It was a typical week for me this week with a council meeting, events, and meetings.

Monday night was personal as I attended my Confirmand’s Statement of Faith. In my religion and denomination each youth (Confirmand) goes through a year of classes before asking the elders to become a member of the church. They are mentored by “role models” from the church throughout the year. I was fortunate enough to be selected for one of these youths. My Confirmand will go before the entire church at the end of May.

On Tuesday morning I participated in a ceremony to recognize Carl Colglazier, an eighth grade student, as the grand prize winner of C-SPAN’s National 2011 Student Cam video documentary competition. Student Cam is an annual national video competition where middle and high school students produce a short video on a specific topic related to the competition theme about issues affecting our nation. After the ceremony we all headed out to tour the C-SPAN bus. The Bus is equipped with computer kiosks that access C-SPAN’s many websites, including the Video Library, C-SPAN Classroom, Congressional Chronicle, and Book TV. Visitors can also test their knowledge of public affairs with quizzes, learn about Student Cam and follow the Road to the White House.

Tuesday was a busy day for me. I started by calling council members to see if they had questions or concerns on the agenda for the upcoming council meeting on Thursday. I was only able to get in touch with council member Frantz. However, council members Bush and Adcock had told me previously they had no questions. Later that afternoon I met with management, administration, directors, and other staff to go over the agenda. Based on our review the upcoming meeting seemed like it would be a quick one even with a closed session. My guess was that the meeting would last about an hour.

After the agenda meeting I met with the town manager briefly and discussed the future route of I540. The next phase of I540 is now being studied. A few months ago a route, called the red route, was removed by the Legislature at the request of Garner. Currently there are not enough route options to meet federal guidelines for a study. There is a chance that the federal government will remove funding for this project if the study does not continue.

My last meeting on Tuesday was with a delegation from China. One of the key members of this delegation owns over a hundred companies and is looking to invest in Cary. He said he has already made a decision to do so. He also stated that he is very interested in establishing a sister city relationship with Cary. I hope all of this comes to fruition.

Wednesday I met with two representatives from St. Paul’s Center for Hope and Healing. They are doing a great deal for our community especially in the area of mental health. One of their prime objectives is to meet the needs of those that don’t have insurance. They hold classes in Marriage and family issues, Grief, Mental health concerns, Life skills training, Support groups, and Wellness training. In my conversation with them I discussed other ways to get involved in the community and people to contact for grants and support. God bless them!

Wednesday evening I chaired a meeting of the Western Wake Partners Policy Advisory Committee which is made up of town managers and mayors from Cary, Apex, and Morrisville. I was the only mayor in attendance but we had enough managers for a quorum. We approved three contracts for construction of the Western Wake Wastewater facility and minutes from previous meetings. The meeting took less than half an hour.

My only event Thursday was the council meeting. The open session of the council meeting lasted just under an hour and the closed session portion just over an hour. In the open session the two biggest items were the manager’s budget proposal and the Land Development Ordinance (LDO) Amendment on Telecommunication towers.

The manager’s budget pointed out that Cary remains very lean with 8.2 staff members per 1000 residents. In addition, while Cary has added 10,000 residents over the last four years the staff level has remained about the same. The manager also pointed out that this fall’s bond referendum is critical. He said “The bond referendum that’s going before voters this fall for transportation, parks and fire projects will be a key factor in how our future capital plans evolve since without approval of the bonds and the associated tax increase, many projects will not be able to move ahead in the near term, in the next three to five years.”   The manager also recommended $48 million capital plan that includes $1 million for Downtown improvements, $2 million for street resurfacing, $1.1 million for the New Hope Church Trailhead Park, and $3.7 million for developing the Crabtree Creek Greenway. Of the 49 general capital projects totaling $21.8 million, 24 are repair, renovate or replacement-related; over half of them are funded fully or partially by Federal grants or State collected local revenues. The manager is recommending no new debt be incurred for general capital projects like parks and road. To read the entire manager’s budget message visit http://budget.townofcary.org/budget/fy2013/010-messageoperatingbudget.pdf.

The only decision point with discussion for council was the LDO amendment for telecommunication towers. A few months ago the council asked staff to craft an ordinance amendment that streamlined the process for stealth telecommunication towers as an incentive. In the streamlined process the council would not be part of the decision on the stealth towers resulting in a much shorter and cheaper process. It was the hope that this new incentive for telecommunication towers would encourage development with stealth rather than the ugly lattice and monopole towers. The discussion at the council meeting was whether or not to allow a balloon test and public input as part of the stealth process. The majority of the council felt that the cost of the balloon test for stealth towers would add an unnecessary additional cost and since the proposed stealth process was administratively approved a public input session might mislead residents to think that council was making a decision. It needs to be noted that residents will be informed and can always provide input even without a public input session.

Friday I did a short video for the Cary Chamber of Commerce’s fifty year celebration. To see what that is about you will have to attend on Tuesday night.

Saturday I was honored to attend the Eagle Scout ceremony for Jonny Harding. I congratulated him on his accomplishment and told him that I looked forward to his continued contribution to our community.

Saturday night I attended the Urban Ministries concert at Booth Amphitheater starring the B52s. It was a full house and the B52s did not disappoint the crowd playing all their hits.

In news this week, a burglary hit my neighborhood. Apparently someone went to bed with their garage door unlocked and their house unlocked. Items were taken from the house, garage, and car. Please help keep Cary the safest municipality in the southeast by not creating opportunities for thieves. Always, lock doors, keep garage doors closed, and never keep valuables in plain sight. If you don’t have a neighborhood watch program then start one. The GeoPolicing captain for your district will help you.

In other news, the local paper did another story on the Bowden House this week. While it was an improvement over the past stories it still lacked in completeness. In this story they left out two key points. The buyer of the house found out that the gutters were clogged and that the sump pump was not working. The local paper just said “he solved drainage issues Bowden blamed on the town”. To read the local newspaper story go to http://www.carynews.com/2012/05/08/56926/cary-house-is-screwed-no-more.html. To read a version of the story that included these two important facts visit Cary Citizen and read http://carycitizen.com/2012/05/01/house-of-the-week-david-bowdens/. In my opinion these facts support what the town has been saying all along. That is, the drainage problems were pre-existing and not a result of the construction. One has to wonder why these facts were left out of the local newspaper story.

This week staff sent out the latest list of plans under review as of the end of April. They can be reviewed at http://www.townofcary.org/Assets/Planning+Department/Planning+Department+PDFs/planreview/Active+Projects+in+the+Review+Process+(sorted+by+date).pdf. Items on the list include a 222,000 square foot office building at SAS, a gym at St. Michaels, the downtown theater, a preschool, and dependent care units.

Staff also released information that the replacement of the bridge over Green Level Church Road Bridge at White Oak Creek has been contracted out by the Department of Transportation. The bridge, which is 60 years old, is considered structurally deficient and functionally obsolete. It is still safe, but has been requiring maintenance and repair and needed to be replaced. It was also built to lane and shoulder width standards that don’t meet current standards. The new bridge will be able to better accommodate the increased traffic brought on by growth in the area. The project means drivers who have been using the current bridge use will have to use a detour of just over four miles. Detour signs will direct them onto Green Level West, Wimberly and Jenks roads to get around the construction zone. Work on the project can start between August 1^st and March 1^st, 2013, with the new bridge in place within 240 days of the start date.

Emails this week included a complaint about red light cameras, a complaint about alternate day watering, a complaint about the Higgins Greenway project, a complaint about schools, a complaint about bio-solids at the Western Wake Wastewater facility under construction, several complaints about the Cary Christian campus expansion, and a request for a nature preserve.

Next week I will participate in a teacher recognition ceremony, the 50^th anniversary of the Cary Chamber of Commerce ceremony, the 50^th anniversary of the Cary Swim Club ceremony, the White Plains Children Center Ceremony, and the Ritmo Latino festival. I will also attend the first budget work session for fiscal year 2013, a meeting of the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Transportation Advisory Committee, and additional meetings.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, May 20^th. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This was a busy week dominated by the Cary Chamber intercity visit to Austin, Texas.

Monday I went to Raleigh and presented the Cary Council legislative agenda to the Wake County delegation. This was a very similar presentation that I made to legislators that we had for dinner a couple of weeks ago. Here are some of the points I made:

• Changing rules state-wide could have serious, negative impacts on Cary where issues are different.
• We support tweaks to modernize the tax system but ask that legislators consider the effects on local government.
• On transportation issues Cary asks that projects be prioritized where the need is the greatest.
• As the shale gas exploration topic moves forward Cary asks that legislators preserve a reasonable role for local governments.
• We oppose Senate Bill 731 which limits our authority to put development controls in place that are appropriate for our community.
• We ask legislators to protect the personal identifying information of our children. This is already done in parks and recreation programs but needs to be expanded into other areas.

