Feb. 18 - March 3, 2021
bringing the local news home to northwest Guilford County since 1996
IN THIS ISSUE
www.nwobserver.com
Back to the drawing board
News in brief .............................................2 Your Questions .........................................4 Summerfield Town Council meeting ....6 Oak Ridge Town Council meeting .......8 Happy 85th, Helen Ledford!.................10 Bits & Pieces ...........................................12 Welcome to McDonald’s new owners..12 NWO Business & Real Estate ................13 Developer: UDO is discriminatory ......14 Gyms battle to stay fit during pandemic
A Snap Fitness employee disinfects exercise equipment between uses. ........22
NWO Kids’ Korner ..................................25 Crime/Incident Report .........................26 Community Calendar ..........................27 Student Profiles.......................................28 Congrats to Eagle Scouts ....................29 High School sports update ..................30 Grins and Gripes ...................................32 Letters/Opinions ....................................34 Classifieds ..............................................36 Index of Advertisers ..............................39
Schematic courtesy of Creech & Associates
This preliminary town hall design created by Creech & Associates has drawn mixed reviews from council members and citizens since it was presented at last week’s Summerfield Town Council meeting; the schematic shows the prominent use of stone, planks and timbers on the single-level building’s exterior; tall rectangular windows would offer views of U.S. 220 to the east and undeveloped land elsewhere on the property. Michael Supino, Creech & Associates’ project manager, assured the council that revisions to the exterior building design concept will incorporate their recommendations. Supino told the Northwest Observer this week that additional schemes incorporating brick and other exterior details consistent with the existing town hall are being studied.
The withdrawal of a proposed rezoning for Summerfield’s new town hall will require submitting a new proposal to the Zoning Board and the Town Council by CHRIS BURRITT
SUMMERFIELD – Planning for Summerfield’s new town hall isn’t going as smoothly as town leaders had hoped. Last week, the Town Council voted 3-2 to withdraw town staff’s request for the rezoning of 13.4 acres on U.S. 220 proposed
for the new building. A majority of the council concurred with the Zoning Board’s earlier opposition to rezoning the tract for general business out of concern it might invite unwanted commercial development along the highway.
...continued on p. 5
‘Why are we still talking about this?’ Council members at odds over whether actions of former council member and landscaping contractor were intentionally fraudulent, or just an innocent mistake (this article is a continuation of one appearing on the front cover of our Feb. 4-17, 2021 issue, titled ‘It reeks of wrong’)
by PATTI STOKES STOKESDALE – Mayor John Flynt expressed his frustration when asked about a $10,000 payment in early March 2019 to Beaver Outdoor Solutions. The payment was initially applied to what a Beaver employee later described in an email to the
former town finance officer as an “estimate invoice” for work performed beyond the scope of the company’s monthly contractual property maintenance responsibilities. When the company was subsequently asked to break the estimate down, it sent five
...continued on p. 35
