COMMUNITY INFORMATION: OAK RIDGE 30
OAK RIDGE Stokesdale Forsyth County
Summerfield
Oak Ridge
AT A GLANCE
What was likely once a footpath for Native Americansevolvedintoafarmingcommunitynamedafter theoaktreesrunningalongthehighestridgeinGuilford County. Oak Ridge gained fame as a place of higher learningwhenin1852citizens“desirousofpromoting thecauseofeducation”establishedOakRidgeInstitute, whichin1971becameOakRidgeMilitaryAcademy;itis nowtheoldestprivatemilitaryschoolinNorthCarolina. In 1998 Oak Ridge residents voted to incorporate their community in order to have a say in how their town was governedandhowitwouldberesidentiallyandcommerciallydeveloped.Besidestheappealofarurallandscape,asmall butthrivingcommercialdistrict,10-minutedrivetoPiedmont TriadInternationalAirport,andeasyaccesstoI-40,I-73and the cities of Greensboro, High Point and Winston-Salem provideOakRidgeresidentswiththebonusofconvenience. Across from Oak Ridge Town Hall on Linville Road lies the town’s “crown jewel,” an 80-acre community park that features athletic fields, a concession stand and restroom facilities, picnic shelters, walking trails, a playground, dog park and an amphitheater. In 2018 the town acquired “the Whitakerproperty,”consistingof62acresofopenlandthat abutsOakRidgeTownHallonLinvilleRoad,withfrontageon N.C.150.Thetownhopestogetconstructionunderwaythis spring to develop the Whitaker property, which has been named “Heritage Farm Park,” for an expansion of its existing park. Heritage Farm Park will initially offer two lighted multi-purposefields,atrail,aplayground,picnicshelters, restrooms, a parking lot and a site to honor veterans. Oak Ridge officials have been exploring options for a municipal water system since soon after incorporating 24 years ago. In 2019 the state legislature distributed equallyamongOakRidge,SummerfieldandStokesdale theremaining$3.4millionthathadbeenearmarkedfor aregionalwatersystemstudy,contingentuponeachof themunicipalitiesusingthefundingforwater-related projects. Oak Ridge plans to use its $1.1 million share, and funds from a $2.1 million allocation from the county through the American Rescue Plan Act, to help establish a municipal water system that will initially serve new subdivisions with 30 or more houses; after a year of negotiations, the town enteredintoacontractwithEnvirolinkinJuly2021 to establish and operate the system.
northwest Greensboro
Incorporation date: 1998
Size: approx. 15 square miles
Property tax rate: 8¢ per $100 of property value (town), 73¢ per $100 (county), 9.77¢ per $100 (fire department) Sales tax rate: combined 6.75% (2% for Guilford County; 4.75% for North Carolina)
POPULATION 3,988
2000
6,185
2010
7,488 (per U.S. Census figures/April 2020)
CURRENT
AGE Under 18 ........................................................................................................ 29.3% 65 and over ....................................................................................................13.7%
EDUCATION (age 25 and over) High school graduate (or higher) .........................................................97.7% Bachelor’s degree or higher ....................................................................................50.3% Households with broadband internet subscription: 86.9%
HOUSING Median value of owner-occupied housing unit: $383,300 Estimated number of households: 2,275; Estimated number of family members per household: 3.03
INCOME Median household income: $127,578 Families with income in last 12 months below poverty level: 4.3% Residents without health insurance (under age 65): 4%