Other mayors presenting were Mayor Weatherly of Apex, Mayor Holcombe of Morrisville, Mayor Williams of Garner, and Mayor Matheny of Zebulon. Mayor McFarlane was in attendance but had the city attorney present Raleigh’s agenda. About two thirds of the Wake County delegation was in attendance.

Monday night I had a private meeting with individuals interested in getting the town more involved in smart phone technology. Staff is already working on some ideas but hopefully we will be able to do more soon.

Tuesday I met with the town manager and the CEO of Research Triangle Park. We talked for about 30 minutes about the future plans of RTP. If plans move forward the park will not only be a world renowned science park but a state of the art place to live work and play.

Later Tuesday I met with the town manager and staff to discuss fees associated with water and sewer. We are revisiting the way the cost of these fees is calculated. Currently the fees are set based on a cost table provided by the state.

Wednesday morning I joined 41 others from Cary as we boarded a 6 AM flight with a final destination of Austin, Texas. Going along on the flight were five council members, several staff members, and members of the business community. After collecting our luggage we caught a bus for downtown Austin and headed to city hall.

After being served lunch on the Mayor’s Balcony we headed to the council chambers to hear from Austin Mayor Leffingwell and Texas State Representative Strama. These were progressive leaders and I enjoyed talking to them and listening to their ideas. In their presentation to the group they talked about the successes Austin has had especially during the recession. Austin’s strength is having a highly educated population and a city filled with technical businesses. Austin is also known for its entertainment, tourism, and natural beauty. Austin’s weakness is traffic. And they have it most of the day and night. They have an interesting slogan which is “Keep Austin Weird” (More about that later).

After a short break we heard from staff about Austin’s history and their plans for the future. One interesting note was that Austin was originally named Waterloo. As for their plans, they are about to approve a comprehensive plan that has been years in the making. Included in that plan are streetscapes such as their 2^nd street. After the presentations the Cary group then did a walking tour of 2^nd street. It is tree lined with large sidewalks, cafes and other retail on the first floor and residential on upper floors. This is similar to what Cary is planning for downtown.

Next we boarded the bus and headed for the hotel at the Domain in Austin which is a huge mixed use development that some call the second downtown. After checking in we all attended a Welcome Reception and Dinner with several Austin staff and guests.

Thursday started at 7:30 with a talk about transit in Austin. Several officials in transit, planning, transit-oriented development, and economic development presented information. Their rail is a diesel-electric train that runs 32 miles. Its frequency is 20 to 30 minutes depending on the time of the day. It uses existing freight rail for most of the route which terminates in downtown Austin. Our Cary group boarded the train about mid-way in the route, headed downtown and then to a transit-oriented development. We toured the transit-oriented development and then boarded a bus to the University of Texas football stadium.

The University of Texas stadium seats over 100,000 people and we were fortunate to tour the facilities and walk around on the field. We had lunch in the University of Texas Club and heard information from Austin staff on Comprehensive planning, sustainability, and economic growth and redevelopment. This session was very informative especially several great techniques for gathering public input. There was also a few interesting quotes related to planning and implementation such as “Done beats perfect every time” and “Always be prepared to turn”.

Next we boarded a bus for a redevelopment project at an old airport site. Austin moved the airport several years ago and has begun the redevelopment of the old airport site. This site was a community in itself and had just about everything including several types of housing. The fact that the City of Austin owned the airport property made redevelopment much easier. They are about half way done with the redevelopment.

We then boarded the bus for the hotel. We took an hour to freshen up and headed downtown Austin for a Texas barbeque dinner. After dinner a few of us headed to the Congressional bridge over the downtown lake to watch the infamous bats. About 1.5 million bats come out at dusk in a cloud. Unfortunately, they don’t come out in a cloud if it is windy because the mosquitoes are not out and the mosquitoes were not out. After the bats we headed over to 6^th street which is known for live entertainment and great musicians. It was interesting that the city closed the street starting at 10:30 PM on a Thursday night. And I got to see firsthand what “keeping it weird” meant.

Friday morning we did a review of the trip during breakfast before heading over to the city of Roundrock which is very similar to Cary. It is interesting that one of their sayings is “keep weird in Austin”. I talked with the mayor and then he and a few staff members presented information about their town. Then we did a quick tour before heading to the airport for our trip home. Our trip was delayed a couple of hours and we eventually arrived around 10 PM.

Saturday morning started around 7:30 for me. I gave a few comments at the first annual Purple Cloth 5K which was raising money for the Dorcas ministry.

Saturday night I went to the Booth amphitheater to the Baisakhi festival which is an Indian celebration of the arrival of spring. Unfortunately thunderstorms postponed the entertainment and I wasn’t able to give my remarks. Hopefully, the weather will be better for next year’s celebration.

Information from staff this week included an announcement that Cary will host the 2013 NCAA Division I women’s soccer championship called the College Cup. This event combined with other soccer events at the same time generates millions of dollars of economic benefit for the region. We look forward to hosting the College Cup again.

Staff announced that the NCAA Division II Baseball Championships is returning to Cary for the fourth consecutive year as the country’s Top 8 Division II baseball teams go head to head. Games are set for May 26-June 2 at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.

Staff also sent out notification that the Cary Fire Department recorded ten cardiac arrest saves resuscitations County-wide. This means that 10 individuals in the community suffered a cardiac arrest event and subsequently left the hospital neurologically intact because of the Cary Fire Department’s efforts. Thank God we have one of the best fire departments in the state.

The first quarterly report was sent out this week. Some of the information included:

• The automated water meter system, Aquastar is almost completely installed with 97% of the meters currently being read.
• The Cary, the theater being renovated downtown, should be completed by summer of next year.
• C-Tran ridership has increased by over 40% from the same quarter last year.
• Two of the eight construction contracts for the water reclamation facility and the two influent pump stations are underway, and the others have either already been advertised or will be by the end of April 2012.
• The Town has its first public electric vehicle charging station at the Garmon Operations Center on James Jackson Avenue. More public electric vehicle charging stations are coming to the Cary Arts Center and, through another grant, at the Herb Young Community Center Parking Deck.
• During the 1st quarter 2012, 227 new single-family dwelling (SFD) permits were issued, up 13.5 percent from the previous quarter.
• Total building permits issued during the 1st quarter 2012 (1,700) were down 3.4 percent
• Total building permits issued during the 1st quarter 2012 (1,700) were down 3.4 percent from the previous period and down 5.5 percent from the same period last year.
• Installations of four new traffic signals are nearing completion:

• 1. 1. Kildaire Farm Rd and Loch Highlands Drive
     2. Chatham St and Dixon Avenue
     3. Penny Rd and Ederlee Drive
     4. Regency Pkwy and Regency Forest Drive
• The Town has completed the Swift Creek Pedestrian Bridge and the extension of the greenway trail to the Regency Parkway and Ederlee Drive intersection.
• Water demand for the quarter averaged approximately 14.3 million gallons per day, which was 0.3 million gallons per day higher than the same time period in 2011 when demand averaged 14 million gallons per day.
• Cary utility customers have made great strides in improving water use efficiency representing over 20% improvement in per capita water utilization over 15 years.
• The North Cary Water Reclamation facility reduced nitrogen by 95% and total phosphorus by approximately 92%.
• Our AAA bond ratings for both general obligation bonds and revenue bonds have been reconfirmed with a stable outlook by Fitch in a routine monitoring review. The rating reports stated that “financial management is very strong” and “financial modeling efforts are robust and used to evaluate various rate and growth scenarios on an ongoing basis.”
• 33 apartment communities are actively participating in Project PHOENIX.
• Overall, reported offenses show an 18% increase through March 2012 over the same time period in 2011. The increase can also be attributed to a rise in reported drug violations (increase from 45 to 102) and aggravated assaults (50%).
• The Wake Med Soccer Park expansion project is 53% complete and on schedule for completion at the end of September. The north grandstand erection is 88% complete. Remaining items are concrete ramps and railings to the bleachers, landscaping, and the façade that covers the back of the grandstands. Estimated completion of the north grandstands is the end of May

Emails from citizens included a nasty one which said: “…You have a God Complex Syndrome. You think you are God. … Have a crappy day…” .  Thankfully these are rare. Unfortunately elected officials have to learn to deal with these. While it is hurtful it is part of the job and something you learn to deal with.

Other emails included a request for help to get a school in Chatham County, a few requests to meet, and several invitations to events.

Next week will be a busy one with a council meeting, several events, and several other meetings.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, May 13^th. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This week was a vacation week so there is not a lot to report.

On Sunday morning my wife and I took a flight to Jamaica to celebrate our 25^th wedding anniversary. It was a fantastic vacation with beautiful weather, beautiful surroundings, and a resort with great service.

