The Caryhara Desert

The drought continues. Durham down to 50 days water supply, Raleigh down to 100. Cary drying up too, and it will happen faster once Durham starts pumping from Jordan Lake.

A while back, I posted a sensible set of water-saving recommendations. Evidently, more stringent measures are required.

I was hoping we would not have to go to Defcon 6 (on a 5-point scale), but here goes:

1. Henceforth, flushing the toilet will be performed on a discretionary basis. Use the old axiom: If its yellow let it mellow, if its brown flush it down. We have those waterless urinals at work and they're not that bad unless somebody had asparagus. This week they put blue stuff in them, so when in action they look like a lava lamp. Way cool and no water!
   
2. Transportation of glaciers to NC via 12-ounce cans should be increased immediately.
3. Even at fine restaurants, men will no longer be expected to pour their bottle or can of beer into a glass as an expression of good manners. Eliminates the need to wash glasses and instills that 'at home' feeling.
4. To eliminate washing of sweaty clothes, men will again be restricted from exercise of any kind. This does not include activites like golf or fishing, which do not cause one to break a sweat. This sacrifice will mean more time in front of the TV, so caring wives may want to consider an upgrade during the Holiday season. 50" plasma is fine.
5. I saved the best for last. My plan will not only resolve Wake County's water supply crisis, but also address concerns regarding illegal immigration. Let us welcome those crossing the Rio Grande, and have them form a bucket brigade which begins at that river and stretches all the way to Wake County. I know its Texas water, but beggars...
   
   

Messing With Mother Nature Again

I hope that most of the rain we got today made its way to our reservoirs, we need it. Jordan Lake is still down six feet, and Raleigh's water supply is measured in months.

So, what do you do when you hit the wall on water supply in Wake County? The county's answer is to build more reservoirs. Click here to view Wake County's proposal to build a new reservoir on the Little River. The new lake will provide 17 million gallons of water a day to northeastern Wake County.

The lake will flood 1,100 acres of what today is open green space. In addition, a critical watershed about twice that size must be established.

Are we doing the right thing for Wake County? On one hand, people like me whine about having infrastructure in place before development, and this represents a clear attempt to do that. That said, I struggle to believe we are doing right. Who is going to pay to build the lake and water treatment plant? Developers? Not! This is a trade-off decision... Does it make sense to give up 1,100 acres of undeveloped land so that growth can continue? If yes, do we flood another 1,100 acres when that water supply runs out? Where does it end?

Ernie McAlister always liked to talk about "Moving Cary forward." At a county-level, if we keep moving forward like this the final product will be a county in which almost every square inch of land has been made 'more productive.' Take a trip to North Jersey and you can see what 'productive' counties look like. No thanks.

We have two huge man-made reservoirs already, how about letting nature determine when enough is enough.

The Feeding Frenzy Continues

At the end of the third quarter, the Cary Town Manager issued a report stating 707 residential building permits had been issued during the period.

In October, 209 more permits were issued. In a four month period, 916 permits. Annualized, the rate is 3,664.

Does Ernie still blame Harold for 78% of this?

This will be Ernie's legacy. When you drive around town and see a large parcel leveled, think of Ernie. When you see an orange traffic cone, think of Ernie. When you see a trailer added to your child's school, think of Ernie.

Cary's new town hall was never dedicated with a plaque (probably because Ernie's name would not have appeared on it since it was completed before his tenure). I believe a man who has made such a substantial mark on a town's history should be appropriately memorialized. Here are a few suggestions:

The Ernie McAlister Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility. Ernie was a driving force behind this initiative which paved the way for our growth to 250,000 and allowed the citizens of New Hill the opportunity to process our sludge.

Rename Lake Johnson to Lake Ernie. That Johnson guy is probably dead anyway and won't care, and Cary's most recent contribution of 7,000 gallons of raw sewage to the lake deserves to be recognized.

Apply a misuse overlay to all of the downtown Cary properties which have become boarding houses and slums over the past few years. Name it Ernieville (think of Pottersville here).

Let your imagination go, post any ideas you have!

Realtors

During Harold Weinbrecht's campaign, I met some realtors who were just great people. These people were part of a grass-roots effort to restore sanity to growth management in Cary. Their motives varied. Some said they were putting the interests of their home town ahead of their personal gain. Others realized that runaway growth may increase short-term transactions, but does not make for a long-term healthy market.

These wonderful people were in the microscopic minority of realtors having a social conscience. My following comments do not apply to them.

When Glen Lang referred to realtors as 'pond scum' he was being kind. I liken their business model to that of a pimp. They make money off every transaction, whether the buyer/seller benefits or not.

Consider today's front-page N&O story regarding home inspections. Eight members comprise the NC Home Inspection Licensure Board, the lone realtor being John Hamrick. Mr. Hamrick introduced a proposal which would prohibit home inspectors from making repair recommendations, even for safety issues. The NC Realtors Lobby has gotten behind the proposal and again poured some of their unlimited PAC money into making it a reality. Opponents of this rules change have pointed out the motivation to reduce home inspectors' potential to delay or derail home-sale closings amid a nation-wide housing slump. Mr. Hamrick says the measure would actually benefit consumers by 'standardizing' the home inspection reports. NC Senator Marc Basnight oversees the Home Inspection Committee, has appointment power for two of the eight positions, and the NC Realtors Lobby gave $16,000 to his last campaign.

Me, I'd kind of like to know if a house I'm buying sits on top of a bikini atoll's worth of radon. It would also be handy to receive recommendations regarding upgrades of amenities like electrical wiring, heating or matters regarding structural integrity. I'll take my chances with a non- 'standardized' report to hopefully learn of these things before buying.

Realtors still have a stranglehold on the market. I'm not calling out collusion here, but I find it incredibly coincidental that every major real estate agency has established 6% commission rate. Try listing your home with Concept 2000 or one of the other discount brokers who charge 3-4%. Realtors with clients will drive by your property and avoid showing it at all costs.

I have had the pleasure of meeting some great people who were realtors. Unfortunately, most realtors I've met have been a disappointment. Stories like today's only serve to make life more difficult for the ones who conduct themselves ethically.

New Blog Feature Added: Video of the Day!!

Why waste your valuable time surfing YouTube for today's gem, when I've already wasted mine?

2009 Campaign Begins !!

As Mrs. Gump said, politics is like a box of chocolates... Some of 'em might look pretty on the outside but when you open 'em up you find stuff you don't like. Kind of like Jennifer Robinson.

The first council meeting after the elections she started re-inventing herself as a balanced-growth advocate. At the last council meeting she actually voted against a rezoning request for higher density. Over the next two years J.Low will continue her miraculous transformation from Ernie-bot to selfless community advocate.

No matter. Whoever runs against her, I like their chances. She sold out her neighbors on DHH and built herself a reputation as a champion for special insterests. People don't forget, and I'm sure her opponent(s) will help them to remember.

Back to Reality

OK, so my last post and picture were looking ahead to better times when we get a new Town Council, now it's back to reality.

The Cary Town Manager just released our 3rd quarter report. During the quarter, Cary issued 707 building permits -- an all-time record high for any quarter. Local TV station WBST ran a story, here are some excerpts with Bernie McSmales:

Reporter: So, Mr. McSmales, you have had a busy third quarter!

McSmales: Yes Jane, we have continued to move the town forward at a fiscally responsible pace.

Reporter: I read somewhere that Governer Easley has asked municipalities to reduce water consumption by 50%, do you think setting records for building is a good idea?

