Bonds for parks, education, or libraries often find their way on to ballots in November, but this year, one bond in particular is raising eyebrows for its size.
This election, the town of Cary is asking its citizens to vote on two bonds totaling $590 million. The far larger bond of $560 million would go towards building multiple parks and recreation facilities. Cary voters will also consider a $30 million affordable housing bond. Those bonds are in Cary only. As Wake County residents, Cary voters will also vote on a county-wide $142 million libraries bond.
The $560 million parks and recreation bond would fund six projects, a large chunk being $300 million for a sports and recreation community center in the South Hills district. The projects aim to meet the needs of Cary’s growing population, said town council member Sarika Bansal.
“The town really needs these facilities to be at the next level,” Bansal said. “Given the growth that we have, we cannot afford not to build this. We absolutely need the community centers, parks and (to) upgrade our facilities, maintain our facilities.”
Since 2010, Cary’s population has increased by about 38%. It now comprises roughly 187,000 residents, according to town officials. With more people living in Cary, the demand for recreational services has grown, said John Collins, the town’s director of parks and recreation.
“When you go to the Cary Arts Center, those classes are absolutely packed,” he said. “(There’s) a waiting list for most things we do there. So from a demand standpoint, citizens are actively engaged with the programs and services we’re able to provide and often wanting more of those.”
If all three bonds — parks and recreation, libraries, and affordable housing — are approved, the town would increase property tax rate by 9 cents. The current rate is 32.5 cents per $100 of assessed property value, so the increase to property taxes would be approximately 28%. The increase would not happen all at once: there would be 3-cent increases in 2026, 2028 and 2030.
The parks bond accounts for by far the largest portion of that increase, or about 8.5 cents. In real terms, that means the owner of a $400,000 house would see their property tax bill increase by $340 per year.
Some residents are questioning the cost of the parks and recreation bond, including longtime resident Mary Collins, who The News & Observer reported created carybonds.info, a website to protest the cost of that particular bond.
When factoring in interest costs, the cumulative cost of the parks and recreation bond could reach close to $875 million over the life of the bond, including $314 million of estimated interest.
Carybonds.info makes several arguments for voting against the parks bond, including that residents are still helping the town pay off the 2019 parks bond, which helped fund Downtown Cary Park. Also, the website notes the $560 million bond would help pay for the planning and construction costs for these projects, but not the operational costs.
“We citizens of Cary are concerned about the potential overruns and blank check of this project,” according to a PowerPoint on carybonds.info. “Money can be easily moved from one project to another since this is one large bond. Given the operating cost of the $70M downtown park is $7M/year, operational cost increases by this bond will be significant.”
When asked about the cost of the parks and recreation bond, Collins acknowledged that the plan is a substantial one.
“I can certainly say it’s a bold investment,” Collins said. “I think it’s somewhat consistent with Cary’s history. We have been bold with our investments in the past and they have served us really well.”
He added that if the bond is not approved by voters, the projects will not move forward. The town council could try to pursue any one of the projects again at a later time.
The projects reflect a growing and changing community
Sarika Bansal, who was elected to town council in 2023, said that the projects the bond would fund have been in the works for years. She said that the council thought that getting residents’ approval for these projects would’ve been more difficult if they broke the parks and recreation bond into smaller pieces.
“Keeping this as a suite of projects for the entire town of Cary made more sense at the time,” she said.
The projects that the parks and recreation bond would fund:
- $10 million for an Asian Garden at Raftery Park along White Oak Church Road
- $60 million for the expansion of the Cary Tennis Park clubhouse and stadium, adding many new pickleball courts
- $150 million for the Mills Park Community Center
- $10 million for a nature park on Earnest Jones Road
- $300 million for a sports & recreation community center in the South Hills district
- $30 million for a three-mile greenway extension along Walnut Creek
If residents vote yes on the bond, three of the projects would be built in Bansal’s district, which covers western Cary. Michelle Gao, 43, was among several Cary residents who told WUNC that they voted in favor of the bond because they felt the benefits outweigh the costs.
“I live in west Cary and I tell you, everywhere I need to drive takes 30 minutes,” said Gao, who has lived in the town for 16 years. “We really need more facilities in west Cary, like senior centers and recreation centers.”
One of the projects, the Asian Garden, is an idea that originated from Rep. Ya Liu, D-Wake, who formerly represented Bansal’s district on the town council, and whose N.C. House district covers a section of Wake County west of Cary to the Chatham County line. Liu said she proposed the project shortly after being elected to the town council in 2019 and it was inspired by the popularity of the Chinese Lantern Festival that occurs every winter at Koka Booth Amphitheatre.
“Cary has such a large Asian population,” Liu said. “To have something that is a nod to our culture and heritage, it would mean a lot to all of us. A botanic garden that has flowers and trees from all over Asia is something everyone can enjoy.”
Cary’s Asian population has seen a tremendous increase in recent years, and now makes up 21% of the town’s entire population.
Meanwhile, the sports and recreation center proposed in the bond would also be built on the property that contains South Hills Mall. Also known as Cary’s oldest mall, South Hills has struggled in recent years, but its parking lot still bustles with patrons who shop at Grand Asia Market, which has served North Carolina’s Asian American residents for nearly three decades.
Loden Properties, a Raleigh-based developer, purchased the South Hills property in 2021, and plans have been in the works since then to redevelop it. The Cary Town Council last Tuesday approved the company’s rezoning request for mixed-use development.
Collins said approval of the bond measure would determine whether or not the town of Cary would get to build the proposed sports and recreation facility at the South Hills property, which would include a 70,000-square-foot community center, senior center spaces, an esports center, and various courts for indoor sports. If the bond measure doesn’t pass, Loden will still proceed with redevelopment.
In an email to WUNC, Loden Properties partner Henry Ward said that construction is estimated to begin late 2025. He added that the company had offered opportunities for Grand Asia Market to remain at South Hills, but the grocery store declined and is looking into other options.