Company Profile
Cary, North Carolina
Company Overview
Cary is a thriving community in the heart of the Triangle area of North Carolina, between Raleigh and renowned Research Triangle Park. The Triangle area is repeatedly ranked among the top regions in the country to live or work, to find a home or start a business, to raise a family or retire.
Money Magazine named Cary, North Carolina, the hottest town in the East and one of six Hottest Towns in America. Cary was also recognized by Money Magazine as one of the Best Small Cities in America, ranking an impressive fifth on one of the magazine's annual lists of Best Places to Live. As noted in several major publications, Cary's accolades are numerous.
On the whole, Caryites are a hard-working group with one of the highest median household incomes in the state. And being no further than 20 minutes from major universities such as Duke, North Carolina State, and the University of North Carolina, it's no wonder that education is an important part of Cary life. More than two-thirds of adults hold a college degree. About 97 percent of citizens have access to the Internet in this, the Technology Town of North Carolina.
Cary continually ranks as one of the top 20 safest large cities nationally and the safest in the Southeast. Its Police and Fire departments and Emergency Medical Services are nationally accredited.
Cary is home to world class businesses and national retail stores. Our fast-growing Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources program has something for everyone, regardless of age or interest.
School-age children comprise nearly a quarter of Cary's population. Yet people of retirement age are the fastest-growing group in Cary. Nineteen percent of townspeople were born in another country, and the Asian population - Cary's largest minority - tripled during the 1990s.
Cary is proactive. We're conserving drinking water by reclaiming treated wastewater for irrigation and industrial processes; we're preserving open space; we're integrating sustainability into all that we do; and working with citizens and county leaders to make our schools even better.
Yet we've remained the Town of Cary while growing to more than 155,000 people.
At the Town of Cary, we focus every day on enriching the lives of our citizens by creating an exceptional environment and providing exemplary services that enable our community to thrive and prosper.
Cary by the Numbers
Population: ~172,000
Median age: 36.6 years (2010 Census)
GPS Location: (Chatham and Academy streets) 35.7873 -78.7812
Company History
Although settlers had lived in the area for over a hundred years, the beginnings of the town are traced to 1854 with the arrival of Allison Francis (Frank) Page and the state?owned North Carolina Railroad (the northernmost track). An astute business entrepreneur, lumberman, contractor and miller, Page purchased 300 acres of land for $2000 and built a homestead, a sawmill, a post office, a dry goods store and a hotel near the railroad. A second railroad, the Chatham, reached the town in 1868.
Thanks to the leadership of Frank Page, Cary was incorporated in 1871. Page served as Cary's first Mayor and postmaster. The town was named after Samuel Fenton Cary, a temperance leader and Union general from Ohio. Because of Page's opposition to whiskey, the town was incorporated as a "dry" community and remained so for the next one hundred years. Page and his wife, Catherine Raboteau from Cumberland County, raised eight children in a house that was located on the site of the present Town Hall.
On the utility front, Cary's first fire hydrant was placed in service in 1925. In 1993, Cary took hold of it's own water future with the opening of the Cary/Apex Water Treatment Facility. Following two major upgrades, the treatment capacity is currently 56 million gallons per day. In 2001, Cary became the first municipality in the state to operate a reclaimed water system.
Notable Products / Brands
Cary's largest employers include: SAS Institute, MetLife, Verizon, Siemens Medical, ABB, HCL America, and American Airlines
Notable Accomplishments / Recognition
Lowest Property Crime in the South: Midsize Cities
Safeco Insurance has ranked Cary No. 1 in its list of highest/lowest instances of property crime. Cary is also known for its safety. In 2015, SmartAsset ranked the 200 safest cities in the country, and Cary clinched the No. 4 spot.
Safest City in the Southeast and America
Still one of the safest cities in America, Cary is consistently rated one of the Safest Cities in the Southeast among municipalities with populations of 100,000-500,000, and a new 2016 study lists the Town again. Smart Asset ranked Cary 4th safest city in the nation in 2015. And in 2014, Cary had the lowest total crime rate for municipalities its size in the U.S. based upon data published in the FBI's annual Uniform Crime Report. Cary was also named the 3rd safest city in the nation by WallStreet.com.
Safest Cities to Drive in Bad Weather
Allstate ranked Cary one of the 10 safest cities to drive in during bad weather in its 2016 report.
Best Places to Live
In 2015, Cary ranked 6th, up from 8th in 2014, on 24/7 Wall Street’s America’s 50 Best Places to Live in America.
Top Town for Families
Forbes touted the Raleigh-Cary area as #1 for raising a family in 2014 and @bizjournals rated Raleigh-Cary as one of the best areas for raising kids.
Most Affordable Places in North Carolina
According to Movato, the Town of Cary is considered one of the most affordable places to live in the state, ranking at #9 on its overall list in 2014.
Sound Investment for Good Living
In 2014, Cary was named the best city for home ownership by NerdWallet, the 4th best city to launch a startup company by CNN Money, and the 4th best city for job growth by Forbes.