McSmales: Absolutely, Jane. Yes, these new projects will require water for pouring concrete, but since Cary just gave back 7,000 gallons to NC's water supply, this represents a fair balance.

Reporter: You mean the 7,000 gallons of raw sewage that was spilled into a Lake Johnson tributary last week?

McSmales: Eventually that will become water, stop with the details. Besides, all those building permits were approved by Harold Winebreck four years ago.

Reporter: I thought you took credit for restoring a healthy growth rate in the town?

McSmales: Yeah, but I figured out real quick that that wouldn't get me votes. You need to keep up with the commercials, Jane.

Reporter: So, is this how you want to be remembered by citizens, for presiding over the all-time record quarter for building permits?

McSmales: Nope. I still have all of November left in office and I'm going for the monthly record there too!

Reporter: Well, Bernie, you've killed a lot of trees in your time.

McSmales: I didn't want to do it, but felt I owed it do them.

New Cary Town Council

It seems like forever since our new Town Council was elected. Here's my best cut at what they'll look like, although I'll bet in the next picture some of these people will be moved toward the end of the line. Back of da bus, babe!

Tacky Tax

The NC Home Builders Association spent over half a million dollars lobbying the state legislature, arguing not to allow counties and municipalities should not have a choice in whether to levy a real estate transfer-tax. The builders lost that argument, and several counties have referendums on transfer-taxes included in their upcoming elections.

Transfer taxes are applied against every home sale, whether it is new or pre-existing. These taxes would develop millions of dollars in funding for much-needed schools and other infrastructure.

I'm glad the builders lobby lost their argument, and were not able to protect us from ourselves. The voters must choose whether transfer-taxes are the right vehicle for shoring up infrastructure funding.

I hope they make the right choice. I, for one, think transfer-taxes are a crappy idea. Local officials don't have the cojones to increase the property tax rate, so they'll support this instead. The fact is that if impact fees were where they should be, we wouldn't need transfer-taxes. If the purpose of these taxes is to build schools and roads caused by growth, then why not get it paid up front? Already, the lion's share of growth's cost is spread among taxpayers -- just look to Cary where the majority of development cost goes to debt which requires even more development to pay off. Think Amway.

I'm on my second house in Cary, and I know people who are on their third. When you move here, you pay your impact fee. Why should you pay it again when you move up to a nicer home (or are forced to move because of crummy schools in my case)? What about Grandma and Grandpa who contributed to the Cary tax base for 30 years and finally sell their home to move closer to the kids in Paducah, Kentucky? If you move here and pick up the lease on a rental property, you get off scot free.

Wake County just approved a $1B bond to pay for schools, and that is just enough money to keep our heads above water -- new schools are still designated as MYR.

A $1B bond is not enough. Our current property taxes are not enough, and a transfer-tax is still not enough to fund the kind of schools which the most affluent county in the state should have. Figure out what the real cost of growth is, adjust impact fees to require developers to pay their fair share, and shove the rest into the property tax rate. We don't need a new tax.

Cary Going to the Dogs

Next fall, Cary will break ground on what will be our second dog park. Cost for the first phase is $3M. I haven't done research on where the land and funding came from for this project, probably some if it was concessed by a developer to get a project done.

I love dogs. Always had one growing up, and I can't resist the opportunity to pet a dog walking by or offering them a free sniff of the place of their choosing. My wife has a cat (appropriately named 'The Fink') which is no match for man's best friend. Cats are cats' best friend, every other human is secondary to them.

As a dog lover (in the platonic sense) I am qualified to offer an unbiased opinion regarding this investment. A sound opinion may be based on less-than-sound math, so here goes...

• Cary currently has 123,000 residents
• Assume an average family of 4, = 30,750 households
• Assume 15% of households have a dog, = 4,612 dogs

For the sake of argument, let's double the number and say there are 10,000 dogs in Cary. $3M for phase one equates to $300 per pup. My first question was why we would need a dog park at all. After much thought, I can only conclude that Cary's white-hot growth rate has resulted in a dire shortage of trees which dogs can use to pee against. Still, $3M seems like a lot of money to replace trees. Perhaps the park will feature a spa and fitness center? A small canine performing arts and aquatics center? A state of the art automated pooper scooper machine [kind of like the golf car that cruises the driving range picking up golf balls].


Alright, I'm going to have a Roger Hill moment here -- I call bullsh&t, er... dogsh&t. Cary has NEEDS and Cary has WANTS. This falls into the latter category. Some better uses of $3M...

• $3M buys a lot of asphalt to fill potholes.
• $25K of it would give Cary EMS what they need to continue their level of ambulance service. Dog parks are more important than ambulances???
• $3M would fund more police officers. We could add K-9 forces too.
• $3M would buy a lot of fire hydrants which are needed in all the new developments that have been built. The dogs could use them too.

I apologize to any dog owners I have offended, but I believe those same people would agree that there are more pressing needs in Cary.

If I Were King of Cary

I'm no different from most people who work for someone else, sometimes I like to think about what I'd do if I were in charge. Along those same lines, it is kind of fun to imagine oneself as King of Cary for a day, at least for me.

Cary already had a great day on October 9th when we voted for sweeping change on our Town Council. These new optimistic leaders have tough work ahead of them to clean up the mess left by their predecessors (with the exception of Marla Dorrel, who was a true leader). I'd love to be King for a day before they take office, and take drastic steps to make their job easier.

As King/Dictator/Despot for one day, I'd do the following:

1. Review all development approved by the previous Town Council in the past year, and require re-approval for any cases in which government and developers collaborated to screw the citizens. Davis & High House would be a great start. They already have a lawsuit filed, and if I were King I'd eagerly admit guilt and restart the approval process. Is this fair to all of the applicants who followed due process? I don't care. I am the King, and I make the rules. If the royal lawyers don't let me pull the plug on DHH, then I'm sponsoring a peasant boycott of all retail establishments built there. As King, I declare this parcel tainted and decadent!

2. The 'Beer Garden' which was added to this year's Lazy Daze festival caused much consternation among the loyal subjects, and I would eliminate it from next year's festival. Drinking beer has no place in a festival dedicated to Cary living and arts and crafts. In fact, beer drinking deserves a festival of its own! I would launch an annual beer festival, if Durham can have one then we can too. As King, I would be granted free admission and consumption. Its good to be King.

3. Bye bye, aquatics palace. One stroke of the quill and we leave a $30M boondoggle behind. If the chamber of commerce and hotel owners want an aquatics palace, then they can pay for it. If the citizens who signed the Hawes Tract petition want it, they can pay for it. This is the nice part about being King, you can do the right thing for all citizens without worrying about pissing off a few.

4. Royal amnesty is granted to all town employees who have supported the previous mayor and his policies. Anyone who has offered false public support of previous Town Council members, or been intimidated and influenced by them in any way, here is your chance for absolution. Throw open your windows and denounce them! I'm only King for a day, so act now before this offer expires. This offer does not include tax, tags or dealer preparation

5. After my 24-hour reign, Cary will return to its regularly-scheduled democratic government. Before that happens, I'm edicting that anyone who wants to run for public office in Cary be limited to $50,000 in campaign funding, all of it from Cary. $50K should let them get their message out, and if they have a 'good story' to tell, voters will buy it. Allowing special-interest groups to pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into candidate campaigns does not promote true democracy. It promotes a government where money talks, and where corruption flourishes.

