Who Should Consider Semaglutide Therapy in High Point, NC?

The High Point Market Authority (HPMA) is slated to receive a one-time investment of $9 million from the State of North Carolina to bolster infrastructure and beautification within the City of High Point’s 13-block downtown Market District.

The budget appropriation passed by the legislature indicates North Carolina’s ongoing commitment to the biannual High Point Market, which hosts 75,000 U.S. and international visitors each spring and fall. The trade show generates $6.7 billion in state and local economic impact annually, which includes $202 million in tax revenue.

The investment bid was led by Tammy Nagem, HPMA CEO and President, with support from the Guilford County Delegation. NC State Representative John Faircloth led the initiative in the House of Representatives with support from Senator Dave Craven in the Senate.

“On behalf of all High Point Market stakeholders in the community, we’re excited to champion the city’s unique platform as the world’s largest furnishings trade event,” says Doug Bassett, HPMA board member and past board chairman serving on the government affairs committee. “The investment made by the State of North Carolina will strengthen our focus on attracting Market visitors with a world-class guest experience.”

Coordinated with the City of High Point, HPMA’s proposed improvements will be implemented over a two-year period, including substantial infrastructure updates within the Market District, transportation terminal upgrades, an integrated safety and security plan, and street-level lighting.

“The High Point Market is one of the cornerstones of our state’s economy,” says City of High Point Mayor Jay Wagner. “This investment in infrastructure represents our commitment to keep it thriving for years to come.”

HPMA will additionally implement Market District-wide beautification efforts, such as the installation of public art and other permanent decorative features to enrich the downtown area and improve walkability in the showroom district.

“The entire ecosystem surrounding High Point Market will benefit from these improvements,” says Fred Henjes, CEO, Riverside Furniture, which opened a 70,000-square-foot complex in the former YMCA building at 401 S. Main St. in 2021. “As the Market District is further developed, it gives buyers even more reasons to attend, and that’s good for everyone.”

HPMA will also receive an incremental $500,000 from the NC Department of Commerce (NCDOC), adding to its recurring budget allocation, which includes funds from NC Department of Transportation (NCDOT) and NCDOC. The increase was secured by HPMA to target and recruit new buyers and to further improve the guest experience with technology-based enhancements; as well as for student initiatives to develop and nurture emerging industry professionals.

An additional $250,000 was championed by NC State Representative Cecil Brockman to support the Diversity Advocacy Alliance (DAA), an initiative facilitated by HPMA in 2022.

“We appreciate the opportunity to further our objective of attracting a diverse audience of buyers to the biannual trade show,” says Nagem, whose staff is responsible for year-round marketing and operations affecting the seasonal events.

The High Point Market Authority is a 501(c)(6) corporation which operates as a non-profit entity.

HIGH POINT, N.C. (WGHP) — Downtown High Point is growing, and the latest addition to the social district will give you a chance to drink a beer and try to hit the high score on the pinball machine.

A vacant doctor’s office on Elm Street is being transformed into an arcade bar called Dive Bar.

“The biggest thing is everyone should look forward to having a lot of fun,” said Rob Grosskopf, co-owner of Dive Bar.

He has run fancy bars, but Dive Bar takes its patrons back to childhood.

“Skee-ball, basketball, buck hunter, ‘Pac-Man.’ We’re going to have driving games,” Grosskopf said.

Their first location in Mooresville was so popular, they opened a second in Hickory, and now their sights are set on High Point.

“Obviously, the location we have is great. We are going to be across the street from the ball park right next to the Stock and Grain facility,” he said.

High Point launched new branding this summer, which is all part of a goal to grow the city

“I think all the new additions they’ve put in here has been really great for High Point,” said Robert Grubbs, a local man who visited the area Wednesday.

The city is also reaching out to business owners.

“The focus the economic development team has done in placing an onus on growing High Point and some of the incentives they have offered to business owners, that whole kind of cocktail was good for us,” Grosskopf said.

To make the bar a hit in High Point, expect unique touches like dollar bills on the ceiling, thousands of stickers, an assortment of classic arcade games as well as activities like pool tables and electronic darts.

