(L to R) Environmental toxicologist Will Service and director of stormwater and
erosions control Keith Huff update the community on the groundwater testing
that was completed in the area.
Phocm by Tevin SdMaa
Citizens from the Hanes-Lowrance neighborhood gathered at Hanes Hosiery
Recreation Center last Wednesday to get more information on groundwater con
tamination discovered in the area last year.
Citizens concerned about health
issues linked to underground chemicals
BY TEVIN STINSON
THE CHRONICLE
Concerned citizens
lined the walls of a confer
ence room at Hanes
Hosiery Recreation Center
last Wednesday, with a
number of questions for
city officials about the
groundwater contamina
tion near Hanes and
Lowrance Middle Schools.
"We need answers,"
said Brandon Williams
who lives near the schools
located on Indiana Ave.
"More needs to be done
to keep the community
informed," he said. "We
only know what we hear on
the news or xead in the
paper. They should be in
direct contac/ with the
entire community."
Last year the Winston
Salem/Forsyth County
School Board decided to
close the two schools after
parents and students began
to question the health risk
linked to the chemicals
found underneath the
school and surrounding
neighborhood.
Now citizens who live
in the area say they need to
know more about the con
taminated area and if they
are at risk inside their own
homes. A number of tax
payers said they wanted
?
more homes to be tested for
contaminates as well.
Director of storm water
and erosions control Keith
Huff said the city has tested
a number of homes in the
area and intends to test
more homes in the future.
"We have tested inside
and underneath a number
of houses in the area. We
will be testing more houses
in the coming weeks, but
we need permission from
homeowners to do so," said
Huff. "We want to make
sure everyone is safe."
According to Huff,
seven homes have been
tested in the area for tetra
chloroethylene (PCE) and
trochloroethylene (TCE),
the two most concerning
chemicals found in the
area. Both chemicals have
been linked directlyto can
cer.
During the test, experts
obtained ground samples
from underneath a number
of homes and tested the air
quality inside a number of
others believed to be in the
affected area.
Huff said none of- the
homes tested positive, for
PCE and only one home
tested positive for TCE.
Environmental toxicol
ogist Will Service said the
amount of TCE present in
the home that tested posi
tive would not cause any
health issues because the
amount present was so
small.
"The risk was extreme
ly low in that one finding,"
he said. "A one-in-a-mil
lion cancer risk."
Service mentioned
large amounts of both
chemicals have also been
linked to a number of com
plications with the human
liver. The chemicals only
pose health risk when
released into the air.
According to Service,
the chemicals do not pose
any risk when present in
the ground.
During the meeting
Mayor Pro Tempore Vivian
Burke said she understands
the citizens' frustration.
Burke mentioned she
would personally ensure
more homes are tested in
the area and the community
is kept up to date with any
changes that may occur.
' "I totally understand
the frustration of the com
munity members," she
said. "Many of these peo
ple have been living here
for years and they deserve
answers.
Public art gets
a city-county
commission
BY TODD LUCK
THE CHRONICLE .
Winston-Salem and Forsyth County
will soon be taking steps toward creating a
City-County Public Art Commission to
help foster local public art.
Forsyth County
Commissioners
annmved a citv-cnun- I
r i j
ty inter-local agree
ment for the commis
sion on Monday. The
City Council
approved the agree
ment last month. The
Public Art
Commission will
umuuc aiusis, civic Btal
and business leaders,
and conununity members passionate about
public art. The commission will have a
budget from the city that will be used for
public art projects in Forsyth County and
will be assisted by City-County Planning
staff.
"There's been a big interest in public
art over the years and it's actually been dif
ficult to implement projects just because
there's been
no dedicated
group to-do
it," said
Kelly
Bennett, a
project plan
ner with the
City-County
D I n n ?
r 1 a u u 1 11 g ?????????
Board, who
added that most major cities in the state
already have a public art commission or
advisory board.
One common issue with public art,
according to the city-county public art
plan, is that often artists or art groups have
a challenge finding space to put public art.
The commission can ease that process by
finding city or county property for such
projects. Public art will be done all over
the city and county, not just in downtown
where it's most often found. The public art
may be on public or private property and
may be art in the public realm or art paid
for by public funds.
According to the public art plan, the
commission should reflect Winston-Salem
and Forsyth County in race, ethnicity and
demographics. County Commissioners
will choose three to five appointees from
nominations made by the towns that
approved the public art plan. The mayor
will choose six appointees, which will be
approved by City Council, from applicants
in Winston-Salem.
Bennett said that a variety of members
in the local art community were consulted
in crafting the public art plan, like mural
artist Marianne DiNapoli-Mylet, Arts
Council President Jim Sparrow, Delta Arts
Director Nadiyah Quander, and Endia
Beal, director of the Diggs Gallery at
Winston-Salem State University.
