Old Apex family estate to be destroyed by builder

1945 John Amos Pearson Home

Interested in having a beautiful town park along North Salem Street in Apex?

Save the North Salem Street corridor - build a community park instead of packing 80 townhomes into the area and adding some 500 cars a day to the street...

Tell the Town Council and Planning Board and Planning Director (see below to send email to the Town Council, Planning Board and Planning Director) to acquire the Dr. J K Pearson estate at 1015 N Salem Street and establish a new park for the community and fund it in the new budget. 

A builder has currently placed the property under contract (March-April 2013) and plans to tear down the 1945 family home of John Amos Pearson and build a sea of 80 town-homes on the property. This will destroy forever one of the largest parcels of wooded land along North Salem Street in Apex. This land was built by John Amos Pearson in 1945 to be his homeplace and was later passed down to his son, Dr J K Pearson.  Dr Pearson passed away in January, 2010, and ownership passed to his wife and his three grown children. After his wife, the last family resident,  moved out it was listed for sale. John Amos Pearson was one of five siblings born and raised in the Maynard-Pearson House on Olive Chapel road. After growing up in a home built in 1870 Amos built the home shown above on North Salem Street and lived there with his wife. This was his second and final home on North Salem. 

Unfortunately the 1015 N Salem Street property was never listed as a historic site and the Town has taken the view that it will not stop the builder from destroying the home and building on the property as long as the construction meets the Town's building code. An ironic twist to this dilemma is that two homes adjacent to this property at the corner of Salem and Peakway ARE registered as historic homes and are also under contract by the builder. The town will not stop destruction of those two historic homes but can require the builder to wait four years to build on those two sites just next to this one because they were listed as historic sites. One of those homes (The old Hunt house on North Salem) is a historic site dating back to 1910.  

Magnolia Lane
1015 North Salem Street, Apex, NC

The Pearson property is surrounded by new and old homes and making it into a neighborhood park would preserve a part of that area for the community and the town. Allowing it to be developed as a large townhome project will destroy the beauty of the property and forever alter the character of the Salem Street corridor. 

The Town of Apex has previously declared the Salem Street corridor as a protected area in order to preserve the "look and feel" of the early days of Apex. Ask the Council to continue to preserve that area and purchase the property and add it to the Town park system. This is the last chance to save the beautiful property and prevent construction of mass housing and addition of  hundreds of cars  a day to the already overloaded neighborhood.

In a 2013 planning survey by Town of Apex, area residents have made it clearly known they want more neighborhood parks and want the Town to preserve dwindling parcels of undeveloped land in the area. This is one of the last intact parcels along Salem Street large enough to make into a community park. The home could also be preserved for community activities. 

Tell the Town of Apex you want this property saved

Contact the Town Council  and the Planning Board today (send email to Apex Town Council and the Apex Planning Board and Planning Director) and tell them you want the Town to acquire the land and create a park for the Salem Street area.

Your input will make a difference in saving this beautiful property in Apex!

Old Glory shows signs of aging in downtown Apex

The Town of Apex continues to muddle right along according to a news item reported in the Southwest Wake News this week. A June 22, 2010, article in the weekly paper tells about the Town hanging faded American flags along Salem Street in preparation for the annual July 4th downtown events.The flags are hung in advance of each Memorial Day and left up until after Labor Day as a patriotic gesture.

Sounds like a number of the Town leaders have not served in the US Military and don't understand the views of those that do consider hanging US Flags as a patriotic activity to honor those that do serve to protect our country and values. If they had, then they would not hang faded or worn flags for any occasion and would make the effort to replace them as needed.

Folks around town started noticing the faded condition of the flags as soon as they were hung this year. When asked why the Town is using faded flags, the response was that the Town's budget did not allow for replacing the flags under this year's plan.

The budget did not include a $2,100 line item for replacing the flags this year as has been the practice every four years in the past. According to the newly hired Town Spokeswoman, Stacie Galloway, the Town could find some money to buy new flags but this could be used as an opportunity for local citizens to get involved and donate $35 to buy replacement flags. Never mind that the residents are also going through difficult financial times. According to this line of thought by the Town it is better to ask residents to come up with the funds than to find a mere $2,100 to do them all.

By the way - the Town did find a way to carve out a pile of money to hire Mrs. Galloway as a "Town Spokeswoman", a new job cobbled together to provide a spokesperson not needed in the Town staff ranks in the past. After "finding" those funds, the Town hired the person away from neighboring Morrisville where she had been in that role for some time but wanted to move to Apex and have a job here. 