“What we’re all about is fun meets affordability,” he said.

That’s something locals are looking forward to.

“That’s one of our favorite things to do: old man ‘Pac-Man,’” said Heather Ward at Stock and Grain Wednesday.

They’ll have drink specials and food, too.

The location in Mooresville is not kid-friendly, but the one in Hickory is, and the one in High Point will be. Kids can come to eat and play games, but they have to leave by 8 p.m., so the adults can have fun of their own.

They plan to open after Christmas.

COHAB is a new live music venue that has opened in High Point in central North Carolina. Bluegrass is part of their music offerings, along with blues and jazz. The outdoor venue is approximately 30,000 square feet, currently owned and operated by John Muldoon.

“By combining world-class talent with state-of-the-art production, we are going to make our mark as the ultimate destination for music enthusiasts and festival-goers in North Carolina,” stated Muldoon.

It is part of a large, formerly commercial building that has been converted into a variety of shops, restaurants, businesses, and arts and design firms.

Lisa McMullen, Director of Business Development & Project Management, described the new facility.

“It is being developed as a small festival-style venue. John’s primary goal with it is to support nonprofits, and help develop the music scene in High Point and the greater Carolina Core. High Point’s location is the midway point of what will become the Carolina Music Trail between Asheville and Wilmington.

This is our first season operating the venue as COHAB Space. We are installing all new bathrooms, a new green room, a recording studio, and a podcast studio to help support and promote those in the music industry. Building on our four pillars of music, food, art, and design, COHAB is slated to be an incubator and co-development space for folks in those industries.

Currently, our entire team is on site as support to build out the property, which consists of 75,000 square feet of indoor space as well. We have a construction team working on the activation of the buildings, and a support team for the venue itself: venue operations, hospitality, and private event support. Tylere White is the General Manager for the venue and owner of Partly Cloudy Productions, the in-house promoter for COHAB Space.

COHAB first opened April 20 and the first bluegrass show was June 24. We developed three weekends of unforgettable bluegrass music in a summer revival series starting with Larry Keel and a VIP dinner, meet, greet, and eat. All attending got to sit in with an intimate acoustic set with Larry, before Keel performed on the main stage, opened by the Big Fat Gap band.”

White stated, “That show motivated me to hit the gas on this even harder.”

On June 30, Keller Williams performed as Kellergrass with the Jon Stickley Trio. The VIP meet and greet acoustic set prior to the main show featured Mason Via of the Old Crow Medicine Show and former American Idol contestant.

The third show was July 7 with Sam Bush on the main stage with the Wyatt Ellis Band opening. The 14-year-old mandolinist also performed for the VIP ticket holders with an acoustic set prior to the main stage event.

Coming up on August 31 is the son of David Grisman with the Sam Grisman Project.

Sam shared, “The music that my father, David Grisman, and his close friend, Jerry Garcia, made in the early ’90s (in the house that I grew up in) is not only some of the most timeless acoustic music ever recorded, it also triggers my oldest and fondest musical memories. My goal in starting the Sam Grisman Project is to build a platform for my friends and me to showcase our genuine passion and appreciation for the legacy of Dawg and Jerry’s music.”

And there are more shows to come!

McMullen said, “We have some shows on the calendar for next year with larger names, starting in April for our outdoor venue with more regional bands for the remainder of this season when we move indoors for the winter. We will have two separate indoor venues depending on the size of the crowd and the acts.”

She stressed, “We want to get information out to our bluegrass fans about what COHAB is, and what we’re looking to develop it into and gain the support of people in this region. We invite folks to come any day of the week, tour the facility, and have a cup of coffee. We’re open all the time! John wants to make COHAB a destination for folks for the shows, but also for hanging out with the family on a Sunday afternoon. It’s definitely worth people coming out and looking at the space. I think over time that COHAB will really be a spot on the map for music lovers!”

For information, visit COHAB Space online for an agenda of upcoming events.

This map shows where DEQ has issued permits with some requirements or restrictions on discharge of 1,4-Dioxane. There is no legally enforceable standard for the toxic compound, but DEQ has set health goal of 0.35 parts per billion in drinking water supplies.

