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Record of Proceedings

Winston-Salem City Council Meeting - November 2, 2026

Meeting Portal — Monday, November 2, 2026
BodyWinston Salem, North Carolina
SessionMeeting Portal
DateMonday, November 2, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:20:39

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

12:43

You're watching W S T V Digital Media.

Speaker 2

13:32

Oh, it's not.

Unassigned speaker

13:34

It's we were getting ready to do that for the winner.

Speaker 2

13:39

No.

Unassigned speaker

13:44

Good

Speaker 2

13:44

afternoon, everyone.

13:44

I'm Alan Joins, Mayor of Winston Asylum.

13:46

It's my pleasure to call to order this meeting of the Winston-Salem Council and ask the City Clark to call the role, please.

Speaker 3

13:54

Councilmember joyner present.

13:55

Councilmember Clark.

13:57

Here, Councilmember Andrew Bowen.

Speaker 4

13:59

Here.

Speaker 3

13:59

Councilmember Scipio.

14:01

Present.

14:01

Mayor Pro Tim Adams.

14:03

Councilmember Taylor.

Speaker 2

14:04

Present.

Speaker 3

14:04

Councilmember Hall.

14:05

Present.

14:06

And Councilmember Burke.

14:07

Here.

Speaker 2

14:08

Thank you.

14:09

Would you please join the City Council meeting a moment of silence?

14:23

Thank you.

14:23

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

Unassigned speaker

14:33

And

Speaker 4

14:35

we just will liberty and justice.

Speaker 2

14:46

Thank you.

14:47

Our Sergeant in Arms tonight is Lieutenant Peter Watkins.

14:51

Lieutenant, thank you for being with us.

14:52

And our fire marshal tonight is Fire Marshal Nate Brown.

14:56

Thank you

Unassigned speaker

14:56

for

Speaker 2

14:57

keeping us safe tonight.

14:59

Tonight's meeting is being televised live on our TV 13 as well as the city's YouTube page.

15:05

And it will be replayed tomorrow

Unassigned speaker

15:08

at

Speaker 2

15:08

9 a.m.

15:09

and again Wednesday night at 9 p.m.

Unassigned speaker

15:11

Of

Speaker 2

15:11

course, as you know, copies of our agenda as well as videos of previous meetings were always available

Unassigned speaker

15:16

on

Speaker 2

15:16

the city's website, and just click on the watch meetings online option.

Unassigned speaker

15:21

I'd

Speaker 2

15:21

like to call our city manager for his uh update.

Speaker 5

15:24

Uh thank you, Your Honor.

15:26

Uh, a couple of items tonight.

15:27

First, uh, just to remind everyone that our city's annual loose leaf collection program began today and will continue through January or until three passes have been completed in each quadrant.

15:39

Crew started in the eastern and southern quadrants and will move clockwise through the city.

15:43

Residents are reminded to place loose leaves behind the curb, keep piles free of debris, avoid blocking storm drains, and refrain from placing leaves in the street.

15:54

Loose leaf collection is available for single family homes.

15:58

Residents can view the collection routes and estimated pickup dates on the city's website through the Winston Salem Collects app or by contacting City Link.

Unassigned speaker

16:07

And

Speaker 5

16:07

I know you'll hear from our uh City Winston Salem University uh folks shortly, but I will tell you in their budget discussions, they were strongly encouraging everybody to uh to use the composting method with her leaves and uh and to leave them available for the uh lightning bugs and other folks to nest in those.

16:27

Our residents are invited to a meeting on the future transportation projects on Wednesday, November 4th from 4 30 to 6 30 p.m.

16:35

at the Ronolda Manor Branch Library.

16:38

This meeting is hosted by the Winston Salem Area Transit Planning Organization, Transportation Planning Organization, to gather community input that will help inform local project priorities and grant funding submissions for the next state transportation improvement program, all kinds of acronyms in there.

16:56

Residents who cannot attend may participate online by reviewing the proposed projects and providing input through an interactive map, budget exercise, and comment form.

