Lori Bush, at-large candidate for Cary Town Council
There are three contested races for Cary Town Council this year.
Typically, municipal elections are held in odd-numbered years, and the mayor and all eight council members serve four years.
This year, candidates for mayor, one at-large seat, District B and District D, are on the ballot, while the remaining at-large seat, District A and District C, will be elected in 2025.
For the at-large seat, incumbent Lori Bush faces challengers Mary Inspruker and Matthew Gronke.
District B incumbent Don Frantz faces Michelle Craig. District D incumbent Ryan Eades faces challengers Sarika Bansal and Rachel Jordan.
Mayor Harold Weinbrecht is running unopposed.
Early voting runs through Oct. 7. Election Day is Oct. 10.
To find polling places and full details on early voting, visit the Board of Elections at wake.gov or call 919-404-4040.
Name: Lori Bush
Age: 59
Residence: 503 Ridgecrest Road
Occupation and Employer: Engineer, retired
Education: B.S. from Missouri School of Science and Technology (previously called University of Missouri - Rolla), Harvard Kennedy School – Senior Executives Fellow
Political or civic experience: 3 terms (12 years) At-Large Cary Councilmember, two years as Cary Mayor Pro Tem; Member of Foreign Trade Zone (Research Triangle Regional Partnership); Triangle J Council of Governments (Smart Growth and Water Resources); Jordan Lake One Water Association; Former Cary Planning and Zoning Board: Chair, Cary Task Force for Issue Advisory Groups, Cary Site Design Focus Group; Graduate of Cary School of Government (aka Cary 101), Chair, Wake County Information Technology Advisory Committee, Wake County Affordable Housing Plan Task Force, Cary-Chatham Joint Issues Committee, Board of Trustees, East Coast Greenway, Board of Directors, Friends of NC Museum of Natural Sciences, former HOA President volunteer in Preston Village neighborhood
Campaign website: loriforcary.org
Why are you running to serve Cary? Why should voters trust you with this position?
It has been my honor to serve for the last 12 years, representing the almost 185,000 residents of our amazing town. I have worked to keep Cary a forward-thinking community – from our early adoption of technology to improve our services, to land-banking for more parks, to increasing our environmental programs across Cary. Just this year, we have our first town-sponsored affordable housing project, a new downtown park to come online and a successful food waste pilot and its expansion, leading to a pilot plan for compost-to-the-curb, not that far off. Cary has been recognized as a regional leader with many accolades and accomplishments, and we still have so much that we have on the horizon.
I’d like to keep working to chart our future – one that continues to use our citizen-created Cary Community plan as our guide, is climate resilient, increases safe walkable and bikeable access, and implements our Cary Housing Plan.
What is Cary doing right to manage the town’s growth? If elected, what changes would you propose?
I have been a champion of smart and balanced growth – ensuring our water, sewers, parks, services, and roads keep pace with development, currently 1-3% annually. New and redeveloped uses should respect and protect the environment, be walkable, and follow our strict environmental ordinances. Additionally, we must continue to be sensitive and align with and/or transition to surrounding neighborhoods and respect our history, diversity and unique areas within the town. What are we doing right? Our citizens created our Cary Community Plan, which was adopted in 2017, to be our guiding document and vision for how Cary will grow. It’s now time for us to update that plan, and I will work to ensure we find new ways for our citizens to engage and help drive our collective vision for the future of Cary.
Many people who have lived in Cary say they can no longer afford rent or struggle to own a home. What must Cary do for established and new residents to live here comfortably?
As a member of the Wake County Affordable Housing Task Force, I participated in the creation of the Wake County Housing Plan, that we then leveraged to build our own CARY SPECIFIC plan for our community. Our plan specified a number of initiatives, some happening now and some in planning mode.
First, we need to continue to fund and increase funding for our rehabilitation program, “Healthy Homes” to help protect naturally occurring affordable housing for middle-income families and seniors aging in place. I asked that the program monies be doubled this year, and the rest of the Council agreed, allowing more folks to benefit.
I continue to partner with our development community, asking them to provide affordable units in new multi-family projects, and they have stepped up to make that a reality.
Our CDBG (Community Development Block Grant (a HUD federal program) funding has been allocated to additional projects, making affordable housing projects come to fruition, and I’ll continue to look for more “surplus land” so that projects like 921 Maynard (a 126 unit mixed-income project sponsored by the Town) can develop and thrive. (And, working with our county and Congress representatives to get funding for even more projects!)
I have asked our staff to update ordinances for us to review – as specified in the Housing Plan. We need to review ordinances that will allow ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units) and look at other ordinances that might allow additional units to help the community.
Some residents have expressed concern about the rapid growth of Cary: redevelopment of the Town Hall campus, more nightlife and other projects. How can Cary grow, especially downtown, without losing its community character?