6. As King, I'd direct the royal legal staff to craft an APF ordinance which was bullet-proof, and approve it personally. At a minimum, it would require conveyance of land to the school system.

7. The approved budget for 2008 is an engine built for the rapid strip-mining of Cary. I would like the Royal Clerk, Bob Cratchitt, to submit this budget for re-review. If the budget can't be changed, then it should be memorialized as one of the last acts of a dysfunctional council. My Royal Jester, Neire McStealir, will be directed to make good comedy of the budget document.

With only a day to work with, I don't think I'd have time to also tackle problems like schools and water, but Cary has qualified leadership coming who will help solve these problems. When my work is done, I'd hope to be exiled to the island of Elba, or if that's not available then Sunset Beach would do just fine.

Water Conservation

There's not much left of Falls Lake, so I have submitted my DefCon 5 Water Management plan to Governor Easley's office for immediate consideration. In difficult times such as these, sacrifices must be made.

Here's my eight-point plan:

1. Stop building new homes. Pouring one new concrete foundation consumes enough water to flush 841 toilets. Do you really want another new house, or do you want to make sure 'old reliable' is ready when the time comes?
2. Restaurants should bring beer to the table instead of ice water. Coors is not a personal favorite, but it is made from melted glaciers and we have lots of glaciers in this country, just not in the right places. This would be like bringing a much-needed glacier to North Carolina, one 12-ounce can at a time.
3. Implement casual-hygiene Fridays (shaving not required). Saves thousands of gallons of water, all for the price of a few extra whiskers.
4. More restaurants should follow the Hooters model... smaller uniforms require less water to wash. Paper towels are fine instead of cloth napkins when the food is delectable and no one is paying attention to it.
5. Wake County men will be encouraged to discontinue vigorous exercise of any kind, thus eliminating the need for additional showers and water consumption. I will personally lead this initiative, from my recliner. We will start slowly with 'Slovenly Sunday' and work up from there. Governor Easley has said that a dirty car should now be considered a sign of civic responsibility. In that same spirit, a little extra weight around the mid-section should convey a sense of self-sacrifice and community pride.
6. All public sporting and entertainment events will now designate an outdoor 'waterless urinal' area [chain-kink fence with a privacy curtain] for men. Needless to say, men will not feel compelled to wash their hands afterwards. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Consumption of asparagus during this time will be considered illegal.
7. Real men never ate watercress to begin with, but from here forward veggies are optional at any meals. Broccoli, lettuce, peas and other vegetables consume tremendous amounts of water in their production. Chicken wings and burritos, on the other hand, have little to no impact on local water supplies. And remember, beer comes from glaciers.
8. All outdoor chores including car washing, re-seeding lawns and planting shrubs are immediately suspended.

Together, we can make a difference!

In last week's N&O, Rob Christensen has a column about growth in Cary. His thoughts were the same as Ernie McAlisters; Since we were allowed to move to Cary, we have no right to call for control of growth. Here's an email I sent to Mr. Christensen regarding his column:

Mr. Christensen,
Thank you for taking time to write about our
"little old town" of Cary.  As you state, proper
control of growth in Cary is a complex  matter,
with no 'right' answer.

I do believe the notion endorsed by Ernie
McAlister that any and  > all newcomers should
be welcomed is fundamentally flawed.  I came
here in 1992, you arrived a year later.  Back then,
our roads were unclogged and we did not have 20%
of our students in trailers.  Continuing to allow
anyone wanting to move to the Cary just because  
we were allowed to move here ourselves puts us
on the same path as an ill-fated Indonesian
passenger ferry.  Every new passenger must be
welcomed aboard, even if the boat is already
over capacity.  With every new passenger, the
boat is further at risk of swamping. In our case
the risk is running out of water, open space and  
passable roads.

Cary has two traffic problems, commuting and local.
Every business day we face worsening commute
times for people commuting to RTP.  We are in
a way fortunate that our commuter routes will in
fact face increasing pressure as quality employment
continues to grow.  But, Cary also faces worsening
local traffic problems.  Today, a drive across
town means running a gauntlet of endless stop-lights  
(with multiple-cycle queues), dodging traffic cones
and following dumptrucks at hopefully enough distance
to keep a rock from going through our windshields.

We can focus on fixing commute traffic by investing
more money in the arterials used by commuters --
highway 55, Holly Springs Rd, the Western Wake
Freeway and lower- Davis Drive.  This allows
redirection of growth to neighboring towns without
impacting Cary citizens' ability to drive within the
town on errands.

I believe your viewpoint on development impact fees
may also be based on transfer-taxes.  Impact fees
are only paid at time of construction, and I think
they are an equitable way for a developer to pay
their fair share of infrastructure costs.  Transfer-
taxes are imposed every time someone buys or sells
a home, and I don't believe in them.  If proper
impact fees are in place at time of contruction,
then there should be no need to pay for infrastructure  
a second time when you sell your home.

Cary is now annexing land in Chatham county, and
the growth continues.  When do we say enough is enough?

 Thanks,
Joe Ciulla

Here's his response:

Joe,
Thanks for your note. I respectfully disagree. When I moved
to  Raleigh in 1973, Cary had 7,000 people. I would bet that
a lot of Caryites liked that just fine. But you and I would
have been unable  to move to Cary if they had pulled up the
ladder in 1973. I think it's a little hard to compare a
ferry with a town. Who's to say that we have reached the
maximum population? In fact, urban experts would argue that
increased urban density in towns around RTP would reduce  
traffic congestion on I-40 and other routes.  Even if Cary
capped growth, it would only mean that surrounding towns
such as Apex and Holly Spring would absorb the additional  
growth, and those residents would use Cary's streets for
our shopping.  I've recently been in places in Ohio, Iowa
and Michigan and elsewhere that are losing population. They
would love to have our problem.

We will always have people who think this way, and they are
all entitled to express their opinions.
Today, the following LTE appeared in the N&O:

Regarding Rob Christensen's Oct. 14 column "Taming growth is

ticklish":

The answer to the question that Christensen was too well-mannered

to ask when my son and I went to his door before the Cary election --

when had we moved to Cary? -- is six years before he did, in 1987.

We knew the original owners of his house; my sons went to school

with their children.

We were not random campaign volunteers for Mayor-elect Harold

Weinbrecht. We were Christensen's neighbors participating in a

grassroots effort, handing out literature for all three of our newly

elected candidates in our area. We were personally spreading the

word that some of the candidates were actually willing to listen to

citizens rather than special interests and the truth about growth

trends because Mayor Ernie McAlister had far greater financial

ability to broadcast his versions of messages.

The graph Christensen was shown was accurately plotted Cary new

housing-permit data. It was my independently created graphic that

accompanied my opinion piece "Numbers tell the story" published in

The N&O's own Cary News, which chose to provide this powerful

illustration only in the online version. It appears from Christensen's

recent column that he might find enlightenment in my

multidimensional Cary growth analysis.

John Yoakum

Cary

The punch line of Mr. Christensen's column was that he had been 'too polite' to ask
the person at his door when they moved to Cary. Based on Mr. Yoakum's letter, I can
only conclude that Mr. Christensen was far more concerned about having a good one-
liner to close his column than he was about politeness.

We'll be adding thousands more passengers to the good ship Cary this year. Fortunately if the ferry does go down the passengers will all be able to walk to shore across what used to be the bed of Jordan Lake.

Morrisville Gets In On the Act ....

