Revitalization proponents plan to ask city of High Point for $700,000 for the Pit

The Pit

The master plan for revitalizing High Point's center puts meat on the bones of several ideas already articulated by urban planner Andres Duany, including an urban play area, "dieting" North Main Street, creating new green space around the library and seeding downtown with shipping containers.

City Project, a city-supported nonprofit, presented recommendations from the forthcoming master plan, which is expected any day now, to a group of business leaders and city council members during a luncheon meeting at High Point Country Club today.

Peter Freeman, a local architect who worked as a sub-consultant for Miami-based Duany Plater-Zyberk, presented plans for the Pit — a concrete abscess left in the wake of a failed parking deck that is being reclaimed as a gathering spot — to four members of city council on Monday. City Project plans to request $700,000 to clean up the site at the next city council meeting on Nov. 4. Richard Wood, a financial advisor with Wells Fargo who serves as the nonprofit's board chair, said an additional $300,000 will be needed to equip the site with a sound system, lighting and portable stages.

"It used to be a double-decker parking garage," Freeman said. "Sometime in the '70s they found some structural problems on the upper deck and there was demolition work that was done. So we're left with this depressed urban area, which is actually pretty darn cool. And that's what we want to take advantage of. In the back part there is part of that double-decker area. And it just happens to have a pedestrian level walkway that goes out to Main Street. Additionally, right across the street on Main Street is a hotel that can be used to support this venue."

Once fully realized, Freeman said the Pit could have an area for games such as corn-hole, bocci and "full-size Jenga"; murals; oversized screens for televised sporting events and movies and a music venue on the first level, where "the acoustics are just fantastic." The venue would hold contests to commission the murals as part of a strategy to engage the kind of young, creative and educated people the city is trying to attract.

Peter Freeman

"The idea is to build in this flexibility so that young people can do things differently the way they want to do them," Freeman said.

Executive Director Wendy Fuscoe said City Project hired Freeman to draw schematics of the Pit, in addition to his role as a sub-consultant of Duany Plater-Zyberk.

Freeman's presentation focused on young creatives as a target for the city's revitalization efforts, noting that there are 330,000 college students within 75 miles of High Point.

"These are young, educated, creative individuals, who have not made decisions about where to settle down, raise their families and start their businesses," he said.

Mayor Bernita Sims took a noncommittal tack when asked if she would support the request for funding for the Pit, while describing herself as "a big supporter of City Project."

"When it comes down to the money that it's going to take, I think we need a comprehensive plan," she said. "This is big, in my opinion. It doesn't take one or two years. If you look at what's happened in Greenville, South Carolina, that took decades. I'm more concerned with what the process looks like. The Pit is a million dollars; that's the figure I came up with. What will it cost to redevelop the library parking lot and the area along North Main Street? You can't do this in a vacuum. Whatever Duany gives as his idea, a good planner will attach a cost. What do you think it would cost to do road dieting?"

Sims alluded to several other components of the initiative, which have been highlighted by Duany and City Project over the past several months.

Fuscoe said City Project has recently received eight proposals from private firms interested in studying the feasibility of "dieting," or slowing down traffic on North Main Street to create a pedestrian-scale urban environment.

The master plan recommendation for dieting North Main Street including creating a lane down the center for left turns and emergencies that could be used for a future streetcar, widening the sidewalks to accommodate pedestrians, adding parallel parking to provide a buffer from the street and planting trees.

"Whoever we choose will be studying the impact and implications of dieting the street," she said. "That will be quite the controversial project. When you go from making a roadway five lanes to three lanes, what is the impact of that. If most vehicles are thru-traffic going to Thomasville, then they'll probably choose other roads to get there. If we find out that a lot of these cars are going to places within our areas, then that's another matter."

Fuscoe said she hopes the nonprofit will choose a firm by the end of the year, and have an impact study completed by the middle of 2014. She added that the process will emphasize public participation to ensure that anyone who lives in the affected area will be able to provide input.

City Project also hired Freeman to produce schematic drawings based on a recommendation in the master plan to create additional green space in front of the High Point Public Library by tearing out part of the parking lot. Fuscoe and Wood picked up a check for $15,000 from the High Point Regional Association of Realtors, which will cover most of the cost of the work.

