Overview

The Town of Cary has been awarded a grant from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) of the United States Department of Agriculture to create a best management practices plan for a .75 mile section of an unnamed tributary to Swift Creek located near downtown Cary. This new section is an extension of the existing stream restoration project that parallels the Higgins Greenway. The study will also include a design to extend the Higgins Greenway for approximately 1.2 miles to ultimately link to the future Cary Community Arts Center.

The Town of Cary recently installed more than 12 stormwater constructed BMP (Best Management Practice) devices along a 6,000 foot unnamed tributary to Swift Creek. The location of this project is along Higgins Greenway, from NW Maynard to Danforth Street. This existing project helped reduce nitrogen entering the ecosystem on the adjacent stream which is a 303-D listed tributary to Swift Creek.

Additionally, the Town of Cary is also in the process of renovating or paving the Higgins Greenway. This will include upgrading more than 3,000 feet of the existing greenway adjacent to the BMP devices in the lower segment of the Higgins Greenway trail as well as paving 3,000 feet of new greenway. When completed, there will be continuous trail access from Maynard Road into Dorothy Park.

This new project will extend this best management practice to the next phase of this tributary. With several tributaries located upstream from the existing Town of Cary project, there are opportunities to further extend the greenway trail and BMP devices. Specifically, this project will complete the location and design of additional stormwater BMP’s to further improve water quality along a stretch of tributary close to Cary’s downtown. In addition, a design to extend the greenway trail from the Chatham Pointe project (off Chatham Street) northward through Heater Park will be completed. These objectives are in keeping with the Town of Cary’s Swift Creek Watershed Protection efforts and the Town’s Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Facilities Master Plan.

View a map of the project area.

Schedule
Design: To be completed by February 2012

Budget
Currently, $195,000 is budgeted to complete this project.

Contact

Doug McRainey, Director
Town of Cary Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Department
316 N. Academy Street
Cary, NC 27513
(919) 469-4066
(919) 469-4344 (fax)
doug.mcrainey@townofcary.org

Mike Babuin
Environmental Specialist
Town of Cary Engineering Department
(919) 462-3931
mike.babuin@townofcary.org