Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / April 5, 2018, edition 1 / Page 2
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Commissioners plan to vote on ‘Ban the Box’ BY TODD LUCK THE CHRONICLE Forsyth County com missioners plan to vote on a request for the county to join the “Ban the Box” movement and remove the criminal record question from job applications. The county recently received letters requesting that the policy be changed from a coalition of about 100 people from various churches, nonprofits and civic organizations coordi nated by the All God’s Children Ministry Team at Knollwood Baptist Church. The group is ask ing that the question not be asked up front, to avoid prejudging an applicant, and to instead rely on the criminal background check that’s done after an appli cant’s qualifications are considered. Lisa Sykes and former Chamber of Commerce President Gayle Anderson spoke in favor of the move during the commissioners’ Thursday, March 29, meet ing. “We’re not asking the county to not have posi tions where it would not hire someone with a con viction, but simply to give people the opportunity to apply for a position, and if what they have done in the past does not affect their ability to do the job, to at least be considered for it,” said Anderson. County Commissioner Vice Chair Don Martin said he’d like to vote on the measure in their next for mal meeting. Commissioners Everett Witherspoon and Fleming El-Amin have already said they support it; Commissioner Gloria Whisenhunt said she did have an issue with the last line of the proposed resolu tion that said the county encourages private busi nesses to adopt the same policy. Whisenhunt said commissioners shouldn’t be telling private employ ers who to hire. , Also during the meet ing, there was a 5-2 vote to approve a resolution asking the General Assembly to declare open session for hunting coyotes and foxes along with a trapping sea son for both animals. Several surrounding coun ties have enacted similar local laws. Currently, no fox trap ping by individuals is allowed in the county and foxes can be hunted from late November through Jan. 1. Coyotes can be hunted anytime and trapped November through February. This would put both animals in the same hunting and trapping sea Anderson sons. Scott McNeely, presi dent of NcNeely Pest Control and director of N.C. Trappers Association, told commissioners that the inclusion of foxes will help encourage trappers to pur sue coyotes because they’ll be able to take the foxes that will get caught in their traps instead of releasing them. Trapping and hunt ing would only be done with the property owner’s permission. Coyotes are becoming an issue in some parts of the state. A girl in Advance was attacked by a coyote last week. McNeely said that there are missing pets in Rural Hall that are believed to be the work of coyotes. Ted Kaplan and Richard Linville were the two “no” votes. Kaplan said foxes shouldn’t be included in the resolution because they aren’t a prob lem in the county. Linville was unconvinced the reso lution was needed, saying foxes weren’t an issue and coyotes are uncommon in the county. He said increased trapping can also have unintended conse quences like pets getting caught in the traps. Several commissioners said they’d received emails expressing concerns about the effects of trapping on pets. Also during the meet ing: ♦Commissioners agreed to pay $35j000 for 0.2 acres of land located next to the North Cherry Street site where the coun ty plans to build a new courthouse. This elimi nates a small easement that the courthouse would’ve had to build around. ♦Commissioners authorized a refund for a $204,000 mishap with an excise tax on an e-closing real estate transaction. There was an error when the price of the house was accidentally put in the field for the tax before sending it to the Forsyth County Register of Deeds office, where the mistake was caught. The actual excise tax on the transaction was $408. l Pboio by Todd Lode There is a planned cell phone tower that'll be located behind this Family Dollar at College Plaza Shopping Center. - : Hie Pbolo The Burger King on Martin Luther King Drive continues to be closed as the franchise owner is attempting to acquire the property. ' “The franchise owners who own the Burger King franchise within the Winston-Salem market have had issues and challenges with the property owner, which is Burger King Corporate Office.” MLK Burger King construction still delayed BY TODD LUCK •THE CHRONICLE The Burger King on Martin Luther King Drive will continue to be shuttered as the City Council delayed its rezoning until August. During an April 2 meeting, the council voted to contin ue the item again. The rezoning is connected to planned renovations at the restaurant, but was delayed again at the petitioner’s request. The Burger King location closed late last year in preparation for rebuilding the restaurant. That’s been put on hold as Carrols LLC, which owns and operates it, is still negating to buy the property. “The franchise owners who own the Burger King fran chise within the Winston-Salem market have had issues and challenges with the property owner, which is Burger King Corporate Office,” said East Ward City Council Member Derwin Montgomery, who is one of the Chronicle’s owners. He said Carrols LLC is still committed to remaining in the community and is looking at other land in that area if it cannot acquire the current property. Also during the meeting, the City Council approved reductions for the setback requirements for a planned cell tower that’ll be located behind Family Dollar at the College Plaza Shopping Center. The tower' did not meet the setback requirements for an adjacent plaza parking lot and Carriage Drive, which is primarily used by residents of a nearby development. The City Council granted a 35 foot reduction in the setback from the parking lot and a 40 foot setback reduction from Carriage Drive. Northwest Ward City Council Member Jeff Macintosh said he’d heard no objections from nearby residents to the tower. Also during the meeting, a 1.2-acre property on Old Lexington Road was rezoned to help facilitate the replace ment of the Speedway gas station that’s located there. iv ooiiv iiono nemo. Oman iivwowoolnvinvie.vvin To send a Letter to the Editor (350 words or less) or column (550 words or less): email letters@wschronicle.com For advertising: email adv@wschromcle.com For subscriptions: email plewis@wschronicle.com Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/WSChron icle Follow u$ on Twitter: WS_Chronicle The Chronicle (USPS 067-910) was established by Ernest H. Pitt and Ndubisi Egemonye in 1974 and is published everyThursdav by Chronicle Media Group, LLC, 1300 E. Fifth St., Winston Salem, N.C. 27101. Periodicals P°.s*al?e ^d at Winston-Salem, N.C. Annual subscription POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Chronicle, P.O. Box 1636 _ Winston-Salem, NC 27102-1636 www.wscnronicie.com 1300 E. Fifth St„ Winston Salem, N.C. 27101 Main Phone Number: 336-722-8624 Advertising: Ext. 113 Circulation/Subscriptions: Ext. 100 Editor: Ext. 108 Blow-outj * tumbling down? victory ' - TMt axoAK. The Chroni — umw.**-*0* M M TMIStSBHBSmUfll 52 weeks for just $18! This special offer applies to new subscribers and those who have not received mail delivery in the past three months. Limited time offer. fs/i Yes, send me The Chronicle! Enclosed is my check. Name Address State Email □ 52 weeks for just $18 $30.72 reg To order mail delivery by phone, call (336) 722-8624, ext 100. Retere to: THE CHRONICLE P.O. Box 1636 Wineton-8alem, NC 27102 t.
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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