August 5 — 11, 2015
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6
4 local newspaper owners’ political donations by Brian Clarey
Think big, move forward
This is more of what we need in this city [“Kick out the jambs: An urban planner reimagines downtown Greensboro”; by Brian Clarey; July 29, 2015]. It really takes outside muscle (via a big blanket grant like this one) and people in the arts outside of the insulation of city government to begin asking bigger questions of development. I like the way this guy thinks, especially in terms of getting downtown bigger in a sustainable way. (My idea? Big, affordable housing developments, a few more bus lines to where jobs are and an Aldi, for starters.) We’ve seen cool, fancy, urban ideas try to take root in Greensboro to copy bigger cities and their models, much like a little sibling trying to copy its cooler, more successful older brother, but it usually ends up failing. Why? When the point of any new initiative is a fancy idea and not solving an actual issue that was researched and a solution had actual demand here in Greensboro from people of various backgrounds and social classes, those ideas tend to flop. Not that I’m talking about the pointless ghost town that is Co//ab or anything. Not that I’m talking about the plans in the works for a hip co-working space a la HQ Raleigh. (I’m not sure any of us know what businesses are actually asking for a co-working space to begin with. This is the problem.) I’d love to see more of this ethnographic, walking-the-streets type research coming from not only government, but also the large crop of brand new (and sometimes redundant) nonprofit initiatives popping up left and right, and much less of the “if we build it, they will come” mentality with zero demand for such things. I hope Patrick sticks around for a few more years and really gets to know people in this quirky city. I’ll be cheering him on. Joanna Rutter, Greensboro I agree and disagree with [Joanna Rutter]’s comments. Downtown needs people like Patrick and forward progress needs to continue even against the typical pushback of Greensboro. I agree attention must be directed to the current needs of the current community. However, some concepts like co-op spaces and other contemporary ideas (borrowed from our bigger metro areas) need to occur to bring new residents/businesses into our city as well as help keep young professionals. The city cannot stay in a box. Christian Yorkshire, via triad-city-beat.com In praise of the e-reader The problem with the three free weekly papers covering Winston-Salem is that by the time I finally get my hands on one, I learn about all the great events and happenings I just missed. Arrrgh! But moments ago I discovered the TCB E-reader, the solution to my problem! Now all I need to do is remember to open it! I will now attempt a calendar reminder that will automatically send an email every Wednesday morning. (Degree of difficulty: 7.5) Mike J. Baron, Winston-Salem
1. Roy Carroll, the Rhino Times Campaign finance plays an increasing role in our coverage as we move towards election season. We’ll dive in with the local stuff in the weeks to come, but for now let’s take a look at elections past and those who shouldn’t have been funding them. Even before he resuscitated a dead Rhino, Roy Carroll was a big giver, with $2,600 to Thom Tillis for his Senate campaign in 2014, and $1,000 for the woman Tillis defeated, Kay Hagan, in 2012. That same year he donated a whopping $20,000 to the Mitt Romney Victory campaign. He also kicked in $5,300 to Trudy Wade’s last Senate election, according to followthemoney.org. 2. Charles Womack, Yes Weekly Newspaper owners, we hold, should remain neutral in the elections and party politics. Obviously Yes publisher Charles Womack disagrees — or did. His last big recorded donations were a $1,000 contribution to
Gov. Pat McCrory’s campaign and a $250 check for Mitt Romney in 2012. He also gave $500 to the Friends of Christine O’Donnell PAC and $100 to Trudy Wade’s first Senate campaign in 2010. 3. Warren Buffet, Greensboro News & Record and Winston-Salem Journal Warren Buffet is pretty stingy by billionaire standards, with only a few hundred thousand given over to the political class this century. But that total includes an early donation — made in 2014 — to a Hillary Clinton PAC. 4. Brian Clarey, Triad City Beat Here’s some easy math: I never gave nothin’ to nobody. For one, I’ve never been registered to either political party. For another, I don’t have any money. But even if I did, as a newspaper owner — and, more importantly, an editor — I feel that it isn’t my place to get involved in the circus that I’m covering in my pages.
The School Voucher Edition 3. High Point
Vouchers for the 2015-16 school year have come in, 5,078 of them for up to $4,200 each, and students in High Point have claimed 167 of them. High Point Christian Academy owns 57 of these vouchers, the most in the city, with TriCity Christian Academy pulling in 44 and Wesleyan Christian Academy taking in 35.
2. Winston-Salem
Students in the Camel City unhappy with the public school choices received 190 vouchers, with Salem Baptist Christian School acquiring 52 of them in this way. Other top recipients of funds that heretofore would go to the public school system are Winston-Salem Christian Academy with 34, and Gospel Light Christian School and Woodland Baptist Christian School with 25 each.
1. Greensboro
Greensboro pulled in the most vouchers of any of the Triad’s Big 3, with 217 in total. Most of them went to the Greensboro Islamic Academy with 123, second in the state only to Trinity Christian School in Fayetteville, which took in 129. Third on the statewide list is also a Muslim school, the Al-Iman School in Raleigh, which accepted 101 vouchers. Vandalia Christian School had the second highest total in Greensboro, with 36.