Public Radio for the Piedmont and High Country
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

State Grant Will Fund Development Of County Park On Belews Lake

A wooded area on Belews Lake will be developed as a new county park with help from a state grant to purchase the land from Duke Energy Corp. Photo by Christopher Weavil/Forsyth County Parks and Recreation Department.

Forsyth County officials have announced that a new park will be developed on Belews Lake, thanks to funding from a state grant. 

The grant will allow Forsyth County to buy over 200 acres from Duke Energy Corp. at a cost of $640,000. The Winston-Salem Journal reports the money will come from the state's Clean Water Management Trust Fund.

Assistant County Manager Damon Sanders-Pratt told county commissioners on Thursday that there are no environmental issues, alleviating concerns about residue from a coal ash basin at Duke Energy's Belews Creek Steam Station in neighboring Stokes County.

In response to public concerns about an influx of more people, cars, and boats in the area, Sanders-Pratt said the park will be well-staffed, cleaned, and maintained.

County Manager Dudley Watts welcomed the news, saying it would be the “first publicly accessible park on Belews Lake.”

A timeline for development of the area has not been announced.

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

Support quality journalism, like the story above,
with your gift right now.

Donate