If the Town Council can propose and approve giving Town employees a $1,000 raise in this year's budget, why can't they find a mere $2,100 to replace worn flags and avoid all this? Had the Town given merit raises based on performance that would have only cost the Town taxpayers the amount of the raises for one year. By making these actual raises in salary the cost will be born by residents for years to come. Those raises cost the taxpayers cost Apex $372,373 per year to fund the flat raise, which is part of the $68.7 million 2012 proposed budget. Read about the raises for all employees...

This brings to mind other mind-boggling items brought to you by the Town Council and Staff. One of these is the new pedestrian bridge directly behind the Town Campus...

The 2009 Town Easter Egg Hunt, or rather the lack of one. A couple of years back the Town decided to cancel the annual Easter egg hunt for town children on the grounds of the Town Campus. That decision fell about as flat as Humpty Dumpty did and gave the Town a black eye for some time. The Town management said that the Town had a $750,000 budget shortfall that year and could not provide an egg hunt for the children. The Town Manager's response was to "tell the children that the Town was not using the money for something else, but that the Easter Bunny just could not afford the flight down that year". Yeah, right...

How about the infamous "bridge to nowhere" sitting behind the new Town Campus building? The Town and CSX Railroad teamed up just a few years ago and built a state of the art magnificent $220,000 pedestrian crossing intended to let folks walk to and from the Town Campus to get to downtown activities. To date the bridge still ends beside the old CSX junk parts and trash dump beside the tracks within a hundred yards of the Town Campus and two hundred yards from the Apex Farmers Market that sells fresh food products to consumers. No one seems to care that this bridge ends at the dump, does not connect with a walkway to the Town Campus and parking areas and runs right into a rat infested dumping spot for the railroad.

Tired of CSX engines idling in Apex?

The annual CSX ritual of leaving diesel engines idling all night and day started again before Thanksgiving, 2010. CSX parks 3 or 4 engines and leaves them idling at the downtown Apex depot every day and night starting in late fall each year. The practice will continue well into the warm days of late spring. Even after working hours when the engines are not being used they are left running all night and all weekend with no one in attendance or at the depot.

It is interesting in this era of rising fuel costs and concerns about air pollution that CSX continues this practice with no regard to the effect on the surrounding community. One of the engines is left running 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and is not even used. It just sites there running, running and running.

Sit in one of the downtown restaurants or walk along the Salem Street sidewalks and you will quickly discover a loud rumbling that never goes away. And you will often smell the noxious odor of diesel fumes drifting through the air. Eventually you may realize that the rumbling never ends and there are no "quiet times" in the downtown community.

Take that view a few blocks away from the downtown area and you will discover that in any home east or west in a several block radius from the depot has the same constant rumbling to deal with. On many days and nights there is the same noxious odor of diesel fumes in the air surrounding the homes. Imagine having to live in this area and hearing this every day, every winter. Imagine the effect new homeowners moving into homes being built in the Villages of Apex and having to live with the constant background rumble of engines sitting nearby most of the year.

Town Manager Bruce Radford (Email the Apex Town Manager) and Town Council representatives (Email the Apex Town Council) have been asked many times to require CSX officials to turn off the idling engines when they are not being used. The usual response is that the noise level does not show up on the Town's noise level monitoring device (Mr. Radford actually asked the police to measure the noise level a year ago at the intersection of Center and Mason Streets) or that the Town has no control over what CSX does with it's engines. Mr. Radford also says he lived near a train track when growing up and the sound of trains does not bother him. Interesting that he does not live near the area where these engines are left running all night - he chose to live miles away from the sound.

Wasting fuel, polluting the air with diesel fumes and creating a steady engine roar all night and all weekend when the train engines are not in use makes CSX an obviously poor neighbor. The roar of the engines is constant at all hours of the night and is accompanied by a frequent loud hiss of air when a pressure valve releases compressed air every few minutes. The end result is never having quiet at night in residential neighborhoods in the Center-Mason-Hunter Street depot area and beyond. For a good demonstration of the noise problem, try standing two blocks or further away along the sidewalk on Mason Street late at night and you will be amazed at the constant roar of the diesel engines and the hiss of air being released...

If you would like to help eliminate the noise and air pollution, contact the Apex Town Manager (Email the Apex Town Manager) or your Town Council (Email the Apex Town Council) and ask them to put a stop to the noise and pollution. It's a simple matter of courtesy and duty to town residents to require CSX to be a good neighbor and turn the engines off at night and on the weekend. There is no technical reason for diesel engines to be left running all night and it's an obvious waste of energy during a time when the country is trying to reduce dependence on foreign oil.