Until 1989, when the company declared bankruptcy, Seaboard Chemical Corporation in Jamestown, in Guilford County, dealt in the dirty business of solvents and fuels. Now the fallow property on Riverdale Drive lies behind a locked gate and a thicket of pine trees, what some local residents called the “1,4-Dioxane forest.”

The groundwater beneath the former Seaboard site is highly contaminated with 1,4-Dioxane, a known carcinogen. Though not as well known as PFAS, 1,4-Dioxane is likewise what federal regulators call an “emerging compound” — relatively unknown chemicals that are being detected more often and more widely, in the air, dirt and drinking water supplies. While in a different chemical family than PFAS, 1,4-Dioxane shares another characteristic besides toxicity: It’s a forever chemical that lingers in the environment for decades, if not hundreds of years.

Neither the EPA nor the NC Department of Environmental Quality have established legally enforceable limits on 1,4-Dioxane, even though it’s a known carcinogen. State regulators have established an unenforceable health advisory goal of 0.35 parts per billion in drinking water supplies.

As part of a settlement agreement with the Haw River Assembly, DEQ provides updates on 1,4-Dioxane — discharges, spikes, monitoring and other data — twice a year to the Environmental Management Commission. Hovering over the agency’s latest presentation last week was House Bill 600. If it becomes law as written, DEQ couldn’t limit the amount of 1,4-Dioxane and other toxic chemical discharges unless they can be measured by a number. That would require rulemaking by the EMC.

(The EMC did just that, last year, setting a target based on the existing goals set by DEQ. But the Rules Review Commission nullified the EMC’s action, concluding its fiscal analysis was insufficient and needed to be redone.)

1,4-Dioxane enters the drinking water when industry discharges the compound in its wastewater into municipal treatment plants. Since traditional treatment technologies can’t remove 1,4-Dioxane, it persists in the plants’ wastewater that in turn enters rivers, lakes and streams.

From there, it can contaminate the drinking water. Pittsboro, for example, has borne the brunt of 1,4-Dioxane contamination in the Upper Cape Fear River Basin. The town sources its drinking water from the Haw River in the Upper Cape Fear River Basin, which has been polluted by cities and industries upstream.

In 2021, DEQ sampled surface water in 28 places within the Cape Fear River Basin. Of the 262 results, a third — 81 — had some level of 1,4-Dioxane.

To get a fuller understanding of the extent of 1,4-Dioxane contamination, DEQ is requiring 18 facilities, such as wastewater treatment plants and industrial facilities to monitor for the compound; another five permits are pending or being reassessed, according to a presentation last week to the EMC. (Scroll down to see the full list.)

A few facilities have permit limits on the amount of 1,4-Dioxane they can discharge into waterways.

“We want to protect people, but what if we have too much margin of error?” asked EMC member J.D. Solomon of an agency official about permit limits. Solomon, an appointee of House Speaker Tim Moore, often advocates for less stringent regulations.

“I’d say we don’t [have too much margin of error], replied Julie Grzyb, deputy director of the Division of Water Resources. “It’s a water supply so the discharge should meet the standard of a water supply.”

High Point’s East Side wastewater treatment plant is across Riverdale Drive from the old Seaboard site. While Seaboard has leached 1,4-Dioxane through the groundwater into Randleman Lake, the drinking water supply for Greensboro and many Guilford County municipalities, the connection between the old chemical plant and the High Point wastewater treatment plant is less clear.

What state regulators do know is that High Point, as well Asheboro, are struggling to rein in their 1,4-Dioxane discharges. Meanwhile two other cities – Greensboro and Reidsville – have finally curbed their 1,4-Dioxane loads into the Upper Cape Fear River Basin, according to the EMC presentation.

Farther downstream, DAK Americas, a chemical manufacturing plant in Fayetteville that sends its wastewater into the Lower Cape Fear River, chronically violates its permit limits on 1,4-Dioxane.