17:06

So we encourage everyone to help the uh region set their future transportation priorities on Thursday, November 5th, the Rural Hall area plan process will continue with a second public input meeting starting at 5 30 p.m.

17:22

at the rural hall town hall.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural████████████████████████24%
Community Engagement████████████████16%
Driver License Restoration█████████████13%
Youth Programs███████████11%
Affordable Housing██████████10%
Public Transportation█████5%
Public Engagement███3%
Procurement and Contracts███3%
Code Enforcement███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Winston-Salem City Council Meeting - November 2, 2026

The Winston-Salem City Council met on November 2, 2026, at 6:00 PM in the Council Chambers. The meeting included consent agenda approvals, public hearings on demolitions, discussions on several community development initiatives, and votes on funding for driver's license restoration, winter shelter operations, youth recreation, and a neighborhood beautification grant. The council also went into closed session to conduct the city attorney's annual performance evaluation.

Consent Calendar

  • The council approved the balance of the consent agenda unanimously, with two items removed for individual discussion.
  • C-4 (Winter Shelter Funding): Councilmember Scippio requested separate discussion. The council approved an additional $50,000 for winter shelter operations (November 15, 2026 to March 1, 2027). Sharika Floyd of Neighborhood Services presented the item.
  • C-11 (Temporary Staffing Services): Mayor Pro Tem Adams requested discussion on the $3.5 million contract extension with The Resource Company. She noted the contract began in 2023 and encouraged exploring partnerships with community workforce development programs to provide youth employment opportunities. The council voted unanimously to approve.
  • The consent agenda also included items related to the Byrne JAG Program, land development on Rhyne Avenue and Sides Road, a conservation easement swap, the Bus Pass Match Program, solid waste collection amendments, Newell-Massey Greenway repairs, additional sole source vendors, a property sale, a budget amendment, and approval of the previous meeting's summary minutes.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • City of Winston-Salem University Graduates: The council honored 17 graduates of the program. Graduate spokesman Rick Yuhan thanked the council and city staff for the program, noting it gave him a deeper appreciation for the inner workings of city government and the dedication of city employees.

Discussion Items

City Manager Update & Transportation Farebox Changes

  • City Manager Pate announced the start of the loose leaf collection program and upcoming public meetings on transportation and land use planning.
  • Transportation Director Jeff Fansler reported that bus fareboxes are at the end of their useful life. The city will transition to a cashless fare collection system on buses starting in January 2027, utilizing the UMO app or reloadable cards, though cash will still be accepted at the downtown transportation center. Councilmember Andree-Bowen raised concerns about providing physical cards to riders and ensuring accessibility for those without smartphones.

Ram's Pointe (G-4)

  • Proposal: An extension and homebuyer conversion for MTB3 Properties, LLC to develop 11 townhomes at 310 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. The project is backed by a $400,000 city loan. The General Government Committee forwarded it without a recommendation.
  • Discussion: Councilmembers Scippio, Hall, and Burke spoke in favor, highlighting the project's potential to restore owner-occupied housing and investment in historic East Winston. Mayor Pro Tem Adams supported the project but strongly criticized the lack of formal tracking for stalled city-funded projects, stating this was her "last time voting like this" without a project queue report. Staff confirmed the Affordable Housing Coalition approved the new plan.
  • Outcome: The council voted unanimously to approve the resolution.

DRIVE License Restoration Program (G-5)

  • Proposal: Approving a fourth one-time appropriation of $105,000 to extend the program through June 2027. The Finance Committee recommended approval (3-1).
  • Discussion: Councilmember Clark questioned the lack of data on how many participants actually regained their driver's licenses versus simply having court cases resolved. Chief Assistant DA Elizabeth Dresel explained their office resolved 975 court cases for 153 unique participants in 2025 but cannot track DMV license reissuance. Councilmember Andree-Bowen noted some program participants reside outside city limits. Mayor Pro Tem Adams stated she could not support the item without outcome data showing the restoration rate.
  • Outcome: The motion was approved 7-1, with Mayor Pro Tem Adams voting no.