My impression of Jamaica is that it is a beautiful country with loving people, the most of which are extremely poor. There appears to be no middle class at all. You either live in a mansion or in a tiny shack. My understanding is that the country experienced significant deforesting and over fishing over the years. And now the people rely mostly on tourism. We are all extremely blessed not to have to face the daily survival issues that the Jamaican people have to face.

Since I have returned I have been playing catch up on messages and emails.

Staff sent an email related to the chicken ordinance that needs to be emphasized. It states:

“This Ordinance is not intended to revoke or repeal any easement, covenant, or other private agreement. However, where the regulations of this Ordinance are more restrictive or impose higher standards or requirements than such easement, covenant, or other private agreement, then the requirements of this Ordinance shall govern. Nothing in this Ordinance shall modify or repeal any private covenant or deed restriction, but such covenant or restriction shall not excuse any failure to comply with this Ordinance. In no case shall the Town be obligated to enforce the provisions of any easements, covenants, or agreements between private parties.”

In layman’s terms, if you live in a subdivision that doesn’t allow livestock in your Homeowner Association covenants (that all residents of the homeowner association agree to), then you will not be allowed to have chickens. I suspect this will be a point of confusion and create future issues.

Also related to chickens, I received an invitation to go on to the WRAL morning show with Bill and Lynda to talk about chickens. Apparently Lynda likes and wants chickens. We’ll see if this invitation works out.

Emails this week included complaints about the Cary/Chatham joint land use plan, a complaint about a needed guardrail, complaints about development in the downtown site known as the “opportunity site”, complaints about chickens, and complaints about rezonings.

Next week will be another travel week for me. Early in the week I will meet with the Wake County Legislative delegation. Then on Wednesday I, along with four council members and a host of people from Cary will travel to Austin, Texas for an intercity visit. We will return on Friday night.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, April 29^th. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This week was another busy week as is typical with a council meeting week.

Monday I called all council members to see if they had any concerns, issues, or questions

staff should be aware of for the Thursday meeting. I was able to contact all council members by phone except one. The issues that generated the most questions were the St. Michael’s gymnasium traffic waiver request and the proposed chicken ordinance.

Later on Monday I joined Mayor Pro-Tem Adcock and met with managers, directors, and administrators to go over the agenda. The purpose of this meeting is to review the entire agenda to ensure we have all information needed to be prepared for the meeting. This includes who does what in the recognitions and presentations portion of the meeting. Most of our agenda discussion was on the St. Michael’s issue and the Chicken issue. In addition, the attorney said there would be a closed session to discuss a few items. Based on the long agenda, the discussion items, and the closed session, my guess for meeting adjournment was 11 PM.

Monday night I attended the Mayors Association meeting held in Cary. All mayors were present except the Mayor of Apex. The meeting opened with a presentation by President Dr. Townsley of the newly branded William Peace University. She explained several issues including several changes to the curriculum and the change from a women only institution to coed. One interesting note from her presentation was that 98% of women will not consider an all-girls school. After the presentation the mayors went into their regular agenda which included several items for discussion. It is important to understand that the Mayors Association does not take action as a group unless there is unanimous agreement. As a result of our discussion we decided that it is best that municipalities request a transit bond referendum rather than the Mayors Association. The mayors also gave their opinion on whether or not their municipality was considering a bond referendum in the fall and whether or not a tax increase was possible in this coming fiscal year. A significant number of the municipalities are considering a bond referendums but only a couple of municipalities were considering a tax increase. Our meeting ended shortly before 9 PM.

Tuesday was a long busy day for me. After a long day at work with intense meetings I headed over to town hall to meet with the town manager. We talked about an upcoming economic development opportunity in downtown that would include HUD money. We also talked about technology and the future of technology in the town.

Later Tuesday the council and I participated in four work sessions. The first work session was to get an update from staff and consultants on the Public Art Master Plan. At the conclusion of this work session the council gave the following direction:

• Look for Public Art Opportunities
• Make diversity of Public Art a priority
• Modify the makeup of the Public Art Advisory Board
• Start community outreach including an enhanced web presence
• Make Public Art part of Land Use Policy
• Consider incentives for private funding of Public Art
• Create guidelines for art to be included in public buildings with funding to be determined later

This work session lasted about an hour and twenty minutes.

The second work session was a downtown update. There was a lot of good information presented at this work session. Here are some items of interest:

• There is a RFP out for the refurbishing of the Jones House and a potential tenant.
• The theater remodeling is progressing with 100% of the drawings done. Construction will begin in the fall and it should open in the summer of 2013.
• Roundabouts on Chatham Street are scheduled to begin construction soon and be completed by the end of next year. However, council may review this again.
• Wayfinding signs will start being placed in June.
• There are several projects being negotiated by the town including three on Chatham Street.
• The council set goals for downtown development which include:

o   Create a unique experience that attracts people to the downtown

o   Create a holistic approach that complements the Cary Arts Center and Academy Street and supports the downtown.

o   Create a park space that creates activity and is an anchor for downtown revitalization.

o   Create private development opportunities that will complement the park space, Academy Street, and Chatham Street.

The downtown manager and council then discussed the operating assumptions. Basically, the town will create pods that the town controls and owns. The town will then invite development with very strict guidelines.

The third work session was on a Business Improvement District in downtown. The district is shown as item 6 in the document at http://www.townofcary.org/Assets/Staff+Reports/AD12-016+Downtown+BID+Draft+Report.pdf. The goal of this district is to incentivize development activity in the core of downtown to happen quickly through the payment of impact fees by the Town. These fees will be paid by the town from July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2015. Funding for these fee payments is estimated to be roughly $300,000 and come from the General Fund balance. Council agreed to move forward with this idea. A call for a public hearing will be held on May 10th and the public hearing will be on June 14th. Council could vote on this at its last meeting in June.

Our last work session of the evening was to establish the vacancy process for Ms. Robison’s pending resignation. Applicants will be required to submit a Statement of Interest and Qualifications that include:

• 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 that
• Describe your perspective on financial management and what you would do, if anything, to change that.

It should also be noted that there are disqualifying factors that include sex offenses, all felonies, and several misdemeanors. Applications will be accepted starting at noon on June 1st and go through noon of June 29th. Council will hold a work session on July 3rd to decide what applicants to interview. Then council members will interview until the 23rd of July. The council will then hold another work session on July 31st to discuss the applicants.

Wednesday afternoon I attended the monthly meeting of the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO). This includes elected representatives from Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Johnston and Wake Counties with a purpose of planning transportation improvements in the region. On this particular agenda there were no critical items that impacted Cary. The meeting consisted mostly of a presentation by CAMPO staff on the Long Range Transportation Plan. As you might expect they predict funding to be an issue.

The group had a discussion on the transit plan that was previously presented to Cary and other municipalities. It is important to know that a plan approval will require approval of the Triangle Transit Board, CAMPO, and the Wake County commissioners. The discussion included whether or not to put a referendum on this November’s ballot. If it is not on this November’s ballot it will have to wait until the next general election which is the municipal elections next fall. The county commissioners have stated, and Commissioner Bryan confirmed that they want an Interlocal Agreement (ILA) from each municipality. My guess is that the majority of the commissioners do not want the people to vote on transit this fall. I hope that is not the case since Presidential Elections draw the most voters.

Later Wednesday I had the honor of attending the graduation of the latest School of Government class. I was joined by council members Bush and Smith. The class met for eight sessions that included visits to the firing range and a sewer plant. I had the pleasure of handing the graduates their certificates and shaking their hands. I also had pictures made with a few. All seemed to thoroughly enjoy being in the class and a few promised to be more engaged in the town.

Thursday’s council meeting lasted until after 10 PM. The discussion on chickens took most of the discussion time. I voted not to move forward with an ordinance and have been asked why several times. Here is the response I have been giving:

“While I applaud those that want to create a healthier lifestyle for themselves I do not believe an urban/suburban area, especially one that is known for its beautiful neighborhoods like Cary, is the place for chickens.

My main concern is that someone, who spent their life savings on a house, a dream, and a lifestyle, will now have no voice in what their neighbor does that dramatically impacts their lifestyle. That is, someone may be forced to live next to livestock in Cary. That is why the current law only allows chickens on one acre lots.

I fear that homes with chicken coups will devalue adjacent properties.

I also fear that the town will now be spending extra money to enforce an ordinance that, I honestly believe, is not what the majority of Cary citizens want.

It is my hope that all my fears and concerns are an overreaction on my part and that everyone DOES want chickens in and around their homes. I know I am NOT one of those people.”

The only other contentious topic that created discussion was the traffic waiver requested by St. Michael’s church. The council unanimously agreed to approve this waiver even though there was much concern about the need for a traffic light at the entrance of Bond Park.

