Winston-Salem

Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region. With a metropolitan population of 679,948 it is the fourth largest metropolitan area in North Carolina. In 2021, the city ranked No. 46 out of 150 cities on the "Best Places to Live" list from U.S. News & World Report. In April 2021, a study from Lendingtree's Magnify Money blog ranked Winston- salem the second best tech market for women. The city is called the "Twin City" for its dual heritage, and "the Camel City" is a reference to the city's historic involvement in the tobacco industry related to locally based R.J. Reynolds' Camel cigarettes. It is also home to six colleges and institutions, most notably Wake Forest University, Winston-salem State University, and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, which ranks as one of the best arts schools in America. The town of Salem dates to January 1753, when Bishop August Gottlieb Spangenberg, on behalf of the Moravian Church, selected a settlement site in the three forks of Muddy Creek. He called this area "die Wachau" (Latin form: Wachovia) after the ancestral estate of Count Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf. On January 6, 1766, the first tree was felled for the building of Salem.

History

The city of Winston-Salem is a product of the merging of the two neighboring towns of Winston and Salem in 1913. The town of Salem dates to January 1753, when Bishop August Gottlieb Spangenberg, on behalf of the Moravian Church, selected a settlement site in the three forks of Muddy Creek. In 1849, the Salem Congregation sold land north of Salem to the newly formed Forsyth County for a county seat. The new town was called "the county town" or Salem until 1851, when it was renamed Winston for a local hero of the Revolutionary War, Joseph Winston. By the 1880s, there were many different tobacco factories in the town with notable factories owned by Pleasant Hanes and R.J. Reynolds. In 1920, with a population of 48,395, Winston was the largest city in North Carolina. In 1929 the Reynolds Building was completed as the headquarters of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. In 1916, the company bought 84,000 acres (340,000 m2) of property in Winston-salem and built 180 houses that it called "Reynoldstown" by the time it died in 1918. The Reynolds Building is a 314 m96, skyscraper that has 21 floors (J Reynolds-style) and was completed in 1929. The city was designated by the United States federal government as an official port of entry for the U.S. despite the city being 200 miles (320 km) inland. In the 1950s, 60% of the city's workers worked either for Reynolds or in the Hanes textile factories.

Government

The governing body for the City of Winston-Salem is an eight-member City Council. Voters go to the polls every four years in November to elect the Mayor and Council. The Mayor is elected at large and council members are elected by citizens in each of the eight wards within the city. The City Council is responsible for adopting and providing for all ordinances, rules and regulations as necessary. It approves the city budget and sets property taxes and user fees. The Council appoints the City Manager and City Attorney and approves appointments to city boards and commissions. As of September 2020, the mayor was Allen Joines (D), who was first elected in 2001 and is longest-serving mayor in the city's history. The city is patrolled by the Winston- Salem Police Department, and the Chief of Police is Catrina A. Thompson. TheCity is provided fire protection by theWinston-Salen Fire Department. The Chief of the Department is William "Trey" Mayo. The members of the City Council were Mayor Pro Tempore Denise Adams (North Ward), Barbara Hanes Burke (Northeast Ward), Annette Scippio (East Ward), James Taylor, Jr. (Southeast Ward), John Larson (South Ward), Kevin Mundy (Southwest Ward), Robert Clark (West Ward), Jeff MacIntosh (Northwest Ward). City officials appointed by the Council included City Attorney Angela Carmon and City Manager Lee Garrity. The council also appointed the City Clerk and City Treasurer.

Geography

Winston-Salem is in the northwest Piedmont area of North Carolina, situated 65 miles (105 km) northwest of the geographic center of the state. The city lies within the YadkinPee Dee River Basin, mainly draining via Salem Creek, Peters Creek, Silas Creek, and Muddy Creek. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 133.7 square miles (346.3 km²), of which 132.4 sq miles (343.0 km²) is land and 1.2sq miles (3.2km²), or 0.93%, is water. It is located 16.66 miles northwest of High Point, 25.32 miles west of Greensboro, 69.04 miles northeast of Charlotte, and 80.20 miles east of Boone. Wake Forest Baptist Health is the largest employer in Forsyth County with over 13,000 employees and serves North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, and South Carolina. The average daily traffic count is 54,000, with average traffic count with average daily count of 14,000. The university is situated in the north-central and northwestern sections of the city, the 4-8 lane boulevard named after Wake Forest University serves as the downtown connector. The area is also known as the North Winston area, with Patterson Avenue running north to south and east to south. It also contains the Alspaugh and Mount Tabor Neighborhoods, which contains some of the town's most historic buildings.

Demographics

As of the 2020 U.S. census, there were 249,545 people, 94,884 households, and 53,708 families residing in the city. The city has about 54.14% of the population being religiously affiliated. Christianity is the largest religion, with Baptists (15.77%) making up the largest religious group, followed by Methodists (12.79%) and Catholics (4.39%). Pentecostals (2.97%), Episcopalians (1.3%), Presbyterians (0.59%), and Latter-Day Saints (0.90%) make up a significant amount of the Christian population as well. In addition, 14.8% was Hispanic or Latino, of any race, and 17.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.7% were non-families. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.06. The per capita income for the city was $24,728 and 20.6% of all families were below the poverty line. The mean income for a family was $60,637, and the mean yearly income was $74,938. The median age was 35 years, and 23.9% of. the population was under 18 years old, and 13.7%. The city's long history with the Moravian church has had a lasting cultural effect, and it is used as the city's official Christmas street decoration. It sits atop the North Tower of Wake Forest during the Advent and Christmas seasons.

