October 2012

Sorry I haven’t blogged in a while; life has been busy. We also went on vacation – first one we’ve taken in years. We took the family and a few of their friends to Topsail beach. I didn’t turn on a computer, check email, text or voice messages for almost a week. It was nice.

We surfed fished, ate killer food (LOVE fresh flounder and swordfish!), played with the dogs (they love the big pond and chasing birds ;-) and just relaxed on the beach with a margarita or few. Good times. Now we just need a vacation to recuperate from our vacation ;-)

While the beach was nice, I’m glad to be home…until I checked email that is; 397 of them. Yay…;-) I’m caught up on most everything now except blogging so here we go!

Council Meeting – 10/11/12: Notable discussion items included the purchase and conveyance of property for economic development – downtown hotel, Bees, sound level increase for three shows at Koka Booth Amphitheater and electronic gaming.

Property buy and sell for ED – downtown hotel: This one’s kinda complicated, so I’ll do my best to keep it simple. The owners of the King’s Daughter’s Inn in Durham want to construct and operate a 46 room boutique hotel in downtown Cary at the corner of Park and Academy. We want them to do this as well. The town owns two of the three lots needed to construct the hotel and rehab two historic structures – the Waldo Rood House and the Mayton House.  We acquired the third lot and then sold all three lots to the owners of the hotel. They agree to construct and operate the hotel AND restore the two historic homes which will be incorporated into the project. The hotel will have a restaurant and bar and the “backyard” will be the downtown park.

 

A great example of a public/private partnership; we assist them them with financing the project (the town gets paid for the property at a rate of 6%) and they construct and operate a significant investment which will serve as a catalyst for our downtown revitalization efforts, generate tax revenue and create jobs.

The council also unanimously approved the bid award for the downtown Cary theater project.

While maybe not as sexy as chickens ;-) the council approved an ordinance allowing for the keeping of bees in Cary. Kinda similar to what we did for chickens – limits on # of hives, set-backs, stupid $50 fee, etc…

We also agreed to increase the sound levels FOR THREE EVENTS at Koka Booth Amphitheater for next season. The last sound level increase to 95 db last year seemed to work out ok and the thought is that by allowing three shows to go to 98 db might help us land even better acts and increase revenues and reduce taxpayer subsidy.

I had a great time meeting with Kingswood Elementary 3^rd graders to talk about local government and more specifically, why government works better when multiple opinions are considered; “Why do we have seven members on the town council and not just one person calling all of the shots?” “Good question”, I said. “It would be so much simpler if the others just stayed home and let me handle everything” ;-) Kidding!....sort of…..;-)

The council held a worksession to discuss future traffic improvements at the intersection of Cary Parkway and High House. Yes, we’ve been working on this one for a while now. Staff presented additional options for improvements to include everything from turn lanes to three roundabouts – three lane roundabouts at that. The council agreed to direct staff to move forward with plans that include additional turn lanes and is sensitive to existing structures and landscaping.

We also held a session with board and commission members to receive their annual reports and say “thank you” for everything they do to make Cary an even better place to live. The manner in which the boards presented their reports was very creative and entertaining. The planning and zoning board, for example, decided to sing their report – I’ll leave it at that. ;-) Council members served as wait staff with each of us responsible for serving two tables. We all had a good time while learning about the work and accomplishments of all our boards and commissions.

Cary Community Investment Bonds: A number of folks have inquired about the bonds. I would encourage all of you to visit the Town’s bond website here to learn more about the three separate bond referendums that will be on this November’s ballot; fire, transportation and parks and recreation.

Bottom line is that all three bond referendums total $80 million. If approved by you, the voters, taxes will increase 2 cents in 2013 and 2 cents in 2015. If the referendum(s) fail, it is unlikely that any of the proposed projects will be completed in the next 3-5 years.

So again, please visit the bond website to learn more about the specific projects and financial impact to you, the taxpayer and please VOTE on November 6^th.

I also wanted to comment on the firing of Wake County Public Schools Superintendent, Tony Tata. This was an epic failure of board leadership.

Superintendent Tata was removed from his post for doing nothing wrong other than having been hired by the previous school board majority. This was political payback. Tata is a leader who achieved a number of successes in a very short period of time; he brought calm to an angry and divided community, student achievement is up and he worked to improve special needs services just to name a few.

Superintendent Tata’s achievements in what could easily be described as a hostile environment earned him the respect and support of parents, students, teachers and community partners.

From the News and Observer: School board members Hill and Sutton stated the problems with Tata included his inability to bridge the partisan gap on the board. Are you kidding me? It is Tata’s fault that board members can’t put partisanship aside and work together??? Hill and Sutton (and all the board members for that matter) need look no further than a mirror to see what many of the board’s problems are.

I have yet to speak to any teachers or parents who are pleased with the decision. I have spoken with many who are angry – very angry. One teacher told me, and I quote,“No superintendent has done more for teachers and students in such a short amount of time than Superintendent Tata.”

Tata’s only fault that I can see is that he wasn’t a yes-man – something most folks look for in a leader. If we could afford it, our daughter would be in private school yesterday.

That's all for now. As always, thanks for reading!

8/23/12 Council Meeting and Lazy Daze

Our last council meeting was a long one – six public hearings, a special recognition, Ed’s swearing in, and chickens - and we had to take a new group photo. Yay....

The town council had the pleasure of honoring Cary’s own Sue Rowland, who was recently named the 2012 North Carolina Association of Municipal Clerks Clerk of the Year! This of course comes as no surprise to any of us who have worked with Sue as we are all well aware of her talents and commitment to excellence. I swear I don’t know how we could do our job without her. Congratulations Sue!