It appears Cary does not have a monopoly on strip-mining undeveloped land. Morrisville is evaluating a gargantuan development plan for the intersection of Cary Parkway and 54. Nice. Looks like it will have a super-sized Wal-Mart or Target, a hotel, a Best Buy, banks, a fitness center, a movie theater and a variety of retailers and restaurants. Over 1 million square feet in all. There's enough paved parking for this place to be used as 'Lot M' by RDU airport. This thing appears to be even bigger than Davis & High House.

When this proposal goes before the Morrisville Town Council, I can only hope that they were paying attention to what happened in Cary and Raleigh on Oct 9th.

Cary Annexation - Resistance is Futile !!!

In 2007, Cary has been busily assimilating (annexing) hundreds of acres.

Here are a few of the approved annexations:

- 125 Acres along the recently-improved highway 55, for mixed-use development.
- 85 Acres added to Highcroft, for residential development
- 18 Acres, bordering on Chatham County, for residential development
- 7 Acres behind PCH, more apartments coming
- 84 Acres behind PCH, residential

Cary already has plans in place to annex properties in Chatham County. We have now pissed off enough people that our Town Council has met with officials from Chatham County and other nearby towns and agreed upon an annexation moratorium until some rules of engagement can be established.

I don't get it, what's in it for the citizens of Cary. Our 'tax base' may increase, but it must cost a small fortune to run water & sewer out to these properties, who will then proceed to further stress our water resources instead of using the wells they have. Fire stations will have to be built to provide services. What's in it for us?

Way to Go Cary

Yesterday Cary elected a new Mayor, Harold Weinbrecht. I worked hard to help get it done, along with over a hundred fellow Cary citizens. I met and worked with some amazing people. These people all believed Cary can do better, and they all put it on the line to give us that chance. Ernie McAlister reported $150K in campaign funding in his most recent report, versus $32K for Harold Weinbrecht. It didn't matter.

Already, some are worried that Harold Weinbrecht is the second coming of Clubber Lang. Some say Harold will kill growth, while others say he cannot control it. Until Harold takes office in December, speculation will fuel much debate over the future of his administration.

Cary had two choices in this election, and made the right one. Here's why: Instead of electing a Mayor whose compaign was paid for by development special interests, we chose the candidate who is only beholden to the citizens of Cary. Harold has a platform of balanced growth and environmental conservation. More importantly, Harold is committed to listening to the citizens of Cary and letting us help shape our town's future. We help decide how much growth makes sense. We help decide what kind of growth we want. We help decide how to pay for growth. We help decide issues like performing arts centers, transfer taxes and water management. We get to help decide because Harold is beholden only to the citizens of Cary. That is where his campaign money came from and, more importantly, the support of Cary citizens is what propelled him into office. He won't forget.

Tickle Me Ernie

Alright, so its 'tickle me elmo,' but I couldn't resist. The onslaught of negative commercials from ernie and his ernie-bots (aka Tom Joyner) tickle me. Ernie has raised another $40K in the past weeks, his campaign fund now totals almost $150K. What tickles me is the fact that the only use he can find for all this money is negative ads which are half-truths at best. These ads reflect that exact same fear that Marla Dorrel addressed in her OpEd column. Ernie and his ernie-bots are scared to death that they are going to lose this election.

What happened to telling the 'positive story' of his administration with his campaign war chest? That's what he told the Cary News he was going to use the money for. Seems citizens are not buying his fabricated story of 'moving Cary forward' and he has nothing left to campaign on.

Once again, ernie has underestimated the citizens of Cary. These ads are meant to win votes through establishing fear and uncertainty. If the citizens of Cary were stupid, the ads would be effective. People in Cary are not stupid. I have talked to a lot of people, and generally get a couple of reactions....

1. Gee, Ernie is showing his true colors now.
2. Ernie must really be behind in this election if he has to resort to mud-slinging.

I drive around town and I see a number of different signs which have been created and placed by people who are not affiliated with any of the campaigns. Their consistent message: Ernie's got to go. One brilliant citizen had a huge sign (at least 6 feet x 8 feet) made up, strapped it to the side of a truck, and is driving around town.

I have lived here 15 years, and have never been more proud to be a citizen of Cary.

Lord of the Flyers

Thankfully, Ernie's flyers are again making their way to my mailbox. Since Ernie has over $100K to spend, I expect nothing but the best BS in his flyers, and he has not disappointed me.

Today's flyer was very comforting to me. In it, mayor McSellout is attacking Harold Weinbrecht on a number of fronts. The best accusation Ernie can come up with is that Harold actually approved most of the development which has occurred under this administration. This begs a few questions:

• Throughout this campaign, Ernie has accused Harold of bringing growth to a standstill, and Ernie has proudly taken credit for bringing Cary out of those 'Dark days' and restoring healthy growth. Now he's blaming that same growth on Harold. Whose growth is it anyway?
  
• If the previous administration is in fact to 'blame' for all this growth, then why did mayor McSellout spend all that money on an economic consultant?
  
• If Harold is the one who approved all this growth, then why aren't the developers giving all their money to him instead of Ernie? This includes the out-of-town developers who gave Ernie almost $50K. Show me the money!

Like I said, nothing but the best BS from Ernie. The fact is, Ernie's administration approved all the building permits, not Harold's. Harold's approved the zoning for the developments Ernie points out, but as usual, Ernie only gives half the story. Harold's administration also had budget and ordinances in place to balance growth, both of which were doomed as of Ernie's first day in office.

So why am I encouraged? Ernie has sent out at least six different flyers and has his face all over TV. Cary people may be many things, but stupid is not one of them. Every time they see a flyer or commercial, they are reminded of who truly owns the mayor -- the developers who fill his campaign coffers. Cary people know that if Ernie really had a great story to tell, he wouldn't need $100,000 to tell it.

Ernie's biggest (and only?) political asset is his country-bumpkin charm and ever-present tan. Every time he sends out a nasty-gram, a little of that folksy image that he tries so hard to create gets chipped away, and Cary citizens learn a bit more about how ruthless mayor McSellout really is.

Ernie's best one-liner of the week comes from his News14 forum with Harold Weinbrecht. When asked a direct question about all the money pouring into his campaign from developers all over the country, Ernie said he "Makes no apologies" for all that money. This came across as arrogant, and again helped people see through the country-bumpkin image he works so hard to create.

16 Days

Hard to believe it is 16 days until the Cary election. I have enjoyed receiving all the campaign flyers and seeing just how creative people can be. A bit disappointing, I didn't receive Ernie's third and fourth flyers.

A shining example of creativity is Tommy Byrd. Mr. Byrd is a real estate agent/developer of the same ilk as Ernie. He has two websites up -- byrdforcary.com and byrd4cary.org. Interestingly, the .com website is for his campaign, while the .org is used for his business. I quote the following from his business home page:

Whether you need access to the latest national leasing and sales data, or information on the current politics of growth in our area, we have it. Our market is rated as one of the hottest in the country. It pays to know who is active, who isn't - and why. Let us be your eyes and ears. Making smart decisions is all about having the most current and accurate information available.

Seems like this guy built his business selling an insider's view of Town Hall, now he is running for Town Council -- scary.

Other 'Old Guard' candidates running for Town Council:

Nels Roseland: Almost $30,000 in campaign contributions from developers, voted for DHH
John Rigsbeee: Treasurer of Ernie's 2003 campaign.

