Cary, North Carolina
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Town of Cary |
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| Nickname: "Technology Town of North Carolina" | ||
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| Coordinates: | ||
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| Country | United States | |
| State | North Carolina | |
| County | Wake County | |
| Founded | 1750 | |
| Incorporated | April 6, 1871 | |
| Mayor | Ernie McAlister | |
| Area | ||
| - City | 112.6 km² (43.5 sq mi) | |
| - Land | 109 km² (42.1 sq mi) | |
| - Water | 3.6 km² (1.4 sq mi) 3.17% | |
| Elevation | 146 m (480 ft) | |
| Population | ||
| - City (2000) | 94,536 | |
| - Density | 867.2/km² (2,246/sq mi) | |
| Time zone | EST (UTC-5) | |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) | |
| ZIP Code | 27511-27513, 27518, 27519 | |
| The town was named for Samuel Fenton Cary | ||
| Website: www.townofcary.org | ||
Cary is the second largest city in Wake County, North Carolina. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 94,536. Town records show a population of 117,442 as of October 2006.
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[edit] Geography
Cary is located at (35.778919, -78.800208)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the City has a total area of 43.5 mi² (112.6 km²). 42.1 mi² (109.0 km²) of it is land and 1.4 mi² (3.6 km²) of it (3.17%) is water.
[edit] Government
Cary has a council-manager government; the mayor and council members serve a term of four years, with half of the council seats being up for election each odd-numbered year. Four of the six council seats are elected by district; the remaining two seats are at-large representatives.
The current town council consists of Mayor Ernie McAlister and Representatives Jennifer Robinson (District A), Nels Roseland (District B), Jack W. Smith (District C), Marla Dorrel (District D), Michael A. Joyce (at-large), and Julie Aberg Robison (at-large). Joyce announced his resignation on July 19, 2006.
[edit] Mayors
- A. F. Page, 1871
- J. P. H. Adams, 1884
- R. J. Harrison, 1887
- John Nugeer, 1897
- E. C. Hayes, 1900
- T. F. Wilkinson, 1902
- R. J. Harrison, 1903
- H. B. Jordan, 1904
- N. C. Hines, 1910
- J. M. Templeton, Jr., 1912
- G. S. Leacock, 1914
- T. H. Taylor, 1916
- W. G. Crowder, 1921
- E. P. Bradshaw, 1921
- W. H. Atkins, 1921-25
- G. H. Jordan, 1925
- E. P. Badshaw, 1925
- Dr. F. R. Yarborough, 1927-28
- A. N. Jackson, 1928-29
- H. H. Waddell, 1929-33
- Dr. J. P. Hunter, 1933-35
- M. T. Jones, 1935
- T. W. Addicks, 1935
- L. L. Raines, 1935-37
- R. W. Mayton, 1937-47
- Robert G. Setzer, 1947-49
- H. Waldo Rood, 1949-61
- Dr. W. H. Justice, 1961-62
- James Hogarth, 1962-63
- Dr. E. B. Davis, 1963-69
- Joseph R. Veasey, 1969-71
- Fred G. Bond, 1971-83
- Harold D. Ritter, 1983-87
- Koka E. Booth, 1987-1999
- Glen Lang, 1999-2003
- Ernie McAlister, 2003-present.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 94,536 people, 34,906 households, and 25,132 families residing in the town. The population density was 867.2/km² (2,246.0/mi²). There were 36,863 housing units at an average density of 338.2/km² (875.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 82.17% White, 6.15% African American, 0.27% Native American, 8.08% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.47% from other races, and 1.83% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.28% of the population.
There were 34,906 households out of which 41.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.3% were married couples living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.0% were non-families. 21.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.18.
In the town the population was spread out with 29.1% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 38.6% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 5.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $75,122, and the median income for a family was $88,074. Males had a median income of $62,012 versus $38,819 for females. The per capita income for the town was $32,974. About 2.1% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.8% of those under age 18 and 3.5% of those age 65 or over.
In terms of higher education, 68.0% of adult residents in Cary (25 and older) hold an associate degree or higher, and 60.7% of adults possess a baccalaureate degree or higher. Cary has the most Ph.D.s per capita in the U.S. for towns larger than 75,000 people.[citation needed] The home ownership rate (owner-occupied housing units to total units) is 72.8%.
