Good evening, everyone.

I'm Alan Joins Mayor of Winston Salem.

It's my pleasure to call to order this June 15th meeting of the Winston Salem City Council and ask the city clerk to call the roll, please.

Councilman McJoiner.

Present.

Councilmember Clark.

Councilmember Andrew Bowen.

Here.

Councilmember CPO.

Present.

Mayor Pro Tem Adams.

Here.

Council Member Taylor.

President.

Council Member Hall.

President.

Councilmember Barrock.

Here.

Thank you very much, Councilmember Hall.

Thank you for joining us via Zoom tonight.

Would you please join the City Council and meet in a moment of silence?

Thank you.

Would you please join the City Council meeting the Pledge of Allegiance?

Thank you very much.

Our Sergeant Arms tonight is Lieutenant Aaron Jacobs.

Lieutenant, thank you for being with us.

And our fire marshal is Pete Geik.

Pete, thank you for being with us as well.

We uh thank everyone for being with us tonight.

Uh we've been we're televised in this meeting live tonight on TV 13 as well as our city's YouTube page, and it will be replayed tomorrow morning at 9 a.m.

and again Wednesday at 9 uh p.m.

Copies are of our agenda as well as videos of previous meetings will be uh on the city's website.

You just click on watch meetings online option.

Um may we have uh Mr.

Pate's uh update, please.

Thank you.

Uh Your Honor.

Uh a couple of different things tonight.

I'm gonna start off by uh calling on uh Jeff Fansler to come and give us uh a little bit of good news about some information on the Northern Beltway.

Thank you, Mr.

Manager, and good evening, Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem, members of City Council.

It's my honor to just recognize the great work of the TPO staff who's led by Hunter Stazak.

Many of you which know Hunter well.

He does tremendous work, and I think he has some good news to share about our beltway.

Hunters, thank you, Mayor, and good evening, Mayor and City Council of Winston-Salem.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide this funding update on the Northern Beltway and other major transportation projects for the Winston-Salem area TPO.

Um, in short, the reason we're here is that on May 28th, NCDOT or the North Carolina Department of Transportation announced the results of the statewide mobility programming from the prioritization process.

In North Carolina, the prioritization process is the process for developing the 10-year transportation improvement program, and right now we are in the middle of developing the 2028 to 2037 State Transportation Improvement Program.

It's a process that we take on every two years to determine which projects will receive limited state and federal funding and implement and get implemented over the next 10 years.

Prioritization proceeds in three different stages, beginning with statewide mobility projects.

You can think of these as your large highway projects like interstate projects, and this is where about 40 percent of state and federal funds get allocated.

And that's the stage that was just announced.

Five projects totaling an estimated 1.5 billion dollars in value were picked up within the Winston-Salem area TPO among a total of about four and a half billion statewide.

These projects include a widening of U.S.

152 and upgrade to interstate standards from exit 109 at Salem Parkway to exit 112 to Akron Drive, continuing north from exit 112 at Akron Drive up to the Northern Beltway, and three additional sections of the Northern Beltway, specifically on the west side.

Those are the segments from Robin Hood Road south to U.S.

421 and south from U.S.

421 down to I-40.

This is the first time that these western projects of the beltway have this have scored highly enough to get funded at the statewide mobility level stage of the STIP since at least prioritization 4.0, which was 10 years ago.

In basic terms, coming out of this cycle, the only segment of the beltway that will be unfunded is that segment A from I-40 down to 158, which you can see on your panel.

Looking at the map on the board, this means that the eastern section will reach full completion within the coming months.

Substantial completion is expected this summer on the eastern section.

And as you move westward, the sections that are already funded in the 2026 to 35 STIP range from U.S.

52 down to about Robin Hood Road.

The projects that were picked up for funding in statewide mobility in this 10 year window continue down from Robin Hood Road to I-40.

What we don't know about the 2028 to 2037 STIP is when within that 10 year programming window, these projects will be funded.

What we'll be watching for in the coming months is the funding availability in the first five years of the STIP.

It's critical that these segments are programmed in the first five years of the STIP in order so that they don't have to recompete for funding in subsequent years.

It's worth noting that these projects are eligible for funding at the next stage of prioritization.

That's the regional impact stage.

And this could increase the chances of one or more of those segments between Robin Hood Road and I-40 getting picked up at that next stage.

Our transportation advisory committee, um, of which mayor joins Mayor Pro Tem Adams and Councilmember Clark, our primary representatives, will consider a recommendation on July 16th to fully allocate local input points towards these projects to give them a better shot at getting funded in those first five years of the STIP and thus committed for delivery.

For those who are interested in learning more about the TPO's involvement in funding, uh please visit city of WS.org/slash TPO or our publicinput.com slash WSATPO regional public comment portal.

Uh, thank you again for the opportunity to provide this update.

And uh, should there be any questions?

I understand you have a busy agenda tonight, so I'll be happy to take those questions offline.

Thank you.

Thank you, Hunter.

Uh, Councilmember Mayor Pro Tim.

Yeah.

Hunter and the uh Transportation Department and team.

Uh thank you so much for everything that you've been doing.

Uh I don't know whether you were around Hunter uh 17, 20, 30 years ago when Weston when Winston Salem uh did not have any good outlooks for a beltway or a loop uh to our area.

Again, being the largest city to Charlotte Northwest, uh we lobbied Councilmember McClark, myself, the mayor, uh every chance we could go uh to Raleigh is Mr.

Faslin.

You know, the prioritization was a little bit whack.

And we were at the very bottom, but we were the largest city that had no beltway, no loop.

And like we would express to to the state that how would we be able to attract industry or uh improve the economy of our citizens or people moving here if they could not get around the city of Weston Salem.

And we all know what Salem Parkway looked like before it was upgraded.

But uh I am so glad that we finally got this.

And uh I honestly believe again, our uh advocacy to our neighbors uh other cities in the district, whether it's Louisville, Kernersville, Ruha Hall, Bethanya King, all of them, they will all benefit from this.

So if none of you have gotten on what's already completed of our highways and beltway, I implore you to do that.

Uh just you know, don't do over 100 anything, but right now it you can do some pretty high speed people do.

Uh but the mayor and I, uh when we cut the ribbon for it, uh they allowed us to go as fast as we wanted to go in our vehicles.

Uh, but I was very, very pleased again to see that uh our area is finally getting some attention, and we will continue to lobby our members on the board and uh state legislatures and uh North Carolina DOT to uh help us complete this project for the future of our city.

Again, thank you.

Thanks, Senator.

I believe uh Jeff told me that these sections that were just approved was about 700 million dollars worth of value thereabouts.

Uh and then the other part that's already in place.

It probably takes us over a billion two for the whole length of it.

You might recall when uh we were getting ready to start this project, it was going to be 600 million for the entire length, and we were sued by a group called the Friends of Fersyth.

And the Friends Versize caught us cost this community over 600 million dollars.

So we're finally back on track.

Thank you, Hunter.

Thank you.

Mr.

Manager.

Uh uh, thank you.

And uh to the mayor pro temp's point, um, Hunter was not here 20 years ago when this was being done.

But but we expect him to be here when this section is completed.

So we're he's gonna see the end of the project to go along.

Uh as you know, we're all we are heading into the into the summer, and there changes some of our uh the weather conditions that we have here.

So last week and over the past weekend, our heat index indices did get to over 100 degrees.

As such, we implemented our extreme heat protocols to help our residents and our employees stay safe.

Some of the things that happened were our rec centers were open as cooling centers during these events.

They are only open during regular business hours in the lobby area for cooling, so you don't interrupt other ongoing activities in the facility, but those were available to our residents.

And then um, and you can find which facilities are open on our parks and recreation website.

We also had eight pools and ten splash pads open throughout the city, and the pool operations were modified uh, like on Friday when two pools were closed to allow for adequate staffing at the six other sites and to have more frequent lifeguard rotations and breaks.

Uh same thing we do with our outside field crews uh in the city.

The transit authority, as uh council approved last year, implemented their temporary free fare fixed route bus service uh during the day of those extreme temperatures to help residents actually get access to our cooling centers and escape the heat.

So we expect that you'll continue to see more of these extreme heat protocols uh come into pass, and the city is committed to community safety and well-being of all of our residents as a part of during these extreme weather events.

And when these protocols are enacted, our communication staff gets that information out to the public via the media, the website, and all of our social media platforms to make sure everybody is informed.

Um I'm also uh pleased to let council know that our uh the one-third compensation study that you you have been approved is well underway now.

Our employees are filling out um surveys right now, and so that will have that information coming back this fall to you to continue on with that uh process that that you approve for us.

A couple of uh recognition areas are and events.

The neighborhood services department will conclude its code conversation tour with two final meetings.

One's coming up this uh Tuesday, June 23rd at 6 p.m.

at the Haynes Hosiery Community Center.

Tuesday, June 23rd, 6 p.m.

Haynes hosiery, and Tuesday, June 30th at 6 p.m.

at the Carl Russell Community Center.

So those the next two Tuesdays.

Residents are invited to come out and learn about common property concerns, reporting procedures, and available city resources to deal with uh the items from the neighborhood services department.

Just a general reminder to the community that our yard waste cart sticker renewal will come due on July 1st.

So you if you have uh a 96 gallon cart that you bought from the city for this, they are collected every week.

You can buy um or you can order a cart if you don't have one already.

But if you have a cart, you can renew your yearly sticker now for uh $65 in our finance uh collections area.

Again, you can visit our solid waste uh yard waste website for more information on that.

Uh the Winston Salem Department Fire Department Color Guard had the honor of presenting the colors at game five of the Stanley Cup finals on June 11th and Raleigh.

And they uh are claiming that they are the good luck charm that calls the Carolina Murray move forward and win the Stanley Cup last night.

Uh so we don't know, but I suspect if they're in the Stanley Cup again, they will be invited uh back to Raleigh again as a part of that.

This Friday, June 19th, in observance of the Juneteenth holiday, the city offices will be closed.

We hope that our residents and uh uh all our employees are able to celebrate the holiday at one of our many community events that are going on uh all over that weekend.

And I will say in this past weekend we had a huge number of folks in our downtown area to participate in the uh in the pride uh weekend events that were happening.

And uh if you didn't get a chance to come downtown, I think they estimated uh 70,000 folks in the uh downtown area over that uh period.

Just a tremendous crowd.

One of the things that I was asked to to speak a little bit on tonight is uh uh we're later on in the agenda you're gonna have some talk about uh things for teens and uh uh the youth protection act or ordinance that's in place.

But one of the things we've been talking about is opportunities that the city has been providing for teens in the community.

So I just want to give you just a a little bit of a continued rundown of that uh or update on that and for you and the community in particular, because all these have been shared with you as council in the in the past.

So we know that council is committed to providing opportunities for our uh all folks in our communities to have uh recreational opportunities and opportunities to do things.

Uh in the city, we have there has been opportunities for employment prospects with some of our teens.

We've hired quite a few in our parks and recreation program.

There's uh the inaugural summer youth program that's going on now looking at hiring uh additional youth.

We have year-round sports events, after school activities, teen apprentice programs, and volunteer opportunities all within the parks recreation and parks department for our uh teens, preteens, teens, and um, and older uh teens.

Our police and our fire departments are offering year-round explorer programs that provide experiential learning and can lead to career opportunities for folks, and both of those are free programs.

Our human relations department has a youth advisory council that provides civic engagement opportunities on a year-round basis.

Our economic development department has a positive path, which is a five-month career exploration and development training program.

And on your consent agenda tonight, uh, there's uh a new partnership with the boys and girls clubs that will provide a home base of operations for team program at the many Lee Davis Harris Community Center.

In addition to you also authorize us to move forward with looking at the development of a new skate park in the downtown area at the last set of committee meetings.

In addition, you provided funding to a whole variety of nonprofits in the community to do work in this in this area and support programs and services for youth uh of all ages.

Uh over a million dollars went to the Salvation Army for renovation of a teen center that's up and operational today.

You also provided uh ongoing or one-time funding of more than a million dollars for youth programs, such as the REITs Center, which is at the former Winston Salt Lake YMCY MCA, and the Youth STEM Education Program for after school and summer programming uh with a variety of community partners.

And there's also funding that's going to some specific at-risk young adults who are particularly some that are uh navigating re-entry after incarceration and some other events that are out there.

So I just wanted to to make sure the community was well informed of all of the various ways that council, and that's just a an example of some of the things that council has approved to move forward with youth programming in our community.

Um speaking of things that are on the agenda, I also asked uh Scott Tesh to come up for just a moment to give you just a quick update on uh a change that was made since committee to um an item that's um on a budget amendment for this current year budget.

Um turn over to Scott.

Good evening, Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem members of the city council.

City manager has been telling you about a lot of very fun and interesting things going on in the city.