An area that could have turned to blight has become a thriving urban activity center, with life and vitality coming to our downtown streets. These changes have been slow, but the community has been involved in every step of the way. The Cary Community Plan envisioned this area to be higher density, walkable, and more urban, and in doing so, it also stressed the need to be mindful of keeping our small-town charm.
Maintaining that magic while we also embrace change is hard, but we are working to ensure that our downtown residents and everyone in Cary has a voice in the process. We have a Downtown Cary ombudsman who connects daily with the people and businesses. We embrace our hyper-local Chamber of Commerce for guidance, hold many events and booths and surveys at festivals, and we continue to survey our residents every other year, to make sure we have the pulse of the community.
What must Cary do to become more inclusive of marginalized residents, including African Americans, people of color, immigrants, poor or working class, and the LGBTQ+ community?
By working to bring the Wake County non-discrimination ordinance to council for approval, being intentional in improving our MEI score, and creating the DEI task force – I believe these are just some of the initiatives started in Cary to address some of these concerns. I have also participated in our Barbershop Rap sessions, to listen, learn, and connect with so many folks from our community.
We’ve brought some of our programs directly to communities. Our Project Phoenix program brings recreation programs and some food distribution to our lower-income areas, and our “play it forward” scholarship fund allows residents to apply for reduced and/or no-fee Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources programs. I would like to expand some of these programs.
Also, our DEI task force (called Human Relations, Inclusivity, and Diversity Task Force) has a work plan to look at many of our programs across town. I’m excited to see what other recommendations they come up with.
How can Cary continue to expand and protect its parks, greenways, and environment?
Parks and greenways have been one of the most loved parts of Cary, ranking first in our biennial survey, year after year. We’ve added a significant amount of focus to our sustainability programs and initiatives. I believe, and have advocated for environmental sustainability, and working to ensure it be a cornerstone principle of everything we do - from our street and park designs to building development and historic preservation, as well as our essential infrastructure that delivers water, sewer, trash and recycling. We need to add to our tree canopy and expand our “My Tree, Our Tree” program, expand our solar efforts to make it affordable to more residents, and expand our idling reduction program and add more electric vehicles to our fleet. We will soon be adding additional composting and more EV chargers, additional parks will come online, and all that we do should have the environment in mind.
Prioritizing all of these, especially the environment, are crucial to the vitality of our community. Our Parks, open space and tree canopy work to reduce harmful carbon pollution that is driving climate change, and they protect people and infrastructure from increasingly severe storms. Parks and greenways also offer respite from the heat, and provide places for people to connect, play and truly promote healthy living.
Walkable areas and greenways that connect places benefit health and local businesses, yielding a “green dividend” from reduced driving. Walking boosts creativity, productivity, tourism and local investments, while safer conditions reduce driving costs, traffic, and road repair expenses.
What three issues would you focus on in office that others might not? Why are they important for Cary?
Climate Action Plan: Cary needs to create a bold Community Climate Action Plan, a “Green Cary” with a net zero target by 2040. We should implement our rain garden program, expand composting programs to keep food waste out of the landfill, and work to find new recycling options for textiles and more.
Implement Cary’s Housing Plan: Housing is infrastructure, and we need to invest in town-sponsored affordable housing, address the missing middle, increase housing diversity and find new ways to partner for additional housing supply.
Invest in creating safe walkable and bikeable routes – create and implement a Bicycle Master plan, focus on closing sidewalk gaps and expanding greenways, and providing safe paths for more people to bike to work, eat and shop.
What specific life experiences or skills have prepared you for town governance?
Cary has received numerous accolades and awards and continues to be a great place to live, work, play, learn, own a business and raise a family.
I’ve worked to innovate, create and implement solutions that continue to make Cary the great place that it is, and have the experience doing this job already and had the fiduciary responsibility, as well.
As an engineer, I know how to make data-driven decisions; I have lived a life of service – from volunteering at Food Banks, to being a Big Brother/Big Sister, to serving on an HOA board or volunteering at nonprofits like the East Coast Greenway, and NC Museum of Natural Sciences — community service is in my DNA.
Please make note of any endorsements you’ve received that you consider to be important.
Equality NC
Mom’s Demand Action – Gun Sense Candidate (not an endorsement, but a distinction)
North Carolina Asian Americans Together
North Carolina Transit Workers Association
Sierra Club
Wake County Democratic Party
If you have any other goals or issues that you’d like to address, please do so here.
Known as the “technologist” on the Council, I have led the Smart Cities efforts that has Cary now recognized as a global leader, using technology to better engage citizens, improve town efficiencies, and leverage technology for insights into improving stormwater and public health. Our BioBot Opioid Wastewater Project helped us identify areas of high opioid levels, reducing overdoses by 40%. We need to continue to invest in innovative technology solutions to help us improve efficiencies, offer more services and connect with our Cary community in new ways.