Companies that manufacture plastic and polyester resins, such as DAK Americas and Starpet, often produce the compound as a manufacturing byproduct. Other processes use 1,4-Dioxane as a solvent and degreaser. The compound is present in some cosmetics, shampoos, paints, dyes, adhesives and cleaning products. 1,4-Dioxane, like PFAS, is seemingly everywhere.

High Point: Multiple industrial suspects

In May of this year, as part of its monitoring requirements, the City of High Point notified state regulators that 1,4-Dioxane levels leaving the East Side plant had reached 681 parts per billion. Subsequent testing by DEQ showed concentrations approaching 1,000 ppb.

DEQ representatives debriefed EMC members on an investigation into the source. High Point officials contacted Innospec, which provides chemicals, additives, and formulations for a variety of industries. Company officials said they didn’t make 1,4-Dioxane, but agreed to send samples for analysis. Innospec then notified the city that it had technical and personnel issues that prevented the company from collecting samples on time. The samples Innospec did provide four days late “were inconclusive and did not directly implicate them,” according to DEQ.

Alberdingk Boley, which makes resins and adhesives at its Greensboro plant, did make 1,4-Dioxane that week. However, company officials said the chemical is eliminated as part of a manufacturing process, also known as a “boil out.”

“But that wasn’t true,” Jenny Graznak, assistant regional supervisor for DEQ’s Winston-Salem office, told the EMC. “Nonetheless, they couldn’t have been solely responsible for that magnitude; but they could have contributed. The industry manufactures these products sporadically. These are not products they’re making 24-7. It’s not a steady flow.”

High Point officials continue to sample other areas throughout the wastewater collection system.

Asheboro: Landfill could be a source

Asheboro’s spikes could be originating from landfill leachate — liquid that accumulates in a landfill’s collection system. The leachate is sent to the Asheboro wastewater treatment plant, which discharges into Haskett’s Creek, a tributary of the Deep River. The City of Sanford taps into the Deep River for its drinking water.

The leachate could explain the peaks, Graznak said. “What they’re getting from the landfill, it’s a slug, and it happens at random, whenever the lift station at the landfill operates.”

Since 1,4-Dioxane is found in many consumer products that are thrown away, leachate can also contain the compound as those products break down or as rain enters the landfill. A 2019 study commissioned by DEQ found that leachate is a minor contributor to a wastewater treatment plant’s overall 1,4-Dioxane load.

There is one industry in Asheboro that uses or produces 1,4-Dioxane, Starpet, which makes plastic bottles. However, Graznak said, Starpet has a special treatment system to reduce the amount of the compound in its discharge.

Dak Americas, an international plastics manufacturer, discharges its wastewater into the Cape Fear River. It is a known source of 1,4-Dioxane.

As NC Newsline previously reported, DAK Americas shipped sludge from its wastewater treatment plant to McGill Environmental, a compost facility in rural Sampson County. The sludge contained levels of the compound at more than 20,000 ppb. (Because the compound evaporated as the compost dried, it was not detected in the finished product. However, the compost did contain PFAS, which had several sources, including DAK.)

DEQ has placed limits on DAK’s discharge of 1,4-Dioxane, but the facility consistently exceeds the maximum. “DAK’s limit is substantial but their effluent also substantial,” said Michael Montebello, chief of the discharge permitting program branch. The agency has not penalized the company for these exceedances. However, it is reconsidering DAK’s permit limits based on public comments, Montebello said, and could set a timeline for the company to comply.

In two cities, lawsuits, fines, and cracking down on industry got results

It took four years, but Reidsville has managed to curtail its 1,4-Dioxane levels. In 2019, DEQ sampling showed concentrations reached 1,400 ppb; this year the peak has been 10 ppb and as low as 1 ppb, state data show. DyStar and Unifi were previously identified as potential sources of the compound. Industry users in Reidsville have either reduced or replaced their use of the compound.

Greensboro is in its third and final year of a Special Order by Consent with the state. That order and a subsequent legal settlement with the Haw River Assembly require the city’s T.Z. Osborne wastewater treatment plant to reduce 1,4-Dioxane in its discharge to just 23 parts per billion. (While this is higher than the health advisory goal, the limit was set based in part on dilution in the waterways.)