It is interesting to note that when the Town Manager was asked to investigate what the the City of Raleigh did to implement an ordinance preventing the railroad from leaving engines running all night in the Logan Station area that he says he could not find anyone that knows anything about the ban. Kind of strange that neither Mr. Radford and his counterpart in Raleigh are unable to provide information on the ban put in place by Mayor Charles Meeker several years ago.

Apex Town Council supports no-busing plan for Wake County

The Apex Town Council voted May 3rd to support the Wake County plan to not use busing for diversity. Mayor Keith Weatherly frequently places the Town Council at the center of controversial issues and now says the Wake County Board previously put too much emphasis on busing to diversify schools. He cites the Town Council has been very outspoken in the past against the busing policy and wants to encourage the County to put "educational emphasis on minority and economically disadvantaged students".

The Mayor says the previous school board had focused on having "an arbitrary, economic and racial mix in all of our schools when education should be the primary focus."

Read the full article...

Apex Passes Resolution In Support Of School Board

NBC17
May. 4, 2010 11:14 pm

APEX, N.C. - Apex City Council members unanimously passed a resolution supporting the Wake County School Board's Community Schools program.

The mayor said the council was very vocal in the past against the county's busing policy.

Council members said they support diversity in schools but believe the focus of the board should be on something else.

"We are encouraging, educational emphasis on minority and economically disadvantaged students, which we've seen low graduation rates on other things that had not been successful," Mayor Keith Weatherly said. "We feel that that's been the most important emphasis of the previous board of education; to have an arbitrary, economic and racial mix in all of our schools when education should be the primary focus."

Other communities, including Raleigh, have passed resolutions denouncing the School Board's actions.

CSX strikes again locking up and parking a train across several Apex crossings

A CSX crew locked up their train engine and walked off the job leaving a line of train cars blocking three street crossings in the heart of Apex at 4:00 AM Friday April 23rd until around 9:00 AM in the morning. Never mind that this left the neighborhoods blocked with residents not aware they could not cross the tracks at these streets. Never mind that should anyone need emergency help that police or EMS personnel did not know they could not cross at these streets if they got an emergency call.

What's missing from this report is that this is not the first time CSX has done this in Apex. From time to time a train is left parked near the same crossings blocking traffic in the same manner. It is a simple , but necessary, courtesy to the community for the train to be moved a few feet to leave the Chatham Street crossing unblocked. They could also have pushed the train all the way past the Tingen Road crossing and left it parked until a new crew could have been brought on scene.

CSX crews routinely leave engines parked at the Center Street train depot with engines idling all night and all weekend causing a constant engine noise problem and venting diesel fumes into the neighborhoods with no concern to the health and welfare of the neighbors of the entire downtown area.

Leaving crossings blocked for a few minutes during busy traffic times is largely an inconvenience. But leaving a train parked and blocking three traffic crossings with no crew to move the train could easily lead to a crisis for a local resident needing police or EMS help while the crossings are blocked. The extra time needed to figure out the train is not going to move and then find an alternate route could make or break a life or death situation...

News & Observer

April 23, 2010

Staff Report

Train blocking 3 intersections removed

A train that was abandoned by its crew and left sitting on the railroad tracks where it blocked three roads in downtown Apex for several hours Friday morning was removed about 9 a.m. police said.

The train was left parked on the tracks about 4 a.m., and when police contacted CSX railroad officials, they were told the members of the crew had reached their limit of work hours, stopped the train, locked it up and left, Sgt. Greg Rhodes said.

A spokesman for the police department said that apparently CSX sent out another crew to move the train.

The train blocked Tingen Road, Moore Street and Chatham Street, police said. Rhodes said the three blocked intersections did not cause any traffic problems. Drivers figured out alternate routes on their own, he said. Read original report...

Apex officials eliminate coverage of elective abortions and regulate employees morals

The Apex Town Council recently took on the hot topic of regulating morality of women town employees and family members when Mayor Keith Weatherly quietly introduced an unadvertised item at the beginning of the January 19, 2010, Council meeting. The Mayor's fast tracked item was intended to eliminate coverage for elective abortions for employees and family members from Town provided health insurance. By slipping the item into the agenda, the Mayor virtually insured (no pun intended) the change would pass through the Council approval process without allowing community input on the change. This raises the question as to whether Mr. Weatherly should be allowed to continue as the Town's Mayor.

The Mayor introduced the change into the Council approval process after learning about past cases of elective abortions from his Cary friend Kent Misegades, also a director at the new Thales Academy and a founder of the controversial Cary Watchmen. Mayor Weatherly in effect decided it was appropriate for the Council to regulate employee morality and introduced the proposal to remove coverage from the Town provided insurance package that historically allowed women employees to have an elective abortion when needed. It was also done in a manner to not allow input from Town residents. Introducing the change in this manner the Mayor was able to fast track getting the change quietly added to the agenda with other items to pass on the night it was introduced. This avoided the accepted practice of advertising topics being considered by Town Council to area residents in advance of the voting process.