The master plan also includes recommendations for a children's park in the parking lot in front of North State Communications as a teaser for a future children's museum, a center city amphitheater, adding sidewalk cafes on Commerce Avenue and transforming the Old Oak Hollow Mall, which is owned by High Point University, into a regional incubator called the Inc. Pad.

Freeman also said the Wells Fargo parking lot on East Kivett Drive has been cited as a possible site to line the street with shipping containers custom chopped to accommodate retail stores and bars. Wood said before the presentation that he is skeptical of the idea — one of Duany's signature proposals — because he questions whether a market will develop to support the small business ventures.

High Point Partners, a business group that hosted the presentation, voted to expand the size of its board of directors to create a seat for a representative of City Project.

Scott Tilley, a financial advisor with Merrill Lynch who chairs High Point Partners, urged his fellow business leaders and city council members to support the revitalization effort.

"If we don't do something now and we let the momentum and the energy die down, it will be a very long time before we have the opportunity again," he said. "So let's seize the day, seize the moment, have some leadership out of our group and make some of these things happen."

Racial divide surfaces in call for High Point mayor's resignation

Ladon Williams interjects her own message behind protesters Don Ella Carter, Jeff Forsyth and Kay Sharpe (l-r)

White citizens of High Point invoked Jesus and urban planner Andres Duany in their quest to pressure the city's first African-American mayor resign.

Dueling demonstrations outside the Municipal Building followed by statements from speakers during a city council meeting tonight followed the pattern of the racially divided vote last Thursday on a resolution calling on Mayor Bernita Sims and Councilman Foster Douglas to resign: White people wanted Sims to go while black people stood behind her.

Bernita Sims

"Your campaign slogan was 'Making High Point greater,'" said Pam Stern, a real-estate investor who owns the building known as the World's Largest Chest of Drawers. "That doesn't mean when you first get into office to change Kivett Drive to Martin Luther King Boulevard. This is the first thing you did when you came into office. Please don't ruin the momentum Andres Duany left behind. Another generation is in a good place now to come out and change our town. This has put a wrench in the wheel of progress. Please don't let race get in the way of their hopes for a better tomorrow. Since council voted 6 to 3, you should step down."

Calls for Sims and Foster to resign arose from fellow council members in the wake of revelations published in the High Point Enterprise that Sims was under investigation by the State Bureau of Investigation for writing a bad check in an estate settlement, failing to pay her utility bill and delinquency on state income taxes. Douglas' outstanding debt to the city stemming from the dismissal of a lawsuit he brought against the city has been known since before he first ran for council in 2008.

Stern has been an active promoter of an initiative by the city-funded City Project to bring urban planner Andres Duany to High Point to lay out a vision for renewing the vibrancy of downtown, Uptowne and the High Point University area.

"I hope that you're not just staying on for a paycheck or your insurance," Stern continued. "For the sake of the city as a whole we do not want to divide our city over your old problems. Please listen to council and your hearts. This is not good to stay on right now. What would Jesus do? We are embarrassed and we want somebody put in your place."

Stern suggested that Jeff Golden, the only remaining African-American council member, be appointed to replace Sims. Prior to the meeting while picketing outside the Municipal Building, Stern said, "I think they should let Jeff Golden fill in as mayor. He's decent; he's passive."

Ryan Saunders and Pam Stern (right)

Thirteen people — all white — stood to support Stern during the meeting. Moments earlier, 22 people — all black — had stood to support Sims. The number of people who explicitly called for Sims' resignation and spoke in her support evenly split with five on each side.

"I submit that this council has been distracted to an epic proportion," said the Rev. Maurice Bowden, "and that in order for this council to get back on task it would take hours upon hours just for them to refocus their attention on the things that are pressing the High Point community: affordable housing, jobs, safety of our citizens.... I demand that all of those council members who have been so distracted, who have perpetuated this madness, that you resign immediately."

Presiding over the meeting, Sims allowed people on both sides to speak beyond their allotted time of three minutes. Audience members in both factions called time on each other. Sims' critics insisted their call for her resignation had nothing to do with race, and two white speakers said they felt intimidated. One white woman instructed Sims to "watch out after your fellow persons that come to these meetings," adding, "I'm not here to be intimidated and pushed around because people are standing up for you. I am standing up for me and my people." Leaving the meeting, a white man indignantly remarked that Sims should resign because she was unable to "control her people."