The city has succeeded, according to a DEQ presentation to the Environmental Management Commission. In 2021 1,4-Dioxane levels leaving the Osborne plant spiked at more than 900 ppb. In the first four months of 2023, the highest concentration was roughly 5 ppb.

Greensboro achieved this by extensive sampling and cracking down on industries that use or produce 1,4-Dioxane.

Shamrock Environmental, which transports industrial waste, and Lanxess, a chemical company, were identified as industrial sources of the compound.

Lanxess discontinued using 1,4-Dioxane and replaced it with another chemical. Last year the company was purchased by Hallstar, which is also prohibited from making the compound.

“It’s encouraging that the source of the spikes would be identified and addressed without major treatment costs” on the wastewater treatment plants, said EMC chairwoman Robin Smith. “There are other ways to eliminate the sources.”

Facilities with discharge permits for 1,4-Dioxane

Facilities whose discharge permits for 1,4-Dioxane are pending or being reassessed*

(Source: DEQ)

HIGH POINT, N.C., April 12, 2023 – High Point University has appointed six new members to its Board of Visitors. The board is comprised of business leaders, alumni, friends and community advocates of HPU who are recognized for their character, success, philanthropy and leadership.

“High Point University is blessed by the support from all of our Board of Visitors members, including the six newest members,” says HPU President Dr. Nido Qubein. “Our students continue to learn from the leadership, advocacy and experience each member brings to the table.”

Lisa Brayton is a 1986 HPU graduate who grew up in the High Point area. After earning her Bachelor of Arts in sociology, she continued her education at the University of Memphis, where she earned her master’s degree in education/counseling. While living in Tennessee, she worked in foster care and early childhood development while starting a family. She has three adult sons.

After her family returned to North Carolina, Brayton worked at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, where she assisted in the Office of the Chancellor and in Student Affairs. While in Wilmington, Brayton co-owned a small business and completed an additional master’s in liberal studies. In 2012, Brayton returned to High Point to work alongside her father in the family furniture business, Paul Brayton Designs. She served as an executive assistant, company officer and on the board of directors before retiring from that position upon the selling of the company.

Brayton currently serves on the board of directors of the Brayton Family Foundation, which focuses its philanthropy on education, foster care and developing leadership for women. In 2015, the Brayton Family Foundation founded Women in Motion of High Point, an initiative of the United Way of Greater High Point, that serves the High Point area. She was a founding member of Women in Motion and continues to serve on its leadership team. In her free time, Brayton supports a variety of community programs. She is a proud HPU alumna and looks forward to serving on the Board of Visitors.

J. Chris Bryan, senior vice president and market president of Truist Financial Corporation, oversees the High Point commercial banking portfolio. He represents Truist in civic, professional and community organizations, and is responsible for the city’s budget, balance sheet and income statement growth. Prior to his transition to High Point in October 2021, Bryan was Truist market president in Alamance County, North Carolina, where he grew its market share from fourth to first place from 2016 to 2021. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Truist is the nation’s sixth largest commercial bank.

With more than 15 years of banking experience, Bryan previously served as a vice president-business service officer with BB&T in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, from 2011 to 2016; a business banking relationship manager with SunTrust Bank in Winston-Salem from 2009 to 2022; completed the Commercial Associate Program with SunTrust Bank in Atlanta, Georgia, in 2009 and as a licensed banker with SunTrust Bank from 2006 to 2009.

Passionate about supporting his local community, Bryan is currently a board member of Business High Point and the United Way of Greater High Point. He has served in leadership roles in various other community organizations, including as board chair of the United Way of Alamance County; vice chair of Economic Development for Alamance County Chamber of Commerce; and board chair of the Experiment in Self-Reliance in Winston-Salem. He has also served in various capacities with the Alamance County Education Council, the Alamance County Economic Development Foundation and as a board member of the Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership.

Bryan earned a B.S.B.A. in finance from East Carolina University and completed the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at the University of Pennsylvania with a Warton Leadership Certificate in 2019. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his wife Nancy and two daughters, golfing, fly fishing, running and traveling.