Its official - Ed Yerha is a Cary Town Councilman. Ed, with his wife, Carolyn by his side was sworn into office at the beginning of our meeting by our town clerk, Sue Rowland. And what a first meeting right? Chickens and protest petitions, woo hoo! All kidding aside, Congratulations Ed!

Notable public hearings included:

Cary’s Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Master Plan. You can view the staff report here and the complete plan as proposed here. A number of citizens spoke in favor of the plan. The plan now goes to our Planning and Zoning Board for review and input before final council approval in a couple of months.

Rezoning for Village at the Park: The proposed rezoning would modify a previously approved phasing plan for Phase 3 and Phase 4 of the project. Phase four includes 95,000 sq. ft. of commercial use, 88,000 sq. ft. of office, and 45 multi-family units. Prior to development of phase four, the developer must also widen Kitt Creek Road, Green Level Church Road and Hwy 55 along the property’s frontage. The developer however is only looking to construct 17,000 sq. ft. of the 95,000 sq. ft. allowed. They requested breaking phase four up into two phases – 4a. which includes the 17,000 sq. ft. of commercial and requires the developer widen Kitt Creek Road and Hwy 55, and 4b. which includes the remaining commercial, office and residential uses and requires the developer widen Green Level Church Road. The council unanimously approved the request.

Rezoning for Weston PDD: This request would amend the previously approved PPD to allow for a wellness center as a permitted use in the office district. A few folks, including an adjoining business owner spoke in opposition to the request. This kind of surprised me as I consider a wellness/fitness center to be a good use in an office park for obvious reasons – but I appreciate and understand some of the concerns presented.

Special Use Permit, Preston Golf Course: This request was to approve grading revisions in the FEMA designated flood plain on the Prestonwood Highlands Course. During the maintenance and renovations of two golf course greens, Prestonwood inadvertently altered the grades a whopping .3 feet from what previously existed. Now, not only must Prestonwood obtain FEMA, state and federal approval, but town council approval as well. This was a total waste of time, and yet another example of government regulation run amuck. Lord knows how much all of this cost…

Chickens: Cary residents who live on single family home lots can now keep a limited number of backyard hens PROVIDED THAT YOU DO NOT LIVE IN A COMMUNITY WITH HOA COVENANTS THAT PROHIBIT IT. HOA COVENANTS TRUMP TOWN CODE. I highly recommend you visit Cary’s Chicken FAQ page here and inquire with your HOA (if you have one) about any restrictions prior to getting chickens. DO NOT contact the town to complain that your HOA will not allow you to keep chickens – it is out of our control. YOU agreed to your HOA covenants when you bought your house and this is a private agreement between you and your HOA.

I believe the approved ordinance to be a good compromise that allows folks to keep a limited number of backyard hens and also protects adjoining property owners from any negative impacts associated with their neighbor’s hobby. Notable rules include:

·         Limit of 5 hens – NO ROOSTERS ALLOWED

·         Coop must be set back 15 feet from all property lines

·         Coop must be located closer to the owner’s home than any neighbor’s home

·         No on site slaughter

·         Chickens only allowed in coop or run – no free range

·         One time $50.00 permit fee

Please visit Cary’s chicken FAQ page here for more info on Cary’s chicken ordinance.

I hope everyone had a great time at Cary’s 36^th annual Lazy Daze Festival in Downtown Cary! Thank goodness the weather cooperated this year. With an average attendance of 50,000, the Town of Cary's Lazy Daze Arts & Crafts Festival is the highest ranked one day festival in the Nation for Classic & Contemporary Craft Shows by Sunshine Artist Magazine. You can see some great pictures from this year's festival here and here.

Thanks so much to everyone who worked so hard to make this year’s festival a huge success. A very special thanks to Joy Ennis and Lyman Collins and their staff, Cary’s Festival Committee members, Public Works Dept. and especially all the volunteers – you all are awesome!

On a sad note, we have learned that former Cary Town Councilman, Jess Ward has past. Jess served as the District A Representative on the Cary Town Council from 1997-2001. Jess’ funeral is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 8, 11 a.m. at Mt. Zion Church in Cary.

That’s all for now, and as always, thanks for reading!

Appointing Ed

I am pleased with the council’s selection of Ed Yerha to fill the remainder of Julie Robison’s expired term. I am not however pleased with the manner in which it occurred.

I have known Ed Yerha for about ten years now. Ed is a good and honest man. He is professional and kind and treats everyone with respect. And for as long as I’ve known him, he has always volunteered his time and energy towards making Cary a better place to live. I worked on his campaign for the Cary Town Council in 2005. Here’s proof for you non-believers. ;-) I'm the one who didn't hide their beer. ;-)

I am confident that Ed will serve Cary well as a member of the Cary Town Council.

I hate I couldn’t vote for him.

This council always prides itself in being able to work together as a team, and I think most folks would agree that we’ve done a pretty good job of it. We have always avoided partisan conflict unlike many other area boards. We respect one another’s thoughts and opinions, and we have always tried to find common ground or consensus whenever possible. Sometimes we do, sometimes we don’t, and that’s ok – at least we tried.

Except this time.

When the Mayor began our meeting, he immediately recognized Mayor Pro Tem Adcock who immediately made a motion to appoint Ed to the council. Councilman Jack Smith seconded the motion. It was clear this decision was made in advance of our meeting, and without consideration of other council member’s thoughts or opinions.

The council had narrowed the list of 59 applicants to 6 – one later withdrew from consideration leaving us with five. After council/candidate interviews, we all submitted our list of top 2-3 candidates to Cary Town Clerk, Sue Rowland who tallied the results for us prior to our meeting. Julia Rudy received 5 votes, Ed Yerha received 4 votes, and the remaining three candidates each received 2 votes respectively.

