spring fling - seasonal tradition finds new home  

Come outside and play Saturday, April 26 as Spring Daze Arts & Crafts Festival celebrates its 10th year with a move to the tranquility of Bond Park.  

The festival will feature arts and crafts, your favorite foods, community group information, and  entertainment on two stages. The hours are 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.  

There’s something for all age groups. Admission is free.  

Some parking is available inside Bond Park and at the churches across High House Road . Another option is to park at the Town of Cary Operations Center on James Jackson Avenue and take a free shuttle. You can also walk to the festival on the Oxxford Hunt or Parkway greenway trails.  

Look for entertainment lineups, artist and civic group listings in the Recreation section of townofcary.org. You can also call (919) 469-4061.  

A new feature is an artist gallery with 39 artists who were selected from throughout North Carolina .

grass class - using water wisely  

Now that you and your lawn have reunited after the long winter separation, be careful not to kill it with kindness.  

Delay regular watering during the cool weeks of spring.  This encourages roots to grow deeper, making your lawn healthier and more tolerant of heat.  

Consider warm season alternatives that handle summer heat much better than fescue. (See Bud Bits for workshops).  

Water is too precious to waste. So the alternate day watering rule remains in effect year-round.  

Those with odd-numbered addresses can use automated watering devices on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. For those with even-numbered addresses, the days are Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.  No automated watering is allowed on Mondays.

Watering by hand is OK any day of the week. You must be holding the hose or watering can.  

For tips, see Water Conservation in the Current Projects section of townofcary.org.

Be on the lookout Wednesday, April 30 for our new water conservation brochure, “Let's be Water Conscious” and our reminder gift inside The News & Observer if you subscribe or the MidWeeker (blue bag) if you don’t subscribe.  

call of the wild  

Come to Stevens Nature Center at Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve on Mother’s Day, May 11, from
1 – 5 p.m. for the annual Celebration of Nature.  

At the “Creepy Crawly Carnival” you’ll learn why spiders, bugs, slugs and other crawlies are not so creepy through hands-on stations, simple crafts, prizes and guided walks. For more details, call 
(919) 387-5980.  

Catch the free shuttle service to and from Ritter Park .  

safety in numbers  

Recent nightclub tragedies in Chicago and Rhode Island are focusing attention on hazards involving indoor crowds.  

As you enter a building, note the closest exit and look for other safety features.

Does the building have a sprinkler or fire alarm system?  Do you see fire extinguishers? Is there emergency lighting in case of power failure?  Are the exit doors equipped with panic hardware and do they open outward?    Does the crowd exceed the number allowed?  

If the fire alarm sounds, stay calm but walk quickly outside without delay. Stay out until firefighters say it’s safe to return.

Call 911 immediately if you see a required exit that is locked or chained. The life you save could be your own.
 

bud bits  

Jamfest 2003 will be Saturday, May 3, 11 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. in Bond Park’s Sertoma Amphitheatre. Celebrate Youth Matter to Cary Day with music, food and a teen band competition. For more details, call (919) 460-4965.  

Learn about warm season grasses such as St. Augustine , Centipede, Zoysia, and Bermuda at free workshops. Join us Saturday, April 26 from 10-11:30 a.m. at Garden Supply Company, 1421 Old Apex Road , or Sunday, May 18 from 2-3 p.m. at Fairview Garden Center , 8224 Holly Springs Road . Register at  (919) 469-4090.  

See meeting notices, legal ads, events, classes and more in Cary Connections Thursdays on page A5 of The Cary News. Check out Town Hall This Week in the News section of townofcary.org.  

false alarms - disturbing truth  

When an alarm sounds, it’s as if someone has called 911. Cary police have to assume that  a real emergency such as a robbery or burglary is under way.  

That’s seldom the case, however. On average, roughly 19 of every 20 alarms turns out to be false. That’s wasting Cary taxpayers about $100,000 a year in unnecessary police response.  

To help reduce false alarms, Cary police are beginning a new program this month called Business Watch.  

Volunteers with the Citizens Assisting Police (CAP) team are distributing information packets to businesses, starting with the downtown area and working outward to other parts of Cary .  

But Business Watch is much more than about false alarms. It’s a crime prevention initiative connecting business people with police officers and CAP team volunteers. 

Volunteers will distribute packets to 6,500 Cary businesses during the coming year.  

talking points  

The Town Council will hold another public hearing May 8 regarding the proposed Land Development Ordinance.  

The May 8 hearing is for changes that have been drafted to the proposed ordinance and to zoning maps, the comprehensive plan, and Town code since public hearings in February.  

Read more about the proposed Land Development Ordinance in the Current Projects section of townofcary.org.  

recreation sensation  

You can’t say we don’t know how to have a good time.  

Our Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department recently became the third agency in the state and the first in the Triangle to receive national accreditation.  

“The accreditation process gave us the opportunity to look at our current operations and procedures in detail and see what is working well and where improvements could be made,” said Mary Henderson, the department’s director.  

The announcement came in late February at  the  National Recreation and Parks Association’s 2003 legislative forum in Washington , D.C.  

Town Manager Bill Coleman said accreditation helps ensure departments are managed well and have quality programs, services and facilities.  

Cary ’s police and fire departments also are accredited.  

The Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies previously awarded accreditation to Salisbury and Asheville .  

putting your foot down  

Do the recycling stomp before placing your plastic bottles, aluminum and steel cans, drink boxes, and juice containers in your recycling bin.  

This not only saves room in your recycling bin for more stuff, it saves all of us money. If we all flatten our recyclable materials by stomping on them, we can save the Town about $15,000 a year.  

So do the recycling stomp to save space and money.

signs of the season  

It’s time for spring cleaning and you need to find a good home for that old couch taking up space in the garage.  

So before you fill your yard with Saturday morning bargain hunters, a word on yard sale signs.  

Yard sale, real estate and window signs do not need a permit. But restrictions still apply.  

You may have two yard sale signs - one on the property and the other on private property with the owner’s permission. They can go up three days beforehand, but must come down promptly after the sale.  

Town rules say no signs on light poles, trees, traffic signals, medians, street corners, intersections or in ditches.   

That helps keep neighborhoods neat and avoid things that block drivers’ vision.

We’ve got much more on signs on the Web site. Call the Planning Department at (919) 469-4082 for a copy of the easy-to-read brochure.

applause! cary youth theatre  

Applause! Cary Youth Theatre presents Alice in Wonderland -  Sertoma Amphitheatre Bond Park May 16-18, 7:30 p.m.   Tickets -  (919) 469-4061

conservation corner  

Recycling Tip: Last year Cary citizens sent more than 5,800 tons of yard waste to a yard waste site in Raleigh . This cost the Town over $222,000 in hauling and disposal. A compost pile provides a free soil amendment that reduces your need for fertilizer and pesticides. Call (919) 469-4090 to learn how to start a compost pile today.  

Storm water Tip: Call (919) 469-4076 to learn about permits for drainage improvements on your property or about building or clearing within a stream buffer.  If storm drains are broken or blocked at the curb, please call Public Works at (919) 469-4090.  

Water Conservation Tip: Give your automatic irrigation system a checkup by inspecting all spray heads and valves for leaks.  A broken spray head can waste up to 20 gallons each minute.  When irrigation season begins, experts recommend using no more than 1 inch of water per week, including rainfall.  To install an irrigation system, you must get a permit from the Inspection and Permits Department and install a separate irrigation meter.

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