University Area Neighborhood Association

For older news briefs from the home page, please refer to the Archives section of this website. 

All of our upcoming events and meetings are marked on our Calendar as well. 

• UANA Neighborhood-wide Yard Sale - Saturday, May 19, 7 am - noon, Forest Heights Senior Living, picnic to follow at FH.
• Oak Crest Walking Tour/Annual Picnic - Saturday, May 26, 10 am - 2 pm, field behind 1165 Polo (corner of Friendship Cr).
• Historic Oak Crest Initial Meeting - (2 meeting times) - Thursday, June 7, 7 - 9 pm and Saturday, June 9, 10 am - noon, Forest Heights Senior Living in the Parlor. 
• UANA Annual Meeting - Tuesday, June 19, 7 - 8:30 pm, Forest Heights Senior Living in the Parlor.

Please see the WFU calendar to find out dates for students moving in, when classes begin, fall break, exams, holiday breaks, spring break, and commencement.

UANA News & Events - May 2012

UANA Community Yard Sale

Bring your used tagged, good items (and picnic food for later) to a UANA COMMUNITY YARD SALE, Forest Heights Assisted Living, Saturday, May 19, 7 am - noon (picnic follows).

Or you may wish to hold your own sale at your house. Simply let us know about your yard sale (on that same date) uana.ws@gmail.com and we will post your address at the Forest Heights location. Afterward, please join us for the picnic at Forest Heights.

Contact Tom Phillips, 724-6614, for more information or to have materials transported to Forest Heights May 14 - 19.

UANA will gladly accept any donations from the sale of your goods!

Walking Tour Of Oak Crest / Picnic

Come celebrate 89 years of Oak Crest and learn the fascinating history of how our Neighborhood was created and interesting facts about its homes and families. Then join us for an old fashioned picnic (bring your own picnic basket of food & beverage) and enjoy the fellowship with your neighbors.

Be sure to wear comfortable shoes and clothes as we will be doing a lot of walking.

We will meet in the large field behind 1165 Polo Rd (corner of Friendshop Cr) at 10 am. The tour will take about two hours and the picnic will follow. Be sure to bring a blanket/tablecloth or small table and/or chairs.

New Recycling Schedule

Beginning in April, we started a new recycling schedule and started using the new blue rollout recycle bins. This has been confusing to some folks because we only have recycling pick-up every other Friday instead of every Friday.

Your new recycle bin should have included a pamphlet with instructions and the pick-up schedule. If you did not receive a new (blue rollout) recycle bin, please call City Link at 727.8000 or 311. Our pick-up schedule is on the "Blue" weeks.

Also, If you have physical or other limitations that prevent you from being able to roll your cart out to the street for curb service, you can request backyard pick up service.

For more information on instructions, schedules, and forms for backyard pick-up, click here.

Correction...Changes to North & Northwest Wards

A couple of months ago, some of us got a postcard stating that the North and Northwest wards were modified. At our last UANA meeting Kent Strupe told members that ALL residents West of University Pky were now part of the North Ward and is represented by D D Adams. That was incorrect.

Only the residents that are West of University Pky and on the North side of Polo Rd (including Friendship Cr, Idlewild Dr, and Freds Rd) have been changed and are now part of the North Ward.

Residents that are West of University Pky and on the South side of Polo Rd (including Rosedale Cr, Harmon Av, and Crepe Myrtle Cr) are still in the Northwest Ward and is represented by Wanda Merschel.

Residents that are East of University Pky (North or South of Polo Rd) are still in the North Ward. We apologize for any confusion.

For more information you can click here to view the Ward map

UANA News & Events - June 2012

Historic Oak Crest Project

On June 7 & 9, we will have our first official meetings about the Historic Oak Crest project.  Both of these meetings will be the same in order for everyone to have a chance to attend (especially Oak Crest residents).  Please try to attend at least one of these meetings.  We will be selecting committee members to begin the project, update everyone with what has already been done, costs of the project, funds, grants, contracts and other very important information.  Participation is imperative in order for this project to proceed.  