As much as I like Ed, he wasn’t my first choice. Like I said in an earlier post, there were a lot of extraordinary people who applied for the position. My first choice of the remaining five candidates was Kelly Commiskey. Kelly served on Cary’s Planning and Zoning Board for six years – three as the board chair. Prior to that she served on Cary’s Information Services Advisory Board. I actually served with Kelly on Cary’s Planning and Zoning Board prior to my election where I witnessed first hand her passion and commitment to our community. She always voted her conscience and what she believed best for all of Cary – not just a vocal minority. She has stood strong in the face of some pretty fierce winds – and I believe we could use some more of that on the council.

But unfortunately for a couple of us, Kelly didn’t receive as many votes as Julia or Ed. Since more of us recommended Julia Rudy (Jack Smith was the only one who didn’t recommend her, and that was because she voted for an apartment complex in his neighborhood…the only one Jack hasn’t voted for in years btw, but I digress…) than Ed, I felt like Julia could be our consensus candidate. But it’s pretty difficult to have that discussion when there’s already a motion on the table.

What disappointed me the most was that just that morning, I spoke with a council member who said to me, and I quote, “I just hope we have a good discussion before somebody tries to make a motion”. …and then he seconds the motion prior to any discussion. Nice.

My only real concern regarding Ed’s appointment is the perception of cronyism. Ed has supported a number of sitting council member’s political campaigns and vice-versa. I can assure you that this is not the case, but the perception issue is real nonetheless. An honest and transparent discussion could have gone a long ways towards addressing this concern.

Cary citizens - especially the 58 other candidates who applied for the position – deserved better.

To support Ed’s appointment under these circumstances would have been an endorsement of my colleague's actions, and I just couldn’t do that. I hope Ed understands.

My neck, The James Jones House, The Council Vacancy and Politics

The last few weeks have been rough. Back in April I had surgery to fuse three vertebras in my neck; I had two herniated discs that were wreaking havoc on a nerve and causing tremendous pain. Well, everything was doing fine until I started to experience the same pain again, only this time on my left side. The doc gave me some anti-inflammatory meds and in about a week, the pain was gone. Yay! Or so I thought. A few days later the pain came back with a vengeance on my right side and my hand was numb. Nice. We tried meds again with no luck before sending me for another MRI. I was on the operating table the next day. Turned out I had another damaged disc that was pushed into my spine causing all kinds of problems. Here is the MRI image where you can see the disc pushed into my spine. Hurt like hell….

I’m back at home now doing the best I can to rest and heal. The majority of nerve pain is gone and I am starting to feel most of my hand and fingers. My neck and throat are sore from the surgery, but that’s to be expected and it gets better each day. It will be a while before all the feeling returns to my hand and I regain arm strength, but I can deal with that. The pain, not so much.

Thanks so much to everyone who has called, emailed or stopped by to express your concerns. Your thoughts and prayers mean the world to me.

The next day I had a Planning and Development Committee meeting and then interviews with the five candidates for the vacant council seat.

The Planning and Development Committee meeting was light with the only discussion item being consideration of a resolution authorizingthe lease of the James Jones House at the corner of Academy and Dry to Lawrence Coffee and Bar LLC. The resolution passed unanimously.

In a nutshell the town will commit $150,000 to restore and make improvements to the historic James Jones House, and Lawrence Coffee and Bar LLC agrees to lease the property at a tiered rate for five years. The lease agreement totals $139,794, nearly the entire cost of renovations…which the town would have made to this historic property regardless.

Lawrence Coffee and Bar LLC will operate Larry’s Beans out of the house. Larry’s Beans serves wines, local beers, local kombucha (a fermented tea), cocoas and craft sodas, as well as sandwiches and salads.  The business will operate from 7:00 AM through 6:00 PM, Monday through Friday and 8:00 AM through 7:00 PM on weekends.  This schedule may be adjusted in conjunction with special events at the Cary Arts Center.  They will also employ 15 persons.

This is a wonderful use for the historic James Jones House and I wish them all the best in their efforts, and truth be told I also look forward to a great coffee shop on my route to work each morning! ;-)

Afterwards the council met for candidate interviews for the vacant council seat. We split into two groups of three and spent 20 minutes interviewing each of the five candidates. It was kind of like speed dating.

I have to say that all five of the candidates are extraordinary people; each with different skills, talents and backgrounds to offer; and all of which would be valuable to have on the council and to the town. Each of them have also served on our Cary’s Planning and Zoning Board, as well as other boards and commissions and are very familiar with town operations and departments. This is important to me as I am looking for a candidate that hit the ground running and need little time to adjust to their new role.

Council members are to now pick our top 2-3 candidates and we’ll see who gets the most votes and go from there. I know who my first and second choices are, but I’m still torn on who to pick for my third choice. Like I said, they are all extraordinary people – this is not an easy decision. We have a worksession scheduled for the 31^st and we hope to make our selection then.

I want to thank each and every one of the 59 Cary citizens who applied to serve. Cary is one of the greatest communities to live in largely because of citizens like you; people who care enough to give back and volunteer their talents to make our community an even better place to live, work and raise a family. We are so blessed.

I also spent a great deal of time this past week reviewing citizen applications for all of our boards and commissions before submitting my recommendations to Deputy Town Clerk, Karen Gray. The council will further discuss the applicants at an upcoming worksession.

I want to take a minute to talk politics, and about my involvement with the Romney for President Campaign.

About a month ago we hosted a press conference on behalf of the Romney campaign at our business along with NC Speaker of the House, Thom Tillis and Dr. Jim Fulghum to discuss the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and more specifically, the small business community’s concerns with the fiscal and regulatory impacts of the act. I have also met with Senators Rob Portman of Ohio and North Carolina’s own Richard Burr for a business roundtable discussion about small business issues and concerns and the need for regulatory and tax reform at the federal level.