'New Guard' candidates who are not beholden to developers:

Harold Weinbrecht, Mayor
Don Frantz, Town Council
Erv Portman, Town Council (incumbent, voted against DHH)
Gale Adcock, Town Council

Ernie-Gram Number 2

I enjoyed reading Ernie's second flyer which arrived in the mail today. Again, like the Easter Bunny leaving another nice, shiny turd.

Update: Something I missed on this flyer which was pointed out to me by one of the many people who know more about Cary politics than I do: The Mayor broke Cary's own law with this flyer. The flyer featured an image and watermark of the official Town of Cary Seal. This seal is copyrighted and can only be used for official town business -- reelection campaigns are not town business. Arrogant to the last, apparently Ernie believes the seal belongs to him and not the Town of Cary.

If Ernie wants his own seal, he should go with this:


There are 120,000 people in Cary and every household is probably receiving these mailers. Ernie's killing a lot of trees here, but that's what he is good at. Perhaps part of Ernie's clear-cutting of Cary was always intended to generate paper pulp for future use in his campaign?

Based on Ernie's flyer, it is clear that he is more than happy to sacrifice his loyal attendant (Nels Roseland) for the greater good of getting himself reelected. His only attack against Harold Weinbrecht is to criticize the 'previous administration' of fiscal irresponsibility. Nels was part of that administration.

Personally, I'm glad to see Nels get skewered, he deserves it. He's as bad as Ernie. He voted against pole signs, but that was actually after he voted for them. Cost: $500K. Ka-ching! He was largely responsible for wasting over $200K of our money on consulting fees for the doomed aquatics palace. Finally, he bought in completely to this insulting last-minute campaign sham regarding land-banking, and in doing so used our kids as political capital.

Nels bought into Ernie-nomics hook, line and sinker, and now Ernie is tossing him off his political Titanic.... A very good example to the people of Cary of just how ruthless Ernie can be when he's not on camera.

Goodbye Nels, you've lost the only guy who maybe could have helped you retain your council seat, and you are no longer a contender. Don Frantz is a great guy and I hope he wins. If not, I am sure Vickie Maxwell will still be a big improvement.

And Ernie, if fabricated 'fiscal responsibility' is the best you can come up with, you're in trouble. The only 'fiscally responsible' facet of your administration is your reelection fund, which is loaded with over $100,000.

We all know a rotten fish stinks from the head-down!

Water, Water Everywhere --- NOT !!

Just a friendly reminder... As Cary's water supply continues to approach the danger zone, remember that in 2000 we had a population of 98,000 people, today we have over 120,000 -- Mostly courtesy of Ernie McAlister. Over the same period of time we could have held growth flat and annexed the ENTIRE TOWN of Apex and reached the same result.

An Odd Campaign Story

Here's an interesting story from Plattsburgh, NY that my parents sent my way. Good for a chuckle, probably won't see any campaign signs like that in Cary, especially from Ernie.

Yesterday I finally received my long-awaited first campaign flyer from Ernie McAlister. My exxpections were met, and his flyer proves that you can indeed put enough polish on a turd to make it shine. I'd scan a copy and post it here, but I'm sure all living or dead citizens of Cary have already received their copy. This Lie-O-Gram is well-produced, but I guess when you have $100,000 of developer money to spend you can afford the best. On the other hand, when you have spent four years selling out Cary, you probably are forced to spend a lot of money on campaign collateral to make people think you were actually serving their needs.

By the way, I call Ernie's flyer a Lie-O-Gram because failure to tell the whole truth constitutes a lie as far as I'm concerned.

A few observations in the form of "Ernie said, Joe Said" ......

On "Making a difference" over the last four years ...

Ernie said "Successfully passed a $120M clean water bond to fund a regional wastewater treatment facility"
Joe said "I spent $120M of your tax money to keep my developer friends happy and let them continue to build.

Ernie said "Assumed ownership of SAS Soccer Park"
Joe said "Which loses money every year, but we're fiscally responsible!!"

Ernie said "Provided land to the Wake County Public School System"
Joe said "Gave them land which the previous mayor secured from developers"

Ernie said "Restored Cary's long term fiscal health"
Joe said "Increased Cary's debt to the largest amount in the history of the town"

On Ernie's "Vision for our future" ...

Ernie said "Invest $100M to build and expand Cary's roads"
Joe said "Again, your tax dollars at work to support developers' business interests"

Ernie said "Keep Cary's tax rate low"
Joe said "By continuing to go into debt and leaving it for the next mayor to clean up"

Ernie said "Initiate a land banking program [for schools]"
Joe said "Ernie, that one is just plain over the line. You have done zip for our students during your administration and made the BoE's even worse by driving over 6% residential growth. Now you come up with this six weeks before the election? [see previous post on this subject]. Cary students, two of whom are my kids, are not your political collateral to be exploited for the purpose of your reelection. To come up with a stunt like this dishonors all Cary students."

We got fooled by Ernie's pretty flyers and worthless promises four years ago, we won't get fooled again!

Mayor McAlister's Aug28th State of Cary Update

As usual, Ernie McAlister has only addressed a small part of what's going on in Cary -- and there made a weak attempt at imparting positive spin. As a citizen of Cary, I expect such addresses to be based on facts, and to focus on the things that matter to me, not what matters to the Mayor. As such, I took the liberty of including the mayor's update here, and added Joe's running commentary in blue to provide what I consider a good update would have addressed...

On June 28 the Cary Council unanimously adopted our annual town budget. Once again, Cary is proud to spend over $200M of taxpayer money to pay for new development. As we head into the new fiscal year (maybe he meant 'election' year), I am pleased to report we have an expanding local economy that allows us to continue to improve our services, address (think he meant to say 'create') critical needs like roads and public safety, increase our reserves, and still hold the line on our property tax rate. Fiscal discipline and a sound economy are the budgetary pillars that allow our town to expand services and improve our community’s quality of life. Our town's debt may be at a record-high, but as long as we can keep paying the bills we must be ok.

Over the past four fiscal years Cary has been able to reestablish a sustainable pattern of revenue growth larger than the growth in the town’s operational expenses. This may be a bit difficult for most people to understand given the mayor has shrank the operating fund margin every year. This allows us to maintain a six-month operational surplus of $52 million (again, lowest in 20 years), keeps our balance sheet strong, allows Cary to enjoy a AAA bond rating, and most importantly provides the resources to continue to improve and expand our roads, parks and utilities so that we can continue to add people and need more roads, parks and utilities. Highlights of the budget include six new police officers to help keep Cary safe and 11 new or extended staff positions to better serve parks, recreation and cultural needs. Maybe Ernie's in such a good mood he might even reinstate safety officers at schools! In the area of general capital spending, $28.2 million has been committed to improving roads, and $7 million-plus to parks, including the construction of the new Bartley Community Park. This should help relieve some of the traffic problems created by residential growth during the mayor's administration.

On the cautionary side, we still have a large share of capital debt inherited from commitments made by the previous administration between 1999 and 2003, and Ernie has done his level best to increase it every year. It will take time and a disciplined fiscal policy to pay down those long-term obligations, but don't expect Ernie to do it, he has to keep his campaign-contributing developers happy. Nevertheless, we have made a strong financial recovery from the depths of 2003, raising the bar for debt every year! This recovery was recognized by an upgrade in our bond rating by Standard and Poor’s earlier this year and underscores the positive trends we have established with our town's financial affairs. To put this in the perspective of the average consumer: You don't get a good credit rating if you never borrow money, you get a good rating by borrowing large amounts of money and somehow paying it off on time.

