News Archives - Wake Forest Matters

What Happened at Tuesday’s Board Meeting: $18 Million in Debt, a Rezoning in the Path of High-Speed Rail, and Anonymous Letters Targeting Wake Forest Voters

Tom Baker IV / March 23, 2026

The Wake Forest Board of Commissioners held its latest Wake Forest board meeting on Tuesday, March 17 at Town Hall for a packed session that included two public hearings, four presentations, a consent agenda carrying roughly $10 million in park commitments, and a commissioners’ report that ended with a bipartisan condemnation of anonymous political attack […]

News

Another Generation Is Being Set Up to Pay for This

Tom Baker IV / March 22, 2026

In 1953, the CIA overthrew the democratically elected prime minister of Iran. Mohammad Mossadegh had nationalized his country’s oil industry, which had been controlled by British interests under terms Iranians considered extraction disguised as commerce. The United States and Britain could not allow that precedent to stand. Operation Ajax removed Mossadegh, jailed him, and installed

News, Public Safety

Street Takeovers, Silent Motorcycles, and the Law: What Wake Forest Parents Need to Know About E-Bikes

Tom Baker IV / March 20, 2026

A note on sourcing: This article is based on publicly available news coverage, Wake Forest Police Department communications, Town of Wake Forest municipal code, North Carolina General Statutes, UNC School of Government legal analysis, manufacturer specifications, and local social media discussion. We have not interviewed any participants in the Heritage incident or their families, and

News

Planning Board Special “Called” Work Session – Mar 18, 2026

Tom Baker IV / March 18, 2026

The agenda for Planning Board Special “Called” Work Session dated Wednesday, 18 March 2026 has been archived. Access it here: https://wake-forest.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=3&clip_id=1947 Tom Baker IVTom Baker IV is the publisher of Wake Forest Matters, Wake Forest’s only independent local newsroom. A Wake Forest native, Navy veteran, and intelligence professional, Tom launched Wake Forest Matters to bring

News

Board of Commissioners – Mar 17, 2026

Tom Baker IV / March 17, 2026

The agenda for Board of Commissioners dated Tuesday, 17 March 2026 has been archived. Access it here: https://wake-forest.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=3&clip_id=1945 Tom Baker IVTom Baker IV is the publisher of Wake Forest Matters, Wake Forest’s only independent local newsroom. A Wake Forest native, Navy veteran, and intelligence professional, Tom launched Wake Forest Matters to bring serious accountability journalism

News, Town Government

What’s on the Agenda: Wake Forest Board of Commissioners, March 17

Tom Baker IV / March 14, 2026

The Wake Forest Board of Commissioners meets Tuesday, March 17 at 6:00 p.m. in the Board Room at Town Hall, 301 S. Brooks Street. As always, the meeting airs live on WFTV 10 and streams on the Town’s Public Meetings Portal. Here’s what residents should know heading in. Two Public Hearings The biggest action items

Community, Environment & Sustainability, News

It’s Time to Axe the Bradford Pear

Tom Baker IV / March 10, 2026

The Bradford pear Wake Forest problem is worse than most residents realize. Spring in Wake Forest is undeniably beautiful, but it often arrives with a deceptive, snow-white veil. If you drive through our local neighborhoods and commercial lots right now, you’ll likely see dense, perfectly rounded trees bursting with white blossoms. To the untrained eye,

Infrastructure, News, Town Government

History, Hunger, and a Highway: Inside the March 3 Board Work Session

Tom Baker IV / March 6, 2026

If February’s board meeting was a night of citizen revolt and NCDOT bombshells, Tuesday’s work session was something quieter — a reminder that local government, at its best, is about building things that last. Parks that tell a community’s story. Networks that feed its neighbors. Policies that treat people fairly. Not every work session ends

News

Board of Commissioners Work Session – Mar 03, 2026

Tom Baker IV / March 3, 2026

The agenda for Board of Commissioners Work Session dated Tuesday, 03 March 2026 has been archived. Access it here: https://wake-forest.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=3&clip_id=1937 Tom Baker IVTom Baker IV is the publisher of Wake Forest Matters, Wake Forest’s only independent local newsroom. A Wake Forest native, Navy veteran, and intelligence professional, Tom launched Wake Forest Matters to bring serious

News, Town Government

Meeting Preview: The March 3 Wake Forest Board of Commissioners Work Session

Tom Baker IV / March 2, 2026

Tomorrow’s Board of Commissioners work session features a packed agenda covering everything from downtown taxes to high-speed rail. Here is a quick, unbiased look at the five major items up for discussion. 1. A Zoning Conflict with the S-Line Rail The board will review a rezoning request (RZ-25-02) for a property at 810 and 814

News

The Price of “Preemption”: Why Wake Forest is Paying for a War in Iran

Tom Baker IV / February 28, 2026

I have spent my adult life watching the “preemption” doctrine fail from the inside. I was 16 on 9/11 and enlisted at 18. Over 13 years, I held the highest security clearances, working in intelligence collection and analysis for the Navy and later as a contractor supporting U.S. and Australian Special Forces. I’ve lived the

Development & Growth, News, Town Government

Are Wake Forest Residents Subsidizing Growth?

Tom Baker IV / February 27, 2026

If you want proof of what happens when a community plans well, look at the data: in February 2026, Wake Forest was named the #1 most sought-after suburb in America. We have nearly five times as many people looking to move into our town as leave. But this unprecedented success has exposed a fatal flaw

News

Sunday Reflection: The Changing Landscape of Wake Forest

Tom Baker IV / February 22, 2026

It’s 43 degrees outside this February Sunday. It’s grey and rainy, but even in the damp chill, the buds on the serviceberry are close to popping. The rhythm of the rain brings it all back. When you grow up riding bikes through the woods and wading in the cold waters of Smith Creek, the smell

Infrastructure, News, Town Government

Citizen Pushback and NCDOT Bombshell Dominate Tuesday’s Board Meeting

Tom Baker IV / February 19, 2026

The best-laid municipal plans rarely survive contact with a packed room of frustrated homeowners, or the sudden whims of the North Carolina Department of Transportation. At Tuesday night’s Wake Forest Board of Commissioners meeting, what began as a quiet evening honoring retiring staff quickly pivoted into a masterclass in citizen advocacy. By the time the

News

Board of Commissioners – Feb 17, 2026

Tom Baker IV / February 17, 2026

The agenda for Board of Commissioners dated Tuesday, 17 February 2026 has been archived. Access it here: https://wake-forest.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=3&clip_id=1932 Tom Baker IVTom Baker IV is the publisher of Wake Forest Matters, Wake Forest’s only independent local newsroom. A Wake Forest native, Navy veteran, and intelligence professional, Tom launched Wake Forest Matters to bring serious accountability journalism