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CLEMMONS — The Village of Clemmons and the city of Winston-Salem are in agreement on a $737,205 sewer extension off Harper Road.

Village Manager Mike Gunnell said in Monday night’s council meeting after discussions between the two parties that the city of Winston-Salem “took more responsibility of the bid” and that he was asking for council approval to move forward with the project, which they did in a 5-0 vote.

Clemmons will now be responsible for paying $435,600, and the city of Winston-Salem will pay $301,605. Mayor Mike Rogers said that the money for the project will all come from the village’s Sewer Reserve Fund.

“I don’t think we’re going to get a much better deal than that considering the current status of the way the bids are coming in,” Gunnell said. “I think the city stepped up, and they’re going to pay quite a bit more than the original contract.”

Gunnell said that the extension across Harper Road will help the city of Winston-Salem “get it that far from the pump station” and it would then “go south of Harper Road to our property.”

That property is a 14.7-acre tract at 2848 Harper Road, which the village purchased more than 15 years ago and has tried unsuccessfully to sell in the last couple of years. It remains on the market, and Monday night’s news is certainly a positive development. 

“I hope so,” he said.

Gunnell added that this item will be on the next Utilities Commission agenda for final approval.

In other items on the agenda, there was a history theme starting with the council approving a resolution declaring May 2024 as Historic Preservation Month in Clemmons and then receiving the annual report from the Historic Resources Commission.

Scott Binkley, a former council member and the Clemmons appointee on the commission, presented a copy of the report and spoke of the importance of “keeping history alive.”

Michelle McCullough of the Forsyth County Historic Resources Commission followed with a comment that after last year’s meeting with the council in April that the village started a special program related to history.

“After last year’s meeting when Scott came out, you guys did something really tremendous we thought when you started your own historic marker program, and you had your first one this year,” McCullough said, referring to Clemmons Milling Company. “So congratulations. We really thought that was fantastic.”

Heather Bratland, also part of the staff, followed McCullough with an initiative that is being rolled out in Winston-Salem that might work in Clemmons.

“It’s a new program called the Heritage Neighborhoods program where neighborhoods that are 50 years old or older can apply to the city to get street-sign toppers that say historic whatever the name of the neighborhood is established such and such a date,” she said of a possible idea for the village.

Prior to Monday night’s meeting, the council held a budget workshop for fiscal year 2024-25 in the afternoon.

In other highlights from Monday night’s meeting, the council:

• Approved a letter of support for the village’s application to the 2024 N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission’s Partners for Green Growth cost-share funding program.
• Received a quarterly stormwater update from Emily Harrison stormwater technician II. She reported there were a total of 62 projects from January through March – including 49 structure repairs, six right-of-way ditch line projects, two minor culvert replacements and three locations that had shoulder repairs.
• Recognized Nolan Hill and Chad Kim, who are fifth-grade students at Morgan Elementary, as Clemmons Community Spring Cleanup T-shirt design winners, with the mayor and council members sporting the T-shirts.