As with any enterprise, you are only as good as the people working for you. I wish to take this opportunity to thank our wonderfully talented town staff for their dedication, professionalism and creativity.

Here in Cary, we are blessed with an award-winning team of workers who provide our citizens with the best array of services available anywhere in the country. I ask you to join me in thanking our town staff as you see them around town or at one of our many venues. They’ll appreciate the pat on the back as much as we appreciate them. Some good people working there, I thank them too.

Cary continues to attract a talented and diverse group of newcomers who enrich our community and neighborhoods, and help to keep our economy strong. Most came to Cary from other parts of the country and sometimes from other parts of the world. This is how the mayor measures quality of life in Cary? As long as someone is willing to move here from somewhere else, then we must have a great quality of life? Together we have a very vibrant and livable community in which we are building on traditions like our nationally recognized Lazy Daze Festival, our summer music series with the North Carolina Symphony, Cary Band Day and many other cultural events, festivals and happenings throughout the year. One word of warning, don't have a heart attack at any of these events --Ernie's not giving Cary EMS any money this year, so you're on your own for ambulance service. On behalf of the town and the Council, I wish to extend our thanks to the many volunteers in Cary that make these events a great success and enjoyment to all year after year. As always, I appreciate the rich and valuable feedback you provide to me and our council as we serve on your behalf. Please continue to engage us as we work to keep our town's devel0pers prosperous.

Schools are a top concern for thousands of Cary families, and were a key element of the mayor's campaign platform. Pity they were not important enough to the mayor to include in his address.

Ernie McAlister is Cary’s mayor.

Taking It To The Streets !!!

I activated the mobile Voter Motivation platform today. Absolutely amazing how many people took the time to read what I wrote on my car, and heart-warming to hear so many car horns. Honk for Harold !!

Prison-Chic comes to Cary

Click Here to see what Martha's up to now !!!!



Just a reminder that Cary doesn't allow just any developer to join in the strip-mining of our town, we have do have standards.

The KB Homes Martha Stewart project is well underway. Prices were originally set at $150-400K. I wonder if you got a discount for good behavior.

Apparently our standards allow convicted felons to add their personal touch to Cary development projects.

This convicted felon in particular received kind words of support from Ernie McAlister, read here for details. Cary proudly welcomed the Martha Stewart brand to our community. Do you ever wonder about the development projects that Ernie does not endorse publicly?

Newsflash: Cary Government Upgrades to New Automated Ignoring System !!

I wish I had paid closer attention to local elections in the past, I never realized how much fun I was missing.

The latest last-ditch campaign stunt by the Ernie-bots was to announce a new web-based public forum for Cary residents to voice their opinions about upcoming development proposals. Read about it in the N&O.

For the last four years, Cary citizens have shown up in person at town council meetings to voice their opinions, and have been summarily ignored. Now we get to pay $25,000 so that we can be ignored online. Only in America, or rather, only in Cary.

Desperate Times, Desperate Measures

With the Cary mayoral and town council election six weeks away, Nels Roseland and Ernie McBulldozer are proudly announcing a new 'Land Banking' initiative to provide land for the schools we need and keep feeding the development monster. Ernie's going to raise $2.5M by levying school-impact fees on developers. Funny, we had those in place before and Ernie eliminated them right after the election. The story is on the WRAL website.

A great quote in the article:
"To approve thousands of new houses and developments in Cary without taking responsibility, or some responsibility, to provide school resources would be irresponsible on our part," Roseland said.

That is exactly what Nels and Ernie have done for the past four years. They have fueled record-high growth rates and done zip for schools. I appreciate the fact that Mr. Roseland is finally admitting that he has been 'irresponsible,' and that same label applies to mayor McBulldozer.

Personally, I am thrilled at this announcement. Like everyone else I know in Cary, I believe another four years of Ernie will allow him to finish what he started and leave no tree behind. We have to have a change in leadership. The fact that these two 'leaders' are announcing this six weeks before the election tells me they are finally beginning to understand that there is a price to pay for ignoring Cary citizens' needs and pimping our town to developers. Go vote on October 9th, and show these two politicians what you think of their representation over the last four years.

Finally, another gem of a quote from Nels Roseland:
"We have to think outside of the box to address the school crisis"
Joe's translation: "We have to think outside the ballot box and cover our behinds before Oct 9"

Update - Cary State of the Town Address

Here's a nice picture of the USS Cary, and it is not difficult to imagine that Ernie McAlister is at the helm. He's telling the crew not to worry about a little extra water in the hold, he has grand plans for a new bilge plant which will right the ship -- All is Well !!!

These days Ernie's time is probably consumed with tallying the contributions to his campaign fund from developers ($80K and counting), so I don't think he'll have the spare time to update us on the State of Cary.

I'll do it instead.

It is important to focus on recent history, so I'll use the 2007 Cary Town Council retreat as a starting point. In April, Ernie hosted the council and some of the Wake County BoE folks down at the beach. There, our leaders applied all their brilliance to solving the problems facing Cary, and returned with new ideas, full stomachs and a tan.

What's happened since then?

Ernie showed true leadership by inviting the BoE to participate in the retreat, and he has stood by the board even when a judge ruled that they acted illegally. Immediately after the retreat, Ernie reinforced the need to work 'more closely' with the BoE. A couple of months ago, The Cary News was kind enough to print my open letter to Ernie McAlister in which I asked a number of valid questions concerning how he was representing Cary citizens' interests to the BoE. Let me take a minute to describe all the meetings the CTC has had with the BoE... wait a minute, there weren't any. The simple fact is that while Cary parents were being tortured over their children's education, Ernie ran for cover and has stayed there since. I wish I could point to any substantive actions on Ernie's part which supported his campaign promise of 'choice in schools for Cary students,' but that promise turned out to be worth less than the glossy paper it was printed on.

Fiscal responsibility is something Ernie has beat his chest about as long as he's been in office -- In fact, it was an integral part of his campaign platform. Today, Cary's debt load is at record levels, and the operating fund margin is at its lowest in 20 years. Ernie & Gang just approved a $385M budget for 2008, $220M of which goes toward building new roads and yet another water/sewer expansion project. We need these things because Ernie's developer-funded agenda is to leave no tree behind and build out Cary as fast as possible. In a recent TV interview, Ernie talked about growth paying for itself. Call me stupid (you wouldn't be the first), but when I see 2/3 of my taxes being used to pay for new capital improvement projects, it feels more like I'm helping to pay for the growth.

On the subject of growth, Ernie & gang recently gave a whole lot of Cary citizens a crystal clear reminder that developers are running Cary. Approval of the Davis & High House demonstrated Cary political machinations at their best. Last-minute project plan changes to manipulate protest validations, a huge group of concerned citizens being utterly ignored (when not being chastised) at the Town Council meeting, and at the end Ernie banging the gavel of approval with a resounding 'Aye.'

So this is how far we have come since the Cary retreat, and this is the state of Cary.

My apologies to Ernie for not addressing him as 'Mayor.' In my mind, that title needs to be earned -- by fulfilling the promises that got you elected, by listening to and representing the people who elected you, and by being accountable for your actions. Ernie still carries the lowly title of politician, nothing more.

Where's a Friend When You Need One

After leaving their website dormant for at least six months, our Friends of Wake County (Fowc'ers) finally deactivated it. Prior to last September's school bond referrendum, this group of 'concerned' civic leaders were outspoken regarding the need for investment in education, and in their commitment to sponsor joint public/private partnerships with the BoE to ensure a healthy Wake County school system.

