The Beauty of New Garden Road,Tree Cutting at it's Best

Some pictures of New Garden Road where it meets Garden Lake Drive. This area seen in the pictures was the subject of a major rezoning case pitting an established neighborhood up against the development community and as you can see who won this battle. If you would like to see the Greensboro News and Record article CLICKHERE , also there was a debatables blog with some insight on some of the attitudes in the area CLICKHERE . Where is that Advisory Commission on Trees?

Now it seems like a new fight with the Greensboro City Council is brewing right down the road where a group of neighbors formed a coalition called
Friends of New Garden to see their web site CLICKHERE .

Friends of New Garden Road is a group of neighborhood residents opposed to the rezoning of 4.69 acres at 1807 and 1809 New Garden Road between Timberoak/Strathmore and Jefferson/Will Doskey to commercial to allow the construction of an "Event Center for weddings and similar parties."

This seems like dejavu all over again, and to add to the usual suspects in this case the lawyer is none other than Derek Allen, who was the same lawyer in the Garden Lake rezoning case.

September 16, 2008 the Greensboro City Council will hear this case and it will be interesting to see where the city stands.

Ever since Jefferson Pilot and David Stonecipher went on a asset plundering game , New Garden Road was never the same. Thanks David you were so loved and admired by many in Greensboro.We should rename New Garden Road the David Stonecipher Over Developed Commercial Traffic Jam.

Loudoun County Virginia Bars Developers Campaign $, Guilford County Local Politicians Let's Try This

Loudoun Board Bars Use Of Builder Campaign Funds - washingtonpost.com
or click on the title above.

By Sandhya SomashekharWashington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 2, 2008; Page B01

Loudoun County supervisors voted yesterday to bar themselves from accepting campaign contributions from builders and others with proposals before the board as part of a broad effort to restore public confidence in a body that some have viewed as too close to the development community.
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Leesburg Today CLICKHERE for the whole article
07/04/2008
Loudoun Supervisors Restrict Contributions from Developers
By Erika Jacobson -

In an attempt to assure residents that there are no back-room agreements or conflicts of interest happening at the dais, Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Tuesday adopted new policies limiting the action a supervisor could take on an application submitted by a campaign contributor.

"I think there has to be transparency in ethics and government. I think this takes us one step forward in making this distinction," Supervisor Susan Klimek Buckley (D-Sugarland Run) said.

Under the new policy, supervisors would be prohibited from taking campaign contributions from anyone with certain land use applications pending before the county from the time that application is submitted to six months after the board's action on the item or the withdrawal of the application. Applications included under the new policy are rezonings, special exceptions, proffer amendments, concept plan amendments, zoning appeals as well as any other appeals before the board of supervisors, Comprehensive Plan amendments and requests for early removal from Agricultural and Forestal District.
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Living in the Triad area of North Carolina my whole life. I'm saddened and disgusted by what seems to be serious misconduct involving local governmental officials, for example Heart of the Triad, campaign contributions, and developers plus their lawyers influence on boards and commissions in Guilford County and especially the city of Greensboro.

Triadwatch reported the influence of the developers on the Greensboro Land development ordinance committee CLICKHERE , also Jordan Green from Yes Weekly went farther with article on the developers more assertive on panel to rewrite Greensboro's land development ordinance CLICKHERE

We cannot ignore the substantial influence developers or their coalition called the Triad Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition also known as the TREBIC CARTEL have gained over the past decade in their pursuit of paving over every acre in Guilford County.

It is time we curb developers' influence by banning them from contributing to politicians who will decide on their zoning or land-use permits. It's also time we give the public a say in development proposals that impact their neighborhoods for example getting a bill passed to make Greensboro comply with a North Carolina General Statute called Protest Petitions.

A developer should not be allowed to financially contribute to a candidate for public office in a county or municipality in which they plan to seek government approval.I hope what has happened in Virginia trickles down south to North Carolina.

Stop the Wedding Planner on New Garden Road in Greensboro

There is a new group formed to stop the Wedding Planner from going up on New Garden Road. They are called STOP THE REZONING! Friends of New Garden Road, CLICKHERE . You can click on the title above to see the rezoning map in question. This area is between jefferson & brassfield road on new garden road.