Friday I had dinner with friends and instructors from a school in Le Touquet, France that are here with culinary students as part of an exchange program with Wake Tech. We have known each other for about ten years since we hosted one of the exchange students in 2002. It was a great time and I feel blessed to have such good friends.

Emails this week included a special one from the White House cordially inviting me to be a VIP guest at President Obama’s speech at UNC Chapel Hill on Tuesday, April 24^th. Unfortunately, I will be out of the country and so I had to decline. They offered to invite me to future events.

Emails from staff included one about the Western Wake Farmer’s Market requesting help to publicize their farmer’s market like we’re doing for the downtown farmer’s market. Council was reminded that Town resources are limited to other governments and outside organizations that have a direct, official relationship with the Town. The downtown farmer’s market has had an official relationship that goes back many, many years.  And with the Town’s focus on downtown revitalization, that relationship is even stronger today, involving multiple departments and services.

Emails this week consisted mostly of the chicken special interest group. I also received several emails asking the Cary to put the transit plan to a vote this fall. Of course that is a county decision and not a Cary decision. I personally support the draft of the transit plan. I also received several other emails that included speeding in a cul-de-sac and a complaint about a dog bite.

Next week my wife and I will travel out of the country to celebrate our 25^th wedding anniversary. (Note to thieves: someone is house sitting) So my mayoral calendar is clear.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, April 29^th. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This week was the opposite of last week (a vacation week) with lots of meetings with long days and nights.

Monday I had meeting with Mayor Pro-Tem Adcock to catch up on things. We talked about various issues and how to better communicate with each other. We plan to have these meetings on at least a bimonthly basis.

Tuesday midday I attended a meeting of the Triangle Chairs and Mayors. There were approximately a dozen officials in attendance to listen to economist Dr. Michael Walden of N.C. State talk about our economic outlook. Some of the takeaways include:

• The recession was officially from December 2007 to June 2009. That means things stopped getting worse (overall) after June 2009.
• Overall wealth took a huge hit during this recession.
• Housing continues to be struggle
• Jobs have recovered to about half of what was lost in the recession.
• Predictions have job growth at 75,000 to 80,000 annually with an unemployment rate of 8 %. Locally we are doing better than that.

After the presentation there were several questions from those in attendance. For example what gas price would it take to stall the recovery? The answer was $5 a gallon.

Tuesday afternoon I met with the town manager to catch up on things. We talked about upcoming agenda items on the Planning and Development Committee agenda and the Town Council Meeting including and economic development opportunity. Earlier in the meeting we were joined by the town clerk to go over the appointment process to replace council member Robison. Here is the timeline for that process:

• June 1 through June 29 (noon) : Statements of Interest and Qualifications (SOIQ) accepted
• June 29 (5 PM): SOIQ placed on town web site
• June 29 through July 2: Council reviews SOIQs
• July 3 (5 PM): Council work session to decide list of applicants to individually review
• July 5 through July 23: Individual council members review applicants
• July 24: work session to discuss/consider the appointee to fill vacancy
• If appointed: Appointee spends time with staff from July 25 through August 8 getting up to speed
• If appointed: Appointee sworn in on August 9

I believe this is a very optimistic schedule but I it is something we can achieve as a council.

Tuesday night I, along with other council members, hosted state legislators that represent Cary. In attendance were Senator Richard Stevens, Representative Nelson Dollar, Representative Jennifer Weiss, and Representative Tom Murray. The Cary Council was represented by Council members Smith, Robison, Adcock, Bush, and me. After dinner I presented our legislative agenda. In my comments I made the following points:

• Communities across the state vary greatly and one size does not fit all. Municipalities should be able to achieve compliance with standards in the most effective way possible.
• If tweaks are made in the short session on taxes we ask that you consider the effects on local governments
• We hope transportation projects will be prioritized to where there is the greatest need.
• As the “shale gas development” issue moves forward please proceed thoughtfully, deliberately, considering fully all potential impacts.
• We oppose Zoning/Design aesthetic controls. We believe that each community should have the authority to put development controls in place that are appropriate for that community.
• We would like the authority to use the design-build process for capital projects. Currently we must get permission from the State on a project by project basis to use the same process. With this authority we could let capital projects sooner and ease the burden on our taxpayers.
• We would like to protect the identity information of our children. While parks and rec information is protected others are not. So if I gave out a youth award the information of that youth is public.

After presenting our items I led a discussion on goals and expectations for this short legislative session. All of the legislators believed the short session would be very quick and pledged their support to Cary.

Wednesday morning I joined five other Wake County mayors in Morrisville in a meeting with school board members. This was the second time in history that the two boards had met. The first time was two years ago. Other mayors in attendance included Mayor McFarlane of Raleigh, Mayor Holcombe of Morrisville, Mayor Sears of Holly Springs, Mayor Matheny of Zebulon, and Mayor Hinnant of Wendell. School board members in attendance include Christine Kushner, Deborah Prickett, Kevin Hill, Susan Evans, Deborah Goldman, and Dr. Jim Martin. Comments received from School Board members regarding assistance from Mayors in meeting specific unmet goals:

• School capacity continues to be problematic in high growth areas
• Feedback from Mayors & municipalities is strongly encouraged as is a dedicated community representative/liaison to attend school board meetings
• More funding is needed for our growing school system; request was made to Mayors to approach Wake county commissioners in support of WCPSS investment
• Regional transportation enhancements, especially transit and road improvements, would benefit the school’s transportation system and enable more families to attend school related meetings and events
• More communication between Mayors & School Board is encouraged
• Land use planning coordination between WCPSS and municipalities would serve to address capacity in both future and near term;  balancing out-year capacity and present need requires significant attention to planning

Comments received from Mayors regarding requests for assistance from School Board members in addressing education-related issue in each municipality:

• Mayor receipt of School Board agendas could serve to accelerate implementation of the liaison concept;  bigger schools should be considered
• Fewer assignment-based complaints were noted; a suggestion to provide municipal agendas to School Board when rezoning/redevelopment items would impact school capacity was well received
• Increased assignment-based complaints were also noted as was pocket F&R concentrations, concern regarding uncertainty of new student assignment in high growth areas with over-capacity schools and negative impact on business recruitment
• Request to make East Wake High a magnet to encourage quality course offerings and more robust residential growth in Eastern Wake County
• Better municipal representation is needed via school board liaison
• Incentives to fill under-utilized schools in high growth areas should be encouraged;  middle and/or high schools should be considered for Morrisville

Additional comments:

• Agreement was reached that more and better communication between Mayors and School Board would benefit all
• Annual meeting of School Board and Mayors was recommended

The meeting lasted just over an hour.

Wednesday afternoon I led a meeting of the Cary Economic Development Committee. Some of the interesting points from that meeting include:

• Cary’s unemployment rate remains steady at 5.9%
• Business inquiries are higher than in the last couple of years
• Class A office vacancy rate is now less than 10%
• 76% of Cary’s office market is Class A office
• The best source of available buildings in the area is the Triangle Commercial Association of Realtors
• United Airlines announced a non-stop flight to San Francisco
• Railinc, headquarted in Cary, will added 50 jobs
• Lord Corporation was chosen to be the supplier of the next generation of Sikorsky Aircraft
• Syracuse Plastics will expand by 15,000 square feet.
• LexisNexis is adding 350 jobs over the next five years

This was the first meeting with the new makeup of the committee that includes citizens from the community. After updates and information the new committee members added information about potential opportunities locally and internationally.

My only meeting Thursday was with a local pastor. He leads a young, growing congregation that has committed to helping our community. For example, they distributed backpacks full of school supplies to kids in a town trailer park. In our conversation the pastor expressed interest in expanding their service to others. We are so fortunate to live in a community where citizens care about each other and are willing to help.

Friday I met with Mayor Pro-Tem Adcock and staff to go over trends and ideas for the upcoming budget. The council will begin budget work sessions in May.

Saturday morning I joined a group of people at the Page Walker for the Spring Litter Sweep. In this area group were several AmeriCorps volunteers and US Veterans Corps. After a few opening comments and introductions we split up into small groups. My group, made up of a US Veteran Corp volunteer and a dad with three kids, focused on Wilkinson Avenue, Field Street, Bowden Street, and part of Sorrell Street. We picked up several bags mostly recyclables. Unlike my previous litter sweeps on US1 where it appeared most of the litter was blown out of trucks, these were mostly beer and liquor bottles that had been tossed from cars; very sad and scary.

Later Saturday I co-hosted a volunteer dinner for the outgoing members of the Economic Development Commission, the Town Center Review Commission, and the Citizen Issue Review Committee at the Herb Young Center. Joining me from council was council members Smith and Bush. After dinner we presented gifts to the outgoing board members. Then we headed downstairs to watch the Cary Invasion professional basketball team play Big Texas from Jacksonville, NC. It was my first game and the home town boys didn’t disappoint us and thoroughly thrashed the visitors in the first half. I, along with my council colleagues in attendance had our picture made with Cosmo the mascot. At halftime we did a short skit to honor our outgoing volunteers. Yes it was lame but we had a lot of fun anyway.

