WS Chronicle

East Ward town hall sheds light

Throughout the year, Council Member Derwin Montgomery, who represents the East Ward, and owns part of The Chronicle, has held town hall meetings to keep residents in his ward up-to-date with what’s going on.

During the third town hall held at Winston-Salem Preparatory Academy on Thursday Sept. 28, Montgomery invited representatives from the North Carolina Department of Transportation (N.C. DOT) to discuss the closing of Business 40 and its impact on the East Winston community. Karen Simon, N.C. DOT division construction engineer, said residents should start to see large equipment begin to roll in later this month. Construction on “Segment A,” which includes the Peters Creek Parkway interchange near BB&T Ballpark, is first on the list. According to Simon, N.C. DOT plans to completely rebuild a new seven-lane bridge and interchange loops. Simon said later this month residents should plan to see detours near Peters Creek Parkway, and Fourth Street.

“When Peters Creek is finished it will be a brand new seven-lane bridge and a six-lane road from about First Street down to Fourth Street,” said Simon “That will take about a year but during this time. Business 40 will remain open. Contractors will begin work on the highway going west first and traffic will remain on the east. Once that portion is complete, they will switch and traffic will travel on the portion of the highway going west.”

As for as construction to the portion of Business 40 in East Winston, Simon said residents shouldn’t expect any major detours and road closings until the fall of 2018. She said during that time, N.C. DOT will close Business 40 from Peters Creek Parkway all the way over to U.S. 52, which runs through the heart of East Winston.

Simon said contractors plan to rebuild bridges on Liberty Street, Main Street and Church Street. A pedestrian strollway or land bridge will also be added near Cherry and Liberty streets.

“This land bridge that will travel across Business 40 will be very attractive. It will be for pedestrians, and cyclist and will include a 10-foot path with landscape on sides. It will be very attractive,” Simon said.

Construction on that portion of Business 40 is expected to last about a year. The last section of the project is expected to be complete by the summer of 2020 and at that point Business 40 will reopen.

For more information on the Business 40 project, visit www.business40nc.com

Another hot topic discussed during the town hall meeting was the recent rise in gun violence the community has seen. Between Sept. 23 and Sept. 26, six individuals fell victim to gun violence, five of which occurred in East Winston.

Assistant Chief Scott G. Bricker, who has been a member of the Winton-Salem Police Department (WSPD) since 1990, said the departments take these situations seriously but it will take the entire community to find the culprits responsible for the shootings. He noted in several of the cases witnesses saw what happened but are not willing to talk with law enforcement.

“We are soliciting feedback from citizens. We know for a fact in some of these cases there were witnesses who saw what happened,” continued Bricker. “We’re using all our resources to find out the people responsible but we can’t be everywhere at once. We need you to be our eyes and ears.”

Anyone with information on the recent shootings should call Crime Stoppers at 336-727-2800.