Cary neighborhood opposes potential immigration office
“The federal government is considering moving its local Immigration and Customs Enforcement office from a Cary office park to a former Kroger supermarket on N.C. Highway 55 and High House Road.” reported Sloane Heffernan from WRAL News.
The debate rages onward. If you read the local online forums, neighbors and Cary residents are upset that a detention center is coming to their backyard – in a residential community.
But once you get the facts from the Town of Cary’s website, you’ll learn that “The type of use the Kroger site is being considered for would look like normal offices and, according to the spokesperson, blend into the community – no bars on windows, floodlights, sirens, etc.”
Local residents fear that criminals will be housed overnight, thus posing a threat to citizens’ safety. Officials refute that “There will be no beds, showers, food service or other facilities that would allow anyone to be detained overnight.”
What is the upside? Jobs and local revenue in property taxes. This building has been vacant for several years. And this proposal has been on the block for quite some time. I visted the neighboring tire store last year and was told that the old Kroger building was going to be some sort of Homeland Security project. I’d rather have something bringing in money than a vacant grocery store shell drawing dust.
The best upside is that this is one more reason to move to Apex.
What do YOU think?
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I’ll get a picture and post it for anyone else to see. I agree with the comments above. I wouldn’t be surprised if Dunkin Donuts and the rest of the tenants in the mall would break their lease to get out of that shopping center. I mean… it does look like a grocery store. It is a nice strip mall. Personally, I just can’t imagine any sort of ‘office building’ there myself.
Since when did a ‘government center’ anchor a strip mall anyway?
If I were DD or Blockbuster, I’d be upset too. Has anyone heard comments from these tenants?
UPDATE: As reported by the Triangle Business Journal,
Score a Victory for the common folk!
Here is a quote from the Mayor of Cary:
I am a resident in the neighborhood next to the former Kroger building where ICE is considering relocating. There is opposition by the majority of residents in West Cary, not just in our neighborhood.
We are not concerned about criminals being kept here overnight and I believe that is being said by several sources to try to calm our concerns. The real concern is that they would be bringing criminals into a shopping plaza that is at the entrance to a residential neighborhood and the building is only 100 feet from houses on the first street of our neighborhood. Children in our neighborhood play around the pond, wait at bus stops and walk to Dunkin’ Donuts & Blockbuster which are all within a stone’s throw of the building they are considering.
They will be bringing these criminals into the building on almost a daily basis, shackled in hand cuffs. In order to go south on Hwy 55 from this building, they actually have to drive INTO our neighborhood to access the highway in that direction. There are plenty of other options for buildings in the Triangle area that they could utilize that are not in a residential area.
This will not bring in more jobs or taxes for Cary since they already have offices and employees in Cary, they are just relocating to a new facility and combining several locations since their current lease in Cary is expiring. They are choosing a location in a residential area when there are other, more appropriate, locations available in industrial areas nearby. This leads us to believe that they are getting a good deal on a building that has been vacant for a while.
They are basing their decision on price and are not considering the negative effect that it will have on the quality of life of all the residents in West Cary. We chose to buy a home in this neighborhood because it is in West Cary which is mostly residences and shopping plazas. We did not choose to purchase a home, raise a family and live next to a building that will be bringing criminals in and out on almost a daily basis. They need to choose a more appropriate location, there are plenty available in industrial areas nearby.
West Cary Resident – thank you for your comments. Personally, when at first I read this in the news, like the article in the Triangle Biz Journal it sounded to me like NIMBY (not in my back yard).
After reading your comments and concerns, I can see that they are legitimate. Given that most illegal aliens that would likely be “processed” at that location would not the so called “honest & hard working” that the media likes to color ALL illegal aliens with, but rather more likely the only ones that ICE seems to be interested in these days hardened felonious criminals with affiliations to the likes of MS-13 and other drug dealing and murderous gang affiliations.
Please continue to share your comments here when you find more information.