Stop the Rezoning of New Garden Road

SAVE THE DATE

Tuesday, September 16
5:30 (get there early for a seat)

Please join us at the City Council Chambers, Melvin Municipal Building , to protest the rezoning of 1807 and 1809 New Garden Road from residential to commercial zoning.
The owner wants to build an events center in our residential neighborhood, bringing great noise, more traffic and a huge building and parking lot in a residential neighborhood.
For more information or to sign the letter of protest:
http://www.friendsofnewgarden.org/

This rezoning case was postponed on August 4th because Derek "conflict of interest"Allen from Brooks Pierce Law Firm came up at the last minute to get a continuance on this rezoning case. The neighbors were none too happy to see this lawyer in question come up at last minute to have the continuance.It made for a few brief discussions and also a directive from the Greensboro City Council to come up with better communications with surrounding owners on rezoning continuance request.

In regards to trying to get better procedures in place for the continuance of rezoning cases the Greensboro City Council next week September 2, 2008 will hear a presentation CLICKHERE then proceed to agenda and it is item #21 from Planning Director. This should be called the Derek "conflict of interest" Allen Rule. Thanks for that .

It is time that the madness on New Garden Road stops. Could someone from the city transportation please make New Garden Road four lanes the whole way, please.If you are against this rezoning please check out their web-site CLICKHERE and support the neighbors who don't want to hear the WEDDING PLANNER all year long.

Grimsley Whirlies Gym Youtube Video Barack Obama Talks Sports

While watching ESPN tonight 8-26-08 there was a video showing Stuart Scott interviewing Barack Obama talking sports at the Greensboro Grimsley Whirlies High School basketball gym. It was great to see the "GO WHIRLIES" banner on ESPN. Below is the video.

World War Memorial Stadium Assessment and Evaluation for Greensboro North Carolina June 9, 2008

To see the whole assessment please click on the title above or CLICKHERE then go to #4 War Memorial Stadium Update.

In a nutshell here is the assesment, dump everything but the front facade. But here is what was said in the assessment, Sutton-Kennerly and Associates estimates that the total cost of repairs to extend the service life of the World War Memorial Stadium for 10 - 15 years might be $3-4 million dollars. A more cost effective option might be to demolish a lerger portion of the structure, preserve the historically recognized facade and add supplementary seating and bracing as needed.

That place brings back a lot of memories from the 80's with my family. Especially trying to collect every single major league plastic helmet with ice cream in the helmet, those were great times.

THE LAST OUT

Nightmare on Old Battleground Road in Greensboro

The newest addition of the Leisure magazine which is a guide to the Greensboro Parks and Recreation Department for the Fall-Winter 2008 has a interesting article on page 39 but it has been removed from the internet but here is a link to a pdf from the city of greensboro CLICKHERE

The project in question is called "Greensboro Landmark Project" , this is trying to make the Guilford National Military Courthouse, Tannnenbaum Historic Park, and Jaycee Park all inclusive with no drive through traffic.

Upon looking at the map it shows how this project would like to see Old Battleground Road closed to through traffic past British Lake Drive before the entrance to the National Military Park. This road in question gets about 11,000 cars a day that cut through the National Military Park to get to their homes and some like to use the park as a running and biking facility. The nightmare is looking at where all these 11,000 cars would go if this road is closed. This would mean more traffic down regular Battleground Road and if you have ever been down that road towards Horse Pen Creek Road it is over capacity at this time and to add more to the mix would be a NIGHTMARE.

Triadwatch contacted both Adam Fischer from the Greensboro Transportation and also Superintendent Cranfield from the Guilford National Military Courthouse to ask them about this project and to see if they were aware of this closing of Old Battleground Road.

Mr. Cranfield from the Military Courthouse stated that this was a proposed project. It was a long term idea to try to get back the integrity of the battlefield. As you can see from the map in that they want to get grants and funding to make all of this area enclosed and to also have a combined visitor center where it would be more towards Tannenbaum Park along New Garden Road. Some of the ideas that Mr. Cranfield talked about was to try to maybe have a major crossing on Old Battleground where they could have railroad crossings come down at a certain location so that people could cross Old Battleground Road without worrying about safety but in long term future close it all in. There are a lot of puzzle pieces missing to this project and in regards to the urban loop that will be near the Lake Brandt Road intersection with Old Battleground Road.