I unfortunately have two very technical things that we have asked to add to the budget amendment for year end.

Uh one of them is related to GASB accounting standards.

So these are very technical adjustments for the way that we record leases uh and internet uh or um informational technology agreements.

There are no additional funds that are being used to purchase anything new.

This is simply an accounting standard, and we are doing technical budget adjustments for them.

The second piece is there is a transfer from the debt service fund to the Capital Projects Fund.

As the manager has talked about several times over the last two years, we are getting smarter about our use of debt, and in this case, we are going to be cash financing some smaller things, uh, which will save us nearly a half a million dollars over the course of what would have otherwise been uh money that we um borrowed.

So, again, two kind of technical accounting adjustments.

These are everything has already been funded before.

There's there's nothing new in this, it's just very technical in nature.

Any questions from Mr.

Tisch?

Thank you, sir.

And uh I know that was a lot, but we stand ready to take additional questions if you have any.

Any questions from Mr.

Pate?

Everybody's happy.

Thank you very much.

We do have uh two honorariums, and I asked the city clerk to read the first one, please.

Item H1 resolution celebrating the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America.

Whereas the year 2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America, a historic milestone that honors the courage, vision, and sacrifice of those who established our nation.

Whereas the America 250 initiative invites communities across the country to reflect on our shared history, celebrate our achievements, and inspire future generations to uphold the principles of liberty, justice, and democracy.

Whereas Winston Salem, North Carolina proudly joins in commemorating this significant occasion, recognizing the contributions of our citizens to the growth and prosperity of our city, state, and nation.

Whereas the anniversary provides an opportunity to honor the ideals that unite us to engage in civic dialogue and reaffirm our commitment to building a stronger, more inclusive future for all.

Now, therefore, be it resolved that the mayor and the city council of the city of Winston-Salem hereby recognize the year 2026 as the 250th anniversary of the United States of America in Winston-Salem, and encourage all residents to participate in activities and events that celebrate our nation's history and heritage.

Sir motion.

So moved.

Second.

Motion by Mayor Proteum, seconded by Councilmember Taylor.

All those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

No opposed.

That is unanimous.

I will just say that our kind of official celebration here in the city will be on July 4th at the Dash Stadium.

Have a lot of fun there, and there we will be honoring 12 citizens who are a hundred years old or older there that night.

Item H2, please.

Item H2.

Proclamation declaring June 15th, 2026 as a bad in a book day.

Whereas a bad in a book is a community-based nonprofit founded by Annalisa Wall, dedicated to ensuring that no child sleeps on the floor by providing beds, books, and essential resources to the children and families in need.

Whereas since its founding, a bed in a book has delivered over 1,000 beds to children in need, directly impacting the lives of families across eight counties and restoring dignity, stability, and hope within the community.

Whereas the organization has mobilized hundreds of volunteers who generously give their time and resources alongside strong partnerships with local first responders, including fire departments, law enforcement agencies, and several Wake Forest University sports teams, departments, and civic clubs to identify urgent needs and respond with compassion and efficiency.

Whereas a bat in a book recognizes the critical link between safe sleep and a child's physical health, emotional well-being, and academic readiness, ensuring that each bed delivered is not just furniture, but a foundation for a child's growth and future success.

Whereas Annalisa Wall, founder of a bed in a book, has demonstrated exceptional leadership, vision, and compassion in serving vulnerable children while continuing to develop forward-looking initiatives aimed at expanding impact and reaching even more families in need.

Whereas the work of a bed in a book reflects the very best of the Winston Salem community, bringing together individuals, organizations, and public servants in a shared mission to care for its children.

Now, therefore, I, J.

Allen joins, Mayor of the City of Winston Salem, North Carolina, do hereby proclaim Monday, June 15th, 2026, as a Bed in a Book Day in Winston Salem on the celebration of its 1000th bed delivery and recognize and honor the work of Miss Annalisa Wall for her dedication and perseverance in creating this program and making it so successful.

Thank you for what you have done and continue to do for our community.

You got your whole family with her tonight.

We're glad to have them with us as well.

We know that uh tonight there'll be a thousand, at least a thousand young people who will get a good night's sleep.

And if it was during the school year, we know that that next day they'll do much better in school.

So making big big dividends for us.

So thank you for what you're doing.

That's your proclamation if you'd like to add some words.

Thank you.

Mayor and Mayor Pro Tim and members of City Council, thank you for this incredible honor, and thank you for recognizing a bed in a book.

What started as a simple desire to make sure every child had a safe place to sleep and a book to call their own has turned into a community effort that's gone far beyond I would ever imagine.

This recognition belongs to our volunteers, to our donors, to firefighters, Chief Mayo, his entire staff.

They have been just beyond supportive law enforcement, community partners like Mungo Homes.

They have helped us serve and love on every child in this community we've been able to reach.

Every bed delivered tells the children that they matter and this community cares about them.

So thank you again for this recognition.

Thank you to everyone who's been part of this to help us love on the children and serve this community, and thank you for the recognition again.

Thank you, Ms.

Paul.

All right.

Well now get down to business.

Our agenda is comprised of two parts: the consent agenda and the general agenda.

And the consent agenda is made up of items that have been previously approved by committee of the city council or are being submitted and established with established city procedure.

There will be no discussion of the items on this agenda unless the councilmember so requests at which time an item will be removed from the consent agenda and considered individually.

Items not removed will be enacted with one motion.

Councilmembers, are there any items you wish to pull from the agenda?

I believe Councilmember Hall, you had uh one or two.

C three.

C three got you.

Councilmember Hall.

Yes.

Um Mayor, I would like to pull um item C1, item C 12, item C 15, and item C 16.

Okay.

Make sure I got those one, uh three, twelve, fifteen, and sixteen.

Correct.

Is there a motion on the balance?

Move for approval of a consent agenda.

Second.

Second.

This will be a voice vote.

All those in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

One opposed, that's approved.

Okay, item C1, please.

Item C1 ordinance.

I mean, the in chapter Chapter 46 of the City Code relating to noise, phase two of noise regulations.

First reading.

General government committee recommends approval.

Uh Councilmember Hall.

Yes, thank you, Mayor, and thank you for the reading of C1.

Um, trouble here.

ACM route.

Can you hear me?

A little closer.

Okay.

ACM Rao might be um best suited to answer this question.

It does um come from the presentation on the noise ordinance in particular the last slide of the presentation.

Um, the last slide that has um wording relates to other issues, and I would like for ACM Rao to be able to um address some of those other issues that are still being considered between the manager's office and the police department, particularly around uh crowd noise that will still be looked at um in the coming weeks.

Mr.

Rao, would you please comment?

Good evening, Mayor Joins, Mayor Pro Tempori Adams, members of council.

Um I would I would like to recognize uh Ken Millett and our economic development um office uh the the slide here at the end uh noted that we feel like that we've got existing uh ordinances that we can enforce to address some of the concerns about crowd noise, and uh the economic development office is responsible for our sidewalk cafe permitting process, and Mr.

Millet has been working with the police department on uh how we can uh you know better enforce the uh or utilize I guess really I should say the sidewalk cafe permitting process to uh encourage established to be better neighbors.

So if you don't mind, I'd like to just recognize him to provide an update on his efforts.

Mr.

Miller.

Yeah, good evening, Mayor, Mayor Pro Tim, uh, members of council.

Um the Office of Economic Development does issue the sidewalk cafe permit.

Uh what we've heard from a lot of residents downtown this year is noise that's emanating from those sidewalk cafes.

The ordinance governing it deals with live music and amplified sound, but just regular crowd noise is not addressed in it.

What we can address currently are the hours of operation.

That uh Sunday through Wednesday, sidewalk cafes can operate till 1 a.m.

On Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and state holidays, it can operate till 2 a.m.

So uh when those permits are issued, we do share all the relevant ordinance information to the permit holders of sidewalk cafes.

I've talked with both the city attorney's office and the police department, um, as well as uh another department that I'll reference in a moment uh about formalizing a process of reminding folks what the rules, regulations, and ordinance calls for.

So we will work with the police department to distribute the status of that establishment's cafe.

Um the permit status of it.

Remind them again of the ordinances, and as we look to enforce it, um, ensure that there is time given to come into compliance.

Uh but it is certainly not what we want, but ultimately what could result from someone continuing to not be in compliance would be removal of the sidewalk cafe furniture.

Um so this is a process that is beginning shortly.

Uh happy to answer any questions.

Any questions to Mr.

Millett?

Uh Councilman Clark.

Is there a city ordinance related to how late you can serve alcohol?

I do not know.

That is way past my bedtime, whatever whatever time that is.

Um but the sidewalk cafes cannot be used after 1 a.m.

Uh that also that doesn't just mean it can't be served after 1 a.m.

or 2 a.m.

It's that if even if it was previously purchased inside, it can't be taken outdoors.

But I I do not know the the latest time that alcohol can be solved.

It's handled by state statute and ALE and local governments can't usurp that, but it's two o'clock.

Two o'clock is the latest uh uh in an established conservatory uh alcoholic drink.

Okay, thank you.

And that's state statute.

Thank you.

Any other questions?

Mr.

Miller, uh councilmember joiner.

Thank you, Mayor.

Is there not uh just the ordinance on the books about disturbing the peaks that doesn't deal with like if if if at my home, if uh some of my next term neighbor was having a loud party that wasn't amplified music, it was just a whole lot of loud people.

Is there no ordinance on the books for that?

Uh I cannot speak to that, Councilmember Joyner.

I would certainly defer to the police department uh on that.

I will say that as part of this phase one, phase two, and potential phase three of addressing noise uh in the city staff from multiple departments have looked at options that can be used for the enforcement of loud noise.

Um I forgot the phrase that you just used.

Um so I'm going to assume that if that what tools are available uh to address that are being used, but I do not know the specific answer to your so I'll ask the question of this.

Is it possible to if that does exist?

Is it possible to add this that type of verbiage into the sidewalk permit?

We could certainly look at that.

I think what where what we are going to end up with is revise that staff will be recommending some language that amends the sidewalk cafe ordinance that could duplicate if it exists, reinforce if it exists, or um just creates an enforcement mechanism um for those issues.

Uh city attorney.

Um thank you.

Um Mayor Jones, just Councilmember Journey to address your question.

We do have an ordinance on the books that re um relates to disturbing of the peace.

However, the ordinance that is um specific to noise, is a stronger ordinance, and it would probably best suit it to be addressed there.

Okay, any other questions?

All right.

Um you'll make a motion.

Uh yeah, I just have one comment.

I don't have a question that ended out.

It's not very um, Mr.

Millet, Director Millet, but I appreciate that.

And that's just to make sure, and I think ACM Rao may have spoken to this, to make sure that um we're getting this information as a city out to you know, folks who have businesses that do amplify sound as well as event promoters and um folks that often may have amplified sound in the city to give our best effort to make sure that we advertise that.

And with that, I move to um approve item C one.

Second.

Motion uh Councilman Hall, second by Councilman Scipio discussion.

No, this will be a voice vote.

All those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no?

That's unanimous.

And Councilmember Hall votes uh in favor of that as well.

Okay, um, item G, uh, excuse me, C3.

Item Item C three resolution supporting a partnership with the poison girls clubs of the Greater Triad Incorporated.

General Government Committee recommends approval.

Mayor Pro Tim.

Yes, thank you, Mayor.

Uh, in light of everyone of her, some of the things that the city has invested in uh for youth activities, I wanted either Mr.

Rao or Mr.

Royson to at least come up and give a synopsis of what this this relationship or collaboration is with the boys and girls club or the triad.

A lot of you and most of us remember uh either your relatives, nieces, somebody belonged to the boys and girls club.

And they marched in the band and there were the T net fit the Y and all of this stuff.

But uh I wanted to know I in the launch of this, is this the initial prototype launched to grow the program?

And I think the public needs to know that we are talking about growing this throughout our recreation system.

Either or Mr.

Robin, Mayor Pro Tempore Adams.

So the city staff started discussions with the Boys and Girls Club of the Greater Triad back in the fall and uh and invited them to tour a couple of our recreation facilities, and they were particularly interested in starting uh a program at the mainly Davis Harris Community Center.

And so the item that was presented to committee last week was a resolution to approve a partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of the Greater Triad for them to be able to utilize the Minley Davis Harris Community Center for uh for after school and summer programming, both for elementary uh age students and uh teens.

But they're also interested in expanding, and I think that part of their vision for Weston Salem is to continue to expand their programming throughout the community.

So they're still very interested in having discussions with us about the Martin Luther King Jr.

Community Center.

Uh so the investments that we've made recently into that center with the uh the uh music studio and an enhanced computer lab, I think particularly uh uh is interesting to them.

They're also working with Aspire on possibly developing a center in the Piedmont Circle community.