The day after the referrendum passed, these friends went back into hiding (in most cases, they went back into building new homes). I find it ironic that this same developer-driven consortium could raise a small fortune to promote the school bond, but are spending even more on lobbying efforts to deny counties the choice of levying transfer taxes to support the same school system.

These folks must be making a ton of money strip-mining Cary, Ernie already has an $80K campaign war-chest which has been built from their contributions. Seems they always show up with money to keep the development gravy-train rolling, but in truth they don't give a damn about the quality or capacity of our schools and fade into the shadows until they feel threatened.

2007 Campaign

As the 2007 campaign season begins, I thought I'd pitch in a few thoughts on slogans and sound bites that Mayor McAlister can use in his bid for reelection. Some of these (as noted) came from other sources who are smarter than me....

"I just love the sound of bulldozers in the morning" Captures that Apocolypose Now feeling, as Agent Ernie is used to defoliate Cary.

"No tree left behind" -- Source Anonymous

"You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" 'Nuf said

"Greed is good" Wall Street comes to Cary

"Paving the way to success" With concrete, one acre at a time, until we're done

"There's no such thing as a bridge too far" Just ask the handful of people that use the one over US 1/64

A successful campaign needs a theme song to rally the voters, here are a few potentials...

"This Land Was Your Land" Need Al Yankovich for this one....
This land was your land,
This land is their land,
And when we're done here,
It's built by Crosland.....

"School's Out For Summer" by Alice Cooper. Oh, never mind, can't use that one anymore

"I Can't Drive 55" by Van Halen. Holds true in Cary except between midnight and 6am.

"My Humps" by Black-Eyed Peas. More traffic-control humps going up every day.

"Love Train" ... ie. "People all over the world, join me... In Cary, Cary

"Lying Eyes" by The Eagles.... 'nuf said

"Our Future's so Bright We Have to Wear Sunglasses" Unfortunately it is mortgaged to the hilt.
(Bonus points here for anyone who can name the band)

Let The Strip-Mining of Cary Continue !!!!

Well, its official -- The CTC voted unanimously at tonight's town council meeting to approve the proposed 2008 budget. We are going to spend $220M on roads, water and sewer infrastructure to either catch up with growth which has already occurred or, more likely, to fund the cost of future development.

This same budget includes a generous apportionment of a whopping $1M for preservation of open space.

A good point brought up by Brent Miller regarding Cary EMS. This is the organization we count on for ambulance service and EMT's. They are volunteers, and these people save lives. In the past, Cary has provided them with around $10K a year in funding. For '08, they asked for $25K in funding. Cary's fiscally-responsible response was to give them nothing. That's right, but budget they approved tonight subsidizes developers to the tune of $220M, but nothing for EMS. The message they are sending: Please come and buy one of the many new houses being built in Cary, but if you have a heart attack and need ambulance service you're sh*t out of luck.
In fact, even if you already live here you may be sh*t out of luck.

Thankfully, the budget still supports the Cary ballet. I'm thinking if our EMS staff wears tutu's, they may get more attention at town hall and stand a better chance of being funded.

As the town's own budget report shows, Cary debt is at an all-time high (as is our debt service), and our general fund operating margin is as low as it has been in twenty years, and is probably the lowest in history on a percent-of-expenditure basis. The rate of residential building permit approvals has increased four-fold in the past three years.

Earlier in tonight's meeting, a majority of residents from the Quail Ridge subdivision petitioned to increase the zoning density for their property. Their once pastoral neighborhood of 5-10 acre propertys has been enveloped by Cary mega-development on all sides. These people are looking to bail out and want the denser zoning to increase the sale value of their lots. Erv Portman raised a very good point... These people are long term (in some cases 30+ years) residents of Cary, and are suffering with increased traffic and noise because of all of the surrounding growth. He supported the rezoning, and I can't argue with the justification. He went on to point out that Cary should see a lot more similar requests in the future -- no doubt. When developers buy up large parcels of land and receive their rubber stamps of approval to increase density, our planning staff and CTC never account for the domino effect it will cause.

I wish I were smart enough to compute how much residential development is supported by a $220M in infrastructure, then calculate how many students that will add to our already over-crowded school system. The subject of schools was brought up by one CTC member (J-Low of all people) and summarily dismissed by the rest.

BTW, the $220M represents two-thirds of our budget. In other words, if development truly paid for itself, then our taxes would be one-third of what they are now (alright, maybe getting a little carried away here).

Watching the CTC smile and unanimously approve this budget made me sick. I'm sure the developers who are sucking this area dry are having a big party right now, probably at the Umstead Hotel. Wouldn't be surprised if some of our CTC members show up there. I just hope noone there needs an ambulance.

Cary Beer Garden

For the past month, a public debate has raged over the decision by the folks running Lazy Daze to add a beer garden to this year's event.

For the record, I am no stranger to beer gardens, Especially when they serve big ones like this picture. Sometimes a tall frosty one just hits the spot.

What dumbfounds me (among many other things) is the amount of media attention and citizen activism this issue has spawned. Hundreds of citizens are voicing strong opinions, mostly against having a beer garden at the festival. A few courageous beer lovers are fighting the good fight, despite being outnumbered at least 10-1. Read the last three editions of The Cary News to fully appreciate the public rancor over the infamous beer garden.

Read those same editions and you'll find a few pieces from citizens regarding Cary's exponential growth and the problems it has created with schools, roads and overall quality of life.

I have to wonder why people get so worked up over a few innocent beers served on one day in Cary, when EVERY day in Cary our roads and schools are jammed, and every month we hear about a new high-rise commercial complex being built amidst what was once a beautiful small town. By next year the beer garden will be a non-issue because there will be a 10-story mega-commercial complex occupying the space instead.

From Joe's warped perspective.... Imagine heavyweights like Anheuser-Busch and Miller came to town with lots of money to back their candidates for office. They build a beer garden on every corner in Cary, enticing beer-lovers from across the country to drive here for a cold one. The beer is cheap compared to where they come from, so they decide to stay. Martha Stewart decides to open up a Southern Drinking beer cafe, and the mayor shows up at the ribbon-cutting ceremony (then, back to Buschwood Country Club for the next fund-raiser). Now is when you scream "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore." Substitute Highwoods and Wakefield for the beer companies -- why can't we scream the same thing ?????

BTW, I think the beer garden is a bad idea.

The Truth Comes Out... Well, A Little Bit

Finally some Wake County politicians are admitting that our taxes will increase, directly attributed to our rapid growth rate (See N&O Article). County taxes will increase 5.7%, and could go higher. Meanwhile in Cary, our growth continues unabated and we are approaching the point where tax collections no longer keep up with the growth rate -- see previous post regarding $185M of our money that Agent Ernie & the Orange Team are spending to build infrastructure, just next year. I can see the Friends of Wake County jumping back into the fray on this one, defending the politicians they helped put into office. They have spin doctors that are a lot smarter than me, I can't wait to hear their dribble.

New Cary Flag Unfurled !!!

The United States flag bears a stripe for each of the original 13 colonies, and a star to represent each state.

I believe the Cary flag hasn't been updated in the past 20 years, and things have changed quite a bit over that time. Much as our national flag is a representation of those entities which comprise our collective government, I'd like to apply that same spirit to Cary's flag and do justice to those who are the true 'movers and shakers' at town hall:






















This flag is a tribute to all those who are helping make Cary a better place to live for another 120,000 people (provided they are coming from Atlanta or Southern California).

