High Point City Council votes Monday on $200,000 to restore two Washington Street buildings, a $2.2 million sewer repair and land buying for the Triangle Lake Road widening.

High Point City Council is asked Monday to put $200,000 of city reserves toward restoring two historic buildings on Washington Street for small businesses. The vote is one of 23 action items on the agenda for the council’s regular meeting at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2.

The meeting is in Council Chambers at the Municipal Office Building, 211 S. Hamilton St. The agenda and the 308-page agenda packet are on the city’s meeting portal.

The Washington Street money

The money would be a 20% local match for a $1 million state grant. Business High Point Inc. won that grant for its Shop on Washington project in 2023, according to the staff report in the packet.

The agreement in the packet says the money would go to renovating and preserving 614 and 747 Washington Street. Both are contributing buildings in the Washington Street Historic District, which became a local historic district in late 2023.

The staff report also says:

  • the city’s 2026 request to the state for a separate Thrive Shops on Washington Street project was not funded
  • Guilford County put $250,000 into that Thrive effort
  • reviving Washington Street as a neighborhood center is one of the council’s strategic goals and is in the city’s 2045 Comprehensive Plan

The Finance Committee reviewed the item Thursday. It is on the general business agenda, so the council discusses it on its own instead of passing it in one vote with the routine items. Our Washington Street neighborhood guide has the district’s history.

Land buying for Triangle Lake Road

The council is asked to approve a $723,000 task order with Volkert Inc. to buy land and handle relocations for the Triangle Lake Road widening. High Point voters approved bonds for the project in 2019.

Design is complete, and the city is ready to begin buying right of way, the staff report says. Volkert’s Oct. 13 proposal in the packet covers:

  • negotiations, title work, appraisals and closings on 91 parcels
  • two residential relocations
  • one other move, such as a billboard or sign

Volkert expects about 62 of the claims to be minor. The proposal also says fences and wheelchair ramps along the route will be affected. Staff expect this phase to be finished in February 2028. Our road construction page tracks the project.

The consent agenda is normally approved in one vote. The Finance Committee recommended these items Thursday. They include:

  • Sewer repairs: $2,207,480.43 to KRG Utility Inc. to rehabilitate sewer lines in the Upper Boulding Branch basin, which the city’s sewer master plan ranks as the top priority for keeping groundwater and rainwater out of the system. A separate $281,304 task order with CHA Consulting covers inspection and contract management.
  • Main Street sewer: $147,736 to CHA Consulting to video-inspect and clean the sewer line along Main Street.
  • Market District: a $485,922.90 change order with Breece Enterprises, bringing that infrastructure contract to $10,024,971.71.
  • 300 Oak Street: $228,122 to Frank L. Blum Construction for design work on Phase 1 improvements.
  • Police radio: $669,371.14 to Motorola Solutions to upgrade the city’s simulcast radio system.
  • Ballistics: $409,677.99 to LeadsOnline for a seven-year subscription to a ballistic identification service.
  • Transit: a five-year, $445,100 agreement with Spare Labs for scheduling and booking software for High Point Transit’s Access paratransit and microtransit service.
  • Water meters and lids: $365,194.89 to Badger Meter, $186,433.54 to Core & Main and $126,285 to United Systems & Software.
  • Water tank: $181,907 to Carolina Management Team to recoat the 5-million-gallon tank at the Ward Water Treatment Plant.
  • Wastewater: $240,000 to Jordan Innovative Fabrication to rebuild a clarifier at the Eastside Wastewater Treatment Plant.
  • PFAS settlement: moving $200,000 from PFAS class action settlement payments into the water resources budget.
  • Jamestown Parkway: agreeing to North Carolina Department of Transportation speed limit ordinances for the parkway inside city limits, so posted limits match the ordinances. NCDOT maps in the packet show 45 mph and 55 mph sections.

The council will also be asked to accept two donated vacant lots on Tipton Street and Carr Street and to set its 2027 meeting schedule.

What it means for you

  • Speak to the council: Monday’s meeting includes the monthly public comment period, for topics not on the agenda. Sign the register to speak. Speakers are asked to keep to three minutes and give their name and address.
  • It is the night before Election Day. Polls are open 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Our voting page has where to vote.
  • Closed session first: the council holds a special meeting at 4 p.m. to go into closed session on economic development and legal advice, according to its special meeting agenda.
  • Next regular meeting: Monday, Nov. 16, at 5:30 p.m., according to the city’s meeting calendar.