Sunday evening I had the privilege of giving closing remarks at the Nazim Hikmet poetry festival at the Page Walker. The event drew notable poets and musicians from around the country as well as poetry lovers from the area. The event was organized by the American Turkish Association of North Carolina. After my remarks we sat down to a wonderful dinner of Turkish cuisine and were treated to Turkish music. It was a great evening.

In a news article the week the local paper once again portrayed the town as the bad guy in their story about the Joint Land Use Plan with Chatham County. It is too bad our local news doesn’t provide fair and balanced reporting on a consistent basis. Or better yet, report on things going on in town like the litter sweep, the Cary Invasion, volunteer groups, the poetry festival, etc. I find that my best source of information comes from the Cary Citizen.

Emails this week included a broadcast email about allowing citizens to vote on the transit plan in a bond referendum this fall. In my responses I pointed out that I support the transit plan and that this is a county decision and not a town decision. Another broadcast set of emails was about chickens. I think we have discussed the chicken issue ad nauseum. Let’s vote already. Other emails included complaints based on the inaccurate/incomplete reporting of the Cary Chatham County Joint Land Use Plan, a complaint about property taxes (Cary has the lowest in the county), a complaint about us supporting fracking (Cary is opposed to fracking), a complaint about dogs in Lochmere, a complaint about a water meter replacement, a complaint about red light cameras, and a request insisting that I watch the “Bully” documentary.

Next week will be another busy week for me with several work sessions, a council meeting, a CAMPO meeting, and dinner with long time French friends.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, April 22^nd. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This was a very short week for me since it was a vacation week. Most of my week was spent in Augusta, Georgia.

Monday I was joined by several dignitaries in the groundbreaking of Fire station #8 at Mills Park. Joining me was Congresswoman Renee Elmers, NC Representative Weiss, council member Smith, council member Robinson, council member Bush, a representative from Senator Burr’s office, a representative from Senator Hagan’s office, and a representative from Congressman Price’s office. Each of us gave a few remarks and then we donned hard hats and turned over dirt. Afterwards there was a small reception with the more than 50 attendees which were mostly fire fighters, police officers, and town employees.

Tuesday I headed to Augusta, Georgia for my 34^th year of working at the Masters Golf tournament. I am honored to be a volunteer at the Masters which is one of the greatest sporting events in the world. The following are some of my memories that I took away from this year. Some aren’t even golf related:

• There was a storm on Tuesday night with winds that were in excess of 60 mph that knocked down several trees on the course. Most of the trees were several feet in diameter. One crashed through a restroom the size of a small house. The tree was removed and the roof rebuilt and shingled within 24 hours. All trees were removed and the course was in immaculate shape by tournament time. How’s that for fast!
• This year all employees were uniforms (including me). I thought it looked very nice.
• The weather was incredible with warm days and cool nights. I thought it was perfect. The only downside was that the azaleas bloomed too early this year so the color was missing.
• There were several memorable golf moments:
  • Bubba Watson winning his first major golf tournament in a 2 hole playoff.
  • Louis Oosthuizen making the first double eagle EVER at hole 2.
  • The crowd favorites throughout the tournament that included: Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson, Freddie Couples, Tiger Woods, and Matt Kuchar.

It was a great tournament! I returned Sunday night fully charged and ready to tackle mayor and work duties.

In the mail this week I received a letter from State Treasurer Janet Cowell saying that Cary was chosen as a winner in the 2011-2012 State Treasurer’s Award for Excellence in Accounting and Financial Management. The letter touted our responsible fiscal management and said that an award will be presented at a future council meeting. Just another accolade for the best staff in the state!

Emails this week included a complaint about a water line on Dabney Road, a complaint from a UNC graduate student that said “Cary is a failure”, a complaint about handicapped parking at the train station, and concerns about the Wake County school assignment plan.

Next week includes a meeting with Triangle area mayors, dinner with the Cary NC delegation, a meeting of the mayors and the Wake County school board, a staff meeting to be briefed on proposed budget items, a litter sweep, and several other meetings and events.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, April 15^th. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This week was another week of events and meetings along with a ribbon cutting with the Governor.

Monday I met with a citizen for a little over an hour to talk about technology. The citizen’s main point was that the town should be doing more with technology. Hopefully, we are moving that way with a gentle nudge from council member Bush.

Tuesday morning I met with a local pastor who is a part of a group of pastors looking for mission opportunities in Cary, specifically the downtown. Currently the group is comprised of pastors from First United Methodist Church, Cary Presbyterian, St. Michael’s, Greenwood Forest Baptist, and others. He stated that they believe that Cary needs a consortium of churches to serve together missionally to meet the needs unique to the “Heart of Cary”. We discussed people in need such as the elderly and the young. We also discussed areas in and around downtown such as Evans Road and Wren Drive.

Tuesday afternoon I had my weekly conversation with the town manager to discuss a variety of things. It was mostly an update and there were no critical issues.

Tuesday night I had the distinct pleasure to be the guest speaker at an Eagle Scout Court of Honor. I had known this individual as a baby and toddler (I used to teach him in the 2 and 3 year old Sunday School class). This young man had a lot of difficult times in his life and turned those situations into a positive. On top of that he achieved what many don’t, the rank of Eagle Scout. We should all follow his example of doing the most with what you have been given. God bless him!

Wednesday morning I was part of a ribbon cutting ceremony with the Governor at LexisNexis in Cary. We are blessed to have them creating 350 jobs paying an average of $90,000 a year. And they are currently accepting applications! In my comments I included a few facts that most people may not be aware of:

“… Attracting a company of such high caliber like LexisNexis speaks the uniqueness of our citizenry. Over two-thirds of them have graduated with a college degree, with 9% of those having a Ph.D., JD or MD. More than 96% of our population has access to the internet, and over half own a smart phone. Most importantly, all 100% of us are excited to help you thrive and prosper. …”

Later Wednesday I chaired a brief meeting of the Western Wake Partners Policy Advisory Committee made up of Apex, Cary, and Morrisville. The main purpose of the meeting was to approve a contract for the Western Wake Wastewater Management Facility under construction.

Wednesday evening I taped the April version of Cary Matters with Julie Robison. This was a sad taping for me because it was Julie’s last show. She and her family will be moving to West Virginia this summer. We will certainly miss her. The main topic of the show was about the Cary/Chatham County Joint Land Use Plan. In Q&A we talked about the Spring Litter Sweep and recycling.

Thursday I met with the owners of Regency that are interested in building another class A multi-story office building at Tryon Road and Regency Parkway. New office buildings have been rare in the last few years so this is exciting news.

Later Thursday I chaired a meeting of the Cary Morrisville Joint Issues Committee. I was joined by Mayor Pro-Tem Adcock and council member Robinson from Cary and Mayor Holcombe, Mayor Pro-Tem Johnson, and council member Diehl from Morrisville. In our meeting we discussed sidewalk coordination at McCrimmon Parkway and Davis Drive, received an update on the traffic studies of the Highway 54 corridor, talked about differences in legislative authority between Cary and Morrisville, and the Hotel Motel Tax. Our next meeting is scheduled for Monday, June 9th in Morrisville. In that meeting we will see a precise delta of legislative authority, recommendations on next steps regarding the Hotel Motel Tax, the Evans Road Extension, and Parks and Facilities sharing.

Friday was a big personal day for me. I had Lasik surgery. The following is my personal experience if you care to read the details:

I first had my eyes dilated so they could measure the stigmatism once again. Then I went into a small waiting room with another about to have Lasik. I was then administered antibiotic three times about 5 minutes apart. While I was waiting the women before me was having a fit exclaiming about the pain. The nurse said they get one of those a day that scares all the patients. Yep. It did a number on me too.

Then it was my turn. First they put a suction cup on each eye and there is an extreme amount of pressure (what the other woman was complaining about). This puts bubbles in the eye so the first laser can cut the flap. This was the only pain and felt like someone mashing your eye. You also loose vision which I thought was interesting. A laser to cut the flap was then used. The doctor then pealed back the flap and everything was a big blur. Next they use the other laser to do the actual correction to the cornea. That went about 30 seconds for each eye. After that the doctor placed the flap back over the eye and smoothed it out with what appeared to be a tiny brush (of course I couldn’t really see). I was done. Everything was foggy as they said it would be in pre-op. Then they took me into a room and explained how to use three different types of eye drops. They also explained that the fogginess would last five to seven hours.

