The council approved the creation of Cary’s first ever
Business Improvement District (BID) in downtown. While BIDs are usually created
to generate revenue (special tax district), our purpose for creating the BID is
to provide the legal mechanism necessary to allow the town to mitigate impact fees
associated with private development. Unlike most cities, Cary’s BID actually
reduces fees on businesses, and hopefully will incent additional private investment
in our downtown. The BID will exist for three years unless the council chooses
to extend it.
The council also unanimously approved the FY2013 budget. The
budget totals $232 Million and includes:
·
Tax Rate of 33 cents unchanged – lowest in Wake
County
·
Garbage fees unchanged at $14.00 month
·
6% Utility fee increase to pay for the state
mandated Western Wake Water Reclamation Facility
·
No New Debt for general capital projects
·
Seven new town employees – 4 related to WWWRF, 1
Detective, 1 Downtown Theater
This was a tough year. The economic recession continues to
impact growth and revenues and ultimately, our budget. Their simply wasn’t any
extra money to do some of the things we wanted to do.
The adopted budget is responsible as it continues to provide
the high levels of services that Cary citizens expect at the lowest possible
cost to you, the taxpayer.
During the November Election, Cary citizens will have the
opportunity to decide for themselves whether or not we move forward with a
number of transportation, parks, and public safety projects that we could not
include in this year’s budget.
And last but certainly not least, the Town of Cary and
Chatham County have approved a joint land use plan and interlocal agreement!
Any new development within the Cary/Chatham plan boundaries must conform to
this plan, and any changes to the plan must be approved by both the Chatham
County Commissioners and the Cary Town Council. The plan strikes a good balance
between folk’s rights to develop their properties, the rights of others to not
be negatively impacted by that development and protecting our environment. The
plan limits densities and utility services as you move closer to Jordan Lake to
better protect water quality while also preserving the rural character and
charm of Chatham County.
I have to say I never thought I’d see the day when both Cary
and Chatham County would agree on a plan. I remember former (thank goodness)
Chatham County Commissioners coming to Cary Council meetings to tell Cary to
“stay the hell out of Chatham County”. Many thanks to the staffs of both
Chatham and Cary for all their hard work, and to the Cary/Chatham Committee
members for all their efforts. This was truly a team effort and a great example
of cooperation between communities
Help Wanted:
I spent a great deal of time this weekend going over
statements of interest and qualifications for the vacant at-large council seat;
all 59 of them. This is not going to be an easy decision as there are a lot of
extraordinary and highly qualified individuals to choose from.
We have our first council worksession on the vacancy this
coming Tuesday where we hope to whittle the list down to a manageable number
for interviews. Following the interview process we will meet again to hopefully
pick our newest council member.