So they are they are definitely looking to uh to establish themselves here in Winston Salem.

They the model that they have in high point, they have what they call a hub and spoke type uh model where they have a uh main facility, which in this case uh is the former ranking, I believe United Methodist Church that's now their Congden Center, and then they have satellite locations throughout the city, and so I think that they're certainly looking to develop something like that here in Winston Salem.

They haven't really identified what that hub location would be, but they definitely see a lot of promise in establishing themselves at the mainly Davis Harris Community Center.

Thank you, Mr.

Ryle.

I really believe one of the issues that we have as a city is because the world has changed when it comes to communicating information.

Everybody was used to either picking up the chronicle or the journal and center and other weekly papers.

And that's all gone away, basically.

It's basically digital.

But we have yet to be able to get our folks to understand or to see what the city has invested in and what we invest in, and whether that's the boys and girls club, whether that's the reach center at the lake Y, whether that's the Crosby Scholars, whether that's Action for Equity, whether that's the Freedom School, whether that's daycare.

You know, maybe we need to take a billboard out or some billboards, and maybe we need to go and get two page pages of the journal or whatever is out there, because people continue to believe that their tax dollars are not being spent to invest in our community's next future.

And I don't know how we're gonna fix that.

You know, maybe this is where we have as I tell you, those conversations, because it amazes me again.

You know, you got some people with boots on the ground that's doing the real work, and nobody really knows about them.

And I know I wish we had money to give everybody, but we don't.

So going forward, as we get through this budget cycle, uh, Mr.

Pate, I think we need to look at how do we educate our citizens so that they can reel off uh the programs that we have at the recreation centers, this new collaboration with the boys and girls club and other agencies and organizations and churches and nonprofits because they're out there by the hundreds, if not thousands.

But, you know, maybe they don't do a thousand youth, maybe they do 20, maybe they be 30.

But the point is they're reaching them and they're trying to help them to formulate uh the opportunities that are out there for their well-being and and quality of life.

So again, I'm challenging our staff, city manager, and this council, we have got to figure out a way with information.

If there is an organization that is is is catering to 25 kids, we need to have that somewhere that people can look at, see what the programmatic thrust is, so people can see what people are doing, because a lot of the people that's doing the work are regular everyday people that care about our city and they care about our youth and the next.

That's all I had.

I moved for approval of this uh consent agenda item three.

Second, second, but Councilmore Clark, any discussion?

All those favoring the motion, please indicate the saying aye.

All right, anyone opposed, no, that's unanimous.

Thank you.

Item C 12.

Item C 12 resolution authorizing the advancement of betterments for the third, fourth, fifth street breach replacement project.

Public works committee recommends approval.

Councilmember Hall.

Yes, thank you.

Um Mayor uh joins this in particular.

Um it goes back to I think a vote that we may have taken in December.

Um, and this was about the um betterments that were going to be a part of the third, fourth, and fifth street bridges.

One thing that I mentioned was um to make sure that we honored the um life and the legacy of um former state legislator Erlen Parman.

Um we mentioned that she originally had um a role that was placed in her um honor post-death that was off of 16th street, and then for more visibility, it was moved on 5th street.

I think this does propose where um that would be eliminated, and we talked about um and I saw Director Fansler come up to the front, but we did talk about ways that we could um try to think about um being able to keep that legacy.

If there is a way that we could do that, I wanted to make sure that I put that back on record with these betterments.

Ms.

Fansler, you want to comment on that.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor, and good evening again, Mayor Pro Tem, City Council.

Uh uh Councilmember Hall, uh what I'll say is you know, uh, with this item approval would authorize uh our department to pursue uh with creative corridors and NCDOT a suite of betterments, which could include some way to to honor that legacy of Ms.

Parman.

So I I think there are there are options out there.

I will say that closing that street is paramount to the success of this project because of the grade has to change on that street.

So physically the geometry just doesn't work for it to remain.

But I think it's an opportunity for us to get creative on how we recommend honoring that moving forward with some other option, which we could present once we know what those betterment packages could look like.

So I would ask for the opportunity to explore that with NC DOT, and then from there we will be we would certainly want to come back and explain what we would recommend for consideration at this board.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you, Director Fanzer.

Thank you, Mayor Jones.

And with that, I will move to approve item C12.

Second.

Motion second.

Oh, did you have a comment?

Okay, Councilmember joiner.

Second.

Uh oh, I thought you said okay.

All right, do we have a motion second?

All those in favor of the motion, please indicate with saying aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no?

That's unanimous.

Thank you.

Item C15.

Item C 15 resolution, what in the contract for security and company police services, allied universal security services in the amount of three million two hundred thirty-six thousand four hundred seventy-five dollars and fifty cents.

Finance committee recommends approval.

Thank you, Mayor Joins.

Darren, thank you for coming up.

I wanted to say that I appreciated the information that was in the packet for review.

Um, I think that you and staff did a really good job of being able to provide us with information of how you do your scoring process as we're looking at procurement opportunities and how we are giving consideration to vendors.

I wanted to make sure that I placed on the record my concern with um how we are using our evaluation criteria to be able to denote who are considered local vendors.

I think we do a really good job in being able to specify who is a historically under you to underutilized business, uh a hub vendor um, or whether or not they fall within the MWBE category, but it did not seem as if we gave um any sort of um preference or even any sort of um evaluation criteria for who was local, and I wanted to make sure that I called that out tonight as something that we can continue to explore in the coming um in the coming months of how we are evaluating um how we are giving out opportunities and awarding opportunities to various vendors um that apply.

Um the same thing um is found when we're when we'll be talking about another item, but I wanted to make sure that I did put that on record uh and see if you had um anything about that.

But that was my major concern that I wanted to point out tonight, Darren.

Sure.

Yeah, thank you, Mayor, Mayor Tem uh, and members of council.

Um Councilmember Hall.

Um the location of the business criteria was suspended back in 2023.

So if your question pertains to why that was not a criteria, we have not been using that for about three years now as far as business being located in the city limits.

Um MWBE um could be a component in here, but we we are not allowing our uh vendor to subcontract this.

This the company who provides security services needs to manage this, and they'll be hiring all of the staff to man this contract.

So does that answer your question?

Some yeah, well that that answers my question.

I appreciate the information that you did give, but I I did want to place that on record, and I I appreciate that, Darren.

Okay.

Okay.

Are you ready for a motion, Councilmember Hall?

Yes, and with that, uh Mayor joins.

I will um move to approve item C 15.

Thank you.

Sir Second.

Second.

Second, Councilmember Joiner, any discussion.

All those in favor of the motion, please indicate with saying aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no.

That's unanimous.

Thank you.

And then finally, item C 16.

Item C 16 resolution and what an elice agreement for Kimberley Park Hydroponics Greenhouse Facility to Anders Family Farms.

Finance Committee recommends approval.

Council Mr Hall.

Thank you, Mayor Joins.

I will say that with item C16, I was happy to be able to see that we did have interest in um new um in new operators for the hydroponics facility.

Just wanted to make sure that I point out for the record um that the um proposed vendor for this with the Anderson Anders family, um, that they did mention being able to give out some of their post-harvest roots and some of their vegetation scraps to be donated to some of the local farmers um to use for supporting things like chicken and pasture base um operations.

Want to make sure that they do remember that there are um at least five community gardens in that area, and then even some residents in that particular community that do have um chickens that are within the city's um uh ordinance requirements and meet setback requirements, and to make sure that they are also doing their outreach to the multiple communities that are in that area that could utilize um those vegetative um vegetation scraps that they have in the post-harvest routes.

Um, and with that, I will um move to approve and putting that on record.

Item C16.

Thank you.

Motion for Council Member Hall is there a second.

Second, second, but council member Clark.

Any discussion?

Not all is a favor.

The motion please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no.

That is unanimous.

Thank you very much.

We'll now go to the uh general agenda, uh, which is uh includes a number of items.

There's an item, a temporary juvenile protection ordinance, zoning petitions, or items related to the downtown amphitheater, land lease, or items related to contracts, as well as funding allocate allocations for nonprofit organizations, as well as the consideration of the July 2026 uh city council meeting.

Uh, when the public hearings are called, presidents in the council chamber will be given opportunity to speak.

Uh if there's opposition to a particular item, the proponents and opponents will each be given 15 minutes for presentation and three minutes for rebuttal.

If no one wishes to speak, I'll close the public hearing and the city council will consider the item.

Um item G1, which is not a public hearing, I've had uh a number of council members who uh express an interest in allowing the public to have a brief uh period of comment on this one, which we will we will do.

Um but before we get started, I'd like to ask Chief Penn if you would to give us a presentation on what's this ordinance is really looking like there.

Chief Pennsylvania Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem, members of the council for item G1.

My staff liaison, Lieutenant Morissette will present as he's done the research, but I will be standing by for any questions on the matter.

Thank you, Chief.

Lieutenant good evening, Mr.

Mayor, Madam Mayor Pro Temp, members of city council.

I'm Lieutenant Joel Moore said, and I appreciate this opportunity to present this proposed youth protection uh safety ordinance for your consideration.

Before discussing the details of this proposed ordinance, I'd like to briefly highlight several significant incidents involving juveniles that occurred in 2025 and 2026.

These incidents included acts of violence, large unsupervised gatherings, disorderly conduct, and situations in which VIP juveniles were either victims of crime or participants in criminal activity that occurred during the late night hours.

While these incidents do not represent a vast majority of the behavior of our youth, they do illustrate a concerning a concerning trend that has impacted public safety, strained law enforcement resources, and place young people at an increased risk of victimization and harm.

The purpose of sharing these examples is not to single out any individual or group, but rather to provide context for why the Winston Salem Police Department believes that a youth protection ordinance should be considered as one component of a broader strategy to protect our youth, support parents and guardians, and enhance safety throughout our city.

March 14 of 2025 at 3 55 a.m.

Two unsupervised juveniles were arrested following multiple vehicle break-ins.

For the month of May of 2025, over a span of several weeks, unsupervised juveniles were involved in repeated incidents during the reported uh during the proposed restricted hours, including fights, throwing rocks in individuals at individuals, at property, at motorists, as well as scooter-related street takeovers involving careless and reckless driving.

July 4th of 2025 at 1018 p.m., a group of unsupervised juveniles were involved in a fight that escalated when one juvenile shot another.

The suspect who was arrested was 16 years old.

March 14th of 2025.

I'm sorry.

Next slide, please.

Thank you.

February 7th of 2026 at 1.48 a.m.

Two unsupervised juveniles were involved in a vehicle crash in which one impaired juvenile driver caused the death of a juvenile passenger.

April 2nd of 2026 at 10 43 p.m.

Three unsupervised juveniles attempted to rob a pedestrian who was walking down the street.

That victim was shot as during that encounter.

And for the past several months, we've responded to two unsupervised teen takeover events involving hundreds of youth, resulting in multiple arrests.

These gatherings typically begin in the public, at public parks, and then they eventually make their way downtown.

Next slide, please.

We reviewed some stats.

We reviewed some stats of police contacts involving juveniles as either victims or offenders, excluding incidents related to domestic violence, uh statutory rape, incest, family family offenses, and runaways.

We learned that in 2026, juveniles were identified as the offender in 61% of the incidents that occurred between the hours of 6 a.m.

and 2 p.m.

And 60% of the incidents that occurred between 2 p.m.

and 10 p.m.

However, during the overnight hours of 10 p.m.

to 6 a.m.

the percentage increased significantly to 73%.

While the juvenile contacts occurred throughout the day, the data shows that juveniles that are sub juveniles are substantially more likely to be identified as offenders during the late night hours.

Next slide, please.

Next slide.

One more.

Okay.

Forward.

Yeah, we've gone back too far.

Back back up one more.

One more.

One more.

That's it.

The purpose of this ordinance is to protect juveniles from victimization and exposure to criminal activity, reinforce and support parental guidance and responsibility, promote public safety and security for both juveniles and adults, and to improve uh safety citywide.

Next slide, please.

Back up one more.

That one.

The proposed restricted hours applies to juveniles under the age of 18.

Those hours are 10 p.m.

and to 6 a.m.

And it applies seven days a week.

The ordinance would be applied citywide, and it would be effective from the date that it is approved by council until 6 a.m.

October 12th of 2026.

To be in violation of this ordinance, the juvenile would have to be unsupervised and in a public place during the restricted hours.

Any parent or guardian who knowingly allows that juvenile to be out during those hours would be in violation.

And a business owner who knowingly allows juveniles to remain on their premises could be in violation.

And any adult who aids an adult to juvenile would be in violation.

Penalties, juveniles may be adjudicated delinquent.

Adults who are charged underneath this ordinance may face misdemeanor or a fine.

Fine could be up to 500.