So I went home had an early dinner with my wife and went to bed (with protective goggles). A few times I woke up and things were foggy. I woke up for good around 4:30 AM and things were less foggy. Then fed the cats and ate breakfast and took a nap in the lounge chair. When I awoke all fogginess was gone. I turned on the TV to hear the news and there was a commercial with fine print. I COULD READ IT. It was a very emotional moment for me. It still is by just typing this. It has been 40 years since I have been able to read without glasses.

I had my post op visit at 9 AM Saturday morning. They tested my vision and I am 20-20 in both eyes and my eyes will continue to improve over the coming days and weeks. I will need reading glasses and have bought a couple of readers until my appointment with the eye doctor April 9th. I am extremely happy with the results and felt as if God has truly blessed me. I would like to thank Doctor Dornic and his staff for this life changing event.

Saturday morning I was originally scheduled to be a part of the ribbon cutting for the Cary Creative Center on Wilkinson Avenue. Unfortunately the ribbon cutting was scheduled an hour after my post op visit so it was not practical for me to attend (staff warned them of this). I hope to arrange a visit in the near future.

Citizens of Cary will soon receive a letter from a solicitor, American Water Resources. While they claim that they will not suggest they are endorsed by the town I am concerned that they will be giving the impression that they are somehow associated with the town. Here is the letter council members received:

As you may know, most Cary homeowners are not aware that they are responsible for the water and sewer lines running through their property. Within the next few weeks, American Water Resources, Inc. of North Carolina (”AWR”) will send a letter to Cary residents, informing them of their service line responsibility.

AWR’s mailing will explain that: (i) normal wear and tear can cause water line leaks and sewer line blockages, (ii) repairing such damage is not typically covered by homeowners’ insurance policies, (iii) homeowners are responsible for making the necessary repairs, and (iv) repairs can cost thousands of dollars. AWR’s Water and Sewer Line Protection Programs provide homeowners with an affordable means to protect themselves from the expense and aggravation of service line repairs. Please be assured that this letter will not suggest that our programs are offered or endorsed by your city or water utility.

In case Cary homeowners have questions, below is a list of key information:

• AWR is a subsidiary of American Water, the largest investor-owned water company in the country, serving homeowners for 125 years.
• AWR services more than 900,000 programs for homeowners nationwide.
• AWR is an accredited, A+ rated member of the Better Business Bureau.
• AWR will only use licensed, Cary-area contractors for all repairs.
• 92% of AWR customers are very satisfied with the overall value of our program.

Our programs can also benefit Cary beyond the advantages provided to your homeowners. There is an opportunity to partner with AWR now to jointly introduce the program and Cary can receive a share of the revenue generated while AWR provides the required support.

This turnkey approach has been extremely effective for municipalities. Burlington, Iowa City Manager Doug Worden believes, “By offering these programs to our residents, we’re providing them with a viable solution, and we’re also benefiting from a partnership that adds value to our city.”

For additional information about AWR, our programs, or how to partner and earn new revenue, please visit AWRUSA.com/info, contact me at BarbaraB@amwater.com, or call 856-359-2794.

It is important to understand that residents are responsible for sewer to the cleanout pipe near the street. From that point on it is the responsibility of the town. My opinion is that this “insurance” type venture is a money making scheme and little more. I will not be signing up. The town sent a letter to this company stating that they are not interested in partnering with this company.

Emails from staff this week included a “heads up” about the GSA Ice facility:

“…we have received an inquiry from a citizen asking for confirmation that GSA is negotiating a contract for an ICE facility at 301 Gregson Drive.  The most recent information we have received from GSA was a March 27 update that stated that they expected to release the Request for Lease Proposals (RLP) on April 9, 2012 to all locations accepted on the market survey.  Their previous estimate was that the RLPs would go out on March 21. …”

Emails from citizens this week included a complaint about trash at Ten-Ten and Kildaire Farm Road, a complaint about the denial of the Fryar Tract application, a concern about beavers, a complaint about dogs off their leashes at Lochmere Lake, a complaint about the lack of town infrastructure in Cary inside Chatham County, a complaint about the developer at Stanton Place, and a complaint about too much police presence in Lochmere.

Next week will be spent mostly working at the Masters Golf tournament. If you happen to go you can find me working at the 17^th scoreboard. Before I go I will give ground breaking remarks for Fire station #8 on Monday.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, April 8^th. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This week was full of meetings and events with no rest for the weary.

Monday started with agenda calls to council members for any questions or concerns that staff needed to be prepared for the upcoming council meeting on Thursday. I was only able to get in touch with a couple of council members this week so I left messages with the rest.

Later Monday I met with management, directors, legal, and administration to go over the agenda. During this meeting it was decided that there would be a new procedure regarding consent agenda items. Consent items are items that have been reviewed by council committees or advisory boards and have a unanimous recommendation. Staff also places items on the consent agenda. Council members have the option to pull items off the consent agenda for discussion if they desire. The new procedure would have consent items read for the benefit of the TV audience as opposed to approving without comment or recognition. I think this is a great idea and one I started many years ago as chairman of one of the council subcommittees.

Also mentioned at the agenda meeting was a new decision point called “Statement of Consistency and Reasonableness”. This decision used to be part of the rezoning approval. Now it has been mandated that council vote on this separately. This was a confusing topic to council members so I am sure it is confusing to the public. Staff also mentioned the likelihood of a large number of speakers for rezoning items that were listed under Public Hearings and had valid protest petitions. At the end of the agenda meeting my prediction was that the council meeting would end around 10 PM

Monday night I met with the Wake County Mayors’ Association. The meeting began with a presentation from Sign Hutchinson on the available county funds for open space and greenways. The county has $5 million at this time and another $20 million of bonding capacity not yet sold. RFPs are currently being accepted by the county for municipalities willing to match funding of 50% or greater. Connectivity of greenways was noted a high priority in the decision making process.

The mayors also finalized a meeting with the Wake County School board to be held at 8 AM on April 11^th at the Morrisville Chamber of Commerce. This will be the second time ever that these two bodies have been together. The first time was when I was chairman of the Mayors Association a couple of years ago.

The Mayors Association also decided on a single legislative agenda item, Retention of ETJ Authority.  The request will be presented in writing to the Wake County delegation within the week.

Other topics discussed by the mayors included transit which took up the remainder of the meeting. The focus was on a Mayors Association resolution requesting a referendum be placed on the Nov 6, 2012 ballot. A possible resolution will be considered at the April meeting.

Tuesday the council held three consecutive work sessions that lasted close to four hours. The first work session was to consider the 2012 legislative agenda. The council approved the proposed agenda with only minor changes in wording. The entire NC Legislative agenda for Cary can be reviewed at http://www.townofcary.org/Town_Council/Agendas___Minutes/Staff_Reports/AD12-014/AD12-014_NC_Legislative_Agenda_DRAFT_doc.htm.

The second work session was to consider a General Obligation Bond Referendum for General Capital Projects. Council decided to hold a referendum during the November elections. There will be three questions for voters to decide. Whether or not to approve a transportation bond ($57.6), a parks bond ($15.8), and a fire bond ($6.5). The total of these three bonds will be approximately $80 million.

Included in the Transportation bond were:

• Walnut Street Pedestrian and Traffic Improvements (US 1 Overpass)
• Street Improvements (Resurfacing)
• Reduce Congestion Through Intersection Improvements (Based on Level of Service)
• Streetscape Improvements Along South Academy and Dry
• Signal System Maintenance and upgrades
• Sidewalks
• Bike Facilities
• Carpenter Fire Station Bridge and Intersection Improvements (No Widening)
• Green Level West Road Widening (NC540 to NC55)

Included in the Parks bond were:

• Carpenter Park
• Mills Park - Phase II
• Downtown Park (including Farmers Market support facility)
• Greenways - White Oak Creek - All Remaining Segments
• Panther Branch Greenway (Cameron Pond/540 Segment to Mills Park)
• Bartley Park Phase I (Penny Road Park)
• Sports Turf Fields (which get three times the play as a regular grass turf field)

There was only one item on the Fire bond:

• Architectural Services - Land Acquisition and Construction - Fire Station #2 (Current building has structure issues with cement floor)

The work session material on the capital projects can be reviewed at: http://www.townofcary.org/Assets/Staff+Reports/AD12-015+General+Obligation+Bond+Presentation+Material.pdf.

The third work session was to decide on a replacement process for council member Robison who will be resigning to move to West Virginia. Ms. Robison had unofficially stated that she will resign on June 30^th. Based on that intention the council agreed to create a process that included the following:

• Eligibility would require 21 years of age, live in Cary town limits, be registered to vote, and have not been convicted of a felony.
• Candidates will fill out a “Statement of Interests and Qualifications”

The work session material on the appointment process can be reviewed at:  http://www.townofcary.org/Town_Council/Agendas___Minutes/Staff_Reports/TC12-006.htm.

