Cary completed sewer rehabilitation work on the 30-inch sewer main between North Cary Park and Crabtree Creek Greenway at Lake Crabtree. Ongoing work along this corridor includes replacement of two aerial sewer crossings, manhole repair, cleanup, and final restoration before reopening this section of greenway later this summer. 

Additionally, sewer rehabilitation work is underway near the Old Reedy Creek Trailhead. Temporary aboveground bypass piping has been installed on this half-mile section that conveys to the North Cary Water Reclamation Facility. The aboveground bypass piping is visible from the trail but will not shut down greenway access. This work will be completed this fall.

The Cary/Apex Water Treatment Facility began its annual disinfection process change on March 1. In accordance with state and federal recommendations, each year the treatment facility temporarily stops adding the normal disinfection mixture of chlorine and ammonia and switches to free chlorine. This change, combined with flushing Cary's water mains, cleanses the system and helps ensure high-quality water throughout the year. During this time, residents and customers may notice a minor increase in chlorine odor, and in some cases the water may appear slightly discolored. This activity is part of the normal water system maintenance process and occurs in tandem with several neighboring municipalities. 

Cary completed its 2022 Asset Management Annual Report, which provides a dashboard view of the state of Cary's linear assets. Cary continued to build on the success of previous years, this being its fifth year with a formal asset management program. The report identifies key performance indicators, such as number of water main breaks, sanitary sewer overflows, and miles of pipe replaced. These KPIs are then correlated with Cary’s ability to achieve or prevent such incidents over time. Highlights of the report include continued work on risk-based capital planning, implementation of a decision-support software system, and GIS improvements for utility and stormwater infrastructure. As always, the report includes a list of Cary’s buried assets. In FY 2022, Cary had 1,141 miles of water main, 915 miles of sewer main, and 83 miles of reclaimed water main. 

Cary’s water reclamation facilities utilize thermal drying at the South Cary and the Western Wake Regional water reclamation facilities for managing and treating biosolids, nutrient-rich byproducts of wastewater treatment. Cary produces EPA-certified, Class A Exceptional Quality biosolids by recovering valuable nutrients from the wastewater for beneficial reuse in a natural fertilizer and soil amendment product. In 2022, the North Cary and South Cary water reclamation facilities together produced 3,825 dry tons and the Western Wake Regional WRF produced 2,697 dry tons of biosolids. Cary's high-quality dried biosolids, known as Enviro-Gems, are marketed to a vendor for use in the agribusiness industry. The full report is available at bit.ly/2022biosolids.

Cary has secured Renewable Energy Certificates through the North Carolina Utility Commission for the solar facility at the South Cary Water Reclamation Facility. The RECs represent the greenhouse gas, or carbon, offset achieved through the site's solar energy production. Securing the RECs, which provide an offset of about 1,500 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually, is key to supporting Cary's current and long-term carbon reduction goals. Additional solar array production information is available at carync.gov/solarfacility.

On Jan. 25, the police department administered the oath of office to 12 new officers — the largest number of officers sworn collectively in recent years. Cary welcomes officers Caleb Russell, Harper Spell, Nick Beltz, Thomas Scott, Damian Rodriguez, Sean Luddley, Raul Garcia, Nick James, Lexi Crisostomo, Wyatt Godwin, Colin Everett, and David DiBiase.

Fire celebrated the graduation of 25 new firefighters in February. It marked the end of an intensive eight-month academy during which the recruits earned all their required fire, rescue, hazardous materials, and rescue certifications. The 21 members of the previous graduating class were also honored, as the pandemic prevented them from having their own ceremony when they completed their training in January 2022. Graduates had their badges pinned and received their shift assignments at the celebration. Both classes presented a leadership award to a deserving classmate, and family and friends were treated to a screening of the class videos, which were produced by one of the graduates.

Cary hosted its second Repair Café, welcoming 78 residents who brought in items to repair and keep out of the landfill. Through this event, local “fix-it coaches” provide free repair services for a variety of objects to support the community’s waste reduction efforts. In all, 54 items were fixed, resulting in a 70% repair rate. Two more events have been scheduled for summer and fall 2023.

In March, the Carolina Recycling Association presented Cary with the Recycling Award for its food waste recycling drop-off pilot. The annual award recognizes impactful and innovative projects across the Carolinas that successfully address current waste diversion challenges and demonstrate creative promotions and education. 

Established in February 2022, the one-year pilot’s initial goal of collecting a minimum of 16 tons of food scraps resulted in an actual collection of 40 tons, exceeding the goal by 150%. Having surpassed its pilot goals, Cary’s food waste drop-off was deemed a success and is here to stay.

Infill and redevelopment continue to provide Cary with the opportunity to improve stormwater and floodplain management downtown. This quarter, the Meridian development project, in coordination with Cary’s Parkthrough Street project, joined the stream of stormwater capital improvement projects at Cedar Street, South Walker Street, and Waldo Street that are addressing legacy issues. 

Using public-private partnerships with Northwoods Jordan and First Baptist Church, this regional stormwater management project is simultaneously easing the financial and permitting burdens for the private sector and accelerating project completion at a lower cost to the public. The collaborative effort also allows Cary to run multiple projects in parallel with the private sector as opposed to working on them in a series, engaging one project only after another is completed. 

Like the other stormwater initiatives downtown, the Meridian-Parkthrough Street combination enables Cary to improve stormwater and floodplain management by redirecting stormwater to a regional stormwater control measure that mitigates structural flooding, meets water quality requirements, replaces aging stormwater infrastructure, and upgrades infrastructure to support the removal of nutrients in local waterways. Collectively, these upper Swift Creek basin projects address existing conditions holistically and meet or exceed new development standards.

Assistant Fire Chief Matt Jacoby presented at the 2023 Excellence conference, which is sponsored by the Center for Public Safety Excellence. Chief Jacoby's talk, titled Credentialing Process Explained, walked interested fire service personnel from all over the country through how to prepare their application for professional credentialing. He also served on a panel of credentialing experts to answer questions about the process.