And a mandatory court appearance.

Our desired outcome is compliance.

There are exceptions.

Juveniles who are accompanied by a parent or guardian by an adult age 21 or older who is authorized to accompany that juvenile during that designated time and purpose.

In a motor vehicle with parental consent while engaged in interstate travel and that originates or terminates within our city.

Next slide, please.

Married or emancipated, a member of the armed forces, a person who's classified by age as a juvenile, but can show ID that he or she is a college student.

And uh authorized a juvenile who has a permit from the chief of police that authorizes them being out.

Next slide, please.

In addition to enforcement efforts, the Windsdale Police Department intends on establishing a dedicated team of sworn personnel and potentially non-sworn staff to support the implementation of the youth protection ordinance.

The primary mission of that team will not be enforcement alone, but also intervention, engagement, and prevention.

Next slide, please.

And here are some other cities and municipalities in our state that already have curfews in place.

Charlotte, Fayetteville, Nightdale, Rocky Mount, Eddington, Fort Oaks, Landis, and Pineville.

Next slide, please.

We modeled our proposed ordinance to Charlotte next to Charlotte's because of their success.

Through 2024 to 2025, Charlotte saw 15% reduction in juvenile crime.

And already so far this year, they already see they're reporting a 33% uh reduction in juvenile crime.

Now, while Charlotte's model serves as a strong blueprint, this proposal is tailored specifically for Winston Salem's needs and priorities.

Next slide, please.

I want to emphasize that the Winston Police Department did not arrive at this recommendation lightly.

Over the past several years, we have implemented and explored numerous strategies aimed at addressing juvenile crime, victimization, and late-night youth gatherings.

We've conducted multiple news conferences requesting sport support from parents, community members, and organizations.

We've met with multi-denominational clergy leaders to discuss strategies to reduct to reduce youth violence and delinquency.

We've met with organizations like Hate Out of Winston Salem to address youth violence and delinquency.

We've participated in live TV and radio interviews with local media to address the community's uh questions and concerns.

We partner with our foundation and the arts council to expand programming, including sports, academics, and arts.

We hosted a youth citizen police academy for high school students in our community.

And we're active participants in the gangsteering committee, the youth crime summit, and the STARS initiative.

We've also partnered with Forsyth County Sheriff's Office to supplement police needs as needed.

In closing, this ordinance is not about criminalizing our youth.

It's about protecting them.

This proposed youth protection safety ordinance is one component of a broader strategy aimed at reducing juvenile victimization, preventing delinquent behavior, connecting families with need with needed resources, and improving public safety in our city.

Thank you.

That concludes my presentation.

I'll be happy to take any questions you might have.

Okay, any questions of the Lieutenant?

Councilman Andrea Bullin.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

I have a few questions.

Why what is special about October 12th?

That's the day after the fair ends.

And also council will be meeting later that night.

So we would like to potentially maybe present before council, maybe whatever preliminary numbers or findings that we might have.

Okay, thank you.

Yes, sir.

Um two more questions.

Um if I have a 17-year-old, if he is traveling by car after 10 o'clock, does he need a note from me?

Or if you pull him over and you realize he's underage, do you just take his word for it?

Uh officers are going to use the same investigative skills that they that they implement when they encounter juveniles.

Um they're gonna it's probably gonna be depending on the circumstances.

That officer does have uh you know discretion.

If if if that if your 17-year-old is on his way home and he gets stopped, chances are he's just gonna get a warning and told to go home.

Okay, and my final question uh right to assembly, is that am I to assume that is some like a pre like a pre-approved right assembly, or if a group of of teams want to let's say protest this curfew, uh they could be out front of City Hall without a uh a permit, or do they need a permit to uh have their right to assemble?

No, they they would they would not need a permit.

So again, um let's say that a group of teenagers are together and you come upon them and they say, What are you doing?

and they say we're assembling, we're we're fulfilling our right to assemble.

That officer is gonna investigate the circumstances, gonna investigate the you know the information provided by those juveniles and and address the matter accordingly.

Thank you.

Consumer Jorner.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um, you talked about having a program similar to Jade or J Post.

Yes, ma'am that uh Charlotte has.

Would those be new officers or new employees to the department, or are we have some folks that have that type of training that we would bring them together as that team?

Yes, ma'am.

We we already have personnel with some of that training.

Uh, surely the executive staff, they're gonna get together and and make the decision and staff those units.

Uh but we're right now I think we're looking at repurposing a unit that already exists, adding on, adding staffing and and letting them go to work.

Thank you.

Yes, ma'am.

Thank you.

Any other questions?

Chief, you want to add uh excuse me.

Yes, we're we're gonna pull from existing uh folks we have on staff, and and remember, we're dealing with the youth all the time.

Um we're dealing with them when they're when we're engaged with them for more serious crimes.

This this would not be a serious crime.

So, yes, we we would ask questions of them, we would do the research, we would call you, we would have the conversation.

We are dealing with this anyway.

Why we're here today is because we are having our youth run in the streets at all times of the night, and there is nothing in place right now.

If we can stop youth early on, maybe we prevent some of those very crimes that was on the earlier slide.

Much rather talk to them about an ordinance than deal with them after they've been a victim or an offender of some act.

That's what we're trying to do.

And we've asked for help.

We pled with hell.

Every single one of these cameras back here that you see, we've stood before asking for help from families, parents, community.

And at the end of the night, one o'clock in the morning, it's just us and them.

And we're looking for some help so that we can get them home without them being offended or become an offender for the more serious crimes.

Counselor Burke had a question, I think.

Thank you, Mayor.

I have several questions.

So the first question um your slide.

You said that uh prior outreach meetings took place with educators, uh, parents, uh, members of clergy, community members, and members from different organizations.

What strategies or solutions were suggested during those meetings to address these issues?

Some of the strategies are let's listen to the youth, let's hear what they have to say.

Um we did that.

We we learned about jobs, they wanted jobs.

We work with the mayor on that so that we can we can get them jobs.

Um we work with other places to determine if they they were if anyone was willing to find a venue for youth to be youthful in and and hang out with one another.

So we we've tried we've tried that as well.

So there's we've asked for folks to take the lead in this.

So it's not the police department taking the lead on this.

And this is where we still are today.

Okay.

Next question.

Um, when we heard the presentation last week, and we saw the Charlotte model that included the Jade or Jade Post Counselors uh or uh coaches to work with at-risk youth and their parents.

Who do you all know who the at-risk youth are in our city?

So I don't I don't think it's set at risk.

What we would be dealing with with the you with the youth who are violating that ordinance, um, going back, not just taking them home, but having a conversation and making sure the family has the resources, understand what's going on.

Again, as was stated in the asterisk, uh the goal is compliance.

Um I said in a press conference, we don't want to deal with our youth and enforcement action.

We we do not want that.

So if we can get compliance, if we can get parents to help, or if the parents aren't able someone else to step in, that's what we're looking for.

Thank you.

Uh, two more questions.

Um if um youth or individuals who look youthful but are not are found to be out after uh curfew, what do they need to show?

For example, you said uh we may have a college student and uh they just need to show that they are a college student.

What if they left the dorm or left campus without their ID?

How will we handle that?

Councilman Burke, we deal with that sort of thing all the time.

We we have resources at campus who could help us with that.

We would conduct an investigation.

Um we we just wouldn't grab someone without doing due diligence.

Every opportunity will be afforded to them to show us that they are that student.

Okay.

There are people who uh may be uh older but look younger, and I just want to make sure I'm asking the questions on their behalf as well.

And for our uh youth who are actually underage, do they need to show any kind of ID?

Do they need to uh go through the city day to day uh with any kind of identification that would show or prove their age?

Most youth don't have that, and we're still able to work through it like we do on a day-to-day basis and figure out who they are, uh, who's who's their parent, where they belong, and then we do a great job of getting them back to the their parent or guardian with this.

We do this every single day.

Okay, and my last question is about uh violators of the proposed ordinance.

If a uh if someone is in violation, youth or parent, tell me again how that will be handled.

Uh I guess I want to make sure that this will not be a criminal offense.

It will be a non-criminal offense.

Well, it'd be a violation of the ordinance, and we would work to get that youth to their parent and have the conversation about the violation of that ordinance.

If that is the only violation, um what we may find out in this is that there might be another charge that that may be the charge that get them in trouble.

This violation of this ordinance will not follow a youth until adulthood.

But some of those other crimes that we had on the slide will.

So we have an opportunity, they'll be going home.

If it's no other charge available, they'll be going home to their parents.

Thank you.

Thank you, Chief and Lieutenant.

All right.

Thank you, folks.

As I mentioned earlier, we're going to allow uh 16 minutes for comments.

There are eight people signed up, so it'll be two minutes each.

If you would uh keep their time good and tight there.

So first one is uh Phoenix Sampson Young.

And if you would state your name for the record, please.

Good evening, Mayor, Mayor Pro Tim, and the City Council members.

My name is Phoenix Samson Young.

I am a senior at RJ Reynolds High School, a student leader, and an involved member in my community.

I'm here tonight because the proposed youth curfew is deeply concerning.

Throughout these discussions, I have heard a lot about restrictions, but very little about solutions.

If the goal is to address youth safety and community concerns, then young people should be included in the conversation.

I have not been aware of any of the alleged meetings with the youth.

We are not the subject of these policies.

We are members of this city, and we will have the opportunity to vote very soon.

I'm aware that the city has a budget which comes with making difficult decisions.

However, I would like to see meaningful investments in youth programs, activities, mentorship opportunities, and safe community spaces included in those priorities.

I have several questions for our city council.

First question is how can you vote for a curfew without first developing solutions and involve involving young people in the planning process?

Secondly, youth recreational activities are allegedly being held, but where should we find this information?

What is a better way to promote these youth activities that are claimed to be occurring?

Why is a curfew being presented as the primary response for Winston Salem's youth?

We are residents of the city, and many of us will soon be voters.

We pay attention to how decisions affecting us are made, and we will remember whether our voices were included in these situations.

I ask because projects such as the approved amphitheater continue to receive attention and funding discussions while many neighborhoods throughout Winston Salem have experienced disinvestment for decades.

What investments are being made in the communities where young people live, learn, and spend their time.

If the concern is youth behavior, then what resources are being provided to address the root causes rather than simply restricting movement.

We deserve a seat at the table when decisions directly impact our life.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you very much.

Well said.

Good evening.

My name is Lucia Brisbane, known throughout the community as the Community SIS.

As a youth advocator, educator, and organizer, I work directly with youth people and families across Western Salem.

I see their challenges, their potential, and the gaps in support that too often leave them behind.

Because of that experience, I find myself asking an important question.

Are we addressing the problem or simply responding to the symptoms?

A youth curfew may sound like action, it may provide a temporary sense of control, but if we are being honest, it does not address why many of our young children are struggling in the first place.

Black and brown children do not need more restrictions, they need support.

They need access to safe spaces, mental health resources, quality programs, employment opportunities, strong schools, and adults, trusted adults willing to invest in their future.

They need communities that see them as assets, not liabilities, and a curfew may impact a small part of the issue, but it does not solve poverty, disinvestment, housing instability, educational inequities, and the lack of opportunities many young people face every day.

History has shown us that enforcement alone does not build stronger communities.

If it did, cities that have heavy police black and brown youth for decades would have already solved these challenges.

Communities that invest in young people see better outcomes because they address root causes, not just visible symptoms.

And this is where all of us have a responsibility.

So before we celebrate curfews as progress, let us ask ourselves a harder question.

I'm Olivia Doyle with Hate Out of Winston.

And first I'd like to ask whose decision it was to put our decriminalization proposal on the same agenda as a teen curfew last week, uh, seemingly the last minute when we know that the enforcement of both cannabis arrests and teen crackdowns are racialized.

So if somebody wants to own that decision, that would be great.

Um about this curfew, I was actually out there on Wednesday night.

Um and by 11 p.m., by the time I got there, the majority of the kids that I interact were mulling around in front of insomnia cookies.

And amongst the mulling and the cookie eating, I had one interaction with the cop who pulled up on the kids with lights and sirens, and he got out of his car, and I yelled at him, you don't have to run out of these uh after these kids.

They're scared because y'all flash your lights and sirens, but they weren't doing anything before y'all came through and spooked them.

And the cap the cop yelled back at me, they're scared because I'm getting them for drinking in public.

I don't need your help.

I feel like that kind of summarizes what's happening.

A curfew is being proposed to inspire compliance through fear of punishment, and the resources going to enforce it are not being used to implement community interventions that are not aligned with the tough on crime approach.

Your agenda today in that presentation said that the WSPD met with hate out of Winston, which is true.

We met on April 7th because we requested a meeting with school staff, ourselves, and some WSPD staff to discuss a quote, reenvisioned youth strategy.