Wednesday I attended the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organizational (CAMPO) meeting on behalf of Cary. The most important item for Cary was the adoption of the Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) outlining the tasks that will be performed by CAMPO staff in the coming fiscal year. Included in that were:

• $535,276 for regional rail transit planning studies that will in part support the study to look at the Harrison Avenue Grade Separation ($80,000) and potentially TOD planning in Cary.
• $65,000 for Swift Creek Area Traffic Study (Phase II) to address the impacts of removing the Cary Parkway-Gorman Street Extension from the CAMPO LRTP.

This item was approved without discussion.

Thursday morning I had breakfast with the Cary High School Accreditation Team. The Accreditation Team was responsible for evaluating various aspects of Cary High School and reporting back to their office in Atlanta. I had a great conversation with two ladies on the team about Cary and how this high school plays an important role in our community.

Thursday night was our second regularly scheduled council meeting of the month. The items generating the most discussion were the related Public Hearings on the Wright and Oxford Hunt properties at the corner of Old Apex and West Chatham Street. The neighbors felt the proposal was too intense and had filed a valid protest petition. It will take six of seven council members to approve for it to pass. We sent these proposals to the Planning and Zoning Board for their recommendation. The second item discussed in detail was the Fryar Tract at Green Hope School Road and Highcroft Drive. The council denied this request by a vote of four to three. After closed session the council meeting adjourned around 10:50.

Emails this week included several announcements from staff.

Staff sent out a reminder that beginning March 31^st citizens will need to dial the area code plus the seven digit telephone number to successfully complete a local call. The extended dialing is a necessary move by the North Carolina Utilities commission to accommodate the growing need for telephone numbers in this geographic area. The new 984 area code will apply to the same geographical area as the 919 Area Code, which generally covers the north central portion of North Carolina and serves communities such as Apex, Carrboro, Cary, Chapel Hill, Durham, Garner, Goldsboro, Raleigh, Sanford, Smithfield, and Wake Forest.

Staff also notified council that four new traffic signals are being installed and should be completed and operational in the next 30-60 days. The intersections are:

• W. Chatham/Dixon
• Ederlee/Penny
• Regency/ Regency Forest
• Kildaire Farm/ Loch Highlands

Additionally there is a contract to replace the existing signal with a decorative signal at Academy/Dry in front of the Arts Center, but that will be a few months before completion because of the time to manufacture the poles.

Regarding the intersection at Cary Parkway and West Chatham (the site of the fatal accident) staff reported that they met with NCDOT staff at a regular monthly traffic engineering coordination meeting.  The meeting agenda included a discussion of the intersection of SW Cary Parkway and West Chatham Street (a state maintained intersection). NCDOT presented initial findings from this intersection and Cary staff will review them in more detail.  NCDOT’s preliminary indications are that a signal might not be the appropriate solution and will be working to identify other options which will be discussed with Town of Cary staff in the future.

Emails this week included a complaint that we are wasting taxes, a complaint that we are not doing enough to develop in Chatham County, a complaint that we should not develop in Chatham County, a complaint about paving a cul-de-sac, a complaint about potholes on High House Road, a complaint about the proposed Trap Neuter Return program for cats, a request to oppose fracking, a complaint about the mess at Ten Ten and Kildaire Farm Road, a request that the town not consider any law proposals from the American Legislative Exchange Council, a concern that we might be using a particular week killing product, and a complaint about our decision to deny the Fryar Tract proposal.

Next week will lighten up a bit with a couple of inter-governmental meetings, a ribbon cutting, and a taping of Cary Matters. But the week is marked by a significant personal event for me. I will be having LASIK surgery on Friday. If all goes well I will be without glasses (except for reading) for the first time in 40 years. Wish me luck!

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, April 1^st. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This was a busy week for me with a lot of events and a lot of late nights.

Monday started with a quick photo op with a stuffed animal like figure called Flo, which is the EPA’s “spokesgallon” for Fix a Leak Week in Cary. Fix a Leak is part of our ongoing efforts to be water wise. During the month of March citizens can pick up a kit to check their toilets for leaks. The town also has a rebate program that will refund $100/each for replacing two old toilets with high efficiency toilets.

Next I met with the State Director of the Trust for Public Land about a possible collaborative opportunity with Chatham County involving a future school and park site near the Wake and Chatham County line. While this is an attractive idea to both parties, the land would require water and sewer which means it would need to be annexed into the town of Cary. And that would mean it would need to be part of the joint land use plan. I have high hopes for this proposal but there will be a lot of obstacles to overcome.

Monday night I had my semi-annual meeting with the town clerk to go over issues related to staff and the mayor. Cary is lucky to have the best town clerk staff in the state by far. So it was very difficult for me to come up with any constructive criticism.

Tuesday I read a proclamation in honor of dietician week and presented it to three dieticians at SAS. Dieticians play an important role in guiding us to a healthy lifestyle. And if your diet is anything like mine we can use all the guidance we can get.

Tuesday night I had the honor and privilege to participate in a celebration dinner honoring World War II veteran Hal Shook. There are a lot of incredible stories and information about Colonel Shook. For example, he flew his P47 fighter plane on D-Day, the Battle of Normandy in Normandy, France, and provided cover for the infantry on the ground.  He saved over 1500 lives on a night mission without night time instruments. On October 7, 1944, he became the first pilot in his group to fly 100 missions.  He flew 105 combat missions during his distinguished career. He has received many awards including the Distinguished Flying Cross; the Air Medal with 19 Oak Leaf Clusters; a Presidential Unit Citation; the Belgian Croix de Guerre; the French Croix de Guerre with Palm; and the Belgian Fourragère; the Commendation Medal with Cluster; and the Legion of Merit. Most recently France’s President Sarkozy appointed Shook as a “Chevalier” of the Legion of Honor which is similar to being knighted. The “Chevalier” award was presented at an earlier ceremony where the Consul said it was a sign of France’s infinite gratitude and appreciation for Colonel Shook’s contribution to the United States’ decisive role in the liberation of France during World War II.

In our ceremony council member Smith spoke words of praise, I gave a proclamation, Representative Weiss presented the Order of the Long Leaf Pine (the highest State award), a member of the sister cities spoke, a member of the French Consul spoke, a representative from Congressman’s Price office presented a flag that had been flown over the US Capital, and members of the American Legion spoke. It was an incredible ceremony and Colonel Shook was an absolute delight to talk to. This 92 year old hero even went skydiving a few days before to celebrate his birthday.

Wednesday started with a “coffee chat” meeting with the Triangle Community Coalition. This group is almost entirely made up of developer interest. In my comments to them I said I would welcome their input and suggested we set up regular meetings. Topics discussed included planning issues and impact fees. I believe this was a positive meeting and look forward to future meetings.

Later Wednesday I was part of a panel discussion at Elon College on Sunshine Laws (open government). I was allowed eight minutes and briefly listed a few things I, and other council members, are doing which include:

• Having my email and email of other council members automatically sent to the media once a week.
• Making sure I answer emails sent personally to me.
• Making sure council members don’t deliberate in emails.
• Blogging about all my activities and meetings since I have been mayor.
• Creating Cary Matters and writing the show (now writing duties are shared with council member Robinson).
• Changing the advisory board process to be completely open to the public.

I was joined on the panel by a public information officer and a communications director from other areas of the state. Our discussion was over in thirty minutes. We all received very positive feedback after the discussion.

Wednesday night I attended the kickoff meeting for the ninth Town of Cary School of Government class. I was joined by council members Smith, Frantz, and Bush. The School of Government is a class over several weeks that introduce its members to all aspects of town government. At graduation the students should have a solid understanding of how things work at town hall. In the council member comments we welcomed the participants, encouraged them to ask questions, and congratulated them on becoming more involved in their government.

Thursday I was part of the Sister Cities Diplomacy Summit at the Cary Arts Center. The goals of the summit were to bring people together to learn how international relationships at the grass roots level can impact foreign relations, to discuss how to better serve international visitors and the community, and to improve communications among our region’s diverse groups. I gave opening comments and introduced the moderator. In my comments made the following points:

• Less than 5% of those in Cary are from Cary
• A tremendous number of our residents are from Canada, Asia, Europe, and Africa.
• After Caucasian, the next biggest race in Cary is Asian.
• After English, Hindi is our most commonly spoken language.

The Summit was divided into two parts the first part was a panel discussion with various people from around the region that have international ties. After the intermission, council member Jack Smith was awarded the 2012 Citizen Diplomacy Award. That was followed by an incredible performance and show from the Sacrificial Poets who were in Egypt and Tunisia this past summer during those countries’ transformations. Their poetry provided a glimpse into the lives of the Egyptian and Tunisian people. I think the event was a huge success and with very powerful message.

