🧵 In Today’s Edition

1. An official Hasbro-backed Monopoly game for Greensboro gets pushback for omitting key local landmarks. Some say knock-off versions represent the city better.
2. The Agenda

Illustration by Aiden Siobhan for The Assembly.

Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect $200


The smell of freshly printed cardboard wafts from the box of the brand-new board game. Vibrant colors jump off the board and the familiar metal game pieces—a boot, a top hat, a race car, a thimble—call to mind long hours of playing for keeps. It’s a nostalgic sight.

Since its creation in 1935, generations of players have made Monopoly one of the best-known, most-played board games worldwide. In 2020, The Hustle reported more than 300 million copies had been sold. That’s a lot of long game nights and flipped boards.

Almost anything culture-related has been made into a Monopoly game: Shrek, Elton John, Guy Fieri, even Caterpillar—as in the construction machinery company.

The new Greensboro version looks and feels like a traditional Monopoly game, but with spaces meant to reflect the city.

What’s most striking about the board is just how many things it gets wrong.

“Shrimp and Grits,” a low-country food with virtually no ties to land-locked Greensboro? 

A “Textile Town” space when there’s already a Cone Denim space? 

The specificity of Cone Health juxtaposed with a generic Theater space? 

And then there’s the lack of important city landmarks. 

While the Greensboro Farmer’s Market is included, historic sites like the International Civil Rights Museum, North Carolina A&T State University, and the Carolina Theatre are glaringly absent.

How did an officially licensed version get it so wrong? It turns out it’s a tale as old as the original game itself: You’ve got to pay to play.

Read the full story here.

— Sayaka Matsuoka

Thanks for reading The Thread, a 3x week newsletter written by Greensboro editor Joe Killian and reporters Sayaka Matsuoka and Gale Melcher. Reach us with tips or ideas at greensboro@theassemblync.com.

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The Agenda

Your Guide to Local Government This Week

City of Greensboro

City Council meeting
Tuesday, June 17 at 5:30 p.m. @ Melvin Municipal Office Building in the Katie Dorsett Council Chamber, 300 W. Washington St.

This week there’s no public comment period, but there are opportunities to speak at multiple public hearings, including rezoning and grant applications.

Public hearings include:

Other decisions on the general business agenda include:

  • A five-year, $6 million contract with EcoFlo for hazardous waste disposal services.
  • A five-year, $10 million contract with FCR Greensboro for recycling services.
  • Increasing fees for sidewalk and driveway permits, which the city expects will generate $5,000. The fee for a driveway permit will increase from $75 to $85. The minimum charge for a sidewalk permit will increase from $3 to $85.

Planning and Zoning Commission meeting
Monday, June 16 from 5:30-9 p.m. @ Melvin Municipal Office Building, 300 W. Washington St.

During this meeting, the board will vote on:

  • An annexation request of more than 100 acres at or near McConnell Road from the county into the city.
  • A request by T. Cooper James for property at 4712 Hicone Road to be annexed from the county to the city, and to rezone the property’s designated use from Conditional Zoning – Limited Business to Conditional District – Commercial – Medium.
  • A zoning request from Mount Zion Baptist Church to allow the development of religious assembly buildings, offices, and residential buildings. 
  • A zoning request by the Investment Group of NC that would allow for multifamily residences to be built on the property.
  • A request by Michael S. Fox for Carroll at Hobbs to rezone properties at 3510-3516 West Friendly Avenue and 805-807 Hobbs Road, for Roy Carroll’s planned mixed-use apartment and business development site.

Guilford County

Board of Commissioners meeting
Thursday, June 19 at 5:30 p.m. @ the Old County Courthouse, 201 S. Eugene St.

The board will vote on several items, including:

There will also be a public hearing to consider an economic development grant for Project Gamble, an aluminum and zinc die casting venture.


City of High Point

Finance Committee meeting

Wednesday, June 18 at 4 p.m. @ 211 S. Hamilton St.

The agenda for this meeting hasn’t been published yet. Check for it here soon.

Links to Local Board Meetings and Agendas:

Guilford County – Board of Commissioners

Guilford County – Board of Education

Greensboro – City Council

Greensboro – City Calendar High Point – City Council

— Gale Melcher

Read this newsletter online or contact The Thread team with tips and feedback at greensboro@theassemblync.com.

Gale is a Report for America corps member and Greensboro-based reporter for The Assembly. She previously covered local government and community issues for Triad City Beat. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences from N.C. State University.

Sayaka Matsuoka is a Greensboro-based reporter for The Assembly. She was formerly the managing editor for Triad City Beat, an alt-weekly based in Greensboro. She has reported for INDY Week, The Bitter Southerner, and Nerdist, and is the editorial/diversity chair for AAN Publishers.