That is what we put in our request.

Your agenda does not include the outcomes of that meeting.

Commitments from all participants to arrange a quote community design session where local teens and service providers can co-create non-police public safety infrastructure, end quote.

If you control through control F through the minutes for that meeting, which I would be happy to send you, to which the participants offered no corrections when I sent it out to everybody at the end, the word curfew is never mentioned as part of that community design session approach.

During that meeting, Dr.

Peoples joiner summarized conversations that happened with teens, I believe, during the youth violence crime summit, and most of them said they wanted opportunities to play video games with friends, to make money, to be safe in the evenings without being bothered, to access mental health care.

Since that meeting, hate out uh our teen task force has started surveying their friends to ask what they need the city to invest in, and they have had very similar answers.

Chief Penn reiterated that we cannot arrest our way out of this.

Yet the city wants a teen curfew for the WSPD to enforce.

So which is it?

Which is it?

Pick one.

Thank you, Ms.

Doyle.

Valerie Glass.

Thank you, uh Mayor and City Council members.

Uh, my name is Valerie Glass.

I'm the executive director of Triad Restorative Justice.

We run programs for youth that are often referred to us from um juvenile court counselors and school resource officers as well as schools and families.

And the kids that are referred to us, um, when we see them, they are more than the reason that they were referred to us.

We see a lot of potential, we see a lot of kids with leadership capabilities, um, a lot of talent and a lot of um promise that they can bring to a wonderful Winston Salem in the future.

Um, one of the things that we have learned from working with these youth is that they really respond to positive relationships and that they are looking for positive things to do.

The author we also know research has shown that further justice involvement um will only increase recidivism.

The many studies have shown that the deeper into the court system you get, the higher the recidivism rate is.

Um at the same time, we have kids that are telling us that they need they want to do positive things, they want to do the right thing, as the people have mentioned before, all the different ideas that these youth have brought in.

And our city has programs.

We've mentioned some of the programs that the city is um providing, and we have a lot of great community programs outside of the city that are providing programs for our youth, but we just don't have enough right now to meet the needs of the youth that they're telling us.

And as the adults in our community, we are responsible for providing for the needs to our youth to help them get what they need to thrive and grow.

And a curfew is just showing them that they are the problem and we are criminalizing them for existing in public.

Um, when we are the adults are the ones who are failing them by providing for their needs.

We a curfew will take resources to enforce.

And instead, we need to be thinking about how we can provide um use those resources to invest in the youth and not criminalize them.

Thank you.

Thank you, Paul Ford.

All right.

Good evening, Mr.

Mayor.

Paul Robson Ford speaking on behalf of the Summer After Dark initiative that is backboned by action for equity.

I feel like this is a two steps forward, one step back moment, as Mayor Pro Tim uh mentioned earlier, and the reports from the city manager indicated, there are a lot of steps forward that this city has taken.

I commended you at the meeting, will commend you in front of this entire city council for asking former Judge Denise Hartsfield to take forward the work from the youth crime violence prevention summit and all of the insight that was received there.

But what we know about this, in terms of this ordinance, is that there are over a dozen different exceptions that are written into that ordinance.

And there are too many loopholes, there is too much ambiguity about how those exceptions will play out.

And what we know from history and what we know from the present is that when it comes to policing, if there is dispropor if there is ambiguities and there are questions and it's left to discretion, there ends up being disproportionate minority contact.

And too many children that look like some of the young people that came up here today end up being the ones that are targeted.

That's a problem.

You heard as well that we can better use these resources in other ways.

And I wonder if any estimate has been done as to how many public dollars will be invested in enforcing this ordinance.

Because we have been advocating for years now to invest the money to keep our recreation centers open late at night so they can serve our young people with activities that will take resources.

We cannot just rely upon volunteers to do all of that.

But we need to invest those dollars in solutions in the cure and not just in treating the symptoms.

So I urge this council to, at the very least, pause, consider everything that has been said tonight.

You have provisions to call special meetings.

I know you want to deal with this before July, but make sure that this thing gets done right so we do not do more harm than good.

Thank you.

Al Jabbar.

My name is Al Jabar.

I'm a community activist, and I spent over 50 years dealing with the youth of this community.

One of the major concerns I had dealing with our youth were not the youth.

It was the parents.

Today we are here discussing, and I stand in support of Chief Penn and this audience.

Why would you have your 12 and 13-year-old child even dropping them off to create hell log in our city?

It is disgusting.

And my daughter decided to meet him at the fairground for the event they have when you graduate.

Make the parents accountable.

Make them accountable.

I was accountable as a parent.

You were accountable as parents.

They should be accountable.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr.

Barr.

Ms.

Shavers.

Good evening, Mayor.

Mayor Pro Tim, members of the council, and city attorney.

My name is Kwame Kia Shavers, and I do a great deal of work in the community under the pink vote, and also under myself.

I am not funded by any local governmental entity, so it gives me free reign to say something when something is not right.

Now, while I do agree with the curfew, I work with the youth, not y'all.

I do agree with the curfew, and not for the children, but for the adults.

Because children only do what parents allow them to do.

But what I'm asking you, and you touched on it earlier, that you guys are not reaching community well at all.

And I'm glad you were brave enough to say that, Mayor Pro Tim, because many members don't know of the programs that the city may offer.

But I will caution you to do this.

Start asking the youth what they want to do and stop sitting around and making plans for them, because that's possibly the reason why you have low retention or low participation at these programs because it's what you have set around and decided what they would like to do.

The first thing I do, and the reason my programs are successful, is because I talk to them and I ask them what it is that I want them to do.

But I will say this the presentation given by the Winston Salem Police Department was pretty crappy.

First of all, the crimes that were committed that they reported, those are real gangster crimes.

And if you think a curfew is gonna stop a real gangster, you better wake up and like today.

Real talk.

That's not going to stop that.

Now you may be able to get some of the riff raft that happens, little petty stuff that happens when they go downtown and do something that have been doing, just small mischief.

But those real robbery type crimes, you're not about to stop that because they still doing it.

And you went on the news and said that you was gonna take their mama to jail if they keep doing it and they still been doing it.

So the proof is already there.

Do your own research and versus looking at what somebody else is doing.

Tailor this curfew to Winston Salem and not Charlotte.

Love Charlotte, but Charlotte ain't us, and we ain't them.

Thank you.

Waldo, you didn't put your last name down.

I'm sorry.

I'm here because I disagree with the curfew.

I don't know your name for the record, please.

Oh, Waldo M.

What's your last name if you can?

MA.

It's whatever.

Um I disagree with the curfew because I don't believe that it's constitutional.

Such as if I was going downtown walking down the sidewalk.

How does uh officer determine that I'm not um 30 years old?

So am I going to be questioned on my age?

Am I going to be held hostage because I don't want to show my ID?

This is the United States, so we should be able to walk down a sidewalk and not papers, please, every time we meet an officer.

Um I don't believe the curfew is gonna solve anything because just as the person's just speaking before me said, these people had charges of selling drugs, having guns, pointing guns, trying to kill kids, and it's like these are people that aren't children, and they weren't children.

The one selling drugs was not a child, so he's not going to be impacted by the curfew, he's gonna continue selling drugs, and when you give them a bond of 2500 when he sold more drugs that night and made more money from selling those drugs, what is that gonna do to keep them in there when it's 2500 bond?

They could call their best friend and say, send me $10.

Oh, that's gonna help me out and get me out of jail, and I'll be back on the street selling more drugs.

So the curfew is not gonna solve anything.

It should be stopped, and no one should vote for it.

What's going to solve something is providing the kid something to do?

That's all.

Thank you.

All right, that's uh time we've set aside for the comments here.

Um, I did have conversation today with two individuals who could not be here, but yes, and I give uh their their statement.

Uh, Mr.

Harrison, who is president of the NAACP, uh enthusiastically supports the uh uh youth uh violence protection or uh personal protection uh ordinance as well as Reverend Brown Dix with the Ministers Association of Winston Salem and vicinity also supports it as well.

So um this did come out of the public safety committee, and I would recognize council member Scipio if you are ready for a motion.

Very good, Mr.

Mayor.

Do I uh can I give comments after the motion?

Yes, after the motion.

Okay.

Um council members, I move for approval of item G1.

Second, but Councilmember Clark.

All right, go ahead, Councilmember.

Yes, uh council members and to our community.

This is about what children, children are doing between 11 p.m.

and 6 a.m.

in the streets of Winston Salem, and that's what this curfew is about.

What are the children doing a 12-year-old on the streets among other young people selling drugs, having guns, whatever.

You can't protect other people's behavior, but you certainly can try to protect your own child's behavior by allowing them not to be in harm's way.

This is not to say they can't do things prior to that time.

4 a.m.

in the morning on the streets is not conducive to good childhood health.

Children need to sleep.

When are they doing that?

Why have they been exposed to a little too early for my thinking to drug use?

They're sexual predators.

You think everything's gonna be fine.

That's our wish all the time.

But you never know who else is out there in the streets.

Um we're not trying to stop the young people from growing up.

But there's going to be a whole lot coming your way.

And to just push it so fast, you may be very disappointed.

As far as I'm concerned, parents must be responsible for their children and where they are at 2 a.m.

in the morning.

We are not to dictate how you raise your child, but the harm that can come to them on our streets, we have to be sensitive to it.

So that's why I'm voting in favor of this.

Um and hopefully, parents, if they if you're gonna be out with your child at four, that's your business, but they're with you.

But them by themselves is just a little too risky for my opinion.

Thank you, Ms.

Mayor.

Thank you, Councillor.

Uh, Councilmember Andre Bowen and then Councilmember Joiner.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um, first of all, thank you for um allowing the public comment during this time.

Um thank you for having that conversation with me last week and and putting this forward.

Um do I think uh minors should be out past a certain time?

No.

Um I am a parent, I have a 17-year-old, uh, I have a 15-year-old.

Um, and I personally, as a parent, require them to be home by a certain time.

Um, but I don't think it's the the government's job to be the parent for everyone.

Um do I think that the police should have every resource of their availability to arrest people who are committing crimes in the act?

Yes.

Do I think that they should be in the community to have and we give them every resource to prevent crimes around this without me, my or my child being outside after a certain time, that shouldn't be a crime.

Um so that's that's my issue.

So I I definitely think we should provide all the resources to the police to to combat crime.

So, for the example of the video we saw last week of the of the thing downtown, arrest those people.

Bless them.

I have no issue with that.

Being out and uh after that is should not be a crime.

If they weren't committing a crime in the act, that's not a crime.

But uh being after hours and that being a crime, I have an issue with that.

Um my final thought is um I have two more thoughts.

Yes, we should try to provide more resources to community centers.

We've just passed the budget, it's a it's a struggle for us.

Let's be real.

Finally, Waldo, I don't usually call out people in the audience, um, but I I'm gonna second everything a waldo said when it comes to civil rights.

Um we are targeting one direct uh age group, one direct citizensry, and if we did this for any other time, we've done this in the past, and we fought against it, and in and just because it's a law to enact a curfew for a certain sect, just because that's a law.

There have been laws in the past that we have said, Oh, it's a law, we can we can pass this direct law focusing on a certain direct group of people, and those were struck down.

So I do not support this.

I will vote against it, and I think it's a it's a against our civil liberties.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor.

It is uh a difficult difficult uh discussion to have and decision to make.

There are unintended consequences on either side of this.

If you do nothing and continue to sit and wait for someone else or blame someone else for not doing enough, then something worse will happen.

If we do something and we step on a toe, we bruise an ego, we have some harsher issues that happen, but we save a life, it's unintended consequences.

I believe that the curfew is a flawed response to community problem.

Yes, kids being rude and rowdy and disruptive is a problem we all need to deal with.

Unintended consequences.

The consequence of this right now, the curfew, it's not downtown.

It's not the center city, but that is what is polarized right now.

So let's be clear that we're talking about the full city, that your neighborhood, my neighborhood, their neighborhood is all impacted by this.

Every large group of children, children.

Did I say that?

Children.

Every large group of children are not downtown creating havoc.

Every large group of children are not creating havoc.

Some of them are chaperoned, are guided and guarded by parents and other responsible adults.

Every child does not have a parent.

And that's a sad but honest circumstance.

But we as a community, not as nine people sitting up here, but the tens and twenties of hundreds of people that email that call us out that say we are not doing the right thing by our citizens.

Are you?

Because we're all in this together.

I have not gotten one email, one phone call, one request in person to say, hey, I've got a program, I just need a place to do it.

I've got people in place.

Can you open up a rec center and let me use it?

Haven't gotten that call.

So unintended consequences are on all of us, not just this council.

But where it really lies, it's on the babies.

Unintended consequences.

It lies on all of us.

So this curfew, I do support.