UANA Annual Meeting

The focus of this meeting is to hold elections for Officers and Executive Board Members and to vote on a new set of bylaws since there are no complete existing copies available.    

This section currently being updated.....please check back soon for more information! 

Mail Theft Alert!

Message from Adrienne Pilon...

On Friendship Circle, mail was stolen from numerous people sometime the night of May 7 or early morning May 8.

The mail was delivered very late on May 7; a number have evidence that we had mail stolen or damaged. We do not know if this was confined to Friendship Circle, or if other areas were affected.

A report has been filed with the Winston-Salem Police, with officer A.R. Cruise in charge of the investigation. Please call the non-emergency number if you have information or suspect your mail has been stolen or compromised.

You also need to file a report with the US Postal Service Inspector General. Each person must file if they suspect mail loss/vandalism, etc. The phone number is 1.888.877.7644; you can also go online at hotline@usps.org.gov (I think I have that right.)

If you want to speak with me, do email me or call!

Adrienne Pilon; 218 Friendship; 631.1519; pilona@uncsa.edu

And from Nancy Chinlund...

Please let everybody know that sometime during the night on May 7, someone emptied mailboxes on Friendship Circle, kept what they wanted, and threw what they didn't want along the side of the road. The mail was delivered very late that day (7:20 at 327 Friendship), so people checking their mailboxes earlier may have assumed they didn't get any mail.

Brad collected all the mail he could find along the road. We called the police and reported the incident, and the police who took the report took two bags of loose mail.

It is most disturbing that we found an empty box for checks. 

Home Break Ins - Updates & Tips

Please Continue To Be Alert!

This is a reminder to be alert and aware of your surroundings and to call the police if you observe any suspicious behavior or persons in the neighborhood.

Call the police if a stranger knocks on your door asking for money, or requesting to do lawn work, etc. That is how they determine what houses to break into.

First, they knock on the door and if nobody answers, they go around to the back door and kick it in. If somebody does answer the door, they make up a bogus reason for knocking. DO NOT OPEN YOUR DOOR TO A STRANGER. Ask them who they are and what they want through the "closed" door. Get rid of them and CALL THE POLICE IMMEDIATELY! EVEN IF THEY SEEM LEGITIMATE!

It is better to call the police and have them find it is legitimate, than to call the police later after a break in has occurred. That call to the police could prevent you or a neighbor from being a victim. The police have caught theives in other neighborhoods prior to break-ins because watchful neighbors called them about suspicious people knocking on doors and wandering around the neighbohoods.

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The following tips are provided to help you secure your home and cars from a possible break-in.  

These tips are courtesy Cprl Tim Convery, WSPD:

1. Remember the phrase, "What's not seen, is not taken." Remove any items out of your vehicles and to lock your vehicles at all times.

2. If you're going on vacation or going to be away from your residence for some time, try to leave some lights on. We are creatures of habit and tend to stay in the same rooms around the same times. I, personally, buy light timers and place the timers in rooms according to my personal habits.

3. I also leave a radio on so that when I enter my residence from the main door, I can hear that someone is talking but cannot determine what is being said. For this to work, it is best to find a channel with "talk radio." Talk radio very rarely has music playing and talk all the time. This will make the suspect(s) think that someone is home.

4. Put exterior lights on daylight timers. So the lights will turn on at night and off in the daytime.

5. Finally, let everyone become proactive neighbors and report all "suspicious activity." It is better that the police respond to a suspicious behavior and find nothing has occurred, than to have the police respond to investigate a break in. By calling the police, does not mean you have to provide your name or personal information. You can "refuse" to provide that information and still have officers respond. The point is to look out for each other and report ANY suspicious activity. It helps the police, help your neighborhood.

These tips are coutresy Donna McGalliard, WFU - Residence Life & Housing:

As we made you aware a couple of weeks ago, there are a high number of break-ins occurring around Winston-Salem that are a unique experience for us this year. We have just been informed by Wake Forest University Police and the Winston-Salem Police Department of several more break-ins that have occurred in the areas surrounding the University.