Mr. Fischer from the Greensboro Department of Transportation was somewhat aware of this but didn't know that it was being published in the Leisure guide of Greensboro for Fall 2008. He wanted to say that there are a lot of things that need to happen before the city can close a certain street and to close a street like this with 11,000 cars a day would mean a lot of public input before this happens and probably a lot of upgrading to the existing roads for this to happen, especially getting the urban loop done also.

It is great to see long term goals for places like the Guilford National Military Courthouse , but when you travel down Old Battleground Road and have lived at Lincoln Green Apartments and know just how many people rely on this road to get to and from places of destination, it is hard to imagine it being closed to through traffic.

It will be interesting to see the future of this project but the needs of the citizens and the integrity of the courthouse need to get together to make a great place to live , work and play.

The video below is the Battle of Guilford Courthouse a Animated Video, if you would like to see a great video , or CLICKHERE check out this 8 minute video.

Porker of the Month is none ofher than Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid

Porker of the Month: Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid

Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) CLICKHERE has named Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) Porkers of the Month for leading a do-nothing Congress into a five-week recess.

Of the 106 bills enacted since January, 94 -- or 89 percent -- were to name government buildings or lands, extend or make technical corrections to existing laws, or passed either by unanimous consent or with less than 10 dissenting votes.

The dubious accomplishments include “Frank Sinatra Day,” “National Plumbing Industry Week,” and “National Day of the Cowboy.” In addition, the congressional leaders have deliberately ignored the October 1 deadline for passing the 12 annual appropriations bills. Only one of the bills has passed the House, and the House Appropriations Committee has approved only four others.

In the Senate, the Appropriations Committee has approved nine, but none has reached the floor. The Speaker and Majority Leader appear to be awaiting the presidential election, hoping that the winner will favor higher spending and more earmarks.

They had also wanted to avoid a vote on the moratorium on offshore oil drilling, which is typically renewed through the appropriations process, though they reversed course last week and said they would allow a vote.

For leaving town after Congress has spent nearly all of its time on frivolous legislation and failing to address critical issues, CAGW names Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid the August 2008 Porkers of the Month. To see more from the Porker of the Month CLICKHERE

Sidewalk Cafes in Downtown Greensboro Might Have New Hours Come Tuesday

It looks like on Tuesday August 19th that the City of Greensboro will amend Chapter 26 of the Greensboro Code of Ordinance with respect to streets and sidewalks- hours of operation for sidewalk cafe's in downtown Greensboro.

If you want to see the whole agenda with attachments on Tuesday's Greensboro's City Council meeting please click on the title above or
CLICK HERE then go to current agenda with attachments.

All of this action is contingent on if the Greensboro City Council approves this amended ordinance.

Item #30 on the agenda states that there must be a permit issued before a establishment can be allowed on the sidewalk.The sidewalk cafe must be associated with a restaurant and under the same name.

Here is the kicker on this amended ordinance the sidewalk cafe MAY OPERATE AT ANY TIME BETWEEN THE HOURS OF 7:00 am - 1:00 am. This is a change from the ordinance that is in place right now where the start time is 11:00 am - 10:00 pm Sunday - Thursday, on weekends till midnight and holidays. All sidewalk cafe improvements(including but not limited to tables, chairs and other furnishings) shall be set up no sooner than 15 minutes prior to opening a restaurant for business.All sidewalk cafe improvements shall be removed no later than 30 minutes after a restaurants close of business. In no case shall sidewalk cafe improvements be located on city sidewalks or pedestrian ways between the hours of 1:30 am - 6:45 am .
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Along with the chicken ordinance this will make for a fun filled night at the Greensboro City Council meeting. If you have a problem or issue with this amended ordinance please feel free to call or email your Greensboro City Council member CLICK HERE .

Guidestar , Searchable database of U.S. nonprofits and charities' activities and finances

If you care about nonprofits and the work they do, then you're affected by what GuideStar does—even if this is your first visit to www.guidestar.org or CLICKHERE. You see, we gather and publicize information about nonprofit organizations. Our reach is far and wide. Our database is broad and deep.

GuideStar's mission is to revolutionize philanthropy and nonprofit practice by providing information that advances transparency, enables users to make better decisions, and encourages charitable giving.