I am helping the Romney campaign because I am angry with what I see as nothing short of an assault on private business and free enterprise from our federal government and our President. I am done with being demonized by a President hell bent on turning public opinion against us – the job creators. And I am sick of hearing that all us “rich” small business owners aren’t “paying our fair share”, or that we somehow owe our success to the government. If anything we’ve managed to succeed despite government.

What the hell happened anyways? There used to be a time when we looked up to successful people – we aspired to be them. Now we are told they are evil.  I don’t get it.

Along with Governor Romney, I will be supporting those candidates who value the contributions of small business to our economy and our communities. I will be helping candidates who understand and appreciate entrepreneurs who take a huge financial risk and work endless hours starting and running their businesses. I will be speaking out about issues of concern in the business community, and I will be contributing both time and money to those candidates who believe in free enterprise and individual responsibility.

This should not come as a surprise to anyone as it was an attack on business – to include our business - that got me involved in politics in the first place. And ever since then, whether as a small business owner, a Cary Town Councilman, a member of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) NC Leadership Council or the Cary Chamber of Commerce, I have continued to work to help the business community.

After all, the number one indicator of one’s quality of life is a paycheck.

If you don’t have a good job, there’s a pretty good chance your quality of life stinks. I don’t want your life to stink. :-)

You may disagree with me and that is fine. We can agree to disagree. I encourage everyone to get involved and support those candidates who best represent your values.

That's all for now. As always, thanks for reading!

June 28, 2012 Council Meeting

The first order of business was to recognize retiring councilwoman Julie Robison. Julie and her family are moving to West Virginia as Julie’s husband, Dan has been named the Dean of the college of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design at West Virginia University. We all took turns saying our “goodbyes” and talked about what we would remember most about Julie. I talked about how I first met Julie about 10 years ago during the whole downtown auto issue, and that I and business owners throughout downtown are forever grateful for her efforts to help us fight city hall and save our businesses. We also surprised her by naming the volleyball courts at North Cary Park after her.

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.

Be careful what you wish for! ;-)

Help Wanted: Cary Town

Council Calls for Candidates to Fill Vacancy

CARY, NC – Interested Cary citizens have from noon on Friday, June 1 until noon on Friday, June 29 to place their names into consideration for the unexpired At-Large Cary Town Council seat that will be vacated by Julie Robison effective June 30. To be considered, candidates must be at least 21 years old, live within the Cary corporate limits, be registered to vote and not have any disqualifying factors, such as sex offenses and felonies. Current Town of Cary employees are not eligible for appointment.

Cary citizens interested in the job should prepare a Statement of Interest and Qualifications (SOIAQ) that addresses all -- but need not be limited to -- the following:

• Name, street address, mailing address (if different from street address), zip code, telephone number, and email address;

• Describe why you want to serve as a Cary Town Council member;

• Describe your perspective on Cary’s growth management and what you would do, if anything, to change it;

• Describe your perspective on Cary’s financial management and what you would do, if anything, to change it;

• Willingness and ability to serve until citizens elect a successor in the fall 2013 Cary municipal election;

• Community involvement, community connectedness;

• Previous government experience;

• Other relevant experience;

• Education;

• Occupation and place of employment (if applicable); and

• Other personal qualities.

SOIAQs should be submitted to Town Clerk Sue Rowland by noon on June 29, 2012 via email at sue.rowland@townofcary.org. All persons who submit an SOIAQ will receive an email confirmation.

Following the deadline, all SOIAQs will be placed on the Town's website. SOIAQs are public records under North Carolina law and will be shared with others upon request and without notice; therefore, please do not include private identifying information on the SOIAQ, such as Social Security numbers. For more information, search “Council Vacancy” at www.townofcary.org or call (919) 469-4011.

###

PRIMARY CONTACTS:       

Sue Rowland, Town Clerk, (919) 469-4011

Carrie Roman, Public Information Specialist, (919) 481-5091

Susan Moran, Public Information Director, (919) 460-4951

RELATED LINKS:

Complete List of Disqualifying Factors

2012 Cary Town Council Vacancy

***Please note that email sent to and from this address is subject to the North Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties.

May 24, 2012 Council Meeting

Thursday evening’s council meeting included a number of discussion items to include land development ordinance amendments, a rezoning near Wake Med on Kildaire Farm Road, the Panther Creek ninth grade center request from WCPSS, a report from staff on the proposed Technology Task Force, and chickens – not necessarily in that order.

Keisler Rezoning: The council unanimously approved the applicant’s request to rezone 3.5 acres along Kildaire Farm Road from residential to office. The applicant has proposed a 50,000 sq. ft. office building on the site. Conditions include a 40 foot opaque buffer with no averaging, a 100 foot building set back from the rear property line, shielded lighting and storm water BMP’s that will be designed to accommodate a 50 year storm event. This site has been identified on Cary’s Land Use Plan as O+I since 1996. The site is not viable as a residential use (except for high density).

Technology task force: Councilmember Lori Bush and I initiated a request for Cary to consider creating a Technology Task Force to help Cary better understand and utilize technology and social media in communicating with citizens. Council unanimously approved the request. The clerk’s office will handle the application process so if you are interested in serving on the task force, please contact Town Clerk, Sue Rowland at sue.rowland@townofcary.org .

Chickens: Discussed numerous times ad-nauseum. We conducted a public hearing and heard from many in support of allowing folks to keep a limited number of backyard hens. Two people spoke in opposition. The council forwarded this item to Cary’s Planning and Zoning Board for review before coming back to council for final decision in July or August. Yes, government moves slow – and that’s usually a good thing.

