Morrisville, NC – Developer CASTO and partner 1^st Carolina Properties of Cary, N.C., announced on Tuesday that Target has purchased 10-acres of its Phase I development at Park West Village, a 100-acre mixed-use project to be located at Cary Parkway and Chapel Hill Road in Morrisville, North Carolina.

In addition to Target, retailers joining the project will include:

• Buy Buy Baby
• T J Maxx
• The Dress Barn
• Rack Room Shoes
• Mattress Firm
• Sprint
• Omaha Steaks
• New Japan Express
• Qdoba Mexican Grill
• Zoe’s Kitchen
• Platinum Nail Spa
• Fantastic Sam’s
• Massage Envy
• Kilwin’s Chocolates and Ice Cream
• GameStop
• Ruckus Pizza, Pasta and Spirits
• Deluxe Cleaners

Construction is slated to begin immediately for a Fall 2011 opening.

“In an environment where development activity has been tough, together with the support and efforts of the Town of  Morrisville, Target and the partners of 1^st Carolina Properties, we believe this will be one of the few new developments done in 2011,” stated Brett Hutchens CASTO partner.

Connell Radcliff, principal of 1^st Carolina Properties added, “We are excited to break ground on the initial phase of this 100-acre mixed-use development.  With Target and over 100,000 square feet of additional retail, restaurant, and entertainment uses, phase I of Park West will serve the Morrisville community well.  We look forward to starting this project, and thank everyone who has been supportive of our efforts thus far.”

The area continues to be one of the most attractive markets for growth in the nation and boasts an average household income of $90,000, a population base of 123,500 and over 92,000 daytime employees.

Cary, NC – Lace up your sneakers, grab the kids and walk for a good cause!

WHAT:
The 2010 StrollerThon is a three-mile walkathon that will benefit Postpartum Education and Support, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to the emotional wellness of mothers.

Participants can form teams or walk as individuals. The event also will feature “Tot Trot” races for kids, entertainment and activities for the whole family. Prizes will be awarded for most donations raised, best team name and most creatively decorated stroller. All are welcome – strollers not required!

WHO:
Proceeds from the StrollerThon will benefit Postpartum Education and Support, a Triangle-based nonprofit organization that offers support for mothers and their families (including weekly peer-led support group meetings), provides resources for healthcare providers and heightens public awareness of perinatal mood disorders like postpartum depression or anxiety.

WHEN:
Saturday, Oct. 2, 2010
9 a.m. – check-in
9:45 a.m. – StrollerThon kicks off!
10:45 – Tot Trot races (ages 3-5 and 6-8)
11:30 a.m. – Awards ceremony

WHERE:
Fred G. Bond Metro Park
801 High House Road
Cary, NC

REGISTER:
Participants can form teams or register as individuals. Entry fee is $25 per person. Discounted fee of $18 per person will be applied to teams of 10 or more people. Children 9-14 register for $10. Children 8 years and under register for free. Every participant will receive a t-shirt. Registration
materials are available at www.pesnc.org.

CONTACT:
For more information, including registration and pledge forms, visit www.pesnc.org, or contact Suzanne Stanard at sjstanard@aol.com.

Cary, NC – Actors age 8-18 are invited to audition on September 22-23 for Applause! Cary Youth Theatre’s upcoming production of The Little Prince, based on the book by Antoine de Saint Exupery.

In addition, creative young minds age 10-18 are invited to interview for the production Design Team on September 21.

To schedule an appointment, email rachel.green@townofcary.org or call (919) 465-4792.

Interviews and auditions are by appointment only and will be held at Page-Walker Arts & History Center, 119 Ambassador Loop. Registration began on  September 1. No walk-ins will be accepted.

For more information on the upcoming production, including details about auditions and interviews, visit Applause! Cary Youth Theatre.

Photos by Tom Mousseau

Cary, NC- The Panther Creek Lady Catamounts volleyball team is off to a roaring season. And we’ve got the pictures to prove it.

Even though they are new on the block (the school is only 4 years old, after all), they are in third place the Tri-9 conference behind Apex and Green Hope with a  record of 5-1 (the one loss was to Apex). This week vs. Holy Springs at home,  JV won their matches 2-0 and Varsity went 3-1.

Tonight they go up against a tough Green Hope team.

Here’s Tom’s slide show from Flickr.

The busiest time of hurricane season is here. Hurricane Earl’s slash up the East Coast starting at Ocracoke is a reminder that Cary is not too far from the action.

Evacuations at the Beach

At 5 a.m. this Wednesday morning, Ocracoke and Hatteras Island announced evacuation orders for all visitors and residents in preparation for hurricane Earl.  Dare County officials said they expect Earl to create high waves that will flood parts of N.C. Highway 12, making travel unsafe.

At 8 a.m. the National Hurricane Center showed hurricane Earl passing east of the Bahamas today and tonight and could approach the North Carolina coast by early Friday morning.  Earl is on a forecast track to take a gradual turn to the north-northwest but is not likely to make landfall on our coast but will cause dangerous conditions.

A strong category 3 storm, Earl is packing winds reaching 125 mph and is approximately 180 miles wide. Large swells should effect the North Carolina coast beginning Thursday and into Friday.  These swells will cause extremely dangerous surf conditions and rip currents.  A storm surges of 3 to 4 feet are possible.

More Storms Brewing

Tropical Storm Fiona is following close behind Earl and will either be absorbed by Earl or head east out to sea, thereby not becoming a threat to land.

Following a similar path to Earl and Fiona and right behind them is Tropical Depression 9, which formed this morning. TS 9 is very close to becoming a named storm - Tropical Storm Gaston.