SBE Advisory Committee Update (G-6)

  • Proposal: Amending the city code to change the MWBE Advisory Committee to the Small Business Enterprise (SBE) Advisory Committee to comply with the 2026 state Appropriations Act.
  • Outcome: The motion was approved 6-2, with Councilmembers Burke and Andree-Bowen voting no.

Love Your Block Grant (G-7)

  • Proposal: Accepting a $270,000 Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation grant for the 2026-2028 cycle to fund beautification projects in the Reynoldstown neighborhood.
  • Discussion: Councilmember Burke raised several concerns about the selection process, questioning why the city added criteria beyond Bloomberg's (such as historic designation and exclusion from current revitalization areas) and requested a complete scoring rubric for all neighborhoods considered. City Manager Pate stated the process was successful and trusted to staff. Councilmember Andree-Bowen requested a future update to see how the program could be expanded. Staff clarified the grant application was specifically for Reynoldstown and cannot be altered.
  • Outcome: The council voted unanimously to accept the grant.

Extended Youth Recreation Hours (G-8)

  • Proposal: A $70,000 pilot program to extend hours and programming at Carl Russell, DB Sims, MLK, and Rupert Bell community centers for teens on Fridays and Saturdays.
  • Discussion: Councilmember Hall confirmed the $70,000 covered staff, supplies, and utilities. Councilmember Joyner pressed for specific marketing and programming details given the November 9 start date. Councilmember Scippio raised safety concerns about lighting, particularly at Rupert Bell. Director Royston confirmed they are working with police and vegetation management on security.
  • Outcome: The council voted unanimously to approve the extended hours.

Key Outcomes

  • Votes: G-5 (DRIVE Program) approved 7-1. G-6 (SBE Committee) approved 6-2. All other votes (Consent Agenda, G-1, G-2, G-3, G-4, G-7, G-8, G-9, G-10) were unanimous.
  • Directives & Next Steps: City Manager was asked to provide the council with a list of stalled city-funded development projects. The Youth Recreation pilot program is set to launch November 9, 2026. Staff will work on improving data collection and accessible transitions for the farebox changes and the DRIVE program.

Meeting Transcript

You're watching W S T V Digital Media. Oh, it's not. It's we were getting ready to do that for the winner. No. Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Alan Joins, Mayor of Winston Asylum. It's my pleasure to call to order this meeting of the Winston-Salem Council and ask the City Clark to call the role, please. Councilmember joyner present. Councilmember Clark. Here, Councilmember Andrew Bowen. Here. Councilmember Scipio. Present. Mayor Pro Tim Adams. Councilmember Taylor. Present. Councilmember Hall. Present. And Councilmember Burke. Here. Thank you. Would you please join the City Council meeting a moment of silence? Thank you. Would you join the City Council meeting the Pledge of Allegiance? And we just will liberty and justice. Thank you. Our Sergeant in Arms tonight is Lieutenant Peter Watkins. Lieutenant, thank you for being with us. And our fire marshal tonight is Fire Marshal Nate Brown. Thank you for keeping us safe tonight. Tonight's meeting is being televised live on our TV 13 as well as the city's YouTube page. And it will be replayed tomorrow at 9 a.m. and again Wednesday night at 9 p.m. Of course, as you know, copies of our agenda as well as videos of previous meetings were always available on the city's website, and just click on the watch meetings online option. I'd like to call our city manager for his uh update. Uh thank you, Your Honor. Uh, a couple of items tonight. First, uh, just to remind everyone that our city's annual loose leaf collection program began today and will continue through January or until three passes have been completed in each quadrant. Crew started in the eastern and southern quadrants and will move clockwise through the city. Residents are reminded to place loose leaves behind the curb, keep piles free of debris, avoid blocking storm drains, and refrain from placing leaves in the street.

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