We encourage nonprofits to share information about their organizations openly and completely. Any nonprofit in our database can update its report with information about its mission, programs, leaders, goals, accomplishments, and needs—for free. We combine the information that nonprofits supply with data from several other sources. You'll find GuideStar data:
on this Web site
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This web site is a great place to see where all of our local non profits do with their money like Action Greensboro,Bryan Foundation, High Point Community Foundation, Terry Charitable Foundation,Center for Creative Leadership,Community Foundation of Greensboro,Atlantic Coast Conference, and Sit in Movement Inc..

It is free to sign up , the only thing you need is a valid e-mail address.

Developer Dollars: How Campaign Contributions Overpower Growth Management Efforts in North Carolina

Big money in politics corrupts the process by which our laws get made. Major contributors are able to have a disproportionate impact on the outcome of elections, such that few reform-minded individuals win office. Too often, this means some of the state’s most pressing environmental problems, like the state’s disappearing open spaces and its increasing air pollution, don’t get solved.
The North Carolina General Assembly’s failure thus far in taking even small steps toward stopping sprawling development provides a clear example of how big money in politics can thwart popular reforms that would protect the state’s environment and public health.

North Carolina loses over 400 acres of forest and farmland every day—the fifth fastest rate in the country. This in turn leads to degraded environmental conditions. Smog pollution triggers 240,000 asthma attacks across the state each year. Pavement covering the soil that once filtered our water causes two-thirds of North Carolina’s water pollution. These problems are all results of the runaway, unplanned development known as sprawl.

The public overwhelmingly supports solutions to these problems. In many polls, North Carolinians have expressed a readiness to change the rules for growth to protect the state’s natural heritage.

Individuals and industries that profit from sprawl development—developers, realtor's, and construction companies—feel differently. They have invested vast sums of money in political campaigns, at least in part to guard against land-use reform.Locally they are known as the TREBIC CARTEL These campaign contributions from pro-sprawl interests totaled nearly $8 million in the 2000 election cycle to North Carolina legislative and statewide candidates.
Campaign contributions from pro-sprawl interests included the following during the 2000 election cycle:
$5 million from builders, contractors and developers.
$3 million from the real estate industry.
$400,000 from real estate and construction PACs.
$461,000 from the top three donors: $217,000 from the Shelton Companies of Charlotte; $132,000 from the Wilmington-based network of John Elmore, Henry E. Miller and Lionel Yow; and $112,000 from attorney, developer, and new Board of Transportation member Lanny Wilson, also from Wilmington.
In the 2001-2002 legislative session, champions of land-use reform put forward several proposals to begin to curb sprawl. Recognizing the financial clout of the developers, they kept their reforms modest. Yet anti-reform legislators supported by developers and Realtors have pushed aside even these modest measures, in most cases not even allowing debate on proposals.
Land-use reforms should be debated on a level playing field. For this to happen, public officials must better reflect the opinions and diversity of the citizens of the state.

Public financing of elections would help to create a level playing field. In such a system, any candidate who has amassed the support of enough individual voters can be within striking distance of winning an election for state office. Once they qualify, candidates use public money for their campaigns, not money from special interests. Land-use reforms should be debated on a level playing field.
An effective public financing system must contain three key elements:
Local fundraising requirements to ensure that candidates serve their constituents rather than out-of-district wealthy special interests.
A qualification requirement of a large number of contributions at a level that ordinary citizens can afford.
Matching funds to help publicly-financed candidates running against candidates funded by large amounts of private money.

Developer Dollars: How Campaign Contributions Overpower Growth Management Efforts in North Carolina - Environment North Carolina

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Environment North Carolina CLICK HERE had this report that should be a wake up call to the citizens of all of Guilford County where as stated in the actual report, "The disproportionate influence of pro-sprawl interest over who gets elected to office is a clear barrier to the enactment of land-use interest ." If you want to see the whole report CLICK HERE

Also, all you have to do is go to the Greensboro City web site CLICK HERE then go to the citizen advisory team member area and see the list people who are in charge of the Land Development Ordinance Committee for the City of Greensboro,

Here they are,
Gary Rogers with Starmount Company,
Trip Brown with Brown Investment,
Keith Price with Samet Companies,
James Cox with Mid-City Urban,
Jessica Marlies with Brooks Pierce Law Firm,
Mike Fox with Tuggles Duggins Law Firm,
Dick Franks with Koury Corp.,
Gary Hill with McAlphine Company,
Gary Wolf with SparrowWolf Law Firm,
Mary Skenes with Yost and Little.