But I believe it is the start of real conversation.

It is the start of real action.

It's not the end.

This is temporary.

But we have to start somewhere.

We have to do something.

You can blame this one and you can say that one.

You can say we need more of this and more of that, but until you come to the table with your boot and your hand.

Don't come.

That is the unintended consequence.

We are a community.

And we cannot, we cannot pick and choose which battle.

We live in this every day.

And those gentlemen and those women that are in uniform, they should not be your child's parent.

And little people count.

Thank you, Mayor.

We do have a motion on the floor.

So I would uh call for a vote.

All those in favor of the motion to approve this ordinance.

Um counselor Hall.

Mayor Yes, I had a comment.

Right before you go to a vote.

Go ahead.

Okay, thank you.

Um I'll say for tonight, I am in support of a curfew.

I think that there were several um uh concerns that were raised.

I think overall um folks would support having a curfew that was in place as a first step.

Um I would like to um offer to mayor, I mean, Lord have mercy.

I was about to call Mayor Scipio to Councilmember Scipio whether or not she would support a substitute motion for tonight um to extend um until our July 6th meeting for a vote.

We're not gonna have a July 6th meeting, uh council member.

This is it like we don't made it in July.

No.

The July, we currently we have a July 6th uh meeting on the calendar.

There is a G18 motion to amend that but we're we're not on G18 yet.

We do have a July 6th meeting on the books and we we voted when we voted in the calendar that we're currently in to keep that on the books in the event that we did have something that warranted a meeting.

So that that is in place I'm sure of that I would welcome any city staff member you can offer a substitute motion councilmember if you'd like to do that.

You offer a substitute motion councilmember hall I I am.

So I understand your motion is to delay this item to July 6th is that correct correct correct is there a second to the substitute motion.

Second second all right we'll vote on the substitute motion all those in favor of uh delaying this action to July 6th please say aye aye aye oh no no just as this is to delay the item to july 6th so I'm hearing uh councilmember Burke Councilmember Andre Bow and Council Mahall has three in favor all those opposed to that please say aye.

Aye for the motion fails we're back to the original motion uh of that council recipient made all those in favor of the original motion please say aye.

Aye.

Aye raise your hand if you would sign council one two three four five okay and I assume there are three opposed oh you're you're in favor oh you're opposed those opposed or uh three opposed the motion passes five to three thank you very much all right well now I'll go to item G2.

No no no oh I'm sorry uh we do need a second reading on this uh ordinance so I'd recognize council member Sipio for a motion I move that the city council schedule a special meeting for June 22nd at 4 p.m for the purpose of considering items I've got C1 and G1 correct of tonight's agenda for second reading is there a second second all right and might ask the city attorney to explain why we need a second reading thank you so much Mayor um joins good evening council members um with respect to the ordinance the proposed ordinance for youth protection and um I believe the item related to the noise ordinance because both of these items contain fines and penalties um the state statute does require a second reading on those two matters and so the council will have to have a second meeting um and I am in anticipation of not having a July meeting that meeting would need to be um decided on tonight all right so that motion is to uh call a special meeting on uh June 22nd at 4 o'clock p.m to have a second reading on these two items all those in favor of that motion please say aye aye anyone opposed all right that's unanimous thank you thank you council all right now we'll go to item G2 item G2 public hearing and consideration of a zoning petition of 104 first Baptist church w three six eight four from IM18 to IP property is located in the Eastport approximately 0.64 acres planning board recommends approval of petition is there anyone in the council chamber who is opposed to this rezoning I know the proponents are here for any questions I see no opposition so I'll declare the public hearing closed and I recognize Council Mercipio if she's ready for a motion.

Yes thank you um Mr.

Mayor um I move for approval of one the statement of consistency for the approval of this item and two Wirty six eight four second second second my mayor pro tim adams any discussion if not all those in favor of the motion please say aye aye anyone opposed no and that is unanimous thank you very much item G three item G three public hearing and consideration of a zoning petition of housing authority of Winston Salem W3685 from ISQ and RM18 to RM18 property is located in the northeast ward approximately 2.92 acres planning board recommends approval of petition this is a public hearing is there anyone in council chamber who is opposed to this proposed rezoning seeing no one I'll then declare the public hearing closed and recognize councilmember Burke thank you I move for the approval of one the statement of consistency for the approval of this item and two Wirty six eighty five motion second by Mayor Pro Tim Adams any discussion if not all those in favor of the motion please say aye.

Second by Mayor Pro Tim Adams, any discussion?

If not, all those affairs of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone oppose?

That is unanimous.

Thank you.

Item G4.

Item G4, public hearing and consideration of items related to the long-term lease of CDBach land in support of downtown amphiater.

Finance committee recommends approval.

Okay, we would will have a public hearing on this.

There's someone who has signed up in opposition to this.

So each side will be given 15 minutes for presentation.

First for the proponents, I'd call on Mr.

Bucky Dame for general comments on what the proposed is proposal is here.

Bucky Dame at 3780 Kirkles Road, Winston Salem.

Uh thank you, Mayor Joins, Mayor Pro Tim Adams and City Council.

What's before you is really, I would call it a an extension or uh of the lease that we agreed to in September of this past year of 2025, which was a five-year lease with two one-year rollovers.

Part of the process as we went through this with the amphitheater, we begin to realize that uh the cost of the amphitheater was really going over double the cost of what we would needed to do.

Plus, we were, if you remember originally, we were going more temporary buildings, now we're doing more all permanent buildings.

So we needed some stability for the investment, which is north of 25 million on the amphitheater.

We needed that stability and some long-term uh to help us make sure that we, you know, as we went through this process, we were we're covered.

Um so with I guess it's fair to say without the artist village, as we're calling it, there is no amphitheater because uh we need that area for backstage because the land, the way it's situates.

So that's what we're asking is the the extension of this lease.

With that, we're we're also um proposing to increase payments to a thousand dollars a month for the first five years, and then after the year five, then they would go up according to the CPI through the life of the agreement.

If you remember the original agreement was only a dollar a month for five years.

So I'll take any questions you might have.

Questions from Mr.

Dame.

Mr.

Dame, if I'm correct, the uh tax value of that property is 220, 30,000, something like that.

I heard that mentioned in the finance committee, yes.

So over the life of the 30 year, even at the minimum the city would be paid more for lease payments in the value of the property.

That's correct.

Any questions?

Oh, sorry, uh Council Andre Boyne.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

I just have one question.

So um we heard this in August or September of last year, I think.

Um from then to now, what was the major change of the extended lease?

Uh you kind of mentioned it a little bit in just now.

Could you go into that a little bit more?

The investment is the is the is the big driver here.

Uh you're you're asking people, we're not asking, but we're investing money, we just wanted more stability.

You know, at the end of your put for the amount of money that we're putting into this project, we didn't want it to fall apart after five years.

We wanted it to be have have longer life.

Uh also part of the project as we got into it.

We were we were really, if you remember, we talked about a lot of temporary buildings going in, they would be placed in place.

Now everything is is stick built.

It's a permanent building that will be in place.

Any other questions, Mr.

Dame?

Anyone else for our proponents?

Thank you.

Okay, thank you.

Mr.

Thiel Jason Thiel, 515 North Cherry Street.

I serve as the president of the downtown partnership.

I'll be brief.

I can say that I've talked to thousands of people about the amphitheater, and there is tremendous support for this.

I'll spare you having all of those people come, but I can assure you we can send a lot of emails and a lot of phone calls.

So I just want to make sure that someone does speak on behalf of this and all the people that do support this.

So you're gonna have someone speak against it, and I just wanted to make sure that somebody stood up and spoke for it.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Thiel.

Anyone else for the proponents?

Thank you.

Uh for the opposition, Mr.

Rose.

Good evening, Mr.

Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem, members of council.

Uh first question, uh City Attorney French.

The Parks and Recreation Committee met on May 12th, and they forwarded a recommendation to the City County Planning Board to approve the extension of this lease.

At that meeting, present were Bill Carpenter, Chair, Deborah Daniels, Jacinta Shaw, and Jordan Goodge.

Members absent were Natalie Lunsford, Mashika Jefferson and Hunter Day.

So this is confirmed by Kathy Bailey, they did not reach quorum at that meeting.

Quorum is six out of seven members for that commission.

So the whole process by which this leaks extension has gotten underway with is flawed.

And I ask, is that uh acceptable to you as city attorney for us to move forward with the city council vote tonight, given the fact that the City Parks Commission did not have quorum when they started this process.

Um I believe this is the period where you give us your statement.

I don't know that I'm prepared to answer that tonight because I don't know what constitutes quorum for the board, but I was certainly looking to that.

Thank you.

I will forward you Kathy Bailey's email stating the quorum requirement for their committee and the minutes from that meeting.

Um, since we're not just gonna stop this charade here, let's continue on with the reasons why I am opposed to the long-term lease of City Park Land in support of the downtown amphitheater.

The uh city council and the mayor have long been champions of downtown development.

One council member even labored as a business owner for many, many years downtown, and with all the challenges that came with all the successes that came with as well.

And I do want to express that I am uh not opposed to downtown development.

I'm I I think an amphitheater could be a lovely thing, but the entire way that this process has been handled from this recent uh parks commission meeting all the way back to September of last year has been flawed.

And to that end, I would like to bring up that today, the coalition for accountability and transparency here in Winston-Salem has filed a formal ethics complaint against Councilmember Regina Ford Hall.

Now, in September of 2025, Regina voted in favor of leasing this city-owned land, our land, to uh the flow company incorporated.

Don Flo sits on the board of directors of Boston Thurman United, which employs Council Member Hall.

It is clearly and unequivocally a conflict of interest when you vote for something that benefits the board of directors, members of the job that pays you.

That is a paid job, Councilmember Hall.

Now, I also want to clarify to you, Councilmember Hall.

I don't know where the camera is, I'd like to be looking straight at you.

But I would like to clarify to you that I come before you tonight as a resident of Winston Salem.

I don't come to you tonight speaking on behalf of my employer.

I know you've had some confusion about that before.

You can't touch my bag.

Okay.

So I want you to understand that I'm above board here.

You are the one that has violated the City of Winston-Salem's ethics policy by advancing this project from the very beginning.

And you'll have a choice again tonight on June 15th of 2026, whether you will ignore the conflict of interest voting to benefit one of your board members at your employment.

Now, listen to this.

When the city-county planning commission voted to advance this item to city council, there was a recusal.

Ms.

Lindsay Schwab of the City County Planning Board.

You know her, Chris.

She recused herself because she works for Advocate Health.

And on the board of Advocate Health sits Don Flo.

He sits on all the boards.

And Mayor Joins is upset that last year I talked about how the Flow family enslaved hundreds of people in Mecklenburg County.

And how I talked about his family.

Well, this is part of the subject.

This is his amphitheater.

Do you understand?

So the Flow family that is benefiting from this has benefited from centuries of shackling human beings and forcing them into labor has been.

This is Flow Company's amphitheater, is it not?

No.

What's your objection?

Please continue.

It's not Flow Company's Amphitheater.

Please continue with your objection to this lease.

The subject to matter tonight.

Okay.

My objection to this is that this city has operated in corrupt fashion for decades.

Mayor joins, you've been working for the city since the 1970s, over 50 years.

You came up under John Gold, who is a city minister.

I'm speaking to it.

No, you're not to the issue of the lease.

Yes, you have put your finger on the scale in favor of this lease.

Don Flo is your business associate.

Councilmember Hall has put her finger on the scale, betraying the residents of the Northwest Ward and Crystal Towers who did not want this amphitheater.

After the approval of the initial lease in September, when those residents were told that concerts would be over by 11, what did you all do?

You went and changed the noise ordinance, didn't you?

So you've lied about since the passing of the lease in September.

You've lied about how late these concerts would be going, how uh disturbing it would be to the neighbors of this amphitheater.

You've lied about how much construction is going to be happening on this property.

Now it's going to be permanent.

You're gonna knock down all the trees on this property, some of the oldest trees in downtown.

We don't have a lot of green space in downtown Winston-Salem.

And this project is going to destroy what little of it we do.

And I'm sick and tired of business interests that are lining your pockets, getting to have their way.

This is an amphitheater that you're voting on that is affiliated with Don Floor.

Mm-hmm.

The lease for public land to build an artist's village for this amphitheater, which is going to be owned by Don Flow and his company.

I don't understand how you said no to that before.

That's exactly unless I'm like mistaken about who owns this amphitheater that you're leasing the city property to I'm opposed to this extension of the lease.

And of course, you know I was opposed to it from the beginning.

And I'm opposed to the way that the city is conducting business here.

Conflicts of interests are not just abstract ideas.

Ask Lindsay Schwab why she recused herself from the city county planning vote.

Councilmember Hall.

