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.