What’s happening to the trees and streetlights on Cary’s Academy Street? What to know
If you’re driving down South Academy Street in downtown Cary this week, you will see some changes along the sidewalks — including a long row of tree stumps.
Several streetlights are being removed and replaced with temporary light fixtures in preparation for the upcoming relocation of the historic Ivey-Ellington House.
The home has been at 123 W. Chatham St. for the last 150 years and will move to a new site around the corner at 308 S. Academy St. next week.
The move is part of the town of Cary’s agreement to make way for new commercial and residential development in the area.
Since January, the town of Cary has been preparing the foundation for the Ivey-Ellington House relocation including moving items out of the house and construction on the new site.
Last week, the town removed smaller trees and cut down branches of larger trees on Academy Street.
They will soon be replanted, or replaced with something else, according to Gillian White, the town’s historic preservation program manager.
The streetlight removal
The rehabilitation process for the Ivey-Ellington House will last all year, White told The News & Observer on Monday.
This includes ensuring the exterior markings around the house are placed or reinstalled, and other fixtures that were removed along South Academy Street are replaced.
The removal of the streetlights began at 4 a.m. Monday and will continue throughout the week. In total, 16 streetlights will be removed temporarily.
White said there should not be any major traffic changes or delays but the work will temporarily limit on-street parking.
Monday evening, the west side of the street was blocked off on the west side of South Academy Street to make room for Duke Energy trucks working on the removals, White said.
Decorative planters will fill the spaces where the streetlights were to cover any bolts sticking up through the ground, she added.
By next week, the streetlights should all be reinstalled.
The tree removal
White said the trees posed a safety hazard for the move.
“They’re like Columnar oak trees, and part of that (removal) was because they create a site obstruction with a crosswalk,” White said. “So we were actually planning to remove some of those anyway because it was kind of a dangerous spot as you couldn’t really see people that were stepping out onto the crosswalk.”
Temporary planters have been set up for flowers and plants to cover where the trees were, White said.
The limbs of a large tree in front of First Baptist Church on Academy Street were trimmed and two trees beside the Academy Street Bistro were removed, White said.
What to expect next
White said the home will be lifted on Thursday this week and placed on wheels, similar to a dolly system. White said it will then be moved to 204 South Academy Street and will stay until next week.
“Each system moves independently than the other so basically they can turn, spin in circles, and it’s much easier than moving it on a truck or something,” White said.
A tablet is used to control the wheels, White said.
“It’s a house on wheels, like a giant remote control car,” she said.
Beginning at 8 a.m. on Feb. 20, South Academy Street will be blocked off, including the sidewalks from Waldo Street to Dry Avenue for the relocation of the house.
The streets and sidewalks will reopen once the house is removed around 4 p.m., and for the next four to five months, the house will be fenced in as other rehabilitation efforts take place.
For more information on the Ivey-Ellington House removal and rehabilitation, visit townofcary.org/projects-initiatives.
This story was originally published February 14, 2023 at 5:45 AM.