Mayors Dance Practice
Monday I joined Apex Mayor Gilbert, and Morrisville Mayor Cawley to practice a dance for Diwali. All of us will be participating with groups from our towns and then we will lead the grand finale.
Meet the Mayor Presentation at Coldwell Banker
Tuesday I met with several dozen realtors from Coldwell Banker and presented an updated version of the State of Cary address. Their questions focused almost entirely on our affordable housing efforts.
Cary Chamber Annual Banquet
Wednesday I attended the Cary Chamber Annual Banquet at Prestonwood. This was the Cary Chamber’s 60th year holding this event. It is a tradition that has allowed business and government leaders to network, receive awards, and celebrate Cary businesses.
This year it was a great joy to see our Mayor Pro-Tem, Don Frantz, receive the Citizen of the Year Award. Well deserved!
I provided a few remarks before and was followed by Kelly King, the former CEO of BB&T. The event lasted about three hours.
Turner Creek Elementary
Thursday I talked virtually with the 3rd grade classes at Turner Creek elementary. I spoke about our government structure, our authority, and duties we perform. I had a great time answering their questions. It was a fun time and I hope next time we can do it in person.
Remnants of Hurricane Ian Arrive in Cary
All my events for Friday’s were cancelled due to the remnants of Hurricane Ian. The Hurricane first made landfall earlier in the week near Ft Myers, Florida as a strong category 4 causing catastrophic damage and death. Sadly, it will take those communities months to recover and more than likely they will never be the same. Then Friday afternoon, after it went across Florida and into the Atlantic, it made its second landfall as a strong category 1 just south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Cary is very fortunate to have only experienced a minimal disruption, downed trees, and debris. Most importantly, no major injuries or loss of life were reported. Here is a summary of impacts for Cary:
- Roughly 4 inches of rain fell in Cary.
- As of this morning, roughly 54,000 customers in Wake County without power.
- Koka Booth Amphitheatre is without power impacting Oktoberfest and the South Plant (Wastewater) is running off a back-up generator.
- 600 calls to 911 and just over 100 calls to 311, which remained operational until 9 p.m.
- 43 calls related to trees and large limbs down.
- Several street closures remain due to fallen trees laced with powerlines in the areas of Willowbrook, Maynard at Sloan, Maynard at Medlin, and Ridgecrest at Charles.
Recognizing the debris left in our community, Public Works will be flexible with yard waste collection rules for the next two weeks. Bottom line, if you can get it to the curb, they will collect it.
Again, Cary was fortunate, but many were not. Please keep all those who suffered and are suffering in your thoughts and prayers.
Town Manager’s Report
The Town Manager’s report for this week included:
Sean’s Message
As we all know fall has the potential to throw us weather curveballs that impact our day-to-day responsibility occasionally, and today that curveball is in the form of Hurricane Ian. Instead of planning for more fun fall activities staff shifted their focus on keeping Cary facilities, staff and community members safe from the potential impacts of Ian. In preparation for the weather event, staff from across the organization have been closely monitoring the storm all week and we are ready. I hope you and your families stay safe this weekend.
Sean
Don Frantz Named Citizen of the Year
On September 28, at the Cary Chamber of Commerce’s 60th Annual Banquet, Mayor Pro Term Don Frantz was named the Citizen of the Year. Along with serving Cary through his role on Council since 2007, he has also served on the Planning and Zoning Board, served as President of the Heart of Cary Association, active with the Cary High School Imp Club, and Cary Chamber of Commerce. He is a dedicated husband, father, grandfather, and successful Cary business owner who has been making Cary a better place for over 30 years.
Joy Innis Lifetime Achievement Award
Congratulations to Downtown Cary Park General Manager, Joy Ennis, who was awarded with Cary Magazine’s Women of Western Wake’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Each year, the Women of Western Wake select honorees to discuss how they leverage their careers and personal aspirations to tackle important issues for our community at its annual forum. A previous honoree is then selected to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of the continued impact they have made on our community. With Joy’s history of work with the Cary’s legacy festivals and downtown events; opening and managing The Cary Theater; and now overseeing the management of the highly anticipated Downtown Cary Park, she was the ideal candidate to receive this honor.
Sallie Jones Receives Anthemion Award
Cary’s own Ms. Sallie Jones was awarded an Anthemion Award for Preservation Advocacy. Ms. Jones was honored with this award from Capital Area Preservation for her work on the Cary First Christian Church Cemetery, one of Cary’s local historic landmarks. Given the passion and commitment Ms. Jones has shown over several years, the 2022 Preservation Advocacy Award is a great way to celebrate and acknowledge her continued work. Congrats Ms. Jones.
Fairview Fire District ISO Assistance
A cross-departmental team of Cary Utilities, Fire and Public Works staff assisted the Fairview Fire District with the Insurance Services Office (ISO) process to maintain their ISO fire rating score of 3. Cary staff developed mapping, graphics and provided detailed system information and hydraulic modeling results to support the review process. The score assessed by ISO reflects how prepared a fire department and community is to respond to fires. The Cary Fire Department maintains an ISO fire rating score of 1 which is the highest achievable score.
2022 Source Water Protection Week
During Source Water Protection Week, we reflect on the importance of protecting drinking water sources. Cary’s water source is Jordan Lake, and we have a long history of working to protect it through careful water resources planning, regional partnerships, funding watershed protection projects, and completing capital projects that improve system resiliency. In addition to the public health benefits of having a high-quality reservoir for clean drinking water, source water protection enhances the community by providing opportunities for environmental stewardship, habitat preservation, and enhancing the aesthetic quality of the watershed.
Council Appoints Advisory Board Volunteers
At the Council meeting on September 22, Council appointed or reappointed 40 citizens across eight of Cary’s advisory boards. These citizens were selected from the 175 applications received. The list of appointments is available as an attachment on the meeting’s agenda. For more information about Cary’s advisory boards, visit townofcary.org/boards.
Fall Family Night at Bond Park
Fall Family Night at Bond Park was very well received by many families with requests for similar events to occur more than once a year! The park was lit up with luminaries allowing event participants to rotate through a variety of activities at their leisure. Favorites include tie die, stargazing, axe throwing, boating, and s’mores!
Upcoming Meetings
Parks, Rec, & Cultural Resources Advisory
Monday, Oct. 3
5:15 p.m.
Information Services Advisory
Monday, Oct. 3
6:00 p.m.
Zoning Board of Adjustment
Monday, Oct. 3
6:30 p.m.
Mayor’s Mailbox
- Complaint about long EMS response. The person noted that Cary Fire (EMS trained) was there quickly but no ambulance. Eventually, they put the person in a car and took them to the hospital. Ambulance service is now the responsibility of Wake County. We will be working with them to try and resolve this issue.
- A request for an interview by a NC State student.
Next Week
Next week’s activities include staff meetings, SAS Championships Media Day breakfast, a meeting with Congresswoman Ross, Diwali practices and performance, Atlantic Tire Championships Advisory Board meeting, and a homeowner association block party.
Well, that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, October 9th. Although I have Facebook and Twitter accounts those are not the best means of communications with me. Please send all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org and email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.
Harold's Blog 