So 10 out of 14 are TREBIC members or close allies with TREBIC for the Land Development Ordinance Citizen Advisory Team. TREBIC CARTEL is the Triad Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition.

Note to David Wharton are the lawyers also members of the TREBIC ?
Yes


Silver Members of TREBIC CARTEL:
Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard, LLP
Sparrow Wolf & Dennis, P.A.
Tuggle Duggins & Meschan, P.A.


It is like the fox guarding the hen house.

As said by local Lawyer Reid Phillips ,boards get packed with TREBIC all the time especially in Greensboro where as Mike Barber said at a Greensboro City Council meeting on April 1st 2008 "TREBIC has been contacted and TREBIC has some interest".

To add another bone to this issue in that last Monday night August 4, 2008 Greensboro City Council Member Mike Barber made a appointment to the zoning board who is also his campaign treasurer and also a TREBIC CARTEL member in Mary Skenes.


Enough is enough

ROCKY SCARFONE WHY DIDN'T YOU CALL SHERIFF B J BARNES

This video is from 2007 which shows Sheriff BJ Barnes interviewing Rocky Scarfone. Click below or click on the title above.Below is what was on the page for the Sheriff's Beat online blog. Would Chief Tim Bellamy have a sit down interview with Rocky Scarfone or would it be an interrogation?

The sidewalk issue can be solved by letting it lasts till midnight Monday through Sunday and allow it to start at 6:00 am. in the morning for the coffee crowd. Loitering is a problem but probably starts after midnight and heats up when bars close. It was interesting to see Greensboro City Council member Trudy Wade want the Guilford County Sheriff's Department help out the Greensboro Police Department on heavy nights at the Greensboro City council meeting on August 4th 2008. Note to Dr. Wade you are a city council member not a county commissioner.

UPDATE: 8-5-10 It seems like the video below has been taken off of the Sheriff's web site and taken down sorry for the link that is not there anymore , but wanted to let everyone know this.

Guilford County Blogs Sheriff’s Beat Online Blog » Blog Archive » SHERIFF’S BEAT TELEVISION SHOW V10E12 - Been Downtown Lately?


SHERIFF’S BEAT TELEVISION SHOW V10E12 -
Been Downtown Lately?

Sheriff Barnes welcomes to the show Rocky Scarfone, a downtown Greensboro business owner. Rocky acquired the N Club and the Red Room within the last year, and the club Much a few weeks ago. He has established a relationship with the House of Blues national chain, and has been working to bring national music artists to Greensboro. Sheriff Barnes and Mr. Scarfone think aloud on Greensboro night life.
What’s changed during the last few years in downtown Greensboro?
Why come to the downtown area?
Why should a city care about nightlife?
What national artists have played here recently?
How are national acts booked?
What changes will downtown see in the next couple of years?
How does Greensboro compare to other cities?
What can be learned by comparing downtowns to airports?
What role does politics have to do with any of this?

Guilford County Commissioner Skip Alston Fire Yourself As A Treasurer

Guilford County Commissioner Skip Alston was asked by the Guilford County Board of Elections to amend his 2008 second quarter campaign contribution forms because the report turned in to the Guilford County Board of Elections was not filled out properly it looked like a first grader sat down and filled out the form for him. To give a brief history there was a post on TRIADWATCH CLICKHERE on 7-24-08 which showed the lax reporting on a campaign form by Mr. Skip Alston.

Let's look at what has happened since then , Mr. Skip Alston has now amended his 2008 second quarter returns. To see what they look like please click on the title above called"Guilford County Commissioner Skip Alston Fire Yourself as a Treasurer" or CLICKHERE then go to Skip Alston 2008 second quarter-2.
You would think that he would have looked at his returns and say to himself this is pitiful. But not Mr. Alston his arrogance to the rule of law in this instance is amazing. Remember that Mr. Skip Alston is his own treasurer.

