Three homes, a neighborhood and a business are the winners of Wilson’s inaugural Christmas Cheer Challenge!

Our panel of judges checked out nearly 50 entries the week before Christmas, and it was a hard choice! It’s like asking Santa to pick his favorite reindeer. How do you decide?

The judges made these picks:

Brightest: 1016 Brookside Drive NW. This was the most scientific decision as the sponsors, Wilson Energy, used a light meter to read the actual brightness. 

Best Neighborhood: Watson Drive. Most of the nominees were enchanting, but there is something magical about the glowing orbs along Watson Drive, some even hanging over the street. This category was sponsored by Greenlight Community Broadband.

Best Business: 1310 Nash St., the office of Dr. Alexandria Luper, Family Dentistry. It’s a traditional white lights with lighted trees and snowmen. Wilson County Chamber of Commerce sponsored this category.

Most Spirited: 1711 Brentwood Circle N. This was our closest category, a virtual tie with another home. The Wilson Warbirds sponsored this category.

Best Traditional: 510 Clyde Avenue NW. (pictured), which multiple judges picked for its simple but beautiful décor. The Wilson County Tourism Development Authority sponsored this category.

Of course, all of this was an excuse to celebrate our community's great holiday decorations and give people a map to the nominees. Our map was accessed nearly 6,000 times so we are very happy with the results and are already planning a 2025 version.

Our weather has been mild as we end 2024, but we have some overnight lows in the 20s in the days ahead, even the low 20s by this weekend. Those cold temps can have you seeing red when you get your utility bills in February.

We will remind you of these energy-saving tips to avoid high bills:

• Reduce your thermostat to the lowest comfortable setting. The smaller the difference between the inside and outside temperatures, the lower your energy usage and bills. We recommend a maximum of 68 degrees in the winter. 
• If you heat your home with a heat pump, set it and forget it! Heat pumps work best with a consistent temperature. If you heat with natural gas, you can turn the thermostat down when no one is home and set to the lowest comfortable setting when you are home. 
• One of the easiest things customers can do for heating efficiency is to change air filters regularly. A dirty air filter makes a heating system work harder, which uses more energy and can increase costs. Also, have heating systems checked regularly by a qualified heating and air conditioning contractor to maintain efficiency and peak performance.
• Leave drapes or blinds open during sunny winter days to allow the sun's rays to warm the house, but close them at night to help insulate your home.
• One of best energy-saving habits you can do each year is to check windows, doors and vents for air leaks. Caulking, sealing and weatherstripping leaks can save 10% to 20% in heating costs.
• Operate ceiling fans in a clockwise direction in the winter, which pushes warm air back down into the room. (Most fans have a switch that allows you to reverse the motor.) While fans move air and make people more comfortable, they do not provide heat, so remember to turn the fan off when you leave the room.
• Manage water heating. Set your water heater to 120 degrees or less. Water heating is typically the second biggest user of energy in your home.

Are you ready to dispose of your Christmas tree?

Real trees need to be stripped down of all decorations including lights. We are making them into mulch so please we need them cleared off. Place them by your curb and it will get picked up as compost on your regular service day. 

Artificial trees can still have decorations on them, they will be picked up on Wednesdays as a bulky item pick up. Special pickups resume next week, but feel free to enter them in FixIt Wilson for possibly quicker service.

Wilson This Week remained a great source for city news in 2024. We sent out 38 e-newsletters throughout the year and nearly doubled our subscribers. We checked over the most popular content for the year. So let's get a jump on 2025!

Trash/Recycle Schedules - Household garbage and compost are all collected on the same day. The city is divided into four collection zones, serviced on either Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or Friday, provided there is no holiday. If you are unsure when your collection day is, please follow the link below and enter your address.

MyWilson Signup - Once enrolled, you will be able to log in and see your utility consumption (electric, gas and water) over the last year, month or day. The site also includes outdoor temperature data so customers can see how much their usage increases during cold snaps or falls once spring has arrived.

Customers will also be able to compare bills and schedule payments. You will set up a wallet and can set up more than one payment method. You will also be able to contact customer service to get an extension or other support.

But the site also has more information for those who want to dig deeper. There are energy calculators if you want to see where you might save more on appliances or other home improvements. You can check water usage to see if you might have a leak. You will be able to find and view old statements and download copies for your records, taxes or any reason you might need them.

The site also includes links to community news and resources. You can access the Fix-It Wilson site to report city issues like broken streetlights or missed trash pickups. You can also sign up for emergency notifications.

CodeRed - This system, run on the CodeRed platform, allows City officials to create and rapidly disseminate time-sensitive information to every contact stored in the notification database.

You simply sign up and create an account to receive emergency alerts from the City via call, email or text. You can even customize your notification and topic preferences.

NC Whirligig Festival - Mark your calendar, NC Whirligig Festival is the first weekend of November. Making the 21st festival on November 1 & 2, 2025.