We are alerting you for your own safety and ask that you be aware of your neighbors properties as well. Many of our neighbors and students are away enjoying the holidays now and their homes are at increased risk, even if they took the proper safety measures prior to their departure. Additionally, the majority of the recent house break-ins that our community has experienced have occurred during the day. Alert your neighbors to monitor your home if you are going to be away for any extended period of time.

We ask that you particularly follow the safety measures reflected below:

1. Day or night, be alert and aware of your surroundings.

2. Report any suspicious behavior or unusual vehicles or activities, such as someone asking for information or directions, claiming to be lost, seeking money for special collections, etc.

3. Please immediately report detailed descriptions of individuals, direction of travel, vehicle information and tag number to the local law enforcement.

Working together, we can help law enforcement find those responsible for these crimes. Again, please contact the Winston-Salem Police Department (911 or 773-7700) or Wake Forest University Police (758-5591) if you see any suspicious activity around your home or in your neighborhood.

This tip is courtesy Chris Barbee, Rosedale Cr:

My understanding of the recent residential break-ins is that entry has been gained by kicking in the front, side, or back door. Most doors can be forced open with one committed kick. Standard door frames are constructed with 1/2" to 3/4" door jambs and strike plates secured with 3/4" screws; this is their weakness. Entry doors can be further secured by removing the 3/4" screws and replacing them with quality 3.5" to 4" screws which pass through the door jamb into the surrounding 2x4 framing.

This little fix takes minutes and offers a door which is substantially more secure. Hoping this tip may help protect our neighbors, or at least provide a little more peace of mind for them. Let's all keep our eyes and ears open and report ANYTHING that appears suspicious to the police.

So, buy a box of 3.5" screws and share them with your neighbors.

I would also add to this to check with any senior neighbors near you to make sure they get this information and also if they may need any assistance to secure their doors.

This tip is courtesy Jim Lineberger, Friendship Cr:

If you haven't already done so, PLEASE document the belongings in your home....take pictures, write down SERIAL NUMBERS and other relevant info so that this can be provided to the police in case of a break in.
This information can lead to an arrest when someone tries to sell stolen goods to a pawn shop...

The following is a list of home break-ins from 12/1/2010 - present as reported on the WSPD Police 2 Citizen site:

12/1     1500 Polo (auto break-in)

12/7     116 Rosedale (auto break-in)

12/12     1004 Macon (tampering w/vehicle), 832 Palm (auto theft)

12/15     1404 Polo

12/16     1729 Brookwood

12/17     1457 Brookwood, 1821 Waycross, 1253 Brookwood

12/18     1518 Polo, 925 Long

12/20     850 Palm, 634 Polo, 320 Friendship, 1480 Brookwood

12/22     1471 Brookwood

12/23     1101 Polo 

12/25     920 Delmonte

12/26     1464 Brookwood

12/27     715 Yellowstone, 1300 Polo

12/28     156 Rosedale, 836 Palm

12/31     100 Friendship, 1408 Polo

1/5     123 Rosedale

1/8     197 Idlewild

1/10     831 Palm

1/11     1101 Barclay Tr (vandalism)

(To be updated soon!  Thank you for your patience!)

Additionally, according to WFU police, all of the homes the university owns along Polo across from the soccer fields were broken in.  There have been numerous reports of suspicious persons, prowlers, and even a peeping tom.   Please continue to be alert and to report any suspicious activity or persons.

The following quotes from actor Robert Young's character, Jim Anderson, in the classic 1950's sitcom Father Knows Best, offers some intersting advice about citizenship.  These are from the second episode of Season One.

"Active participation is the basis of good citizenship."

"A good citizen doesn't shirk his duties.  He does his share to help others.  He doesn't have to be asked a hundred times.  He volunteers willingly and cheerfully."

University Area Neighborhood Association (UANA), P O Box 17301, Winston-Salem, NC 27116