Yes, I still have a few concerns with the proposed ordinance; the $50.00 fee is too high, the recommended number of chickens allowed (6) is a couple too low, and the set-back requirements for coup placement are a bit difficult for the average citizen to understand, but I’m not going to win these arguments right now. The council consensus is to take it slow and see how this goes. Not a bad idea at all. If we find we need to make some adjustments in the future we can do so. I believe what is proposed to be a good balance of allowing folks to keep some chickens for personal use while protecting those who do not want to be impacted by their neighbor’s chickens.

One last point on chickens – if you live in a community whose HOA covenants prohibit the keeping of chickens, you still cannot get chickens. HOA covenants trump town code and you agreed to those rules when you bought your house.

Panther Creek 9^th Grade Center: The council unanimously denied WCPSS’ request to amend the Town of Cary’s Land Development Ordinance (LDO) to allow for the construction of a “temporary” 9^th grade center at the future site of the Alston Ridge Middle School (M16).

The overriding concern was with having to amend Cary’s LDO to allow for temporary classroom space in the absence of a principle structure (existing school). This amendment would not only apply to this specific request, but would also apply to any educational/institutional use town-wide. Any public or private school, trade school or other educational uses would be allowed to construct “temporary” facilities in the absence of a principle structure. We are all unfortunately familiar with WCPSS’ practice of adding trailers/modulars to alleviate overcrowding at area schools. This is the first time I can ever recall where they want to install the temporary classrooms first.

If council were to consider supporting the amendment, town staff recommended defining “temporary” as 2 years with a possible 2 year extension for a total of 4 years. WCPSS is on record stating they would need the 9^th grade center for 6+ years.

Should WCPSS construct middle school M16 within four years of constructing the 9^th grade center, that would then provide the principle structure required for the modulars to remain indefinitely – whether as a 9^th grade center or to alleviate overcrowding at the middle school.

I blogged about this request last week in an effort to solicit citizen feedback, and boy did we get it. The emails and phone calls were overwhelmingly in opposition to this request with only 2 supporting it.

Make no mistake – this was not an easy decision. We all are well aware of the overcrowding issues at Panther Creek High School and we know we need additional school seats. Sacrificing our development standards however is not the answer. Council members also expressed concerns about the urgency of this request. I think councilmember Bush said it best, “Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on our part.”

I don’t have an answer to this problem – none of us do. I wish we did and we will continue to try. But this isn’t our responsibility; it’s the school system’s. Cary works very hard to communicate development data and trends to WCPSS staff. What they do with that information I do not know.

UPDATE: WCPSS has filed an appeal with Cary’s Zoning Board of Adjustment. I will post an update as I learn more.

Land Development Ordinance (LDO) Amendments: There were a number of amendments discussed and approved – too many to write about and not as interesting as chickens ;-). You can view the staff reports here and here.

Well, that's our council meeting in a nutshell. As always, thanks for reading!

Panther Creek 9th Grade Center?

I need your input.

WCPSS has asked the Town of Cary for approval to construct a “temporary” modular school site as a 9^th grade center to alleviate overcrowding at Panther Creek High School. The proposed site is a 45 acre parcel south of the Alston Ridge Elementary School which will house the future M16 middle school campus. The 9^th grade center campus would include 7 modular buildings and one steel building.

Cary Town staff reviewed Cary’s Land Development Ordinance (LDO) and confirmed that it presently does not allow temporary modular classrooms for expansion space unless they are being proposed in conjunction with an already-existing permanent principal structure on the site.

An ordinance amendment would be required to legally allow WCPSS to construct the modular (temporary) 9^th grade center.

WCPSS has asked Cary for such an amendment. However an amendment such as this would also be available to any school, whether public or private; and, there is no guarantee a real permanent school would be constructed on such a site in the future.

We can all agree that we need additional school capacity, and I am well aware of many of the issues Panther Creek students and teachers are dealing with. However, some of my concerns are:

·         How “temporary” is temporary? 5 years? 10? 15? We have all experienced temporary classrooms (trailers/modulars) at area schools that, once installed, become permanent fixtures.

·         What assurances do we have that the proposed H7 high school in Apex will alleviate Panther Creek’s overcrowding issues once constructed; negating the need for the 9^th grade center?

·         The H7 high school is dependent upon the passing of next year’s school bond referendum. How sure are we that that bond will indeed pass?

·         If the 9^th grade center remains indefinitely, how does that impact the construction of middle school M16? (I love that designation btw ;-)

·         Area residents will be subject to construction noise and traffic twice – once for the 9^th grade center, and then for its removal and construction of M16.

So help me, and probably all of council out here. What say you, Panther Creek and West Cary families? Do you support an ordinance amendment allowing for “temporary” classroom construction or not? Do you have a better solution?

PLEASE contact me with your thoughts at don.frantz@townofcary.org or email the entire council at council@townofcary.org. We need to hear from you. Thank you.

Weeks in Review - April

The last month been rough. I woke up one morning with excruciating pain in my neck. I couldn’t move, well I could, but that made the pain even worse. I went to the doctor to find out what was going on. He sent me for X-Rays – nothing. He then scheduled an MRI. Soon after that I’m meeting with a neurosurgeon who’s asking me how soon he can get me on the operating table.

It turns out I had two herniated discs in my neck – one was completely disintegrated and the “debris” was wreaking havoc on a nerve that was causing shooting pain and weakness in my right arm and shoulder. I couldn’t even pick my arm up over my head. No amount of physical therapy was going to help the doc said.

I had surgery the following Monday to remove the debris, and fuse 3 vertebrae together. The few days following surgery things were going pretty well – the pain was much less than before and I was able to sleep through most of the night.