Let's see what the rule of law says about campaign contributions,
According to North Carolina General Statutes 163-278.11§ 163‑278.11. Contents of treasurer's statement of receipts and expenditures.(a) Statements filed pursuant to provisions of this Article shall set forth the following:(1) Contributions. – Except as provided in subsection (a1) of this section, a list of all contributions received by or on behalf of a candidate, political committee, or referendum committee. The statement shall list the name and complete mailing address of each contributor, the amount contributed, the principal occupation of the contributor, and the date such contribution was received. The total sum of all contributions to date shall be plainly exhibited. Forms for required reports shall be prescribed by the Board. As used in this section, "principal occupation of the contributor" means the contributor's:a. Job title or profession; andb. Employer's name or employer's specific field of business activity.The State Board of Elections shall prepare a schedule of specific fields of business activity, adapting or modifying as it deems suitable the business activity classifications of the Internal Revenue Code or other relevant classification schedules. In reporting a contributor's specific field of business activity, the treasurer shall use the classification schedule prepared by the State Board.

As you can see highlighted in red there are certain aspects needed to fill out the proper forms mainly name,address,job title and employers name or field.

If we look at Mr. Skip Alston's amended returns you would think that he could do just a little research like the talking phone book or the Guilford County Board of Elections campaign financial reports for 2008 or 2007 to help him in this process. But no, that didn't happen. Let's help him out a little bit on his returns. It is not like you had so many people to contact to find out this information it was only 11 people who gave to your campaign in second quarter of 2008, and 10 in the first quarter of 2008. It seems that you should have also amended your first quarter along with your second quarter. It took me a total of 10 minutes to find the information needed to fill out your returns. Let's concentrate on your second quarter amended returns.

This is what was stated in amended returns for 2008 second quarter

Bryon Nelson
3611 Tagus Street
Greensboro N.C. 27410
$1,000 cash

comments: Do not know Job Title and Employer

Mr. Alston let me help you out on page 328 of 2008 Talking Phone book is Mr. Nelson's phone number 336-316-0436 , you might want to give him a call, he needs to put this on your form since you don't know job title or employer. It is amazing to me that someone gives you a $1,000 in cash and you have no idea who he is or where he works when you only got 11 contributions in second quarter.

Mr Alston let's also look at what you had to say about a four other people who gave campaign contributions to you in the second quarter amended report.

Stephanie K. Craft
Lisa K. Johnson
Lisa K Vanore
Kelly K Harrill

Mr. Alston put in the comments section that he did not know employer or job title also did not provide address.

If there is a group of 4 people who are connected more to the landscape of campaign contributions to Greensboro City Council members and Guilford County politicians it is the four people listed above. All Mr. Alston had to do is go to the Guilford Board of Elections web site and look at 2008 John Parks fellow Guilford County Commissioner 2nd quarter report.He could also go to the 2007 report and look at Goldie Wells pre election 2007,Trudy Wade 2007 pre election,Zack Matheny 2007 semi annual,Yvonne Johnson, Kevin Green 2007 pre election report amended, Mike Barber 2007 pre election report, Sandra Anderson Groat 2007 pre election report, and Robbie Perkins 2007 pre election report.

Let me help you out with the your reports compliments of Robbie Perkins 2007 pre election report.

Kelly K Harrill
Koury Irrevocable Trust 1
400 Four Seasons Town Centre
Greensboro N.C. 27407

Job Title: Developer/Builder
Employers Name: Koury Corp.

Lisa K. Johnson
Koury Irrevocable Trust 1
400 Four Seasons Town Centre
Greensboro N.C. 27407

Job Title: Developer/Builder
Employers Name: Koury Corp.

Ashley K Vanore
Koury Irrevocable Trust 1
400 Four Seasons Town Centre
Greensboro N.C. 27407

Job Title: Developer/Builder
Employers Name: Koury Corp.

Stephanie K. Craft
Koury Irrevocable Trust 1
400 Four Seasons Town Centre
Greensboro N.C. 27407

Job Title: Developer/Builder
Employers Name: Koury Corp.

To see a local politician act this way on a simple campaign contribution form is amazing to see. We also have to understand that Mr. Skip Alston is also the treasurer for the George Simkins Political Action Committee who back in 2007 had to pay the following:

04/16/2007
STATE BOARD OF ELECTION CIVIL PENALTY & FORFEITURE FUND
PO BOX 27255RALEIGH, NC 27611-7255
Operating Expense
LATE FEE
$500.00
$500.00

Mr. Alston needs to either take a refresher course on being a treasurer with the State of North Carolina below is the closest one in the Triad

CAMPAIGN FINANCE TRAINING

Required Training for Treasurer Certification - In-person Access
September 10, 2008
2:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Forsyth County Government Center - 2nd Floor
201 N. Chestnut St.Winston-Salem, NC 27101

You could spare us all the embarrassment looking at your campaign returns with amazement that this came from a Guilford County Commissioner and FIRE YOURSELF from this position and hire someone competent enough to actually fill out 11 campaign forms which you don't seem to understand how to do.

