The Wake County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals encourages you to go green and save green this spring.

Wake is continuing its pilot Styrofoam recycling program until Saturday, April 30, 2011, at the county's multi-material recycling facilities.

Wake County is conducting a pilot Styrofoam recycling program at the North and South Wake Multi-Material facilities.

Do you have old or disused telephone books cluttering up your house? The City of Raleigh will make it easier to dispose of those through May 1.

The Wake County commissioners have given up on the prospect of a referendum this year on a half-cent sales tax to pay for beefed-up bus and rail transit service.

Orange and Durham leaders say they still might consider holding their votes in November. But it will be May 2012, at the earliest, before Wake voters are asked to consider a transit tax hike.

Transportation planners in Wake are running out of time to map detailed bus routes and train plans that would need several levels of approval – by county commissioners and 12 town boards – before voters could be asked to pay for them.

And David Cooke, the Wake County manager, said voters might not want to consider a new transit tax when state and local governments are preparing to slash spending.

“In the public’s mind, it’s a tough sell on why – if you’re in a position to cut service or lay off employees – to have a conversation about adding a new revenue stream so you can do something new,” Cooke said. ... [MORE]

The Marlins of Raleigh-Wolfpack Aquatics, the YMCA of the Triangle Area and the New Wave Swim Team swept the top three spots in the N.C. Swimming Senior Championships held Thursday through Sunday at the Triangle Aquatics Center in Cary.
 

Make your holiday season a little greener this year by recycling holiday waste. Wake County will hold the Holiday Wrap-Up Recycling Program, which begins Sunday, Dec. 26 and runs through Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011.

The JoJammers won the silver medal in the women’s softball 55-plus division at the Senior Games of North Carolina State Finals played Sept. 13-15 at the Walnut Creek Softball Complex in Raleigh.

The JoJammers, from the Raleigh Wake Senior Games, finished second to the Why Nots, who advanced from the Alamance Burlington Senior Games.

Results from other divisions are below.

Developer Greg Hatem is asking Wake County leaders to give him at least three more years to begin construction on a prominent downtown project. 

In a letter dated Oct. 1, Hatem told Wake County officials that his company, Empire Properties, would not meet a county-imposed deadline that required construction of The L Building to begin by Nov. 16.

The L Building, a mix of offices and shops, was supposed to wrap around the county parking deck at the corner of McDowell and Davie streets. The project has been stalled because of the credit crunch, which has resulted in the parking deck sitting naked with its rough concrete exterior exposed.

The Wake County Commissioners gave Hatem an 18-month extension in May 2009.

Hatem is requesting that his company's agreement with the county be extended until November 2013.

He also wants to add a clause in the agreement that would allow for another three-year extension in November 2013 if the state's unemployment rate and the Triangle office vacancy rate are above where they were in March 2007.

That's the date Empire and the county entered into their public-private agreement.

Hatem did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
 

If you haven't noticed, cleanup events are sweeping across North Carolina, and the biggest chunk of them are happening this weekend in Wake County. This Saturday, Oct. 2, is designated as North Carolina Big Sweep Day, so step outside and help keep our county beautiful by volunteering at one of the following locations near you. (Events listed are on Saturday unless otherwise noted.)