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By Jim Buice

For the Clemmons Courier

A new traffic pattern is coming for those who park or stop along Lewisville-Clemmons Road for pick-up/drop-off at West Forsyth High School, effective on the first day back from spring break, which is Tuesday, April 9 — and it could be costly for drivers who don’t comply. 

Those who don’t heed the “NO PARKING OR STOPPING ANY TIME” signs along the busy road during school dismissal time could face hefty fines – $25 for parking a vehicle on a roadway in violation of NC GS 20-161(a) along with the current court fee of $191.

During Monday night’s meeting, Village Manager Mike Gunnell gave the most recent update of addressing school traffic in the best interests of safety and traffic flow with the decree of officers beginning to issue citations when the students return from Spring Break.

“As we discussed in our retreat, this is moving forward at a pretty quick pace,” Gunnell said. “We ordered signs from a local sign company, and they’ve been approved by DOT to put up. Actually, they came in today. We’ve created a notification that was reviewed by the principal and the Sheriff’s Department and made the edits. 

“We’re going to place deputies at each entrance to kind of move people along. There will be tickets issued with the total ticket cost of $216. This is supposed to start right after Spring Break on April 9. So unless there’s any further discussion, we’re going to move forward.”

Mayor Mike Rogers asked if that this was addressing specifically West Forsyth and Lewisville-Clemmons Road, and Gunnell confirmed that was the case.

“Sparks will fly in April,” Rogers said.

Gunnell added that the village was “still working with Clemmons Elementary as far as a resolution for that.”

In another business item, Amy Flyte, assistant manager, gave a report on two applications during the recent call for projects with the Winston-Salem Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization.

First was the construction and right-of-way costs for the sidewalk along Marty Lane. The engineering and design phase is in the process for approval with Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) funds. This application is for the remaining funds of $1,588,125, and the local match is $317,625.

Second was the construction and right-of-way costs for the sidewalk and crosswalk on the west side of Lewisville-Clemmons Road at West Forsyth. The village has already paid for design and engineering for this project, making it a shovel-ready project. The application totals $319,000, and the local match is $63,800.

Both were approved by council consensus.

In a matter that is routinely approved without discussion, council member Mike Combest asked earlier in the meeting to consider a motion amending the minutes from the Jan. 22 retreat with the following additions.

“The finance projections discussion included a comprehensive, broad-ranging debate that needs to be reflected in the minutes,” Combest said. “A key part of the debate was lifting/raising Clemmons’ tax cap with various positions being taken and expressed. And to a lesser degree, the important issue of length of office terms was mentioned and discussed. 

“Since these are fundamental and fundamentally important issues to the village, it is important their discussion/debate be reflected in the minutes. It is imperative that we are seen as completely transparent on critical issues like tax caps, length of office, etc.”

A motion had already been made and seconded to approve the minutes as presented before Combest spoke up with his additions to the minutes. The council then gave unanimous approval to approving the minutes with his changes.

Also in Monday night’s meeting, the council continued a long arrangement by approving a new solid waste and recycling contract with Waste Management.

Earlier in the meeting, Larry Kirby, the village’s former public works director and later town manager, spoke during the public comments about the quality of work and service provided by Waste Management and also introduced a couple of employees that came to the meeting.

Flyte said that the current contract with Waste Management expires on June 30, and that after receiving proposals, the staff recommended staying with Waste Management. The contract term is for five years with the first-year cost of $1,741,008 and a fixed 4 percent increase each following year.

In other highlights from last Monday’s retreat, the council:

• Approved the audit report presented by Gibson & Company. Ann Stroud, finance director for the village, compiled a 138-page financial statement, which Combest called “pure bragonomics” based on spending funds “more thoughtfully, carefully and consequently more efficiently than the village does. Obviously, it’s due to the great work of the staff and this government body.” Rogers added that “we have a finance director who has a wall full of certificates that she receives annually for her excellence in accounting.”
• Appointed Tanya Skillman to fill the opening on the planning board after former member Randy Wooden was elected to a seat on the council late last year.
• Received a quarterly stormwater report from stormwater technician Emily Harrison, stormwater technician II. She reported there were a total of 22 projects from October through December – including eight structure repairs, three right-of-way ditch line projects, five minor culvert replacements and five locations that had shoulder repairs.