Greening of Guilford County What Next and Some Questions to Ponder for the Future

Effort's under way to Green Guilford
By Gerald Witt
Staff Writer
Friday, August 1 updated 10:08 am

What happened? Green Guilford partners met Thursday to review the final plan before it goes to the Guilford County commissioners.What's next? County commissioners will hear and review the plan in an Aug. 12 work session. After discussion and possible revisions, the board will accept or deny the plan in a formal meeting.

Information: Rob Bencini is seeking input on Green Guilford and bringing the county's communities together. Call 641-2552.

Related Links
Should Commissioners Support This? ( debatables blog on Greensboro News and Record)

If Guilford County is going to work together to protect the environment, then it must gather its greenies.

That means developers, environmentalists, politicians and regular people must trade ideas, according to Green Guilford, a plan that would help unite those groups to improve the air, water and land.

On Thursday, environmentalists, a Deep Roots Market manager, a High Point city administrator, economic developers, a professor, Guilford County staffers and others agreed to send the plan to the county commissioners for review.

But getting it past the board, and the public, may be tougher than it appears.
“You have to do outreach and public education to get even elected officials to pay attention,” said Carolyn Allen, former Greensboro mayor and self-termed “tree hugger.”

Education and organization are major components of the tentative plan, along with:
Supporting government purchases of environmentally-friendly goods.
Creating a neighborhood sustainability advisory board.
Tapping into existing soil and water conservation groups.
A Web site driven by the coalition could result, according to Guilford County’s director of community and economic development, Rob Bencini, who is organizing the group called Green Guilford.
Bencini stressed that the group is still in the planning stages — it must get past the Guilford County Board of Commissioners, where the topic of money is sure to arise. So far, no specific dollar amounts have been mentioned.
And the plan needs refining, which may come when it goes before the county commissioners in an Aug. 12 work session.
“It needs widespread support from the staff and county commissioners,” said Kim Yarbray, fundraising chairwoman for the Sierra Club’s Piedmont Plateau Group.
Yarbray worked to help Greensboro become a “Cool City” in 2007, which means that by 2012, the city committed to lowering its greenhouse gas emissions by 7 percent of its 1990 levels.
A solid goal also is needed for Green Guilford, she said: “With unknown landscapes, people get scared.”
Another, loftier aim is to make a multijurisdictional group to drive positive environmental impact, a page stolen from King County, the home of Seattle. There, the Puget Sound Partnership united 11 counties, businesses, developers, Native American tribes and activists to clean water for salmon — a mainstay in the Pacific Northwest economy.
“The more buy-in we get, the greater it would be,” Bencini said of Guilford’s plan to borrow from that partnership.
But gaining that buy-in could be the biggest challenge. The relationships among Guilford County’s cities can get tense when regional projects — even those for a greater good — get underway.
For example, the Randleman dam project to create a reservoir for High Point, Greensboro and other municipal water supplies was fraught with construction delays and other holdups; by the end, several municipalities accused others of dragging their feet to finish.
And water conservation and quality is no small issue, particularly on the heels of 2007’s severe drought, whose effects still linger as Guilford County heads into another round of August temperatures.
Clean air is another green concern for the county where Interstates 40 and 85 connect. The EPA in 2005 cited the county for high soot levels in the air.
As groups rise to handle those and other environmental issues, public attention naturally goes to the problems.
But the county would benefit to band those groups — and effort — together, according to the Green Guilford plan.
“We have so many groups that are not talking,” Bencini said. “How do we make it work?”

Contact Gerald Witt at 373-7008 or gerald.witt@news-record.com

HERE ARE SEVERAL QUESTIONS TO PONDER about "GREENING GUILFORD COUNTY"

What does "Green Guilford" entail? Definitions of “green” seem to mean different things to different folks depending upon their role within the community. Many actions reflect reliance upon development corridors and loops rather than moving toward light rail which is a better option for the environment.
One wonders where the agronomists, farmers, landowners, and regular people were in the development of the proposal by the Green Build partners. In deference to the Green Giant, many average consumers are aware of the environmental constraints in Piedmont North Carolina.

