The Mayor’s Blog: My Aching Back

Editor’s Note: Starting this week, we’ll be republishing Mayor Harold Weinbrecht’s blog in CaryCitizen.

Cary, NC –  This week was a week of rest and recuperation from my fractured vertebrae injury.

Cary is a Great Place

The town clerk’s office rescheduled or canceled all my meetings for the week. I was able to return to my job at SAS for part of a day on Thursday and a full day on Friday. The flowers, cards, and emails I received this week were incredible.

Cary is a great place because of many things but the kind and caring people that live here make this one of the best places to live in the world.

Taking It Slow

Currently I am doing pretty well with my injury. I consider myself VERY lucky. I am still waiting to see the folks at Cary Orthopedics. They canceled the only appointment I had and I will try and get another one on Monday.

I have tried several non impact activities and found that I can walk without problems. So I have been walking over four miles a day. In addition, I can ride the stationary bike and the elliptical without any pain. So of course I have been doing that as well.

I tried to do a crunch. OUCH! Not going to be doing those for a few weeks. I also tried a few light weights on the upper body (bicep and triceps sets) and was able to do that without problems. So if I can get in to see the spinal specialists at Cary Orthopedic I will hopefully find out more freedoms. Again, I am very fortunate that this is not near the spinal cord or nerves.

Catching Up on the Emails

I was able to read emails this week. The negative emails included criticism for not accepting Mayor Meeker’s invitation to join a task force on the school assignment proposal, a complaint about noise from a restaurant in Wellington shopping center, criticism about proposed apartments at Tryon and Cary Parkway, a complaint about trash at a location in Apex, and a complaint about yard waste bags in the streets. In the positive emails, the town was commended for its handling of problems with the red light cameras.

Emails from staff this week included information that showed CAP (Citizens Assisting Police) saved the town almost $150,000. Way to go CAP team! When we think of keeping Cary one of the safest places to live, work and raise a family in America, we think of having enough police officers to do the job. But, they can’t do it alone, and our Citizens Assisting Police Team never hesitates to volunteer when called to support our men and women in blue. God bless them!

Next week I will resume a regular schedule at town hall. Highlights of the week include a council meeting, a political fundraiser, and a town hall meeting by Wake County School Board member Debra Goldman.

Encouraging Dialogue on Schools

It should be noted that I have done my best to work with all parties of the school board. During the last few days I have talked Kevin Hill, Ron Margiotta, and of course Debra Goldman.

Debra and I talked several weeks ago about the concerns that residents had of the first proposal of the assignment plan. We agreed that her meeting with citizens and having dialogue was a good idea. She asked about the use of the Cary Council Chambers for such a meeting and I checked with staff. As long as the town hall meeting is not political and focuses on issues then it is allowed.

To maintain my neutrality I will introduce Ms. Goldman and then join the audience. The moderator will be Barry Mitch who has moderated events in the past. I look forward to an informative, respectful discussion.

Wrapping Up

Well, that is all for this week. Please feel free to email me with a comment.

• Personal comments please sent to augustanat@mindspring.com.
• All Town of Cary business – please email me at Harold.Weinbrecht@townofcary.org