huntley House are adorned with family heirlooms like cross-stitched art and framed samplers.

PHOTO BY LAUREN MARTINEZ OLINGER

The house dates back to 1895, and over time, it was added to, joined with neighboring buildings and altered to create what many call “a Franken stein.”

A keen observer will see the history in the floorboards and walls, but it’s the 26-foot bar in Capone’s that steals the show. Originally from Michigan and built in 1914, along with the matching cash register, it’s said to be from one of Al Capone’s haunts.

Downstairs, and next door to Radar Brew ing, the Vault is a larger event space with a 700-square-foot catering kitchen. The Art Deco theme is here too, evident in the signage and entryway, with one of Ann Spencer’s sideboards. One may also notice all of the vintage doors, which Will Spencer repurposed from other parts of the building as well as from downtown’s Pep per Building and even a schoolhouse in Wiscon sin.

Spencer, a self-admitted “hoarder,” says he repurposed a lot of things in the building and in stalled them himself — from knotty pine boards used as paneling in Capone’s Bar to the neon signs he found in the basement of JKS Incorpo rated, which is adjacent to the Huntley House.

All told, the private events that will be held in this space are sure to be classy, with personal and historical touches. Even the Wishing Well on the patio is designed around the old well that used to source the house on the property.

“There are so many stories in each little piece,” says Cox Spencer.

The Huntley House and Robert Hall are located at 874 N. Liberty St. Learn more at roberthallwsnc.com and @RobertHallWSNC on Facebook and Instagram.

Capone’s Bar is one of the event spaces tied to the Huntley House. PHOTO BY LAUREN MARTINEZ OLINGER

SHOT IN THE TRIAD

BY CAROLYN DE BERRY New Garden Road, Greensboro

Osage oranges (also known as hedge apples or horse apples) at the Hoskin Family Farm exhibit at the Guilford Courthouse National Military Park.

SUDOKU