Now I know how this council works.

You're gonna vote for it tonight.

Don Flo is gonna get his way.

So have a good night and vote your conscience.

Anyone else for the opposition?

All right, I declare the public hearing closed.

Yes, sir.

Thank you, Mayor Joins.

I just did want to address after having a moment to review some documentation regards to Mr.

Rose's question.

Um it looks like from documentation that we do have with respect to uh the meeting by the Wreck and Parks Commission that was conducted on May 12th of 2026.

They are an 11-member advisory board appointed by yourself, Mayor Joins.

Um, and it appears that they did review this request on May the 12th, and all members present expressed their support for the proposal.

I think we have to remember too that um you have to have persons that are present and voting.

Um the quorum is established by the persons that are in the room.

Um, our city website also says um, I'm not sure the other piece that we have to look into is how many people are on the board at this time on the commission at this time.

Currently, our city website said that there are nine members with two vacancies of the eleven that are possible to be there.

And so if there were, you know, so in in my mind, what Mr.

Rose has presented is a um majority of those present and voting.

Um but I will look into that further.

I just want to give you that analysis.

In addition, um I wanted to bring to your attention that sales of any city-owned parkland shall be reviewed by the city county planning board, who then holds a public meeting as a part of the deliberations of the sale and by the Wreck and Parts Commission prior to a decision being made by the council.

So you know, just to kind of give you an overview of the steps that need to be taken in this regard.

But of course, we will get back to his specific question regarding um whether or not there was a quorum present, which it sounds like there probably was.

But we would get a definitive answer for you on that.

I will if it's a second, I do have a few comments after you make the motion.

Yeah, I move for approval of item G4.

Second.

Second, go ahead, Ms.

Clark.

Um no particular order, Mr.

Rose.

I'm gonna try to respond to a few comments.

If you're concerned about trees, Mr.

King, how many trees do you think we cut down at Winston Lake Golf course in the last two?

About 50 acres worth.

Over a thousand?

Your guess is as good as mine by a lot.

It was yes, about that.

Yeah, I'd say over a thousand.

Uh the fact that we're putting buildings on parkland, uh, every park, most parks I know have buildings on them.

Uh parks in my ward have all sorts of bathrooms.

Some of them have tennis courts, some of them have golf courses.

Lots of changes have been made, whatever.

Uh third comment I would make.

We're not a static city, and we have changed things continuously to respond to what we think the current environment is.

And the example I would use is the entertainment district, which we did not have that was not an existing uh I'm looking at Mr.

Murphy, an existing entity.

Entity 20 some years ago, and it is now.

Correct.

You probably look Mr.

King, he's the one that actually drafted that.

2012.

Yeah.

So we created an entertainment zone because we were certainly getting getting that.

Uh the next comment, I believe, while we have planning boards and all sorts of commissions, they are advisory boards, and it is this council that actually makes the legal decisions.

And the last comment I will make, and this is to the best of my memory.

My memory is not perfect, but I don't believe Don Flo has ever given a donation to any of my campaigns.

If he has, it was so long ago I can't remember.

Uh now sometimes I have a hard time remembering um what I had for breakfast.

But anyway, but I don't ever remember uh from from Don.

Uh although I did go to high school with him and I didn't know if lastly I say I I do support this.

Uh what has happened, as Mr.

Dane pointed out, what was going to be a temporary facility needs to be permanent, and some of those are state building codes from under what I understand.

Uh, but I think it's it's worth the effort to to continue to revitalize our downtown.

And uh we've we have fine-tuned Norse ordinances.

We used to have a Norse ordinance that says if the if it was too loud, but what's too loud?

Well now we know it's 85 decimals or whatever they are.

So I think we have tried to respond when things change uh and we continue to do that.

Uh not to belabor the point, but we've made all sorts of changes in our housing area to try to make it easier for folks to build houses.

And so I think we're always continuing to look at what are the proper rules and regulations we need for the time we are in history.

Thank you, Ms.

Clark.

We do have a motion and second on the floor to approve this lease uh amendment.

All those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye, aye.

I see one opposed, Councilmember Burr completed the motion pass or your opposed to it, Council Hall.

I am for it.

You're for it.

I am for it.

Okay.

So the motion motion passes seven to one, Councilmember Burr voting uh negatively.

All right, thank you very much.

Item uh G five.

I'm gonna just say before we go ahead and read it, and I'm gonna make a comment.

Item G five motion to excuse Councilmember CPO from voting on item G6.

So we've got a number of items you're gonna hear where we're excusing council members from voting, and state law requires us to do that if that member is uh is a member of a board that's getting a grant from the city of Winston-Salem in this particular case.

Uh Councilman Recipios a member of the outline Western Salem board.

So I'll need a motion to excuse Councilman Scipio from voting.

Councilmember Scipio can vote on the being excused, but once the vote is taken, you can't vote on the items.

Mr.

Mayor, I've got all those.

You got all those motions.

Well, Councilmember Adams has got one.

Yeah.

I start with G7.

So this is yours.

I start with G five.

You got it.

So for it.

I move that Councilmember Scipio be excused from voting on item G6.

There's second.

Second.

Second by Councilmember Clark.

All those in favor of excusing Councilmember Scipio, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed?

No.

And that's unanimous.

Councilmember Scipio, you're excused voting on item G6.

If you would now read G6.

Item G6, resolution, awarding a contract to provide services within the downtown Winston-Salem Business Improvement District.

Downtown Winston Salem Partnership in the amount of 714,460.

General Government Committee recommends approval.

Mr.

Millett, you'll give us just a brief snippet of what this is involving.

Yes, sir, and then I'll be glad to answer any questions if anyone has.

But this item is unchanged from General Government Committee last week.

It would award a contract to the downtown Winston-Salem partnership for $714,460.

That covers three scopes of service.

Um excuse me, three scopes of service within the downtown business improvement district.

It would include a cleaner environment, enhanced physical appearance, stronger marketing, and promotion.

I'll be glad to answer any questions.

We've looked at this in great detail.

Thank you.

And I'd uh recognize uh councilmember Adams for a motion.

Yes, I move for approval of item G6.

Second.

Second by Councilmember Clark.

Any discussion?

If not, all those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed?

No.

That is approved unanimously with Councilmember CPO being excused.

Thank you.

Item um G7.

Thank you.

Had to get back to it.

Item G7 resolution approving funding for nonprofit agencies for fiscal year 2026-2027.

Councilmember Clark.

I move approval of item G7.

Second.

Second by Mayor Pro Tim.

Adams, did you want to add anything, Mr.

Tesh?

Or if it's just in questions.

I'm just gonna say Go ahead.

And this is a repeat from the committee, but at the budget meeting, two weeks ago, we approved a budget with just a number in there for the nonprofits.

This is actually the motion to fund the various generally speaking.

Last year you would have seen ordinances where you had recusals.

Instead, we have resolutions with recusals for that very reason.

There are one or two of these where uh council members are also being excused from things that were part of community development block grant funding or other things of that nature.

But these are individual excuses by council members for funding for uh nonprofit organizations for which you have an association as decided uh defined by the session law from 2021.

All right.

Everyone in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no?

And that is unanimous.

Thank you.

Item G eight.

Item G eight motion to excuse Councilmember Andre Bowen from voting on item G9.

Councilmember uh I just I want to I would clarify the last vote.

Yeah.

Should I ever excuse myself from that last vote because of my my full-time employer, which was in that?

I think they got the council member.

The answer to that is the resolution that was out.

Okay, yeah.

I have the motion for the if you please go ahead, Councilman Clark.

I move that council member Andre Bowen be excused from voting on item G9.

Motion second by Mayor Pro Tim.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

When opposed.

We uh have excused Councilmember Andrew Bowen from uh item uh G9.

Now would you read item G9?

Item G9 resolution allocated local community agency funding from the general fund for fiscal year 2026-2027.

Who has that motion?

I got that.

Okay, go ahead, Councilmember.

I move approval of item G9.

Second.

Second.

Any discussion of uh item G9.

All right, all those in favor of approving item G9, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

One opposed, and councilmember Hall votes yes.

That is approved unanimously with Councilmember Andre Bowen being excused.

Thank you.

Now we go to item G 10.

Item G 10, motion to excuse Councilmember Hall from voting on item G11.

Councilmember Clark.

Mayor, I move that council member Hall be excused for voting on item G11.

Second.

Second by Councilmember Scipio.

All those in favor of excusing Councilmember Hall, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no.

That's unanimous.

May we now go to item G11?

Item G11 resolution allocating local community agency funding from the general fund and the occupancy tax fund for fiscal year 2026-2027.

I move for approval of item G11.

Second.

Second by Mayor Pro Tim Adams.

Any discussion?

All those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no?

And that is approved unanimously with Councilmember Hall being excused from voting on this item.

Item G12.

Item G12 motion to excuse Councilmember SPO from voting on item G13.

Move the Council Member CPU be excused from voting on item G13.

Second.

Second by uh Mayor Pro Tim.

Any discussion?

All those in favor of the motion to excuse Council Recipio, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Opposed, no.

And that's unanimous with Councilmember Hall also voting yes.

So we now go, your excuse uh councilmember Scipio will now go to item 13.

G13.

Resolution allocating local community agency funding from the general and housing development funds for fiscal year 2026-2027.

Second.

Second by Mayor Pro Tim Adams.

Any discussion?

Not all those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Opposed, no, and that's approved unanimously with Council Mercipio being excused.

Item G 14.

Item G 14 motion to excuse Councilmember Clark from voting on item G 15.

Thank you.

Mayor Pro Tim.

I move that Councilmember Clark be excused from voting on item G15.

Second.

Motion seconded by Councilmember Jorner.

All those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Opposed that's unanimous.

Councilmember Clark, you're excused from voting.

Item G15.

Item G15 resolution allocating funding for the North Carolina Legal of Municipalities for fiscal year 2026-2027.

Mayor Pro Tim move for approval of item G15.

Second.

Second by uh Councilmember Sipio.

Any discussion?

All those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no.

Councilmember Hall votes yes on that.

So uh the motion is approved with Councilmember Clark being excused.

Now item G 17.

16.

16.

I mean 60, I'm sorry.

Uh item 16.

Uh is there a motion?

Item item G16 motion to excuse Mayor Pro Tem Adams from voting on item G 17.

I move that Mayor Pro Tim Adams be excused from voting on item G 17.

Second.

Second by Councilmember Joiner.

All those in favor of the motion to excuse uh Mayor Pro Tim Adams, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed?

No.

And that is a unanimous.

Now we'll go to item G 17.

Item G 17, resolution allocating funding to the National League of Cities for Fiscal Year 2026-2027.

I move for approval of item G 17.

Thank you.

Second.

Motion second by Councilmember Scipio.

All those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no.

And Councilmember Hall votes yes.

So that motion is approved unanimously with uh Councilmember or Mayor Pro Tim Adams being excused for the vote on that.

And then item G18.

Item G 18.

Consideration of City Council's 2026 July meeting schedule.

Mayor Pro Tim.

I move for approval of item G18.

Second by Councilmember Clark.

All those in favor of the motion, please say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed, no.

And that is unanimous.

We have uh adjusted our meeting schedule.

And now we'll go to the public comment period, which is the time once per month that the city council invites citizens to voice their opinions on matters that are germane to city government.

Uh when the council when the comment period is uh announced, we'll uh give each speaker three minutes with a total allow uh allotted time of 30 minutes.

Again, we uh join uh the speakers to uh uh offer uh comments that are germane as well as to uh be no personal attacks on council members and decorum will be established.

First person signed up is uh Laura Garner Garness.

Okay, sorry, thank you.

I'm Laura Garner and my address is 1768 Jarro Drive.

I want to say hello to Mayor, Mayor Pro Tim Alad I guess and the City Council.

Good evening to each of you.

I am here on behalf of many on Jairo Drive to express serious concerns regarding recent development activities in our neighborhood.

In 20 in two in the in 2009 and 2010, this area was protected as an inner city farming and horse farm community.

Recently, it appears two properties were purchased and rezoned without public notice or committee, community knowledge.

Specifically, a property on Rayleigh Drive was converted to an RS9 property subdivision on March 12th, resulting in five houses on a single lot.

Additionally, another property on Jire Drive has been has constructed two houses within a floodplain.

Our infrastructure and safety are currently at risk.

We frequently experience what water outages, loss of pressure, and burst pipes.

Increased travel and speeding through the neighborhood pose a significant danger to children, pets, and local wildlife.

With a duplex housing having been added in the last 15 years, with 80 families in the middle of Jare Drive, and then the current residents that already struggle with limited existing infrastructure.

The community is not in favor of future subdivisions with small lots that strain our resources and environment.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Garner.

Matthew Mayers.

Thank you.