Saturday morning I headed over to town hall as we commemorated Arbor Day with the planting of a tree and gave away of several dogwoods. For 29 consecutive years the Town of Cary has been awarded the Tree City USA community award from the Arbor Day Foundation. And I am glad to live in a community where the planting and nurturing of trees is a priority.

Saturday afternoon I attended a Girl Scouts expo celebrating the 100^th year of Girl Scouting. The girl scouts leadership program helps girls discover themselves and their values, connect with others, and take action to make the world a better place. I read a proclamation, visited, and took a few pictures before having to leave.

Sunday morning started bright and early for me as I welcomed over 4000 runners at the starting line of the Tobacco Road Marathon and Half Marathon. It was an incredible pre-dawn sight to see and everything went smoothly.

Sunday afternoon I attended the spectacular performance of the International Ballet Company and the Philharmonic Association. This ballet company is putting Cary on the map by winning national competitions and giving these wonderful performances. The ballet company is run by some of the best teachers in the county and lead by world renowned Miguel Campaneria. We are blessed to have them here in Cary.

This week’s emails included suggestions to light the pedestrian bridge, create an advisory committee for bicycle/pedestrian facilities, and to provide adult exercise equipment in parks. Other emails included complaints about the lack of a traffic signal at Cary Parkway and Chatham, speeding on High Meadow Drive, not allowing concealed weapons in Cary’s parks (now allowed by state statute), and the Cary-Chatham County Joint Land Use Plan.

Next week will continue to be busy for me with a meeting of the Wake County Mayors, three work sessions, a council meeting, and a meeting of the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Committee.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, March 25^th. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.

This week was a typical council meeting week for me made up mostly of meetings and events.

Monday I called all council members and was able to get in touch with all of them except Robison. There seem to be no issues or concerns from council members about the upcoming meeting on Wednesday. I also called the chairman of the Planning and Zoning Board to get his comments. The items that they discussed in detail would not be in this meeting. Later Monday I met with Mayor Pro-Tem Adcock, managers, directors, legal, administrative, and other staff to go over the agenda. We did not see any major issues for discussion or concerned but due to the quasi-judicial hearing and a closed session, both the Mayor Pro-Tem and I predicted the meeting would end between 8:30 and 9:00 PM.

After the agenda meeting I met with the town attorney to get updates on all of our major cases. One interesting note out of this meeting is that the legal department is creating a document that will eventually go on line to explain steps in the legal process. This will be a great help not only to council members but citizens as well as we try to understand legal issues involving the town.

Tuesday I met with the town manager to go over issues. We spent most of our time talking about capital projects and a potential bond referendum. Staff is preparing information for the council in an upcoming work session on capital projects. It is important to note that if there is a bond referendum it would take several months to prepare so it would likely be on this the ballot this fall. And if passed, a tax increase may be warranted. That potential increase would likely be in the 2014 fiscal year which begins July 1st, 2013.

Later on Tuesday I met with someone advocating against the proposed joint land use plan with Chatham County. Many concerns were expressed including pollution, traffic, and infrastructure to support growth in the area. I asked him to meet with the town manager and engineer to discuss his concerns in more depth.

Wednesday morning I spoke at the Cary Chamber of Commerce Youth Leadership Program. The group was made up of 40 high school juniors from Cary, Panther Creek, Athens Drive, and Green Hope. I spent about 15 minutes explaining the role of local government in the state, the role of council in a council-management form of government, and answering questions.

Wednesday night the council met for our first regularly scheduled meeting in March which included several items of interest. A public hearing for a proposed office on Kildaire Farm Road drew a lot of concern from residents that lived in MacGregor Downs. Council referred the proposal to the Planning and Zoning Board for their recommendation. A special use quasi-judicial hearing was held for a Bed and Breakfast off of Green Level Church Road and was unanimously approved. And finally, the council asked staff to draft an ordinance amendment to prohibit the tethering of dogs. The meeting lasted until just before 9 PM.

I did not have events on Thursday and Friday so I used that time to write the April version of Cary Matters.

Saturday I attended the 2^nd annual Miles for Matt 5K. This fundraiser was in memory of Matt Cossa who died from a blood cancer. While I didn’t know Matt personally, I’ve heard countless stories about his leadership both in the classroom and on the field. It is only fitting that the memorial bearing his name continues to be a leading contributor to cancer research and treatment through the Duke Cancer Institute. So far this group has raised $125,000 in five years to fight blood cancers which is astonishing. I believe that by working together against cancer we can find a cure in our lifetime.

Sunday I had the pleasure of attending a Basant Bahaar performance at the Cary Arts Center. Basant Bahaar is an annual spring festival. This performance was “Aum Sad Gurubhyo Namaha - An Ode to the Guru.” The performers were from the Natyarpana School of Dance, Music and Aakkrisht Indian Contemporary Dance Group, and the Natya Academy. It was a fantastic performance blending classical and contemporary dance choreographed to perfection. I believe this type of event enhances our community and as a result is one of the reasons Cary is the greatest places in the world to live, work, play and raise a family.

Later Sunday I attended a charity fundraiser for the Jimmy V foundation at Rudinos in Cary. They raised $500 by the time I left and were aiming at $1000.

In news to the town, on March 7^th Fitch Ratings affirmed Cary’s combined enterprise systems revenue and refunding bonds as AAA and said our outlook was stable.

In emails this week staff sent the latest plans in review which includes:

• 20 homes in Weldon Ridge
• Cary’s Downtown Theater
• An office for the SRI Venkateswara Temple
• A pre-school on Tryon Manor Drive
• A Walgreens at Waverly Place
• 80 dependent care units at Weatherstone Springs
• 51 homes in Westvale
• 8 mobile classrooms at Middle Creek
• 14,000 square foot building for Syracuse Plastics

You can review the entire list at http://www.townofcary.org/Assets/Planning+Department/Planning+Department+PDFs/planreview/Active+Projects+in+the+Review+Process+(sorted+by+date).pdf .

The town’s biennial survey results also came out this week. We received an A mark on several items including:

• Courteous Town staff
• Safety within neighborhoods and in public places
• Cleanliness and appearance of Public Areas
• Success at keeping Cary clean and forever green
• Courteous, fair and competent Police and Fire departments
• Overall quality of parks, recreation and cultural resources courses, facilities and instructors

Other interesting results included:

• Almost all citizens (94.8%) believe that the quality of life in Cary has remained the same or improved over the past two years
• A majority (71.4%) of residents feels that Cary’s tax rate is “about right”
• The biggest concerns of Cary citizens are growth, road improvements, schools and safety
• Over half (54.5%) own or plan to purchase a smart phone in the next year
• More than two-thirds (67.9%) have college degrees, with 9% of those having a Ph.D., JD, or MD

A total of 402 Cary households were randomly selected for the survey and interviewed by telephone from January 2-20, 2012. The Town utilized scientifically developed sampling techniques and statistical analysis that allow the survey results to be generalized over the entire population even though not everyone in Cary was called. The margin of error for the 2012 survey was +/- 5 percent. The town plans to conduct several focus groups later this spring to provide an opportunity for the Town and selected citizens to discuss specific issues in greater detail.

An update on the Cary Theater was sent out this week. Town staff is continuing to make great progress with the Downtown Theater. The latest plans, which are 65% complete, were submitted to council this week for inspection. Included in the plans was the three story building addition with a café on the first floor. The Theater seating remains at 180 seats with a balcony on the left and right sides of the theater. The architect and artist are working closely together on colors and materials for the marquee, which will be presented to council at a future date.

Staff also announced that the third annual Compost Giveaway sponsored by Spruce will be on Saturday, March 10 at 9 a.m. This will be just in time for everyone’s spring cleanup.

In addition staff announced lane closures will occur periodically along six streets now through November. This will allow the town contractors to build a sanitary sewer pipeline from the Walnut Creek and Jones Franklin pump stations.

Emails from citizens this week included complaints about speed humps on Seabrook Avenue, road conditions in Summerwinds III, future chickens in Cary, the proposed Cary-Chatham County Joint Land Use Plan, trash on Carpenter Fire Station Road, the future of Morrisville Parkway near Highway 55, an issue with dirt from a downtown property owner, the lack of a resolution on fracking, and the future dog tethering ordinance.

This coming week, March 11 through March 17th celebrates Sunshine Week in Cary. I will be presenting a proclamation at the NC Open Government Coalition’s sunshine day event on March 14 at Elon University. At this event I will be talking about the importance of open government from an elected official perspective.

The week will be a busy week with events in addition to Sunshine Week including an Arbor Day event, a celebration of a World War II veteran, the School of Government kickoff, and a Sister Cities Diplomacy Summit.

Well that is all for this week. My next post will be on Sunday, March 18^th. Please feel free to email me with a comment. Email all Town of Cary questions or comments to Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org. Email personal comments to augustanat@mindspring.com.