Ladon Williams (left) and the Rev. Brad Lilley (center)

Martin Harper Sr. said the call for Sims to resign is offensive because it disregards the will of the voters.

"That one vote and one voice will be the fairest way for the voices of the general public to be heard," he said. "Not the opinions of 'I've got this mad group of people over here that says this,' not the opinions of 'I've got this angry group of people over here that's demanding this,' but one vote, one voice. Those votes and those voices were counted and duly heard and legally certified by the elections commission of Guilford County in the state of North Carolina back last November when we elected Bernita Sims as our mayor — 12,000-plus voices, many of them who just recently got the right to vote when you compare the timeframe to the overall age of this great country of ours.... We take it personally when we feel that voice is being affected, when we feel it is being disaffected, when we feel it is being possibly nullified."

Ryan Saunders, a social entrepreneur who has organized several festivals in an effort to revitalize downtown High Point along the lines of Andres Duany's vision, echoed the call for Sims to resign.

Mayor Bernita Sims (right) and council members

"I have a vision and goals for this city and I do not feel that you have proven your ability to lead us to a greater High Point," Saunders told Sims. "A true leader works to help bring communities together and to help improve social challenges such as racism, poverty, joblessness and the overall betterment of the community, not to incite a greater divide. This situation has proven to me that you are not able to handle the challenges of being a public figure and that you do not respect your position as representative of your city. Ms. Sims, I ask that if you're not able to stand tall and confront all of your critics and supporters alike and state that you understand that the issues that have been presented have negatively impacted us, that you want to put these issues behind you and you are dedicated to working to make this city greater and have a plan to do so then I must ask you to resign as mayor of High Point."

After the meeting, Saunders said he was disturbed by the racial polarization that has emerged around the call for the mayor's resignation and the ugly tenor of some of the comments. He said that while his remarks were not motivated by racism, he had come to the decision that he must reconsider his position.

Citizens stand to protest a resolution calling on Sims to resign.

"After the experience in City Hall, I feel like the differences are so fundamental and the pressures on both sides creates a difficult situation for everyone," he said. "I think the best thing is for everyone to try to move past this. I think that we need to accept that the conversation about whether or not she should resign has reached a stalemate and to continue that is only going to make the situation more ugly. We need to step back and address an issue that maybe there are stronger racial lines than we realize. I don't think her resigning is the best option anymore. I feel we need to embrace this opportunity — I feel like she should embrace the opportunity that is presented — to open up a healthy conversation where we can move forward together."

In other business, the council voted 7 to 2 to enforce an order to demolish the Kilby Hotel, a historic building that housed prominent guests such as Duke Ellington on Washington Street. The hotel was a landmark in a district that was historically the heart of black social and economic life during the Jim Crow era.

Citizens stand to call on Sims to resign.

Burnie McElrath, who co-owns the building with her daughter, Myra Williams, said the interior of the building collapsed in August 2012. McElrath said she would like to stabilize the building, but she is unable to insure it as long as it is vacant. Council members, backed by an opinion by City Attorney JoAnne Carlyle, worried that an injury caused by further deterioration could create a liability for the city. Williams said estimates for the cost of shoring up the building, not to mention restoring it, range from $175,000 to $300,000.

Council members Foster Douglas and Jeff Golden voted against demolition.

For the demolition to go through, the city must obtain approval from the Guilford County Preservation Commission. The commission has the authority to delay demolition for up to 365 days.

Bernita Sims sworn in as mayor of High Point

Justice Henry Frye administers the oath of office to Bernita Sims as her family members look on.

Bernita Sims was sworn as the first African-American mayor of High Point by retired NC Supreme Court Justice Henry Frye in a historic ceremony tonight.

Frye also administered the oath to returning council members Becky Smothers, Britt Moore and Foster Douglas, along with newcomers Jeff Golden, Judy Mendenhall, Jay Wagner, Jim Davis and Jason Ewing during the ceremony at High Point Theatre.

Sims told an audience of elected officials, family members, campaign supporters and other citizens that she looks forward to engaging the community through three new mayor's commissions focusing on millennials; youth, education and families; and arts and culture.