This controversial move has set off a storm of discussion in the surrounding area and has now led to other regional municipal groups debating insurance coverage of elective abortions and morality based issues. No other local municipalities deny similar coverage for employees to date. According to a recent News and Observer article on the Apex issue, there have only been three cases of Apex Town employees choosing to have an elective abortion. No information has been provided as to whether the choice of abortion made a difference to the health or well-being of the employees.

As noted in the February 6th, 2010, News and Observer article, "Apex's health insurance policy has for years afforded employees the benefit of having the procedure covered at a minimal out-of-pocket expense. During the past six years, three employees have claimed the benefit, town manager Bruce Radford said."

The proposal was quietly slipped into the meeting agenda as noted in the Council's minutes on the Town website...

Apex Town Council Meeting Minutes of January 19, 2010

REGULAR MEETING AGENDA

Mayor Weatherly presented the Regular Meeting Agenda to be set prior to taking action; amendments: 1) Mayor Weatherly asked to discuss town employee health plan...

One of the Councilmen suggested putting the topic under the regular agenda items and the proposal was inserted in the regular agenda items section. When the topic later came up Mayor Weatherly presented the idea of removing elective abortions from the Town employee insurance plan as follows...

Presenter: Mayor Keith Weatherly

New Business # 04 – Add-on: Employee Health Plan

Mayor Weatherly had recently found Town of Apex employee health plan covered “elective abortions”, and understood it standard in most contracts, however, asked Council consider removing “elective abortions” from employee health plan, and not when it relates to health related issues. Human Resources Director Green stated this was correct; noted codes would indicate when abortion would be health related. Town is self funded, with Blue Cross and Blue Shield as administrator over the insurance coverage; BCBS advised the revision could be made to the Town’s contract to state the insurance coverage will no longer fund elective abortions and can have the coverage revision by February 1, 2010. With a brief discussion the following action was taken.

Action: Council Member Schulze made the motion to approve the omission of elective abortions from the town employee health plan. Council Member Gossage made the second to the motion. Motion carried unanimously.

End of New Business # 04

Read the January 19, 2010 Town Council Minutes. News and Observer February 6, 2010, report on the Apex issue from the News and Observer can be read here.

What's your view? Should the Town of Apex be in the business of excluding elective abortions and regulating decisions on health care for the women employees or family members covered by Town health insurance? Is this discriminatory toward women employees? Leave a comment to voice your decision.

Transparency - A step in the right direction by the Town of Apex

Check out the new "Transparency" link on the home page of the Apex town website. In response to a recent report slamming the town (Grade = "D") for not being open with information, the Town has made an attempt to give folks a page listing all sorts of information. Unfortunately they called it "Transparency" so folks will not have a clue about what the link provides (they could have called it "Information and Documents" or something meaningful). Too bad the Town Staff and IT department doesn't work with a cross-section of local residents on what is needed or how it should be shown to be useful!

Mayor Weatherly and the Town Staff were dragging their feet and initially resisted providing some information (salaries and other sensitive information) online but have at least now provided a link to some of the information residents should have easy access to. Read a comment on how communities in NC have been reacting to an initiative the John Locke Foundation launched in 2009 at NCTransparency.com, a website connecting North Carolina citizens with information available online from state agencies, school systems, and municipalities. The website is now routinely used by citizens and the media to get information previously difficult to access.

Read the John Locke Foundation findings on transparency of information in Apex and note how many areas were not available!

CSX - noisy neighbor in town

CSX has once again started the fall and winter practice of leaving diesel engines sitting all night with engines running in downtown Apex. The engines aren't being used, they are just sitting there with the engines running after the CSX folks leave for a quiet night at home.

Wasting fuel, polluting the air with diesel fumes and creating a steady engine roar all night and all weekend when the train engines are not in use makes CSX an obviously poor neighbor. The roar of the engines is constant at all hours of the night and is accompanied by a frequent loud hiss of air when a pressure valve releases compressed air every two or three minutes. The end result is never having quiet at night in residential neighborhoods in the Center-Mason-Hunter Street depot area and beyond. For a good demonstration of the noise problem, try standing two blocks or further away along the sidewalk on Mason Street late at night and you will be amazed at the constant roar of the diesel engines and the hiss of air being released...

If you would like to help eliminate the noise and air pollution, click to contact the Apex Town Manager or your favorite Town Council member and ask them to put a stop to the noise. It's a simple matter of courtesy to the town to require the CSX folks to be good neighbors and turn the engines off at night and on the weekend. There is no technical reason for diesel engines to be left running all night and it's an obvious waste of energy during a time when the country is trying to reduce dependence on foreign oil.

