News Alerts

Wake Transit Plan to be Reviewed by Town Councils

Logan Mintz — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 09:18:25 -0600

Wake County has released a draft plan for improving and expanding bus and rail service in Wake County. Wake County Commissioners now want each Wake city and town council to review the proposed Wake Transit Plan and obtain their approval for moving forward with a transit funding referendum. David Cooke, Wake County Manager, and David King, General Manager of Triangle Transit, recently presented the plan at a Capital Area Friends of Transit event. View the presentation here. You can also view a summary and maps of the plan on WakeUP's Land Use and Transportation tab. For a more comprehensive look, check out the whole plan on Wake County's website. The first town council briefing is for the town of Garner, 7:30pm on December 15th.

January 1-15, 2012

Logan Mintz — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 08:44:35 -0600

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR/ARTICLES
12/31/11 Triangle Politics: Wake school board makes 'gesture of good listening'
"Speakers once again will have three minutes each during the public comment section at Wake County school board meetings."

12/31/11 Teachers' pay that reflects respect
"I also realize that this idea is also pie in the sky. But as long as we continue to pay teachers low wages across the board, and only pretend to respect the profession, we will continue to hear the phrase, "Oh, he/she is just a teacher."

December 16-31, 2011

Logan Mintz — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 13:16:22 -0600

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR/ARTICLES

12/31/11 Triangle Politics: Wake school board makes 'gesture of good listening'
"Speakers once again will have three minutes each during the public comment section at Wake County school board meetings."

November 16-30, 2011

Logan Mintz — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 20:18:37 -0600

11/20/11 Schools' way forward
"No one wants to move backward; the newly elected board members have stated that they plan to move forward with deliberation, information and in the interest of providing the best education for all our children. Fear, however is once again being fueled. Let's move forward, people; we are supposed to be examples for our children."

11/19/11 Last-minute cash helped sway District 3 runoff
"A flurry of last-minute money, including some from a national liberal group, helped propel Democrats back into the majority on the Wake County school board this fall."

Transit 'core' Op-ed in News & Observer

Logan Mintz — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 00:01:44 -0600

There's a good case to be made for what could be called the all-the-way approach to mass transit improvements in the Triangle - load on the works, with expanded bus service plus commuter trains and light rail.

But it also can be argued that undertaking all of those transit upgrades at once would be too ambitious. Wake County Manager David Cooke's latest strategy reflects a sense that it would be better to stretch things out - better financially and better politically. He could be on the right track.

Speaking of tracks: It's the rail component of the overall improvement plan that causes heartburn here and there, especially among some of our local conservatives. But Cooke makes a distinction between commuter rail service that could be up and running fairly quickly, using existing N.C. Railroad tracks through the heart of the Triangle, and light rail between Cary and north Raleigh, which would be a new animal.

October 1-15, 2011, News Archive

Logan Mintz — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 11:10:12 -0500

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR/ARTICLES

10/15/11 School assignment vote should go on, Tata says
"Wake County schools Superintendent Tony Tata stands behind his decision to ask for a vote on the new student assignment plan next week - even as some newly elected school board members and parents say the vote should be delayed."

10/15/11 Pre-K resolve
"The recognition by Gov. Beverly Perdue that the state should follow a judge's decision on pre-kindergarten programs for all at-risk children in North Carolina is important."

Nov. 1-15, 2011, News Archive

Logan Mintz — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:14:28 -0500

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

11/13/11 New school stewards: Now, results

"The debate over student assignment has touched on a deeper set of issues at the heart of public education: How can schools maximize the prospects of each and every student? Are sound policies and ample resources the key to success or does success hinge on the motivation and self-responsibility of students and parents? Yes, and yes. As for the new school board, it must fully own up to the system's past shortcomings and be relentless in pushing toward new heights for all."

11/13/11 Party, race shaped board wins

Sept. 1-15, 2011, News Archive

Andrew Campbell — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 13:24:21 -0500

9/10/11 Magnet busing may be cut back
"Wake County magnet school students could lose door-to-door bus service under a proposal to save money and reduce long bus rides that sometimes reach two hours each way."
http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/09/10/1474974/magnet-busing-may-be-cut-...

9/10/11 Potential impact of switching to express busing only for magnet schools
"How much of an impact would going to express busing only for Wake County magnet schools have on the program?"
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/wakeed/potential-impact-of-switching-to-ex...

August 16-31, 2011, News Archive

Andrew Campbell — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 14:29:44 -0500

8/31/11 Wake NCAE announces school board candidate endorsements
"In a press release today, Wake NCAE announced it was endorsing Kevin Hill in District 3, Keith Sutton in District 4, Jim Martin in District 5, Christine Kushner in District 6 and Susan Evans in District 8."
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/wakeed/wake-ncae-announces-school-board-ca...

8/31/11 Wake Democrats announce school board and municipal candidate endorsements
"As expected, the Wake County Democratic Party announced Tuesday that it was endorsing Kevin Hill in District 3, Keith Sutton in District 4, Jim Martin in District 5, Christine Kushner in District 6 and Susan Evans in District 8."
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/wakeed/wake-democrats-announce-school-boar...

WakeUP Wake County Meets $10,000 Matching Goal!

Caitlin Burke — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 13:12:00 -0500

Thanks to YOUR generous contributions, we have reached our A.J. Fletcher Foundation matching challenge! We have raised $10,000 from NEW donors this year, and now A.J. Fletcher will make a generous $10,000 donation to WakeUP! Many thanks to the Fletcher Foundation and all of you who donated!