"I believe that each of the council members sitting here today believes in High Point and has committed themselves to making High Point a great place to live, work and play," Sims said. "The city's commitment to the growth of small businesses and the retention and attraction of new businesses can only be enhanced by the council members sitting here."

Sims said the city will continue to collaborate with High Point University and other educational institutions.

"Resurgence and revitalization of our core communities is vital to the success of our city's continued growth and prosperity," she said. "We have much to do to achieve these goals. Our drive to grow the tax base, improve our schools and the quality of education in partnership with Guilford County Schools, to provide quality services to our residents and our commitment to provide the citizens of High Point with a quality of life that meets or exceeds their expectations is part of our mission. This is a tall order in these economic times, but one that can be achieved with cooperation, communication and commitment by each and every one of our citizens and corporate residents."


 

High Point City Council ward candidates outline views

Ward 1 candidates Jeffrey Golden (left) and Bernita Sims

Candidates for High Point City Council ward seats discussed community policing, empty industrial properties, neighborhood-level governance and where they would live if they had to leave High Point. Candidates' responses indicated a critical perspective on policing and revealed a perception of disparate treatment. They offered a range of ideas on what to do with the empty manufacturing facilities that dot the core city. Most but not all supported the concept of a neighborhood congress. An incumbent took a stand against privatization of the state's liquor monopoly, and a newcomer argued for a small business incubator modeled after Greensboro's Nussbaum Center. Candidates gave entertaining responses to a question about their second favorite city in North Carolina.

Ward 4 candidate AB Henley, Ward 5 candidate Geoff Shull and Ward 6 candidate Gerald Grubb did not participate.

Moderator Al Heggins asked candidates how they would rate the High Point Police Department’s effectiveness in the practice of community policing on a scale of 1 to 5.

Bernita Sims, Ward 1 candidate: “Speaking only about community policing, I would probably have to rate them at a two and a half. And the reason for that is I believe that overall our police department probably does well. I believe that there’s a desire on the part of the leadership team that’s in place in the police department to do well. But I believe there is a lack of some transparency in the department as it relates to how do officers deal with some very specific issues that occur in wards 1 and 2. I believe there are some things that indicate that we could do a little bit better in how we treat those citizens in those wards. We could do a little bit better with how we communicate with those citizens in those wards. We could do better with creating a relationship with the individuals who live there, with those that have neighborhood associations and try to foster a situation where there’s not this fear of police and we could create a basic understanding of what the police department does and how it functions. Could they be better? Absolutely, yes. Overall, the performance of the police department somewhat overshadows this issue when you talk about community policing. And I think there needs to be some changes made.”

Jeffrey Golden, Ward 1 candidate: “I just go by life experiences to support my answer. What I see from living in this community is you tend to have slower responses in some communities, especially the poorest ones. You tend to have a different kind of treatment in your dealings with police officers, primarily wards 1 and 2. But when you look at the overall picture, you would think that the High Point police is doing a very good job because crime is down – and the numbers say it’s down. Do I give the police credit for all that? No. I give a lot of credit to the neighborhood associations. I give a lot of credit to groups like [Community Against Violence.”

Foster Douglas, Ward 2 candidate: “I also believe that in Ward 1 as well as Ward 2 there is a lack of sensitivity. I don’t think the police department has the sensitivity when they approach different citizens, whatever the call may be. Although I think the department as a whole means well, but I think that until they are able to relate to different circumstances in different communities – I also think that being in the community more often, knowing people within the community, on the streets, knowing their names, knowing the people in the third house over on Chestnut Street, knowing what their names are, I think that would be a good way to improve the communication with the police department.”

Jill Harwood, Ward 2 candidate: “In Ward 2, my husband and I have visited the various homes, they had that same feeling that [the police] weren’t respectful to the person living in that home…. A person is not the color of their skin. A person is a person that has feelings, has a home and don’t want it robbed , and don’t want to be disrespected. I wasn’t there when those things happened, but I feel we need better communication with the police force. I feel that the people of the neighborhood, just because you’re one neighbor don’t mean you can’t treat you like some other neighbor.”