The battle goes on

The battle goes on for sign locations and Town Council seats.

This latest sign encouraging Apex voters to cast ballots for the three candidates challenging the trenched in "Mayor's Yes Men" voting block was placed briefly at the intersection of Salem and Hughes Streets.

A previous sign calling the three challengers "Independent Thinkers" was stolen or removed from all locations within hours of when the signs were placed. This new one, listing only the names, was up for one day (just long enough to capture this photo) but has now disappeared.

It's interesting that the only signs disappearing are the ones listing the three names Tom Haynie, Margo Bills and Lance Olive. Are the other candidates removing the signs to protect their turf? Or is the Town of Apex "sign enforcer" removing the signs incorrectly thinking they are not real political signs? Either way, removal of the signs indicates poor judgement and a violation of all candidates right to free speech.

Vote for these three and help make the Town Council back back into a responsible group of elected representatives that listen to town residents and do what is best for the community.

611 Olive Street - Move one house, add three more

Packin 'em in...

That's the deal according to plans for the lot at 611 Olive Street in the historic overlay district of Apex. Sarah Potter bought a small lot a couple of years back and tried to get the Town Planners to change the building ordinances to let her split the lot into two parts - but narrower than current rules permit. And to change the rules to let her move the old house already on the lot to the back just five feet from the edge of the lot.

Saving the old house is required under Town ordinances and tearing it down would force the builder to wait four years to build on the lot. In order to comply with the ordinance and move on with building on the lot, Mrs. Potter has devised a plan to build three more homes on the lot and slip around the Town's building rules.

The plan files with the Town would leave her room to build three more houses on the half-acre lot. Two "main" houses and two "accessory apartments". The accessory apartments would in essence be so called "mother-in-law" apartments or small residences under the control of the main residence owners. The idea of "accessory houses" came from an old concept of having servants quarters or small guest homes on a homeowners property from long ago.

The big issue is that Mrs. Potter has taken advantage of a little known North Carolina law that allows a builder to sub-divide a lot under two acres and cram relatively small houses onto it.

An even bigger issue is that this can and will totally change the look and feel of the lot in one of the town's older historic overlay areas and change the character of the neighborhood.

Town officials have long claimed that the character of these older neighborhoods will be protected and preserved but the Planning Department has refused to stop the builder from packing four homes onto this small lot. The department claims this is being done under a state law that lets a lot owner subdivide small lots and build homes and that the department can't stop the builder.

Take a drive by 611 Olive Street and see how one builder has decided to alter a neighborhood with no concern for the views of the neighbors and the character of the area. Voice your concerns to the Apex Town Council to stop this blatant abuse of the Town's stated objectives of preserving the character of older neighborhoods...

Another sign of our discontent

Another sign of discontent with Weatherly "yes men" on the Apex Town Council...

The popular view continues that several Town Council members don't think on their own and need to be replaced. Attend any Council meeting and you will see that members currently running for 2009 re-election sit back and rock in their chairs and in the end vote with Mayor Weatherly for whatever he wants to push through.

The new competing candidates are generally tuned in to the interests of community residents and listen and think about issues affecting lives of all... controlled growth rather than unbridled development, not changing development guidelines to favor builders that pursue infill building in older neighborhoods, finding ways to build sidewalks in all parts of town - not just in new neighborhoods, preventing builders from packing lots with multiple homes and destroying the character of established neighborhoods, etc.

Mount Apex

Know where "Mount Apex" is located?

Right next to the new Thales Academy in the Villages of Apex development.

Now that the "Villages" development has been all but abandoned, this large mound of soil has been left by builders not able or willing to continue developing the "largest single undeveloped parcel of land inside the Town corporate limits".

Like many other projects, the development has fallen victim to the declining economy and most of the land was left stripped bare and undeveloped with a sea of pipes sticking up out of the landscape. Signs around the development offer plots for sale but there are few buyers willing to risk investment for now.

This is now yet another thorn in Mayor Weatherly's crown, pushed through the approval process and advertised heavily in the media as one of the projects to bring many jobs, tax revenues and prosperity to Apex.

Town of Apex vs cars as billboards

An interesting debate has turned up in the 2009 political campaign for Apex Town Council.

A big fuss was made in the News and Observer (Van tiff reroutes Apex campaign) over Scott Lassiter having a van with his candidacy advertised on the side. By the Town's rules and sign folks this is considered as advertising and parking in public places for advertising is prohibited. According to the news article "The town quickly took notice. An Apex zoning official told Lassiter that parking his van on public streets would violate the town's sign ordinance, which requires company vehicles to be kept on private property. The rule prevents businesses from using the streets as free billboard space.".