Then I got the flu – bad.

Two days of uncontrollable vomiting with a bum neck – Nice.

Things seem to be going pretty well now. Some days are better than others but all in all I can’t complain. It beats the heck out of where I was a few weeks ago.

Everyone keeps asking me, “how did this happen?” I have no idea. I can’t think of any single one thing I did lately where I may have caused this. I was involved in a motorcycle accident 10 years ago that put me in the hospital for a few days with a busted shoulder, collapsed lung and broken ribs, but I never had any neck injuries. Lucky me I guess.

Thanks so much to the surgical team and doctors at Rex for fixing me up, and especially my wife Lisa “Florence Nightingale” for taking great care of me. I am so blessed.

Until this past week I was unable to attend a number of town events and meetings. But I’m back in the saddle again!

The council held a worksession this past week to discuss a number of topics.

Public Art Master Plan Update: Council heard from staff and consultants on a number of items pertaining to the town’s Public Art Master Plan. Key discussion points centered around funding in regards to both public and private development. Staff was recommending a percent for art program. This would require a percentage of the cost of the project be dedicated to public art. For example, if a private developer or the town were to build a $10 million project, $100,000 would have to be spent on public art.

The council did not support a percent for art program, and instead directed staff to look into ways we can incent the private sector to incorporate art into their projects, and for the town to consider, but not require public art with public projects on a case by case basis.

Downtown Update: We received an update from Downtown Development Manager, Ed Gawf regarding a number of initiatives, but the main focus of this session was the proposed downtown park – or “opportunity site” as Ed likes to call it. (this is the property across from the Cary Arts Center bordered by Park, Academy, Walker and Walnut Streets). I requested this session as there seemed to be some confusion regarding the town’s intent. For years we have been telling folks this property would become Cary’s Downtown Park. However, we are also considering locating the new downtown library and associated parking deck on this property, and there is also interest in some amount of retail and restaurant space. The last time the council discussed this site was at our 2010 council retreat.

Ed proposed giving him 6 months to work with other professionals land planners to develop a number of options to present to council. I struggled with this request for 2 reasons. 1) I kinda liked the plan we agreed upon in 2010, and 2) one of the reasons I ran for council was that I was sick of planning. We had planned, planned, and planned some more downtown, but weren’t actually doing anything. Obviously that has changed in the last few years. However, given that we have not acquired all of the property on this site as of yet, there is still time to revisit. Ed said 6 months. He has until October. ;-)

Downtown Business Improvement District (BID): Council agreed to create a BID downtown to facilitate the mitigation of impact fees. The town cannot legally waive fees in one area of town while requiring them in another. The BID would enable the town to pay the fees. Yes, we are paying ourselves – sounds dumb, I know, but the law is the law. There is NOT an associated tax increase with the creation of the BID.

Process for Filling the Upcoming Council Vacancy – Robison Seat: Council briefly discussed the timeline and process for filling departing Councilmember Julie Robison’s seat. If any of you are interested in serving out the remainder of her term, start getting that resume ready! Just be careful what you wish for. ;-)

There were three notable items on our council meeting agenda this past Thursday.

Request to Waive Road Improvements for St. Michael the Archangel School on High House Road: St. Michaels submitted plans to construct a new gymnasium, and were requesting a waiver of associated road improvements to include the widening of High House Road along their frontage, prohibit left hand turns out of their eastern most driveway, dedicate the required right-of-way and the installation of a traffic signal.

The council agreed to waive the all the improvements except for the dedication of right-of-way given that this project would not add additional students or vehicle trips. In fact, traffic may be less as students would no longer have to travel to other locations for practices and meets. This location also does not meet warrants for a traffic signal, and NCDOT would most likely deny the signal installation. St. Michaels will however be expected to make traffic improvements should they ever add classroom space or other development that increases vehicle trips.

Chickens: The issue that just won’t go away ;-) Heck, what am I saying, this time it’s my fault. The council agreed on the following:

• 6 chickens allowed

• No slaughter

• Kept in backyards only

• Adequate setback requirements, basically 10 ft on side yards and 25 ft. in rear

• A one time $50.00 fee to cover costs of administering the program and enforcement (possible annual fee also yet to be determined)

• No roosters

• For personal use only – no raising chickens for sale

We have discussed this issue ad nauseam so I will keep my comments brief. I was pleased with council’s decisions except for the number of chickens allowed and the fee. I had pushed for 8 chickens and a $10.00 fee to be more in line with what we charge for dogs and cats. I lost those votes. I also asked staff to make sure the recommended setbacks wouldn’t prohibit folks who live on odd shaped lots the opportunity to keep chickens. This issue now comes back to us for public hearing in May and then to our Planning and Zoning Board before final council decision June 28th. Yes, government moves slow – most of the time that’s a good thing.

Last but not least was council consideration of a request from Councilmember Lori Bush to direct town staff to investigate creating a “technology task force” to better communicate with citizens, improve our service delivery and increase citizen involvement. I was the cosponsor. The council granted unanimous approval.

Afterwards we held a closed session to discuss some ongoing legal issues.

That’s all for now. As always, thanks for reading!