Weather for Cary

Earl is predicted to slide up the coast and not affect Cary. Of course, it’s a hurricane, and if it changes course, we’ll let you know.

Right now, the forecast is for 10 days of unabated sunshine over the Triangle. Don’t reseed your lawn quite yet unless you’re prepared to water a lot.

Information provided by the National Hurricane Center, the National Weather Service and The Weather Channel

SAS was one of the companies named to the "Family-Friendly 50" by Carolina Parent

Story by Matt Young

Cary, N. C. – Carolina Parent has named several Cary companies to their annual Family-Friendly 50 List. Congrats go out to Cary companies SciQuest, SAS, Confero, WakeMed Cary, Arysta LifeScience and RTI International.

The Family-Friendly 50 honor recognizes companies in North Carolina that help working parents by offering  employment programs, policies and opportunities.

Selections were made in partnership with the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. Companies were checked against specific criteria that indicate a family-friendly environment… things like flexible hours, job sharing, personal leave policies, daycare on site, health and wellness programs.

Brenda Larson, publisher of Carolina Parent told us: “We were delighted to see the number of nominations coming in this year to recognize the efforts of companies, large and small, to endorse policies and practices that support work/life balance for their employees. At Carolina Parent, we’re proud that 26 of these companies are right here in the Triangle.”

Story by Sonya Critser. Photos by Jeff Critser.

Cary, NC – Representatives of RBC Bank, along with Carolina Hurricanes’ goalie Cam Ward, paid a visit to Davis Drive Middle School Monday (August 30) to honor teacher Ryan Miller. 

Mr. Miller was one of four grand prize winners from the 2010 Tribute to Teachers contest sponsored by RBC every year.  He was also one of 70 general winners from a field of 5,700 nominees.

Mr. Miller then was selected from those 70 as one of the four grand prize winners.  He won $250 for himself and $2000 to be used at Stones School Supply in Raleigh for his classroom. RBC awarded nearly $43,000 in prize money as part of Tribute to Teachers.

The check was delivered to Mr. Miller earlier in the year, but Monday was more of a celebration and to show his students what he had purchased with the $2000.

Cam Ward appeared at a “meet and greet,” where he talked to Mr. Miller’s students, signed autographs and posed for numerous pictures.  The RBC lion, Leo, was also on hand for photo ops.

RBC Bank holds their “Tribute to Teachers” contest every year.

Cary High School wide receiver Darrell Hamilton completes a forty-yard run for Cary's first touchdown in Friday's win over Northern Nash. Photos by Stephen Blackwelderl.

Cary, NC – Cary High football crushed Northern Nash on the gridiron last Friday night by a score of 34-6.

Stephen Blackwell sent us this slide show from the game.

Story by Matt Young

Cary, N.C. –  Kids ‘R’ Kids of Cary has redesigned their preschool playgrounds to reflect environmentally-friendly practices. Now the kids can learn about  saving water.

Turns out there’s an economics lesson here as well.

All three school locations have implemented a new program that will have artificial turf and eliminate the use of pesticides, fertilizer or water, while giving children a non-trip and wheelchair-accessible platform.

By trading most of the grass for artificial turf, the school will conserve 46,672 gallons of water each month.  How do I get this for my lawn?

The playground is designed to retain a small natural area for planting and a sand pit for water activities. The schools will also now have recycling bins for cardboard boxes, food cans and paper products in the classrooms and the kitchen areas.

Said Julie Moye, co-owner of the three North Carolina five-star-certified preschools: “Our goals are not only to reduce water consumption and the use of potentially harmful pesticides, but also to teach children the importance of taking care of their planet.

Story by Juan Santiago.

Cary, NC – Diehard Panthers fan that I am, I must confess I was worried with the departure of Julius Peppers at the end of last season.  Now after watching the Panthers this pre-season, I find myself asking, “Julius Who?” 

Don‘t get me wrong, Peppers was a big part of the Panthers defense for many years but the new defensive squad is quickly making me forget about him. And quick is the perfect way to describe this bunch.

Young Under the Gun All Night

During last night’s game against the Tennessee Titans, the defense was all over Titans QB Vince Young. I was wishing the Panthers could get points for sacks and big defensive plays.   Both CB Chris Gamble and DE Charles Johnson looked very strong and Carolina held the Titans scoreless in the first half.

Offense Struggling

The bad news…the Panthers offense did not look much better than their opponents which led to a first half with no points on the board.  It was like watching soccer!  Matt Moore looked out of synch during the first half and I found myself wondering why Jimmy Clausen was not starting the second half.  I know this is pre-season and Moore needs to get his groove going before it starts counting, but a win would really help the morale of the team and the fans alike.  Moore is working with a short-handed offense, as injured WRs Steve Smith and Jonathan Stewart are not yet playing, but Carolina will need the other WRs to step up if we can expect to have a decent offense.

Overall the Panthers looked much better in the second half with special teams starting to get the hang of it.  The rookies also looked comfortable with a notable performance by DE Greg Hardy.  Back-up QB Jimmy Clausen finally came into the game late in the fourth quarter and got the team down the field quickly.

In the end, the Panthers were able to squeeze a win out of a “not so pretty” game, which in my opinion is very important.  I have a feeling that this team will play many low scoring games this season and needs to get used to winning ugly.

All in all I like what I see. I believe that Julius Peppers’ absence may actually help the Panthers in the long run forcing the defense to “step up”.

What Do You Think?

What’s your take on the 2010 Panthers?