Our Cary Budget

“Tell me what you want…. what you really really want… “

Ok, I’m not gonna break into a the Spice Girls’ song (although I now have that song in my head.)  But, it is the theme of this post.

I’ve said it before. Democracy is not a spectator sport. In order for me, your At-Large representative, to know what you want, you have to tell me. And I’m not talking about winning the lottery – but rather what you want the Town of Cary to do.

Sure, we ask for you opninion all the time – using tools like our biannual Survey, Public Speaks Out options at our Town Council Meetings, individual meetings and of course, we certainly ask you during election time. But we also look for your feedback on our Town Twitter feeds, ask for it through CaryTV and the YouTube channel, BUD, Facebook pages, and in our email. But sometimes, we are looking for your direct feedback about a particular issue or strategic plan – and that’s true now.

It’s budget season
From Town of Cary

From Town of Cary

Unlike the Federal Government – our Town budget MUST be balanced. This is a lengthy process – and generally starts many many months before it’s actually accepted by Council.

Our 2014 (yes, 2014) budget year identifies services and infrastructure projects to be undertaken by the Town from July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014. And we are currently at the end of the MONTH LONG comment period, which ends on February 28th.

It’s important we hear from you

This is absolutely the time for you to make yourself heard.  

• You want more Parks and Greenways? Or want a SPECIFIC park moved up in priority? Tell us.

• Wish we had more plantings in specific medians? Share that.

• Want more Senior programs? Or programs for Disabled and developmentally challenged individuals? We want to know.

• How about speeding up the Downtown development? More parking? More events? All input is valuable.

• Wish you had an App that allowed you to more easily see where the greenway maps are… or the status of Bond Park Fields (open or close?), or a way to more easily report potholes? Let us know. (Ok, that’s my little plug.)

• Want to see what other people are saying? Check out the online listing.

It’s your turn

Just like you do at home, our budget guides our plans for the next year. So please let us know what you want in next year’s budget priorities.

There are lots of ways for you to connect and voice your opinion. But do it QUICKLY!

• Via email: budgetinput@townofcary.org

Voicemail: (919) 469-4307

Public comment at special budget public hearings (Last chance on Wednesday, February 27)

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TownofCaryNC

Twitter: www.twitter.com/townofcary (#TOCbudget)

This is your town, your government, and your turn to let us know.

Don’t let this opportunity pass you by. 🙂

(As always, thanks for listening.)

Featured picture by 401(K)2013

7 Responses to Our Cary Budget
  1. [...] Thanks to Lori Bush for some of the text and formatting for this story. You can read her much more eloqu... carycitizen.com/2013/02/26/how-would-you-like-to-see-carys-money-spent
  2. [...] Thanks to Lori Bush for some of the text and formatting for this story. You can read her much more eloqu... ncnewsfeed.com/cary/how-would-you-like-to-see-carys-money-spent
  3. [...] improving social media  or citizen engagement tools are included in the budget for next year. (I wrote ... dev.goodtreecompany.com/sites/lori2/2013/05/22/technology-at-a-crossroads
  4. [...] improving social media or citizen engagement tools are included in the budget for next year. (I wrote a... carycitizen.com/2013/05/22/lori-bush-cary-technology-at-a-crossroads
  5. […] I wrote a bit about the process last year, if you would like to read more.  […]... dev.goodtreecompany.com/sites/lori2/2014/05/22/budgets-and-verts
  6. […] I wrote a bit about the process last year, if you would like to read more.  […]... carycitizen.com/2014/05/29/lori-bush-budgets-verts