[edit] Business
Major Employers in Cary:
- Siemens
- SAS Institute
- MCI WorldCom
- Cotton Inc, industry tradegroup
- Western Wake Medical Center
- American Airlines Reservations Center
- Kellogg's Snacks
- John Deere Worldwide Commercial & Consumer Equipment Division
- Inveresk Research
- Global Knowledge Network
[edit] Education
[edit] Primary and secondary education
- Cary High School- It was established in 1907 and is the first public high school in North Carolina. It has an enrollment of 2,500 students (2005-2006)
- Green Hope High School (and Elementary School)
- Middle Creek High School
- Panther Creek High School [1]
- West Cary Middle School
- Reedy Creek Middle School Formally East Cary Middle School
- Davis Drive Middle School
- Cary Academy
- Cary Christian School
[edit] Higher education
[edit] Culture and community
Cary has many restrictive ordinances. These include the banning of neon signs on the exterior of restaurants and in some cases instructing residents on what they can and cannot plant in their yards. The town also restricts the use of certain colors on buildings and architectural styles, and limits development near drainage channels. The town recently annexed an area containing the home of an eccentric gentleman of some local fame whose yard contained an antique cannon and an abundance of signs and posters expressing his opinions. In a rare compromise, the town council said the man was allowed to keep his yard's ornamentation as long as he did not add to it further.[citation needed]
Compared to many other cities of a similar size, Cary has an extensive and restrictive sign ordinance. Cary grew from a small downtown area. In early years it adopted zoning and other ordinances on an ad-hoc basis to control growth and give the city structure. Beginning in 1971, the city created a Planned Unit Development zoning. A PUD allows a developer to plan an entire community before beginning development, thus allowing future residents to be aware of where churches, schools, commercial and industrial areas will be located well before such use begins. Kildaire Farms, a 967 acre Planned Unit Development in Cary was North Carolina's first PUD. It was developed on the Pine State Dairy Farm by Thomas F. Adams, Jr. and was inspired by an early PUD in Farmington, MA. Adams named a section of Kildaire Farms, Farmington Woods in their honor.
The town's reputation as a bedroom community for transplants from outside the South has led to humorous backronyms for its name such as "Concentrated Area of Relocated Yankees" or "Containment Area for Relocated Yankees and Can't Afford Raleigh Yet." [2] Some observers have noted this as Cary's crisis of identity, especially when compared with its neighbors in the Research Triangle. Chapel Hill has a reputation as a bastion of liberal academia, Durham as a blue-collar post-boom industrial city, and Raleigh as the state's center of arts and government, but Cary has yet to come into its own identity other than that of a suburban bedroom community, despite or perhaps because of its meteoric rise in population. One of the major reasons for its large population of residents immigrant to North Carolina is the town's proximity to the Research Triangle Park and the many other localities hosting biotech, pharmaceutical and high tech companies, making it an ideal location for people moving to the Research Triangle area for work.
Interestingly for a town with such an educated population, Cary has no colleges based in it. However, it has several high schools, and high school sports are fairly important; for example, the Cary Academy Cross Country girls' team and nearby Apex High's baseball team were each state champions in their respective divisions.
[edit] Transportation
Like many other suburban areas, Cary is dependent on large thoroughfares to transport its people. In fact, many outsiders remark how easy it is to get lost in Cary, due to the sheer number and complexity of what were once farm roads. However, there are alternatives:
- Local Bus: C Tran is Cary's bus system. Information can be found here: http://www.townofcary.org/ctran/ctranoverview.htm. The Triangle Transit Authority operates fixed-route buses that serve the region and connect to municipal bus systems in Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill.
- Passenger Rail: Amtrak's Silver Star, Carolinian, and Piedmont offer service to Charlotte, New York City, Miami, and intermediate points.
- Bicycle: The League of American Bicyclists has designated Cary one of the fourteen recipients of the first Bicycle-Friendly Community awards for "providing safe accommodation and facilities for bicyclists and encouraging residents to bike for transportation and recreation".
- Walking: A network of sidewalks and a network of dirt, gravel, and paved trails, greenways, connects neighborhoods and parks in Cary. Most walking is recreational or for exercise rather than commuting or shopping, since it is virtually impossible to reach any locale in Cary without a vehicle.
[edit] Major roadways
- Interstate 40
- US 1
- US 64
- State Highway 54
- State Highway 55
- Cary Parkway
- Kildaire Farm Road
- Walnut Street
- High House Road
- Harrison Avenue
- Maynard Road Loop
- Davis Drive (links to Research Triangle Park)
[edit] Entertainment
Major places for entertainment in Cary:
[edit] Sister cities
Cary has four sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI):
Cary is also paired with:
[edit] Interesting facts
- Cary was named in honor of Samuel Fenton Cary, a nationally-known leader of the Temperance movement.
- Cary's most prominent former citizen was Walter Hines Page, former ambassador to the UK.
- Cary Academy (no relation to the current school of the same name) is considered to be the first public high school in North Carolina, having opened in 1896.
- Kingswood, a former elementary school and 6th grade center, was the 1st school in the United State to test the year-round school method.
- The town's forced annexation policy of surrounding rural land spurred a grassroots campaign named "Stop Cary".
- Cary is the second largest town in the United States, behind only Gilbert, Arizona [3]
- In 2004 the town of Cary was declared the ninth safest of 354 large cities in the nation. It is the only southern city in the top 25. This was the sixth year in a row that Cary has been ranked in the top 10 safest cities in the U.S. [4].
- Cary was listed in Money Magazine as one of the best places to live in the Eastern United States in 2003 and #5 place to live in the United States in 2006.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Wake County Real Estate Records
- Official town of Cary website
- Cary Chamber of Commerce
- Cary Magazine
- 27513: Suburbia Unbound Ntl. Geographic Article
- Stop Cary website
- The LAB announces its designation of Cary, NC as a bronze recipient of the Bicycle-Friendly Community award
- CaryPolitics.org is a website "Committed to intelligent debate about issues that affect all of us".
- The Cary Heritage Mueseum
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