Has Mr. Lassiter been singled out by other candidates and the media to harass him because he is running for one of the Town Council seats and might knock out one of Mayor Weatherly's "yes men" or "Town Council Sheep"? According to the Town Manager the van is legal and he can continue to use it for his campaign - but not if it is parked on public streets.

The new Gaston's Garage in Laura Duncan Village shopping center has had a minivan parked by the street in its corner parking space (photo top left) ever since the shop has opened - just across from the Apex Town Hall complex!

Another vehicle being used for a billboard is parked each day in the parking lot of the new Peak City Pharmacy in the Historic Downtown Apex. Another advertising wrapped vehicle was used by the Great American Bicycle Company previously located across from the historic Apex Depot in one of the new Salem Street shops until the business closed due to the depressed economy.

No Council Sheep in Apex

No more Council Sheep !

Another "sign" of excitement in the race for Town Council seats in Apex.

The view that Mayor Weatherly has a little band of "yes men" continues to be a topic of discussion around town as several seats open up for the Town Council.

If you believe the Council pushes through proposals and plans that are not in the best interest of the Town then get out and vote for new members for the Council. Now is your chance to change the perception that there are "council sheep" that go along with whatever the Planning Board and Planners bring for consideration...

Signs of discontent

Looks like the days of Mayor Weatherly's little band of "yes men" in Apex NC may be numbered. Lots of folks around town have discovered several of the Apex Town Council members mostly go along with whatever Weatherly wants when voting at Town Council meetings.

Maybe it's time to change some of the Town Council members to ones that think and vote for what their constituents want... ya think?

Infill Building - Is it right for your neighborhood?

In recent times the concept of "infill" building has gotten a lot of attention as builders discover buyers are opting for buying homes in established neighborhoods. Builders are buying up empty lots and old homes on established lots and adding new homes where space was not developed during the time when buyers flocked to outlying new neighborhoods.

This sets off alarms when neighbors see activity on empty lots or around old homes left vacant after a neighbor has moved or passed away. Builders will often try to pick up these lots and divide them, then build multiple new homes where one or none stood before. Is this a good idea in an established neighborhood and should Town Planners and Builders take into consideration the views of neighbors during these projects?

The Town of Apex NC Planning Department and the Planning Board previously established development guidelines (Apex Unified Development Ordinance)to protect older areas of Town

considered part of the Historic Overlay District or Small Town Character Area. Now these rules

are being questioned by Planners and Planners want to change the rules in favor of builders (and not the neighborhood residents) by allowing lots to be narrower and allowing small apartments to be constructed on lots when new homes are added in these infill areas. By making lots narrower, a builder can build more houses and also let a driveway be shared by multiple homes and put more homes where this would not have been allowed under the old rules. Reducing the minimum lot width to 50 feet from 60 feet and allowing a common driveway to be used will allow construction of two or more houses where only one would have been approved previously.

An even more controversial ordinance change would allow a builder to construct "accessory apartments" behind a new home either as a stand alone structure or as an apartment above a garage. This would in effect allow two homes to be built where only one was allowed before and the owner could make the structure available as a rental house. The end effect lets the builder pack in homes on sub-divided infill lots and this would substantially change the look and feel of a neighborhood formerly protected for its "small town character". One premise used by Planners to justify this is that long ago it was common to have a "guest house" or "servant house" on some properties and that the "new" idea of a "accessory apartment" would follow this concept.

One such example is a project under way to build four houses on a half-acre lot at 411 Olive Street in Apex. The builder is Sarah Potter and she wants to divide a 60 foot lot and build two normal sized "green" homes and also add an "accessory apartment" behind both houses. This would allow the builder to slip four homes into a space where only two would normally go and significantly impact the all residental single family neighborhood.

Michael Lander, a developer and president of the Minneapolis-based Lander Group, considers that it is is necessary for builders to respect views of neighbors and not move in and change the neighborhood without considering the neighbors and the character of the area. He states "Prime lots are waiting to be developed in older, established neighborhoods. Lander offers a few tips to make the experience easier for first-time infill developers or builders. The list starts with a command of biblical significance: Love your neighbor.".

"It's just absolutely critical in an infill situation to work collaboratively with the neighbors—whoever that might be," Lander says. It might be businesses, it might be churches, it might be residents.". Read more...

If you feel strongly that the character of older neighborhoods should be protected and development ordinances should not be changed to reflect needs of developers, take the time to contact your Town Council members (Apex Town Council), Town Manager (Apex Town Manager), Mayor (Mayor), Planning Department (Apex Planning Department) and members of the Planning Board (Apex Planning Board)and let your views be known!