Chris Williams, Ward 2 candidate: “I would give them probably about a three and a half — probably closer to a 4, a 3.8 or something. For me, the reason for that is the changes I’ve seen since I was a teenager, the amount of crime that was around in my neighborhood. Then, when I saw more police and community involvement, I saw it go down dramatically. I always try to tell people: ‘Police are people, too.’ They’re going to have good days. They’re going to have bad days.”

Bob Fowler, Ward 4 candidate: “It’s a difficult question to answer if you haven’t been directly involved in incidents dealing with the officers on a personal basis. Personally, I have not had that opportunity to do that…. It’s just going to take the quality of training that the officers receive, the quality of involvement of the community, different groups working with them…. Overall, I think they’re doing a fairly good job. There’s always room for improvement. I think I would give them a three and a half.”

Chris Whitley, Ward 5 candidate: “Community has changed since the years I’ve been on council. There was times on weekends when there was one officer north of the tracks, literally. Two police chiefs later things have improved. High Point CAV — they have been involved with creating the community policing concept that is now recognized nationwide and has actually received awards from the National League of Cities. In that context, they’re doing a good job, particularly in a bad economy…. I would agree that there is a concept that police treat different areas — I think as far as the number of officers, I think we’ve done a fairly good job of equalizing the number of officers around town. Overall, I would have to say I give them a 4 for the effort that they have done and for the policies that they have put in place. But is there improvements? There are definitely improvements needed. There may be some additional sensitivity, whether it’s the way they look, or they drive, how that individual reacts to them, just depends on the officer’s personality. Things can go different.”

Rodney Joslin, Ward 5 candidate: “I had one instance in which the police did come. We had a car stolen out of our garage. Based on that, I would give [the police] a 3. We were treated like — I guess they didn’t realize we were Ward 5. It was almost like we were involved with the theft. We weren’t very happy with that, [and] didn’t feel like we were treated in the best manner, and so in that instance we weren’t happy. But, a couple years later we have a tornado come through town, and they did a fantastic job. Four and a half. I give them a four and a half for what they did. It was unbelievable.”

Jim Corey, Ward 6 candidate: “Community policing is when policemen walk the beat and get to know their neighborhoods and people that live in neighborhoods. And if my understanding of the concept of community policing is correct, we don’t do much community policing in this community or most other communities. Today, policemen ride around in cars. And basically, that might be someone’s concept of community policing, but it’s not the traditional concept of community policing where policemen are actually in communities walking the beat. So, since very rarely is this do anymore in America, I can’t use that criteria to, if you will, judge the High Point Police Department. I would probably give them about a 3. I think that probably violent crime and other things would cloud my judgment in giving them a three because if I were using my criteria it would be about a 1. But I do think, riding in their car, they’ve reduced crime and other indices, so I’ll give them a 3.”

Jason Ewing, Ward 6 candidate: “I would give our police department a 4. Now, granted I don’t have any experience in wards 1 and 2, so I can only speak to what I’ve experienced in the north part of High Point. I’ve done police ride-longs, so I do know what kind of calls and what their technology is. And they have some excellent technology to ensure the public safety of our citizens and the safety of the police officers. And the community groups, the Community Against Violence has done a great job with reducing the violent crime and some of the crime with violent offenders. I wish I could rate it better on the whole as a whole city by having experience in the other parts of the city that probably – that might be more neglected or at least feel like they’re more neglected that other folks are.”

What should be done to reuse empty industrial and commercial buildings in High Point?

Sims, Ward 1: “I think that perhaps we need to look at some nontraditional uses. There are dollars available through the state for historic tax credits, mill tax credits, all types of tax credits. I think to go in and look at revitalizing those or rehabilitating those buildings for housing needs — we talk about affordable housing — maybe that’s an opportunity to make that happen with some mixed use going on as well. Some retail mixed with some housing mixed with some other things that could sort of think outside the box or throw away the box in how we do it. We talk about the 12-foot ceilings and how difficult it is to go back in and have traditional businesses relocate in there, or let’s say manufacturing relocate. And I would say were doing very well north of town in the green fields. There are jobs that are being developed out there. There are things that are happening. And whether or not we’ll ever get back to that industrial base or manufacturing base that we’ve always had I don’t know. I do know that in other communities they have gone into old, abandoned warehouses and things of that nature and they’ve gone in and actually built housing. They’ve built apartments and other nontraditional things that provide a place for people to stay. And I think that in this community we do have a shortage of what I call low-to-moderate income housing and affordable housing. So I think that we need to look at other ways and other opportunities that might be available to us, and not just think in traditional terms of how do we get businesses to relocate to those areas. Let’s start thinking creatively about other things that we can do, even to the point of arts and cultural uses. What other things can we generate and bring to this community that would afford those kind of things that Mr. Golden has talked about of entertainment and all of those things. That’s an opportunity that is there, that we should take advantage of it.”

