Eastern Cary Gateway Update
Both the proposed IKEA and Wegmans’ projects continue to
work their way through the approval process and barring any unforeseen issues should
receive council approval/rezoning in the near future – the IKEA project sooner
than later.
IKEA
At our most recent council meeting we conducted the public hearing
for the proposed IKEA rezoning and associated preliminary development plan.
This was the public’s opportunity to offer comment on the proposal and associated
conditions.
Here is an image of the subject property and future IKEA
site. Note that only the proposed IKEA site and associated parking was under consideration
and not the entire Cary Towne Center Mall site. Mixed-use redevelopment plans are in the works for the rest of the mall site and we expect to consider a
rezoning for the remaining property soon.
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| IKEA site at Cary Towne Center Mall |
Zoning conditions offered by IKEA include:
Limiting building height to 60 feet
Limiting building to 380,000 square feet of retail use
Providing a 150 foot building setback from the eastern
property line adjacent to the Ivy Meadows subdivision
Preservation of the landscape buffer area between the
proposed building and the eastern property line
Architectural design will look like this:
Notice the building signage says “sign” and not “IKEA”. That
is because we cannot by law consider who the applicant of any rezoning is – we can
only consider the use and associated conditions. Although given the request and
conditions offered it is obvious who the end user will be.
All of the citizens who spoke at the public hearing were
supportive of the proposal although a few did express some concerns regarding
increased traffic, light pollution and the condition of the existing buffer. IKEA
has agreed to make many traffic improvements as identified in the traffic
analysis report and also agreed to reduce the height of site lighting to
address lighting concerns. The remaining issues are minor and can easily be
addressed.
Cary’s Planning and Zoning Board will now review the case
and make their recommendation before the case comes back to us for final
decision in a couple of months. I look forward to supporting it. This is a big deal for Cary and especially for the revitalization of the Cary Towne Center Mall and surrounding area.
Wegmans
The council recently visited Alpharetta, Georgia to visit
Avalon, a successful mixed-use development project similar to that which is
being proposed on the state-owned property along Cary Towne Blvd. across the street
from the future IKEA and Triangle Aquatics Center.
There we toured the project and heard from a number of
stakeholders both private and public about the project. What were some of the
lessons learned? What did they get right? What would they do differently? How
can we be sure that what they delivered in Alpharetta can be delivered here?
Stuff like that. This was clearly the most valuable part of the visit and I
believe helped to alleviate some of the doubts folks might have had.
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| Avalon nightlife |
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| Apple Store at Avalon negates the need for street lights ;-) |
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| Christmas at Avalon - photo courtesy of Avalon |
As you can see, Avalon is more than a mixed-use development. It is an experience. It’s a destination – which is exactly what
we are looking for on the state property. But keep in mind that we aren’t
trying to copy Avalon. Cary isn't Alpharetta. The state property is one of Cary’s last primo pieces of undeveloped land adjacent
to I40 suitable for class A office development. Therefore, while a high quality
project like Avalon and a Wegmans can surely work on this site, the plan MUST include a healthy amount of office development.
The good news is that is exactly the direction this proposal
is headed. The bad news is that it is going to take a little more time to iron out all
of the details.... because if grandma’s world-famous chili recipe says to let it
simmer for 10 hours, you let it simmer for 10 hours. You don’t rush it because
the end result won’t be as good as it could have been. Same thing here. We’re
going to make sure this project is fully cooked before we say it’s ready. But
once it’s done, man it’s gonna be good!