Week in Review 3/17/12 - 3/24/12

To Bond, or not to Bond?: At our council worksession this past Tuesday, the council unanimously voted to present $80 million in transportation, parks and recreation and public safety bond referendums to the voters in the upcoming November elections. Some notable projects and their associated costs are as follows:

• Walnut Street Traffic and Pedestrian Imporovements - $7 million

• Street Improvements - $10 million

• Carpenter Fire Station Bridge and Intersection Improvements - $17 million

• Green Level West Road Widening - $13 million

• Carpenter Fire Station Road Widening - $9 million

• Streetscape Improvements Along South Academy and Dry - $8 million

• Bartley Park, Phase One - $4.4 million

• Greenways - $3 million

• Downtown Park - $2 million

• Carpenter Park - $2 million

• New Fire Station #2 - $6.45 million

• Sports Turf Fields - $5 million

• Bike Facilities - $1 million

I believe most of the projects above to be genuine needs that the town has now - a couple others, not so much. However, I did not expect to go into a meeting with my colleagues and agree on everything. We are all individuals with different priorities and constituencies. In the end I believe we came up with a list of projects that everyone is 80-90% satisfied with. In politics, I don’t think it gets much better than that. We work very well together as a council.

So we are clear, if YOU the VOTERS approve these bond referendums, you will also be voting for a tax increase of four cents per $100 of property valuation. Taxes would increase two cents in 2014 and again in 2016. A four cent tax increase on a $250,000 home is $100.

To cope with the economic recession, since 2008 the council has canceled or delayed over $100 million in capital projects and have kept dozens of town employee positions vacant while keeping taxes low. Cary’s current tax rate of 33 cents per $100 of valuation is the lowest in Wake County, and at eight town employees per 1000 residents; Cary has one of the leanest and most efficient municipal governments in the state. Just as hard working families in Cary and beyond have had to tighten their belts and live within their means, so has the town. Yet our needs continue to grow.

The recession has significantly impacted Cary’s budget – especially in regards to investment earnings and ad valorem taxes (property taxes). While too much growth too fast has its problems, too little to no growth creates challenges as well. A stable and healthy growth rate provides new revenues for infrastructure, amenities and inflationary increases while ensuring we maintain pace with that growth.

Cary still has approximately $70 million in existing bond authority that was approved by the voters in 2003. However, given current economic conditions and changing needs, we believed it best to allow this authority to expire and to once again seek voter approval.

Voter approved general obligation bonds are the least expensive form of financing available to local government. Many of the proposed projects are simply too expensive to pay for with cash. Just as you would typically borrow money to make home improvements, start a business or even buy a car, governments can do the same for infrastructure improvements. Cary’s AAA bond rating also ensures we get the best rates.

There will be plenty of opportunity for public input and change as this moves throughout the process. If you have any comments or suggestions, please contact us at council@townofcary.org and most importantly, vote in November.

Frick and Frack: The council also discussed our North Carolina State Legislative Agenda and Hydraulic Fracturing (fracking) at our worksession this past Tuesday. The council unanimously approved a resolution that recognizes both the economic benefits and environmental concerns associated with fracking, and encourages our state leaders to proceed in a thoughtful and deliberate manner, and that they preserve local government’s authority regarding land use planning.

I am very pleased that we as a council were again able to come together and agree on an issue where folks clearly had differing viewpoints.

Afterwards we discussed and determined a process for filling Councilwoman Julie Robison’s council seat once she resigns. The council will call for statements of interest and qualifications and then hold a worksession to discuss the applicants and develop a “short list”. The council will then interview those candidates prior to another worksession where we hope to ultimately make our selection. Unfortunately we do not know exactly when Ms. Robison will resign so I can’t tell you the dates to submit your statements of interest yet. Stay tuned.

Council Meeting: Highlights included a couple public hearings and discussion and denial of the Fryar Tract Rezoning.

Council concerns regarding the Fryar Tract mainly pertained to the planned on-street parking along Highcroft Drive. Highcroft Drive is designated as a collector street and the current proposal did not meet collector design standards. The council voted 4-3 to deny the rezoning. I voted against the motion to deny (so did councilors Bush and Robinson) because while Highcroft was planned for as a collector, it is not functioning as such given the southern portion (where this project would connect) is also a 25 MPH road.

Cary High School Career Fair: I had the pleasure of participating in Cary High School’s Career Fair again this year. This is always a lot of fun and a great opportunity to educate students about a career in automotive repair and service. Unfortunately there are only two high schools in Wake County that teach auto shop any more – probably much of the same for electronics, HVAC, carpentry, plumbing etc.. Kids just aren’t exposed to the trades like they used to be. We still live in “every child should go to college fantasy land”. This isn’t reality. Not every child needs a college education to succeed in life. By increasing vocational education opportunities we can better prepare non-college bound students for a rewarding career in our local economy. Let’s face it, you can’t outsource your car’s tune-up to India – great job security.

Wheels on Academy Car Show: Despite the horrible weather Cary’s first ever car show was a huge success! Live entertainment, great food, and automotive inspired art vendors along with over 60 of the coolest custom and classic cars you ever saw made for a great time for everyone. Academy Street never looked so good. Car owners stayed busy drying their cars in between rain showers – a futile effort I promise you, I was one of them – hoping to impress the judges enough to win the prestigious title of “Best in Show”. The judges by the way were the car show participants themselves – judging by peers. With severe weather approaching, the decision was made to end the show shortly after 2:00 (it was scheduled to go to 5:00) and award were presented. Turned out to be a good call – the bottom fell out at about 2:30.

Every participant I spoke with was very impressed with the efforts the town put into this event; with some commenting that they couldn’t believe this was the first time the town had hosted a car show. Some of my favorite comments included, “I’ve never been to a car show with live bands before, this is awesome!” and, “what a beautiful place to have an event like this!” And while the show was a success, we also learned a few things that will help make next year’s event even better than this one. Special thanks go out to Joy Ennis and her staff, the car show committee members and the folks at Public Works for all your efforts!

Check my facebook page or CaryCitizen for pictures.

That's all for now - as always, thanks for reading!

What's all the buzz about?

I love my job on the Cary Town Council. It has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my life – and at times one of the most surprising. This is one of those times.