Douglas, Ward 2: “I think we would have to retrofit the buildings and so forth to get them to accommodate any company that would be willing to move to High Point to utilize those buildings.”

Fowler, Ward 4: “The biggest problem we have with a lot of our older buildings is lower ceilings for manufacturing. No one today wants a 12-foot ceiling. They want 18 feet, 24 feet, 28 feet in height if you’re doing any kind of storage, delivery, that kind of thing. They want to maximize their footage in height and width. That kind of narrows the field, if you will, of the type of occupants you could get into some of the older existing buildings with some of the lower ceilings. You would have to get some kind of either research [activities that don’t require as high a ceiling height].”

Whitley, Ward 5: “Retrofitting is far more expensive than new development, which is the exact reason why new development is going on in north High Point or in other areas, in some parts of south High Point because they’re looking for areas to make it a lot cheaper to build. Another option would be to get developers involved…. We have the option of a $900 million loan pool. This money could be used to turn around and help developers redevelop these same properties once everything’s gone through, the concept’s great. At that point you decide whether you’re going to put residential, retail, manufacturing.”

Joslin, Ward 5: “I don’t know how to comment on that other than the fact that other cities have been successful with doing things with their older buildings, so we know that it’s possible to do. You can look at their success and try to copy that. For instance, I think Winston has condos going into some of their older buildings. Greensboro also has.”

Corey, Ward 6: “Convert some of them into this small-business incubator. I visited the Nussbaum Center for Entrepreneurship in Greensboro, and they are housed in an old Cone mill, very similar to some of our factories that are no longer in operation. And it’s a beautiful building that’s divided up and is functioning now, it houses about 96 businesses. So this is what can be done with abandoned buildings. Another concept for abandoned buildings is basically to divide it into three floors. On the bottom floor you have retail stores. In the middle floor you have offices. And on the top floor you have residences. So you have like a little niche community all in one building. You could convert many buildings to this mini-community model.”

Ewing, Ward 6: “The cost of retrofitting our current buildings to adapt to whatever industry we want to bring in is going to be far greater than the cost of demolishing the building and rebuilding something that would suit them exactly. That would be one option. Another option: Some of the manufacturing buildings and factories have manufacturing villages around them and utilizing some ideas I’ve heard to try to really build up those villages again and then utilize the factories as mini-shopping centers. Another option that goes along with regionalism would be utilizing some of those old vacant factories and some of the land to help build an inland port. We’re sitting on top of five major interstates. We have rail. We have three airports within a very small area, and High Point could be a fantastic area, really a center point of the Triad for us to try to bring in an inland port to try to attract more business and industry.”

One of the more entertaining sets was the candidates’ responses to a question about where they would choose to live if they were forced to leave High Point. Ward 2 candidates Jill Harwood and Foster Douglas refused to answer the question, with Douglas saying he would stay in the High Point neighborhood of Macedonia. Ward 6 candidate Jason Ewing used his time to make an appeal for regionalism by saying he would stay in the Triad and relocate to Winston-Salem. Ward 1 candidate Bernita Sims, who currently serves as mayor pro tem, easily gave the cleverest reply.

“If I were being forced to live in a different city in North Carolina, I think like Mr. Ewing, but I wouldn’t go to Winston; I’d go to Greensboro with the intent to go over there and straighten those people out," Sims said. "They could benefit greatly from my experience, skill level and the fact that I’m not afraid to say what’s on my mind. So if I were being forced to move — and again, I know that would be under duress — all of that anger and frustration I would take out on the city of Greensboro.”

Ward 2 candidates Foster Douglas (left), Jill Harwood and Chris Williams

Ward 4 candidate Bob Fowler


Ward 6 candidates Jim Corey (left) and Jason Ewing