Pickup Change Alert Collection Changes for Martin Luther King Jr. Day Holiday Read More...
Wards & Council Members
South Ward: John C. Larson
Council Member - John C. Larson
About the South Ward
Contact Your Council Member
John C. Larson
Democrat, South Ward
Email John C. Larson
448 Factory Row
Phone: 336-771-5176 (Office)
About John C. Larson
John C. Larson has been a Council Member since 2016.
Message from Your Council Member
As your council member, I will voice your concerns and opinions as well as fight for the well-being of citizens of the South Ward and the City of Winston-Salem. Therefore, I would like to hear from you so that I can better serve our community.
Profession / Vocation
Vice President Architectural Restoration Old Salem / Historian (Retired)
Professional & Community Associations
Member Public Safety Committee
Vice Chair of the Public Works Committee
Old Salem Area Security Council
Business 40 Design Committee
Keep Winston-Salem Beautiful
WSFC Historic Properties Commission
Creative Corridors Coalition
Wachiovia Historical Society
Southeast Gateway Planning Committee
Seminar for Historical Administration, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, 1998
Attingham Trust for the Study of Country Houses, Royal Oak Scholar-Britain, 1989
MA, University South Carolina-Applied History
The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts Summer Institute, University of North Carolina-Greensboro (UNCG)
BA, University South Carolina-History
Montpelier Architectural Review Board
Maryland Senate Chamber Restoration Advisory Board
Poplar Forest Architectural Advisory Board
Mount Vernon Architectural Advisory Board
NC National Register Advisory Committee
Marion Covington Foundation Board: 2001 to 2005; 2009 to 2012
UNCG Public History Committee, Department of History UNCG Co-Instructor of Historic Building Technology Field School
Board, Vernacular Architecture Forum: 1987 to 1990; 1996 to 1999 Serving as President from 1999 to 2001 and 1st Vice President 2007 to 2009
UNCG Department of Interior Architecture Advisory Board, 2003 to 2009
The South Ward is the heart of our city's heritage, its shopping, entertainment, education, and home. It spans our city's history, taking in both its oldest and newest neighborhoods.
Council Member John Larson represents South Ward on the City Council.
Moravia Congregation Town of Salem
The South Ward contains the city's historic heart, the restored Moravia congregation town of Salem, founded in 1767. The reconstructed town is now one of the largest tourist attractions in the state. Many local people are employed recreating the past to educate today's visitors. Some of the original commerce of the Moravians continues in the restored shops.
But Salem is not just a museum. People still live here, and the continuing success of Salem College and Academy, overlooking the square, gives the restoration a distinctly youthful flavor.
The ward's boundaries include the tract bought from the Moravians for a county seat when Forsyth County was established in 1849.
Municipal Buildings
The current City Hall, built in 1926, was the largest city government building in North Carolina when it was completed. In 2003 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Across the street is the Bryce A. Stuart Municipal Building, which houses the city payment center along with Inspections, Planning and most of the other city departments that do business with citizens.
The Hall of Justice houses state courts. Across Main Street is the Federal Building with U.S. Government services and the Federal courts.
Strollway
The strollway, a city project completed in 1990, runs between Old Salem and the South Marshall area. It enters south ward under business 40, winds past modern buildings and refurbished offices past renovated private homes that overlook Old Salem and down to the Old Salem Visitors Center. Downtown workers use the strollway for a lunchtime walk and residents use it for biking and jogging.
Another popular draw is the Children's Museum, a 75th anniversary project of the Winston-Salem Junior League that opened in 2004.
Restoration & Updates
Using a combination of city and private funds, the South Marshall plan turned a dilapidated neighborhood into a showplace of upscale condominiums and town houses.
One end of this stretch is anchored by the Brookstown Mill, an old textile mill converted into a bed and breakfast inn, and Tar Branch Towers, an upscale condominium building that includes the Chancellor's residence for the University of North Carolina (UNC) School of the Arts.
The other end has the Southeast Gateway, once a mishmash of old industrial buildings that is now being replaced by condominiums and a new YWCA. Family Services and the Enrichment Center also can be found here.
University of North Carolina School of the Arts
The University of North Carolina School of the Arts, built on the site of old Gray High School, is unique not only for Winston-Salem, but as part of the State University System as well. With a student body of more than 11 hundred high school and college students, it specializes in training for the performing, visual, and cinematic arts. Many former students make their living on Broadway or in Hollywood. Not only are the future stars trained here, but technical aspects such as staging, lighting and directing are taught as well.
The film school facilities were designed to double as a back lot for students productions. Its Moving Image Archive, with almost 30,000 holdings, is the fifth-largest non-commercial film archive in the country.
Neighborhoods & Schools
On the high ground rising south of Old Salem and the Southeast gateway is the historic Washington Park neighborhood, designed in 1906 by Colonel Joseph Ludlow, the city's first engineer, and filled with magnificent older homes.
The vintage homes of the West Salem neighborhood comprise the ward's third historic district and reflect its 19th century origin as a bedroom community for the growing town of Salem in the years after the Civil War.
Serving the residents of these and other neighborhoods in the South ward are Griffith, Konnoak and Latham Elementary Schools, Philo Middle School and Parkland High School and Griffith Academy.
The City's commitment to recreation is shown in some of the city's oldest neighborhood recreation areas...Washington Park and Granville Park. Washington Park is home to the city's dog park. Residents come here from all over the city to let their dogs run free.
Other recreation facilities in the South Ward include Parkland Pool and the Georgia Taylor Recreation Center.
Businesses & Growth
Modern commerce is represented by the hustle and bustle of businesses and restaurants on Peter's Creek and Silas Creek Parkways. At one time, Silas Creek Parkway defined the southern end of this business district. Now, it stretches all the way down to the city limits at the Davidson County line.
The Walmart here is unique for its two installations of public art, the result of a collaboration between Walmart, the city and the Arts Council of Winston-Salem.
Spurring all this commercial growth has been a explosion of residential development along Old Salisbury, Darwick and West Clemmonsville roads. Griffith Road, west of the Hanes Mall Boulevard area, is another hot spot for residential development.
Historic neighborhood, shopping, entertainment, education and home. This is the South Ward.
1st and 3rd Mondays of each month (except holidays)
2nd Monday and Tuesday of each month
Representative Council Member
John C. Larson, Democrat, South Ward
Community Assistance Liaison
Vernetta DeVane
Community Assistance Liaison, South and Southwest Wards
Email Vernetta DeVane
Alternative: 336-462-2421
A Community Assistance Liaison is assigned to each ward and is available to help citizens solve problems and get answers. Read more about the Community Assistance Liaisons.
East Ward: Annette Scippio
North Ward: Denise D. Adams
Northeast Ward: Vivian H. Burke
Outstanding Women Leaders (OWL) Program
Northwest Ward: Jeff MacIntosh
Southeast Ward: James Taylor, Jr.
Southwest Ward: Dan Besse
West Ward: Robert C. Clark
CityLink
City of Winston-Salem - City Hall
Bryce A. Stuart Municipal Building
100 East First Street
CityLink Phone: 336-727-8000 · 311 within City Limits
Email CityLink
Open Winston-Salem
ePayStub