Strip-Mining Wake County

Must admit I'm behind the times on this one... Read about the Wake County Blue Ribbon Committee earlier this week and found a link to their report which was published in July 2006. Not light reading, and will take some time to really digest this.

The committee was organized to evaluate projected growth's impacts on our tax structure, infrastructure and quality of life. The planning horizon is the next 25 years.

On first scan through, here are some interesting factoids:

• Wake County's population is expected to double over the next 30 years, to 1.4 million.
• Today the county has 1,320 jail beds. We will need between 3,200 and 3,800 by year 2030, as evidenty as convicts will comprise a portion of our population growth. In fact, we will need to spend $800M on additional criminal justice facilities.
  
• We will have to invest $11.7 billion on our school system as our student population grows from 120,000 to 280,000 over this period of time. To raise this capital, the committee recommends increasing sales tax by 1%, adding the 1% real estate transfer tax, and reassessing properties every four years instead of every eight.
• Going to need another $6B for road construction, plus another $6B from the fed. Committee recommendation is that we add toll roads and use part of the sales tax increase to fund this.
• Traffic: Daily vehicle traffic miles have gone from 9.5 million in 1986 to 25 million in 2003 (now I know why there seem to be more cars on the road)

I could go on, but I won't. The committee included a fair number of real estate developers. If our taxes are going to fund these kinds of growth costs, I can't begin to imagine how many billions of dollars the developers stand to make. Once the locusts (as another poster appropriately described them) are done in Wake County, they will move on to the next hot spot and start all over. We will be left living in another Atlanta.

Choice

Since I've written so many posts and letters supporting the BoE and applauding the great job they do, they were kind enough to share with me a copy of the ballot they will be distributing to allow parents to volunteer for YR formats. Here's a copy for your convenience

Cary Town Budget

Here's the email sent out by Town of Cary announcing next year's budget. We have $185M in the capital improvement budget for water & sewer projects. This money is being spent to keep up with Cary's rapid growth rate. The developers aren't paying it (other than trivial impact fees), WE ARE. $185M is a lot of money, here are some other ideas for how to spend it:

1. Give it to me.
2. Buy up lots of land and give it to WCPSS dirt cheap, they need it. Have the strip-miners (aka Developers) pay for the infrastructure.
3. Begin more road improvement projects... This includes widening of route 55 to six lanes, same for High-House Rd. and Davis Drive. I know we just widened them to four lanes, but that just got us back to where we were ten years ago. With all the new Martha Stewart developments going in, let's get a head start! Don't forget the on/off ramps at the major intersections.
4. My older son goes into high school this fall. He and his buddies are going to want to hang out at the Starbucks, which is on the other side of 55 from my house. Since route 55 is going to be six lanes, I'd like a pedestrian bridge built across it.
5. Give it to me.
6. Put up more traffic-management pole signs. The signs we have today provide such great information regarding traffic patterns and other news, I don't know how I ever got around without them.
7. Give it to me.
8. The kids play dodgeball in school and really enjoy it. Can't we use some of this money to build a regional dodgeball center? Dodgeballers from around the world would flock to Cary to use our facility. Our motto: "We're better than you,... and we know it!"
9. Build an airport. We're out-growing Raleigh, and I think it is high time we had our own airport. If we can't rename the current facility to Cary/Raleigh/Durham Airport, then let's build. I like the jets in my backyard, just wish they were closer.
10. Stop building all the houses, stop screwing up the school system, stop clogging the roads and save us $185M.
    

PROPOSED BUDGET HOLDS LINE ON CARY TAXES & SOLID WASTE FEES, CONTINUES INVESTMENT IN PARKS AND STREETS
Public hearings to be held May 24 and June 14

CARY, NC – Citizens will once again have two opportunities this year to comment on the Town of Cary’s total proposed $387 million budget to support $153,263,306 million in operations and $233,940,367 in capital projects for Fiscal Year 2008, which runs from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008. The Town Manager’s recommended plan includes no property tax or solid waste fee increase, while continuing to invest in utility, street, and park capital improvements including $1 million for the Town’s open space acquisition program. Citizens are invited to share their views at either of two budget public hearings to be held as part of the regular Town Council meetings on May 24 and June 14, which begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Town Council Chambers, 316 N. Academy St., in downtown Cary.

“The Council’s direction over the last several years to delay new debt and further tighten spending while taking steps to facilitate tax base expansion have all combined to strengthen the financial outlook for FY2008. Major choices in the near future include the pace at which we proceed with additional capital improvements including major projects in the downtown area,” said Town Manager Bill Coleman, who reviewed his recommended budget with the Cary Council during a work session today.

Highlights of Coleman’s proposed capital plan include $37.2 million for street improvements and other transportation initiatives, $29.8 million for water projects, $155.4 million for sewer projects, $2.7 million for general government needs, $1.6 million for fire, and nearly $7.3 million for parks including $1 million for open space.

Highlights of Coleman’s proposed operating plan include maintaining the current property tax rate of 42 cents per $100 of valuation and keeping the solid waste collection fee at $11.75 per month as further efficiencies associated with the Town’s automated curbside collection and dual stream recycling programs are expected in FY 2008. Town staff has also been able to hold the expected rise in Cary utility rates to 4.3 percent—$2.73 more a month for a Cary customer using 7,000 gallons of water.

The proposed operating budget includes 41.25 additional staff to maintain existing service levels throughout Cary’s 53.35 square miles, particularly in the areas of inspections, engineering, technology services, public works and utilities, and parks. This increase in Town staff would bring the total to 1,122.375 full time equivalents (FTEs), or about 9.1 staff members for each 1,000 Cary residents – one of the lowest staff-to-citizen ratios in the state for a large municipality.

“Because we continue to operate under the philosophy that adding personnel is the most expensive, long-term solution to any situation, we work hard to find alternative ways to achieve our goals, only adding staff when it’s absolutely necessary,” said Coleman.

The Town of Cary’s annual budget is a work and financial plan designed to implement the Town Council’s vision for the community as articulated in the organization’s mission statement and goals and initiatives:

Mission Statement:
At the Town of Cary we focus every day on enriching the lives of our citizens by creating an exceptional environment and providing exemplary services that enable our community to thrive and prosper.

Goals and Initiatives:
• Achieve a well-planned community using innovative and proactive planning approaches and techniques
• Ensure that roads, water and waste water facilities, parks, and other infrastructure exists for the existing citizens and for the future needs identified in the comprehensive plan
• Achieve a stable and strong financial position by accurately estimating, prudently allocating and managing financial resources
• Achieve a high level of service to the citizens in a prompt, reliable, responsive, and cost effective manner

In addition to today’s work session and the budget public hearings on May 24 and June 14, the Town Council will hold at least one additional work session to discuss aspects of the proposed budget in greater detail. Any changes or additions to the Manager’s recommended budget that the Council would like included will be listed separately and voted on in conjunction with approval of the entire budget at the regular Council meeting on June 28. North Carolina law requires local governments to adopt a balanced budget by June 30 since the new fiscal year starts July 1.

Beginning May 11, printed copies of the budget will be available for review at Town Hall and at the Cary public library in downtown Cary and at the West Regional Library, 4000 Louis Stephens Drive. Information from the proposed budget will also be available at www.townofcary.org.