Jane Dagmi is a career storyteller who has relocated to a new city every 17 years for growth, opportunity and a new point of view. For the past four years, she has made her home in High Point, North Carolina.

She began making biannual trips to the High Point Market during the 1990s when she was an editor at Country Living magazine. In 2018, when she was editor in chief of Designers Today magazine, Dagmi and her partner, who also traveled frequently to the home furnishings capital city, decided to start their life together here.

In March 2022, Dagmi assumed the role of managing director of High Point x Design (HPxD), an organization that champions High Point as a year-round hub for design and creativity, which is open to all. Composed of members – many of the industry’s most iconic and admired brands, smaller makers and artists – and industry and community friends and leaders, HPxD unites, promotes and builds upon the city’s rich legacy, potential and creative ecosystem.

The HPxD team creates engagement opportunities for design professionals, students and the design obsessed and curious in High Point. They hosted SCAD students for an immersive three-day exploration, welcomed Leadership High Point to an afternoon of design, created a community paint event at the High Point Library, and planned a half dozen events for the design trade. Additionally, HPxD is partnering with High Point Market Authority to produce the Vacation Rental Design Summit which launches in April.

Dagmi has served on the board of the High Point Market Authority since 2019 and is newly appointed to the Bienenstock Furniture Library Board, where she is an active participant in the Future Designer Summit. A former substitute teacher who loves to keep ties in education, Dagmi has also been a guest critic and speaker in design and branding classes at High Point University. She graduated from Tufts University with a Bachelor of Arts in American studies and earned an associate degree in interior design at Parsons School of Design.

Christopher M. Ilderton, ’12, is the fixed operations director of Ilderton Automotive Group, his family’s automotive business in High Point, North Carolina. He has experienced various parts of the automotive business through his differing job roles at Ilderton, starting at age 15 with washing cars in its reconditioning department.

Some of his favorite memories involve hitting the road as a traveling commercial salesperson to sell ADA commercial mobility vans as his father had years earlier. He is a graduate of the NCM Dealer School, a certified service manager for Stellantis, a Wagoneer ambassador and an expert in Jeep, Uconnect and Mopar. The executive team at Ilderton Automotive Group made sure he had the training and experience before asking him to lead Ilderton’s Service and Parts team in 2021. In the last two years, Ilderton has taken on more responsibility to promote better business practices, networking and volunteering in the community. A current board member of Caring Services in High Point, he says being a part of the community is what the Ilderton Automotive Group’s foundation stands on and he plans to carry the tradition forward.

Eric T. Rothrock joined Crescent Communities in 2013 and currently serves as senior vice president of preconstruction. He is responsible for all aspects of preconstruction and budget-related design for the company’s $4 billion assets.

Rothrock has developed and implemented several budget-projection processes to help the company evaluate anticipated cost models and is responsible for the firm’s large value contracts and national accounts. He has worked for several large regional and national general contractors. In addition, Rothrock previously owned a well-respected Triad-based concrete subcontracting firm.

To give back, Rothrock led residential storm relief repairs following Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Jeanne and Hurricane Francis, working with the Army Corps of Engineers. He earned his bachelor’s degree from East Carolina University and has been featured in publications, such as Construction Global. Rothrock was named in the top 20 under 40 from Engineering News-Record (ENR). He serves on the ECU Construction Management Department Advisory Board and on the board of Built National. He is a former LEED, Green Associate.

Ellen Deal Whitlock, ’76, is a High Point native who has served as CEO of Senior Resources of Guilford since 1995. Prior to that she served as executive director of the Mental Health Association in High Point.

Whitlock currently serves on the board of directors of the National Nutrition and Aging Programs Association. She also serves on the North Carolina Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service, where she has been appointed by three governors and is a past chairman. She serves on the regional advisory board of the Area Agency on Aging at the Piedmont Triad Council of Governments. Whitlock has previously served as president of Carousel Theater, Youth Focus, the Junior League of High Point and the North Carolina Association of Aging, as well as the Salem Needlepoint Guild of the American Needlepoint Association. She is the mother of four children and the grandmother of five teenagers. She enjoys needlepointing, traveling and reading.