April 12 - 18, 2018
bringing the local news home to northwest Guilford County since 1996
Council seizes ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ opportunity Town to purchase 58- acre tract abutting Oak Ridge Town Hall property
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News Briefs.................................... 5 Oak Ridge Town Council............. 8
Community Calendar.................14 Stop, Drop and Roll 5K............... 15
Photo by Jorge Maturino/NWO
Purchasing a 58-acre tract of open land that abuts Oak Ridge Town Hall, with frontage on N.C. 150, will give the Town of Oak Ridge options for expanding its recreational facilities.
Soon after the meeting got underway, Summerfield resident Danny Nelson kicked off the Public Comments period, with 17 speakers following behind him.
SUMMERFIELD – Summerfield Town Council’s five-hour meeting on April 10 was not for the weak at heart.
Nelson said remarks Sheriff BJ Barnes had made during the last municipal election season had offended him and in the upcoming sheriff’s race he was giving his support to Steve Parr.
Pastor David Lee of Summerfield Peace United Methodist Church, humorously referencing how two churches, “one black and one white,” had come together with himself, an Asian, in the middle, tried to set a harmonious tone in his opening prayer.
Parr spoke next, saying he worked for Guilford County Sheriff’s Office before retiring after 25 years in law enforcement. He said his campaign for county sheriff was focused on three key things: bond debt for the underutilized jail in downtown Greens-
by PATTI STOKES
Your Questions.............................. 4
Hilda Coleman, McDonald’s award recipient...........................13
Oh, what a night Five-hour council meeting peppered with surprises, debates, frustration and citizen outcries
IN THIS ISSUE
Archery Fundraiser, April 21...... 12
by PATTI STOKES OAK RIDGE – It’s too early to offer any specifics, but a 58-acre tract that abuts Oak Ridge Town Hall on Linville Road will likely provide more recreational opportunities for area residents in the future. At its April 5 meeting, the
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boro which opened in 2012; wasted taxpayer and drug forfeiture money; and “manpower on the road,” specifically citing a shortage of officers in District 1, which encompasses Oak Ridge, Summerfield, Stokesdale, Colfax and northwest and northern Greensboro. Steve Chandler, also formerly with Guilford County Sheriff’s Office, spoke on behalf of county sheriff candidate Danny Rogers. Chandler said he spent 18 years working in District 1 and described an incident several years ago in which he responded to a domestic call in which no backup arrived for 17 minutes; during that time the male involved in the dispute attacked his girlfriend with a box cutter before Chandler stepped in. During the
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Student athletes, NWHS coach recognized.................................. 18
Capri D’Souza, Morehead-Cain scholarship recipient................. 20 ‘Do work that matters’................ 22 Crime/Incident Report............... 23 Grins & Gripes............................. 24 Letters and Opinions.................. 26 Classifieds................................... 27 Index of Advertisers....................31