Paul Stam of Apex wants to limit information access

Paul Stam, representative from Apex, NC, is proposing to exempt Wake County and other communities from a requirement to advertise government meetings in newspapers. The plan would limit access to information about meetings to those with internet access and not allow notices to be accessible to many that rely on newspapers. His first attempt to exempt all government organizations from required advertising met significant opposition, so his latest effort aims to push through a new plan to exempt Wake and Mecklenburg counties.

The premise is that if people have access to the internet and routinely check community websites for such notices, that sufficient legal notice would be given and communities would not have to pay for advertisements outside their own websites. The proposal, if approved,  would have the effect of limiting public awareness about meetings affecting their own community and allow community planners and Town staff to push through plans with less involvement of local citizens. 

Local citizens need to be involved in government planning and need full access to information about public meetings and activities. Don't let Rep. Stam's effort to reduce availability to information about local government meetings - contact your Apex and state House and Senate representatives and let them know your views...

Read the entire article...

Bill draws opposition from newspapers

By Benjamin Niolet
ben.niolet@newsobserver.com

Posted: Wednesday, May. 06, 2009

RALEIGH - A bill that would save local governments some money has drawn opposition from the state's newspaper publishers, who say it would limit public access to information about government meetings.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Paul Stam, an Apex Republican, would give certain cities, towns and counties the ability to stop paying for newspaper advertisements to announce public hearings. Currently, all but a few municipalities in North Carolina are required to pay for the ads, which are in classified sections.

A bill to exempt all local governments met with resistance, so Stam is preparing to introduce a version this week that would apply to towns in Wake and Mecklenburg counties as well as other large cities and counties in the state.

Stam said the bill would give governments a break on an expense that is unnecessary since many towns, cities and counties can post the notices on their own Web sites.

Publishers and editors at The News & Observer, The Charlotte Observer and other newspapers have lobbied against the bill, arguing that many people who read legal ads don't necessarily have Internet access.

“It's a little bit uncomfortable to be putting the message in the hands of the government who maybe stands to lose the most if enough people turn out in opposition to whatever the meeting's going to be about,” said John Bussian, a lobbyist for the N.C. Press Association.

The bill would require local governments wanting to make the switch to hold a public hearing and make a finding that there is sufficient Internet access.

Ad revenue declining

The bill comes at a time when advertising revenue for newspapers has been in sharp decline. N&O Publisher Orage Quarles III said legal ads represent a small percentage of the company's revenues. Quarles said newspapers are in the business of attracting people to their print paper and Web sites, and a city or county couldn't match the kind of traffic newspapers get.

Rick Thames, editor of The Charlotte Observer and president of the press association, said public notices should appear in a place where people are likely to run across them. The idea is similar to tacking up a sign up a public square.

“You can have an obscure Web site with little to no traffic, and you can post a notice there,” Thames said. “That doesn't mean the public is going to see it.”

Thames also said that allowing governments to stop advertisements would give officials leverage over news coverage.    

Sad day for Apex kids

Declining economic woes have brought hard times to Apex kids. At least in the eyes of Bruce Radford, Apex Town Manager, and John Brown, Parks, Recreation and cultural Resources Manager.

A March 14 news item in area papers says the Town of Apex won't hold the annual Easter event this year, alledgedly due to declining Town revenues.

Too bad the Town staff doesn't make the effort just for the kids sake and give up a little extra overtime pay this time around. It would only require getting a supply of pre-wrapped candy eggs (has anyone tried to get these be donated?), reserving the Community Center grounds and holding the event with staff volunteers or even a few parents.

Its ok to spend millions to build a new police station and a new fire station during hard times, and to put all those spiffy new parking spaces by the road in front of the Town offices. But the kids, they can make up the difference...

In local news:

News and Observer
March 14, 2009
Sarah Lindenfeld, Staff Writer

The bunny trail skips Apex this year

APEX - Even the Easter Bunny's out of work this year.

Budget cuts have forced Apex to cancel its annual egg hunt, where youngsters make a mad dash for hundreds of brightly colored plastic eggs filled with candy.

"The Easter Bunny just couldn't afford air fare this time," said Bruce Radford, town manager. "That's what it boiled down to. He called us and said he regrets it, but he just wouldn't be able to come."

In reality, the town's $750,000 general fund shortfall forced officials to cancel the hunt, among other cuts. The town expects less money from sales taxes and the fees developers pay as they build houses.

An egg hunt for the town's senior citizens also was canceled because the event's sponsor backed out, said John Brown, the town's parks, recreation and cultural resources director. "That's another casualty of the economy," he said.