When I joined the council in 2007 I was well aware that I was in for an education. I knew I would learn more than I ever wanted to know about land use planning and zoning, property development and environmental issues – but never did I expect to become an expert in chickens and bees. (note: I am not really an expert, I just play one on TV)

I already addressed chickens in a previous post so let’s talk bees.

Currently the town does not regulate beekeeping. Town staff, In response to a few citizen’s concerns, attempted to craft an ordinance that addressed those concerns while continuing to allow residents the opportunity to keep bees. The problem however is that as proposed, the ordinance would only allow for beekeeping on lots larger than 30,000 sq. ft. (2/3 acre). Take a guess how many lots in Cary are 30,000 sq. ft. or larger?

5.6%

The proposed ordinance would essentially eliminate beekeeping in town limits.

So who cares right? I mean, who needs bees anyways?

We all do.

Honey bees play a critical role in agriculture – the most important being pollination of plants. Over 1/3 of all the food we consume relies on honey bees for pollination. No bees = no food. Think also of the economic impacts. What would happen to the price of food if you removed 1/3 of it from grocery store shelves? Numerous studies indicate a global decline in honey bee populations.

Most of the complaints the town has received about folks keeping bees has to do with the fear of being stung and folks who are allergic to bee stings – a legitimate concern. However, the overwhelming majority of “bee stings” are not caused by honey bees, but instead yellow jackets, wasps and other stinging insects. Honey bees are very docile and only attack to defend themselves or their hive…or if you happen to step on one. Yellow jackets on the other hand are very aggressive and can easily be confused for a bee. See here for a visual comparison.

But not being one to believe everything I read, I went and visited a friend's honey bee colony first hand.

Here is the hive. It is estimated that there are upwards of 50,000 bees inside.

Here we are inspecting the hive (bee owner's face intentionally blurred). The gentleman on the right is Mr. Will Hicks, Apiary Inspector from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Notice they are not wearing any bee protection suits. They did ask me if I wanted to wear one, but since they weren't, I wasn't going to be the wuss of the group. Mr. Hicks was very informative and answered a number of questions I had.

Here we are looking for any indication of disease or mites. No real issues were discovered and the colony appeared very healthy. The honey tasted pretty darn good too!

Even after "breaking into their house", none of us were ever stung, nor did the bees show any sign of aggression.

Bottom line: I don't believe the keeping of honey bees to be an issue that we need to regulate. While I am sympathetic to concerns, I prefer to base my decisions on fact instead of fear.

At our council meeting we rejected the proposed beekeeping regulations and instead directed staff to work with folks from the bee community in the hopes that we can come up with a set of rules/guidelines that everyone can live with.

I would have prefered to have done nothing (not create any ordinance). But we'll see what comes back to council in a month or so after town staff and beekeeping professionals put their heads together.

Things could be worse. Cary, like many cities and states across America, could be facing multi-million dollar budget deficits, rampant unemployment, increased crime and corruption and a host of other serious problems.

I'll take chickens and bees over that any day.

Spring Chickens

Call me a flip-flopper if you want, but I have changed my mind regarding chickens in Cary.

It has nothing to do with “sustainability” or many of the “green” arguments chicken proponents point to – it has everything to do with freedom.

As a Cary councilman and active member of a number of business and community associations I have worked hard to reduce or eliminate overburdensome and unfair government regulations. I am sick of government (especially the idiots in Washington) poking their noses into every facet of our lives. My position on chickens was in conflict with this.

People should have the right to do as they wish as long as their decisions do not negatively impact the health and well-being of others. Just because I do not like something doesn’t give me the right to keep you from doing it.

So we are clear - I do not want chickens. I really hope my neighbors do not get chickens. But if they do, who in the hell am I to say “no”? Just make sure you keep those things closer to your house than mine, and if your chicken flies into my yard and my dog eats your chicken, that’s on you.

Mayor Pro-Tem Gale Adcock and I have placed the following request on council’s February 9, 2012 meeting agenda:

Council initiated request to amend Cary’s ordinance to allow for the keeping of backyard hens.

Mayor Pro Tem Adcock and I are requesting council consideration of a request to direct staff to amend town code to allow for the keeping of backyard hens with the following conditions:

• This amendment applies to single family detached homes only

• No Roosters

• No backyard slaughter

• Chickens may be kept for personal use only – no raising chickens for re-sale

• A maximum of eight (8) chickens allowed per property

• Recommend an annual license fee of $10.00 total (not per chicken)

• No free range. Chickens are to remain in the chicken coup, run or fenced in yard when unsupervised. May be allowed in front yard with supervision.

• Delay the implementation of the proposed ordinance amendment for 3 months to allow HOA’s the opportunity to address this issue if they so desire.

• Chicken Coup: Chickens must be provided a covered, predator resistant housing structure that is designed in such a way that allows for ventilation, ease of cleaning and provides a minimum of two square feet per chicken. The coup should be held to standards similar to what we require for storage sheds and give the appearance of professional design and construction

• Apply appropriate set-back requirements. Understanding that every lot is different, we are looking for staff guidance on how to best protect neighbors by ensuring that the chicken coup is located closer to the chicken owner’s home than their neighbor’s.

• Allows for folks to compost hen’s fecal matter – current ordinance prohibits composting fecal matter of “household pets”. Clarify chicken/hens NOT a household pet if necessary.

“Assuming” that those council members who supported allowing chickens in Cary the last time this was discussed still do, this initiative will pass.

There is no need for more information – this issue has been studied to death. I know more about chickens than I ever cared to. Let’s just get this done and behind us. We have way more important things to focus on.

So like I said, call me a flip-flopper. I don't care. I can admit when I am wrong. What's your excuse? ;-)

Now all this talk of chickens has made me hungry. KFC anyone?