Best Mid-Sized City for Relocation
Cary was ranked the 3rd best U.S. mid-sized city to move to and one of the 10 best cities in North Carolina by Movato in 2013. Cary also ranked 2nd on Relocate-America.com's annual list of America's Top 100 Places to Live.
Best City for Early Retirement
According to Kiplinger, the Town of Cary ranks #2 on its list of best cities for early retirement.
Top City for Tech
Raleigh-Cary MSA is one of the top places in the country creating tech jobs according to Forbes magazine, who designated the area second on its list.
Hottest Town
The Town of Cary was named the “hottest town” over 100,000 in the East by Money Magazine and one of the six most desirable places to live in America. Cary was also recognized by Money Magazine as one of the Best Small Cities in America, ranking fifth on the magazine's list of Best Places to Live.
Best possible financial position
Milken Institute’s 2015 Best Performing Cities’ List ranks Cary 6th among similar cities.
The Town of Cary is one of seven municipalities in North Carolina with the best possible credit ratings from the leading New York investment firms - Moody's, Fitch, and Standard & Poor's.
Best run cities in America
Sitting at 24/7 Wall Street’s #7 spot in 2013, Cary is among the best run cities in America.
Commitment to sound budgeting
The Town of Cary is a perennial recipient of the Government Finance Officers award for Distinguished Budget Presentation, demonstrating the highest principles of governmental budgeting.
The highest standards in government accounting and financial reporting
The Government Finance Officers Association of United States and Canada annually recognizes the Town of Cary for excellence in comprehensive financial reporting.
Continuing excellence in accounting and financial management
The State Treasurer's office has honored Cary with its Governmental Award for running innovative and progressive programs.
Best high schools in America
US News ranked Cary’s Green Hope High School among the best in America.
Groundbreaking in public education
North Carolina's first public high school was on the campus of what is now Cary Elementary School. In 2011, it was restored and reopened as the Cary Arts Center.
The Technology Town of North Carolina
Ninety-seven percent of Cary's citizens have access to the Internet at home or at work — about twice the national average. The town's top employer is SAS Institute, Inc., the largest privately held software developer in the world. The Town of Cary website has more than 55,000 files. Connected by more than 80 miles of fiber optics, Cary has the most advanced traffic timing and monitoring program in the region.
Benefits
Cary is pleased to provide a competitive, comprehensive benefits program to serve the needs of our employees and their families.
Because Cary believes that employees are one of our most important resources, significant dollars (averaging about 40% of annual salary per employee) are spent each year on employee benefits.
All regular and probationary full-time and part-time employees of the Town of Cary are eligible, and benefits coverage for new employees and family members is effective upon an employee's hire date.
Medical Insurance Highlights
The Town's medical plan is administered by Blue Cross/Blue Shield of NC (BCBSNC) Blue Options. Additionally, the Town provides a comprehensive wellness initiative which provides opportunities to qualify for lower health insurance premiums through voluntary health screening and assessment programs.
The Town's dental plan is is administered by Delta Dental, which is America’s largest dental administrator.
The Town's vision plan, which is included as part of an employee's medical benefits package, is administered by Superior.
Superior Vision Plan Summary
The Town's prescription plan, which is included as part of an employee's medical benefits package, is administered by CVS/Caremark.
The Town’s medical and dependent flexible spending accounts are administered by P&A Group. As part of an employee’s benefits package, they may elect to enroll in a pre-tax health and/or dependent care flexible spending account to pay for eligible expenses.
Basic life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance policies are administered by Reliance Standard Life Insurance. The Town provides basic life insurance equal to 1x an employee’s annual salary, up to a maximum of $200,000, at no cost.
Employees may also purchase supplemental voluntary life insurance for themselves and eligible dependents.
All regular benefits eligible employees working in excess of 20 hours per week are enrolled in membership with the North Carolina Local Governmental Employees’ Retirement System (NC LGERS) upon their date of hire. Employees contribute 6% of their annual salary on a pre-tax basis.
The Town provides a supplemental retirement benefit of 5% of an employee’s gross salary to all eligible employees. Employees have a choice of participation in a 401(k) plan administered by Prudential Retirement or a 401(a) plan administered by Voya Financial. Employees may also contribute additional voluntary deductions each pay period to the Prudential 401(k) and/or Voya 457 plans.
The Town’s free and confidential Employee Assistance Program is administered by ComPsych. This benefit is available for employees and eligible family members.
The Town provides paid holidays, vacation, sick leave, paid parental leave, and certain other paid and/or unpaid leaves to all full-time and part-time employees.
Vacation leave begins accumulating from an employee’s date of hire, however, employees are required to complete six months of service before vacation leave time is available for use.
Employees earn one day per month (12 days per year) of sick leave. The Town also offers six weeks of paid parental leave, additional unpaid parental leave, free short-term disability leave, shared leave, Family Medical leave, civil leave, and military leave.
Other Important Benefits Highlights
Employee Wellness Programs
Tuition Assistance
Employee Recognition Programs
Flexible Schedules
Eldercare Resources
Local Government Credit Union Membership/Local Banking Programs
Workers’ Compensation