As Brown looks to save money, he said he aims to keep programs that generate revenue. The egg hunt for kids, which cost the town about $3,000, was free. A youth fishing derby and basketball contest also were canceled. All were mainstays of Apex's events calendar for kids.

Brown said many churches and subdivisions in Apex already hold their own egg hunts. And most other Triangle towns and communities are planning them, too.

Radford said once the economy improves, the town hunt will return.

The Bunny, Radford pledged, will be back.

In state news...

Asheville Citizen-Times
March 14, 2009
Associated Press

Budget woes hit Easter: Egg hunt out in NC town

APEX — No need to get the kids hopping this Easter in Apex. The North Carolina town is canceling its annual Easter egg hunt because of budget problems.

Town Manager Bruce Radford told The News & Observer of Raleigh that declining sales tax revenue and fees from developers have left a $750,000 hole Apex's budget.

Radford says he hopes to bring the egg hunt back next year if conditions improve.

If any kids ask, Radford isn't using the budget line. Instead, he says the Easter Bunny just couldn't afford the flight down.

Is the sky over NC 55 falling in Apex?

It's time for CSX to pony up and be a responsible citizen in Apex. A recent report on WRAL-TV news highlights the questionable condition of the aging railway bridge that is more than sixty five years old. CSX and the State DOT agency have both deferred replacement and repair of the bridge for years and continue to point a finger to the other side with regards to responsibility. Some 25,000 cars pass under the bridge each day on their way to outlying destinations and many notice gaping holes and exposed rebar in the sides and bottom of the bridge and worry that pieces of the bridge could fall on their car at any time.

Even though the DOT bridge inspectors claim to inspect the bridge every two years they do not go onto the property and conduct a structural examination of the bridge claiming that "would be trespassing" on CSX property. The inspections amount to only a mere cosmetic inspection and do not validate the structural integrity of the bridge.

As noted in the report, Tim Donnelly, Apex public works director noted in an internal memo, "The bridge negatively impacts our citizens and clearly the traffic flow and safety of N.C. 55." On any given day traffic is constantly backed up to the town corporate limits in both directions as a direct result of not replacing an unsafe, decaying and inadequate overhead bridge. Town officials and citizens have questioned reliability of the bridge for many years and pressed for the bridge to be made wider to accommodate the huge volume of vehicles passing under it to deaf ears on the part of CSX.

For as long as anyone can remember, the concrete bridge has been the worst bottleneck on NC 55 for commuters and locals and has been the one item blocking improvements in the road that could prevent most of the massive traffic backups through out each day. As the condition of the bridge continues to decline, drivers worry that it is only a matter of time before a chunk of concrete falls onto a windshield and causes a serious injury or a major accident.

What do you think about leaving an old bridge in place and allowing safety and traffic backups to continue unchecked? Shouldn't the bridge be moved to the top of the list for replacement?

Read the entire news report...

Town of Apex administration down on young art

In its usual knee-jerk reaction to anything not explicitly approved by the Town of Apex, the Town's sign enforcer quickly removed a lovely art display recently placed on a utility pole across from the Town Hall and Community Center at the corner of Mason Street and Old Raleigh Road in June, 2008.

This cheerful little gallery of creature drawings was added to the pole over a short period in early June and suddenly disappeared the day after this photo was made. Unfortunately the town's effort signals that the staff doesn't support artist efforts to be creative and add a little color to the local landscape.

The local sign ordinance was meant to prevent signs and posters from littering the roadways but enforcement is sometimes carried too far when signs or displays that mean no harm are ripped down as soon as they are placed due to strict interpretation of the rules. There are legitimate circumstances when local organizations want to tell of barbecue fund raisers, yard sales or other similar events that need community participation to be successful.

Residents generally post signs on utility poles for weekend yard sales to attract potential buyers but soon experience the wrath of the Town's "sign czar". If the Town staff member sees posters along local streets the signs are immediately removed to enforce the strict intent and interpretation of the sign ordinance. This in turn prevents the yard sale host from simple and reasonable advertising that would legitimately provide them with more customers and income.

Town rules on signs may be seen on the Town's website section on ordinances under Sec.8.7.1 /Permitted Signs: Location, Size, and Number. The town's "sign permit form" allows you to apply for and pay a fee to post signs for a variety of purposes. The Town position requires that a citizen or organization purchase a sign permit in order to place even the simplest of signs anywhere around town. Perhaps this should be tempered a bit to allow citizens to post simple yard sale signs for a few days or otherwise advertise personal activities without the requirement of a sign permit. Contact your Town Council representatives if you think the ordinance needs to be revisited.