If the intent of the proposal was to encourage creative community problem solving, why were none of the above mentioned as helping develop the proposal? Education and organization won’t work unless there is a level playing field OR collaboration.

Will "Green Guilford" preserve the integrity of lifestyle as presented in the County and Greensboro's comprehensive plans? To date the news of projects comes across as "hit and miss" with regard to maintenance of community integrity. One council member aptly noted their regard for the maintenance of integrity depended upon the thorough homework of a community of residents. Hummm! Otherwise, the governing bodies may vote in deference to their comprehensive plans.

If the same folks manage the decisions as to the life and death of community projects are the major proponents of "Green Guilford", one would expect little change in the quality of our social/emotional interaction and further damage to the air and water quality.

Developing a multi-jurisdictional group without ethical grounding (the commissioners do not have an ethics policy) would further compromise the rights of citizens who would not buy into this type of regionalism.

Without the answers to these questions, how does a commissioner know what they are supporting? Perhaps they will receive them at their work session on August 12.

Donna Bonds
Member of the Coalition of Concerned Citizens of the Triad

GREENING GUILFORD, GREENING GUILFORD THE TIME IS NOW

Land-use and transportation planning should be open, ethical and inclusive of many members of any given community. I hope that our community can progress beyond conventional land-use regulations to achieve the kind of conservation gains experienced by other municipalities who have implemented “Growing Greener”, “Smart-Growth” and “Conservation Development” principles.

Conservation begins with an understanding of the significance of the natural world and our dependence upon it to sustain human life.

The critical elements of a community’s “green infrastructure” are just as important as the conventional “gray infrastructure” of pipes, wires and roads.
Recognizing the enormous advantage of conservation development design approaches, local officials are amending zoning to allow the same number of houses that would have fit onto the land under a conventional build-out to be located on 1/3 the property, protecting the remaining areas to be permanently preserved open spaces and natural areas.

Mixed-use urban infill redevelopment must be included in every “Comprehensive Plan” to promote sustainable economic growth without continued geographic expansion.

Sustainable development designs are essentially local in their impacts, but the cumulative, positive effect of many such projects will ultimately produce community-wide and regional benefits over the long term.

We challenge planners and developers to incorporate the tools of the landscape architect and the conservation biologist, which have generally been neglected, to plan an interconnected system of protected lands across our communities. We ask our planners to work closely with conservation professionals, water quality experts and wildlife officials to produce a more balanced pattern of conservation and development. The current imbalance is related directly to the fact that conventional zoning ordinances are unimaginative and land-hogging without any significant conservation components, except for the unbuildable wetlands, floodplains, and steep slopes. Zoning laws throughout the US are based on the same original source: the Zoning Enabling Act passed in 1926 by Congress, as proposed by Herbert Hoover. The US cannot continue this explosive increase in land consumption relative to population growth.

Sound planning policies will be essential to conserve and protect our community’s natural and cultural heritage. Only when a community identifies its resources in a Comprehensive Plan can new growth respect the integrity of the community’s history and culture.

Briefly stated, the technique of conservation development is to outline the unbuildable areas, followed by the open spaces to be permanently protected first and to let its size and location become the central organizing element for the rest of the design, with roads planned last. We disagree with a future of the systematic conversion of every acre of buildable land into a developed use. Pennsylvania has a minimum 50% requirement for open space on buildable land where conservation development design has become a basic requirement.

Guilford County might want to request consults by Dr. Bill Holman with Duke’s Nicholas Institute, currently working in collaboration with UNC School of Government on the future of water in NC (engineering the use of storm water as a resource in new plans) and Southern Environmental Law Center attorney, David Farren, who worked with the Piedmont Triad Council of Governments on air quality non-attainment in the Triad. The SELC booklet “Clean Air for the Triad Action Agenda” would be an excellent reference, as well as the American Planning Association’s Planning Policy for Climate Change that was released in April 2008.

Greening Guilford is exciting news!!

Cathy Poole
Coalition of Concerned Citizens of the Triad