Matthew Mayors, 2844 Wesley and Lane.

Last week I uh unfortunately came across a situation that required a call uh for the bear team response, and I called.

And um I'm really thankful that I live in a city where there is such a thing.

I grew up in LA in the 70s, and LAPD, you probably know their reputation from the 70s.

So I'm very thankful for that.

Um later that day, a little after dusk, my wife and I were crossing our street to go spend some time with our neighbors, and we saw a couple of fireflies.

Two maybe three.

You remember fireflies that used to be out in force?

A lot of them.

You know, on a summer night, you'd you'd open your or you'd look out your window and you couldn't count them all.

There'd be hundreds, right?

Uh so it made me think who's gonna be the bear team for our fireflies?

Um why are they disappearing?

One of the big reasons they're disappearing is climate change.

Um you've probably noticed over the last several years we have much longer hot dry spells followed by immense downpours.

Your own stormwater people have told you about how we now have hundred-year events several times a decade.

Um when the ground is dry like that.

In uh insects like fireflies and cicadas, um, their larval stage can't make it through.

They need more soil.

Oh, you probably haven't heard as much cicada noise lately either.

Um, it's not your job to say the fireflies or the cicadas, but when all these other creatures start dying off, it's something we should start paying attention to.

Um the reality is all of humanity is supposed to be the bear team for the fireflies.

Um you all happen to be in a situation where you have some additional power over what the rest of us have.

And um six budget cycles now.

Since you passed a pretty strong sustainability resolution, but in all those six budget cycles, there hasn't been actually a concentrated systematic addressing of that resolution and how you would deal with the goals laid out there.

So um my I'm just here to ask um, let's not do another whole year and a whole nother budget budget cycle without putting together a plan.

You have such an amazing staff in this city.

Um lined up alongside of me and some of them back there.

Smart people, very dedicated.

I've met a lot of them.

They all care.

They really do.

I'm pretty sure all of you care about this issue too.

Just need a plan.

What are you gonna do with your buildings?

Oh what are you gonna do with your buildings?

What are you gonna do with your vehicles?

Um what are you gonna do with the the water treatment facility and the landfills and the biggest one?

How do you deal with land use?

Um of these things are already under consideration, um, but you need to figure out which ones are gonna cost you more money than you're gonna get back, which ones are gonna get you more money back than they're gonna cost you, so you can sequence them properly.

And let's have a plan.

Let's have it out in front of the public so that we can see um how to fix the problem, how to be a part of fixing the problem.

It's on all of us, all of all humans.

Um that's all I'm asking for is a plan.

Thanks.

Thank you, Mr.

Mash.

Uh Shana Mellon.

I think it is.

Um Shana Millius.

Oh, thank you.

It's McLaren is my name.

Good evening, everyone.

Good evening, Mayor.

Mayor Wortemp.

Good evening, Councilmember Teller.

And good evening, Councilmember Clark.

So uh I'm here actually to talk about two issues.

Okay, first things first.

My name is Shana McLaren, and I'm here tonight to talk as a resident.

Um, I actually live in Mr.

Taylor's district.

Um, I just want to touch on something.

I'm a descendant uh of a family member that was directly impacted by policies and decisions made here by the city some time ago, right?

So in 2021, you guys proposed uh actually you made a formal apology in regards to the role of discrimination and practices in urban renewal and policies that name black communities, specifically resolution 210139.

Um and it's an important an apology is very important, right?

But an apology without action is incomplete.

Okay.

So my great-grandmother, her name was Ophelia Scales Hunt, and my mother is the direct grandchild.

I'm a great grandchild of hers.

She was a landover um in the historic Silver Hill community, which is now called Univista, and her story has been documented in a book called uh a chapter actually in a book, Clues of Displacement, The Gentrification of Silver Hill, which was written by your favorite doctor, Dr.

Dan Rose.

And he's he teaches at Winsalem State University.

Like many black families of this era, our families replaced with barriers created and maintained by the local government.

And I actually have a direct quote from actually his name.

This was in 1927, the city attorney, Fred Parrish, right?

And it might be a little um offensive to some people, but uh Paris basically stated, and I quote, I feel that colored people who build their homes on a well-defined cartway, which led from Winston Salem Church to a graveyard have been bul bottled up.

But I do not think it's a fight for this city.

We all have streets and highways that can look after without seeking others.

So the board in which my great-grandmother basically petitioned because what happened was they built a road to block their street, so they had to walk through the woods, which ultimately pushed them out.

And I actually um don't have much time, but the point is is that you guys issued an apology and you stated that you were gonna create a commission.

What what's going on with the commission?

That's my question here.

And I was educated in the school system here, but I did move to New York.

Just want to know.

Thank you.

We will certainly staff will get back to you.

No problem.

Thank you.

Terry Bottoms.

Good evening, Mayor.

Good evening, uh City Council.

Uh my name is Terry Bottoms.

I live on Patterson Avenue, 3000 North Patterson Avenue.

Uh I come here to ask for some help.

Um I love my home there.

I bought it 12 years ago.

It's beautiful.

It's a hundred years old.

Uh I'm gonna tell you a little bit about it.

I step out in my front yard and I step out onto the street and I see great myrtles up and down the street that were planted 40 years ago.

They're beautiful.

Uh they just don't get suckered or trimmed.

Uh I'm willing to do that for you in a day or two.

And you know, take a day or two and do that free, absolutely free.

Just give me the goal here.

You step out into the street and you'll see the curb.

The curb is not seam yet.

The curb is actually granite.

It's cut granite slabs that was put there in the 1900s.

It's beautiful.

It's just covered with dirt and debris.

I shoveled mine off so you can see it.

But I'd like to have help to uh clean the street up so we can have the beautiful crate myrtles that we have there now.

They're 40 years old, but they still look really good.

Uh and the curbs.

Clean the curbs, have someone come and just clean the curbs and make North Patterson beautiful again.

That's all I want.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Bottoms.

Laura Spangler.

Reverend Spangler, excuse me.

Good evening.

I come in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, and I'd like to pray.

Almighty God, you are the creator of this great city.

And we need to give you honor, glory, and praise and obedience for it.

We have said that we are one nation under God, and yet we are not following your word.

Lord, I come offering confession of sin and repentance for this city.

And I say that because of the great sin of our support for the pride march that we had this past weekend.

Lord, your word tells us that a relationship for children is a mother and a father, one man and one woman, and that you have created us male and female.

And so to support homosexuality and transgenderism goes against your word.

Lord, I am so sorry that we are doing this.

We heard that 70,000 people supported this.

We know the city council supports it.

We know that businesses support it.

We even know that churches support it.

Lord, this is an abomination in your sight.

And I am so sorry for this, that we are involved with this in our city and in our nation.

Lord, I ask for your mercy.

We don't deserve it.

We deserve what Sodom and Gomorrah got.

We deserve your judgment, Lord.

But I live in this city, and so I ask for your mercy upon us for the forgiveness of sin and for our realization of the ways in which we have gone astray.

Lord, I pray like Solomon that you would give us a desire for your law and your will and your word because we are violating it.

What we are doing to support sexual immorality is an abomination.

Lord, Lord, Lord, help us.

Jesus, you are the way, the truth, and the life.

It's because of your sacrifice and death on the cross and our repentance and it and forgiveness that you give us because we repent of our sins that we are saved.

And this is the only way.

And I am so sorry that we are involved with this.

And I pray, Lord, that we that wisdom would prevail and we would turn from our sin and uh begin to to live in a different way, to turn and to be in a way that is righteous and that follows your word.

Because Lord, you know that we are not doing right.

And so I just ask you, in your mercy, God, please help us to follow your word so that we may be followers of Jesus Christ, who this land was dedicated by Christians and Moravians long ago, and we need to be obedient.

Amen.

Good evening.

Hi.

I called you, sir.

Oh, damn it, sir.

Sorry.

I apologize.

That was that kind of language is not except go in here.

I sincerely call it.

Okay.

Are you Brian Hoffman?

Okay, please.

I'm sorry about that.

I want to talk about I'm coming to talk about veterans, so I sincerely apologize.

I'm Brian Hoffman.

I live on Country Club Road.

Uh I will be quick.

Apparently, there's power out at our house and around our area.

Um, and again, I sincerely apologize.

I was uh speaking like a sailor and I need to avoid that.

Um, and so mayor joins uh Mayor Pro Tem Adams, members of the council, um, and fellow citizens.

Um I'm Brian Hoffman.

I'm a retired army colonel, uh resident here on Country Color Blue Road.

I'm a Wake Force MBA student currently right now as well.

I uh served for 28 years in the Army, did 12 combat deployments, and uh my last year and a half was supporting the Ukraine war.

Uh my wife Jordan Caps, uh, she's uh daughter of uh Jean and Patricia Caps.

She's from Winston Salem, and we recently uh moved here to make this our permanent residence um in our first permanent home.

But I'm here tonight to introduce you something called uh Twin City Veterans Bridge.

Uh it's a nonprofit that uh we're creating uh every year two thousand two hundred thousand veterans transition out of the military, and uh we bring transitioning, and the goal of Twin City Veterans Bridge is to bring transitioning military officers and senior NU NCOs to Winston-Salem to stay here to work here and put down roots.

It's actively going out and recruiting these transitioning service members to invite them here to Winston-Salem.

Uh we they bring leadership, discipline, and skills, any workforce needs.

Uh the goal is is to recruit to host and encourage the veterans and their spouses to consider living Salem.

Um the uh Twin City Veterans Bridge is registered with the state of North Carolina uh, and I'm working with Will Joyner at Kilpatrick Law Firm to submit the 501c3 for it.

Uh there are two tracks.

We're looking at recruiting veterans uh for careers here in Winston Salem to find their careers in Forsyth County, as well as encouraging veteran entrepreneurs to move here and bring business here.

Uh every veteran we serve then has to give back to veterans helping veterans heal.

That's the transition home by the airport, uh, where we have uh 24 beds and formally homeless veterans.

Uh but you're gonna see us before you hear us.

Uh what you'll see is we have uh a 1979 International Scout.

Uh this is the other part of the project, uh, and a twin uh 1967 airstream that we're gonna tow around the city and we're gonna serve coffee and ice cream, and it's called Twin City Veterans Bridge.

All the coffee will be roasted by veteran, all the ice cream comes from uh uh Kendra Bell at Dream Creams.

Uh we're gonna go around the city and we're gonna sell it out of there, and we're gonna employ the veterans at veterans helping veterans heal.

We're gonna employ those veterans to work in the airstream.

So my only ask is simply to introduce ourselves to you and to ask the city to be a partner as we grow this.

Uh I plan to demonstrate to the city that why veteran talent should be sought sought for, fought for, and supported as they build lives here in Winston-Salem.

And I welcome the chance to discuss it further with anybody on the council or any of the city's citizens here.

Um and so as we launch next month and we build uh build it carefully, we'll build it by the book.

I've got uh Will Joiner helping me and we look forward to it.

And I'll just tell you if you're a teacher, K through 12, if you're a first responder, you're a veteran of military, you come every day and get a free cup of coffee.

And so thank you for your time and making the city worth moving here.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Colonel.

Appreciate it.

That's all the individuals who signed up.

We do have a few minutes left.

Is anyone else like to be heard during public comment?

Yes, sir.

If you would give me your name and address the name is Jamal Womble.

Address is Hundred Block Forest Oaks.

Sorry, Forest Yeah, Forest Oaks.

Um didn't plan on speaking tonight, but uh since there was an opportunity, I feel like I should just uh give my comments uh on what it was uh talked about tonight.

And uh also thank you for allowing me to speak.

Mayor, Mayor Pro Temp, the rest of the city council.

In in short, I am in uh favor of the curfew.

We have people talking about programs and what can be done for the kids.

However, lack of programs does not give people an excuse to commit crimes in our community.

We do probably need programs, probably need funding.

However, committing crimes and hurt other people for a lack of funding and lack of programs is not an excuse to commit crimes in our community.

So I think the people that do support the curfew uh do agree that there are some measures that could be done.

However, uh crime against another person is no excuse for a lack of any kind of program.

Uh also stand in support of the prayer that was made.

Um I do believe in freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and any kind of attack on that prayer, uh, I think is not conducive to the constitution of our heart and uh and also to the constitution um of our nation.

So thank you all.

God bless you for allowing us to speak.

I think you're doing a good job, and I want to thank you for allowing us to speak, and God bless you all.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Webble.

Anyone else like to be heard during public comment?

All right, seeing no one, I'll declare the public comment period closed.

And recognize a motion to adjourn.

So moved.

Motion by Councilmember Clark, seconded by Councilmember.

My wife IBR seven.

All those in favor adjourning for the case.

I've got 11 hours.

We are adjourned.

Councilmember Hall vote, yes.