Beal, who is also an artist known for
her photography, said that she felt that the
commission will be diverse and include
Photo By Todd Luck
"Together We Rise"
by African-American
artist Vandorn
Hinnant, which was
commissioned by the
City to honor its cen
tennial, stands in
Corpening Plaza.
diverse artists in its projects.
"There'll be a variety of
perspectives coming from
various cultural back
grounds to really create an
inclusive way in which indi
viduals can showcase their
talents," she said.
Beal said African
A ? ?! 11
?~American anisis are wen
represented in local public
art. She said Winston-Salem State
University has the largest collection of
public art in the city in its sculpture garden
on campus. She also said Corpening Plaza
in downtown Winston-Salem is home to a
sculpture called 'Together We Rise" by
African-American artist Vandorn Hinnant,
which was commissioned by the City to
honor its centennial.
Bennett said that the new commission
will help make projects like that one easier,
since the City Council had to create a panel
just to choose the design for the centennial
art. The commission is expected to begin
work later this year. Applications for the
commission are currently being developed,
which will be on the city and county web
sites.
City finance committee
approves police/fire pay raises
BY TODD LUCK
"?> THE CHRONICLE
The City's finance
committee approved a plan
on Monday, Dec. 11, to
increase police and fire pay
that's expected to pass the
full City Council next
week.
The finance committee
approved a plan that would
raise the minimum pay for
sworn police officers and
certified firefighters by 15
percent on Feb. 1, with
those paid below that get
ting an adjustment so their
salaries meet the new min
imum. In addition, there
would be a two percent
annual supplemental raise
on Feb. 1 for those with at
least one year of tenure
that, pending approval in
future budgets, would con
tinue to happen annually in
January. This is in addition
to normal merit raises in
July. All members of the
City Council were in atten
dance and expressed sup
port for the plan, which is
expected to pass unani
mously before the council
on Tuesday.
The plan addresses
retention issues with police
officers and firefighters as
they leave for other depart
ments that pay more.
Winston-Salem is behind
other Triad and other North
Carolina cities with popu
lations over 100,000 in
police and fire pay.
"If we're losing the
brightest and best, we're
not being responsible when
it comes to public safety,"
said City Council Member
James Taylor, who chairs
the Public Safety
Committee.
Derwin Montgomery
was among the council
members who said he sup
ported the plan, but also
wanted to look at pay for
other city employees and
benefits as well, such as
401k contribution. A 2014
analysis found that 80 per
cent of positions in city
paid less than similar jobs
in other markets in the
state. With the exception of
police officers, Winston
Salem does not contribute
? to an employee's 401k.
Contributing to an employ
ee's 401k is a common
practice for cities and
towns.
"I'm not in any way
lowering the concern on
police and fire, but just
raising the concern for the
rest of the employees that
we have because of the fact
that they are not organized
like police and fire are,"
said Montgomery.
Captain Danny Watts
was among two officers
that spoke about police pay
before the City Council last
year, bringing attention to
the issue. He was among
several officers in atten
dance at the meeting.
Watts, who at the time was
in charge of recruiting for
the Winston-Salem Police
Department, said he was
glad the City Council is
taking action.
"We're
still going to j
be a 'little
below a lot of
the other
departments,
so there are
going to be
departments
it A. cc
? I 1
Montgomery
inui oner
more pay, officers will
have those opportunities,
but I think the people who
want to be in Winston
Salem .... as far as living
here and have roots here,
this is going to help them
stay," said Watts, who was
recently promoted to head
the WSPD Professional
Standards Division.
David Pollard, presi
dent of the Winstqn-Salem
Professional Fire Fighters
Association, said he was
also glad that it was being
addressed, but has heard
many complaints among
firefighters about compres
sion.
'This compression is
going to cause even more
people to walk out the door
than retaining them," said
Pollard.
He also said benefits,
like 401k and a greater
contribution on health
insurance need, to be dealt
with. Health insurance has
been going up annually by
about 5 percent for city
employees, which Pollard
said has been making the
small merit raises in the
past few years feel negligi
ble for many firefighters.
The money for the
police/fire pay plan comes
out of the general fund. The
City can cover it because it
had more revenue than
?
expected from sources like
property taxes, registered
motor vehicles, and an
increase in sales tax collec
tion, which are expected to
continue in future years.
City Manager Lee Garrity
told the City Council that
to do mpre than the regular
market and merit increases
for non-public safety city
employees in the
2016/2017 budget would
require looking at taxes and
other revenue sources. A
draft of the budget is
scheduled to be presented
to the finance committee in
March and approved by the
City Council in June for
implementation in July.
r I