Economy

Winston-Salem is the location of the corporate headquarters of HanesBrands, Inc, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc., Lowes Foods Stores, ISP Sports, Reynolds American (parent of R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company), Reynolda Manufacturing Solutions, K&W Cafeterias, and TW Garner Food Company. The city is transforming itself to be a leader in the nanotech, high-tech and bio-tech fields. Medical research is a fast-growing local industry, and Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center is the largest employer in the city. In December 2004, the city entered into a deal with Dell, providing millions of dollars in incentives to build a computer assembly plant nearby in southeastern Forsyth County. In January 2015, Herbalife opened a manufacturing facility in the space left vacant by Dell. Public and private investment of $713 million has created the Wake Forest Innovation Quarter, which features business, education in biomedical research and engineering, information technology and digital media, as well as public gathering spaces, apartment living, restaurants, and community events. Wachovia Corporation was based in Winston- Salem until it merged with First Union Corporation in September 2001. BB&T was alsobased in Winston, until it was merged with SunTrust Banks in December 2019; the corporate HQs of the combined company were relocated to Charlotte. Blue Rhino, the nation's largest propane exchange company and a division of Ferrellgas, is also headquartered in Winston.

Attractions

Old Salem is a restored Moravian settlement founded in 1766. Hanes Mall is a two-story shopping mall that has over 200 stores and five anchor tenants. Tanglewood Park hosts the Festival of Lights every year. Winston-Salem Dash is ranked as a " Top 100" event in America and a "Top 20" in the southeast. It is the largest shopping mall in the region and covers 1,558,860 square feet and 200 stores. The Wake Forest University Museum of Anthropology is an anthropological museum that has many artifacts and other pieces of history. It also hosts the Carolina Classic Fair (formerly Dixie Classic Fair) every year in autumn. It was founded in 1956 and was accredited by the American Museums Alliance of Museums in 1979. The museum was started as a center for education and arts and became an art gallery in 1967. It has collections from colonial period to the present day. This house is a 16-acre lake called "Katherine" and was reverted into wetlands and has a wide variety of wildlife. Many of the buildings were changed into shops, boutiques, and restaurants that still operate today. The house still is a main attraction in Winston-salem and is still a main house for the American Museum of Contemporary Art. It's also home to the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA), a gallery of 18th- and early 19th-century furniture, ceramics, and textiles. It offers an abundance of activities such as hiking, walking, fishing, biking, dog leashing, running, and more.

Sports

The Winston-Salem Dash is a Class High-AA Minor-League baseball team currently affiliated with the Chicago White Sox. Wake Forest University's football team plays its games at Truist Field at Wake Forest (formerly BB&T Field, and Groves Stadium), which seats 32,500. The Carolina Thunderbirds minor league hockey team began play in 2017 at the Winston- Salem Fairgrounds Annex in Winston- salem. Winston-salem hosts an ATP tennis tournament every year. The K&N Pro Series East also races here. It is NASCAR's longest-running racing series, dating to the 1940s. In the fall, the stadium is used for Winston- SALem State Rams football games. The Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum is home to Wake Forest and some Winston- Salam State basketball games. It's also the home of the Wake Forest men's and women's tennis teams, which are members of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) and the women's volleyball team, which is a member of the National Women's Volleyball Confederation (NWVC) The city is also home to the North Carolina State University women's basketball team, who were NCAA champions in 2007. The city has hosted the U.S. Open tennis tournament, which takes place every year in the fall. The tournament is held at the Wake University tennis center. The town is also the site of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series racing from March until August.

Education

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School System is the fourth largest school system in North Carolina with about 59,000 students and over 90 schools. The school with the largest student body population is West Forsyth High School with over 2,400 students as of the 2017-2018 school year. The district is the most diverseSchool system in N.C., with 51 elementary schools, 25 middle schools and 13 high schools. Private and parochial schools also make up a significant portion of Winston- salem's educational establishment. Until 2001, Winston-salem was home to Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School (now in Kernersville, North Carolina), one of only three Catholic high schools in North North Carolina. Winston- Salem Academy, located in Old Salem, has been providing education to young women since 1772. Wake Forest University, a four-year private research university, was founded in 1834 and moved to Winston- Salam in 1956. The city has a number of colleges and universities, including: Winston-Salen State University, University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Living Arts Institute, and Wake Forest Technical Community College. It is home to the oldest continuously operating educational institution for women in America, Salem College, founded in 1772, which provides education for young women for more than 200 years. It also has the oldest public high school in the U.S., which opened in 1872. It has the largest number of private elementary schools in the state, with 51.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina = 38.2. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 80. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 98. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Winston-Salem = 4.7 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 249,545 individuals with a median age of 36.2 age the population grows by 8.90% in Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 1,868.82 residents per square mile of area (721.55/km²). There are average 2.33 people per household in the 82,513 households with an average household income of $40,442 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is of the available work force and has dropped -4.75% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 21.50%. The number of physicians in Winston-Salem per 100,000 population = 357.6.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Winston-Salem = 45.5 inches and the annual snowfall = 9.2 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 113. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 216. 87 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 27.3 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 38, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina which are owned by the occupant = 51.32%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 35 years with median home cost = $115,240 and home appreciation of -1.86%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $8.46 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $5,053 per student. There are 15.8 students for each teacher in the school, 713 students for each Librarian and 407 students for each Counselor. 5.04% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 19.15% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 10.79% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).