Bet that plant in Apex, NC was located in a mostly poor, mostly minority

[wholetruth00]

community. i could be wrong but i don't think so.

[dsc]

1. actually no

Apex is a fairly white, upper middle class suburb of Raleigh. I would imagine when the plant was first built it was a very rural area.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

2. what? where? what did I miss?

details are your friend.

:shrug:

[dsc]

3. a disposal plant for chemical waste

caught fire and burnt for several hours and thousands had to be evacuated.

[Ecumenist]

4. That's usually the case,,

it's all about NIMBY and those that have the least more often than not, find themselves the lucky recipients of every poisonous compound known to man in their neighborhood. If anyone is familiar with the SF Bay Area, I only have to mention Pinole, Richmond, Martinez, Hercules, etc.. Hell, in lots of these places, the paint LITERALLY peels off of the walls.

[ncrainbowgrrl]

5. Nope- here's some Apex,NC town info:

from: http://www.city-data.com/city/Apex-North-Carolina.html

Population (year 2000): 20,212.
Estimated population in July 2005: 28,551 (+41.3% change)

Males: 9,993 (49.4%), Females: 10,219 (50.6%)

Wake County

Zip code: 27502

Median resident age: 31.2 years
Median household income: $71,052 (year 2000)
Median house value: $178,800 (year 2000)

Races in Apex:
White Non-Hispanic (83.4%)
Black (7.5%)
Hispanic (3.2%)
Asian Indian (1.7%)
Two or more races (1.7%)
Chinese (1.3%)
Other race (1.1%)
American Indian (0.7%)

For population 25 years and over in Apex
High school or higher: 96.0%
Bachelor's degree or higher: 58.8%
Graduate or professional degree: 17.0%
Unemployed: 1.7%
Mean travel time to work: 25.4 minutes

[wholetruth00]

6. Ok, I stand corrected. Just basing my opinion on history. Thanks

[ncrainbowgrrl]

8. I would have had the same initial thought...

if I didn't live near there and have friends who live in Apex.

[KoKo]

7. No it was in an area with McMansions....Really....I know...hard to believe

but folks McMortgaged to the max to live in Upscale Homes right next to that plant...

Yankee's suckered by the great NC Weather.... Bigger House than one could afford anywhere else in USA but built with Mexican Labor, and either didn't know about the EPA Hazard in back yard...or figured it wasn't important....given the beauty of the house and neighborhood.

It's the NEW SOUTH....Don't Ask...Don't tell....

I say this as a Southerner, Yankee, now back in the South. But, wiser for having lived here and left and come back than those who think they left ALL their problems behind when they moved here...:-(

[WorseBeforeBetter]

10. That's an interesting point.

In keeping with your post, I'm a northerner who ended up in Raleigh for affordable (no mortgage) real estate, but definitely see myself back north within 5 years (mortgage be damned!). On the surface the area seems really beautiful, people are well educated and friendly, crime is relatively low, affordable housing can still be found, there's plenty to do with the big 3 universities, etc. But dig deeper, and it's not so pretty. Just some observations:

--People are flocking to the area, and no one wants to pay taxes. The public school (or lack thereof) situation is ridiculous. Someone I met this past weekend said his property tax bill on a small home and 3 acres in Harnett County was about $500. Is that even possible?! (Someone from Jersey was with us and she almost fell out of her chair...)

--Rush hours are bad and getting worse, especially in the morning when parents/kids avoiding reassignment busing are driving to school. Roads are not keeping up with growth and (big surprise) developers are getting away with it. Will 540 ever be completed and how serious are they about making it a toll road?

--Light rail is off the table, right? The Indy had an interesting article not too long ago about light rail in Charlotte - sounds like a really exciting project. I don't know why Raleigh, the state capital, with the airport, NC State/Centennial, and RTP cannot get it together! At least link Raleigh and Durham (I can hear some of my Driving Miss Daisy N. Raleigh neighbors gasping now...).

--PCBs at Umstead. E. coli in Cary. Shearon Harris.

--This is nitpicking, but I rarely see crews out maintaining trees, etc. It is green and in some areas very lush, so much so that street signs are blocked. Lanes end with no warning and signs are needed for upcoming streets. My favorite sign is the one that just says "Cary." WTF in Cary does the ramp lead you? And don't get me started on light synchronization! :-)

In general, it seems that Raleigh doesn't seem to know what it wants to be. Is it going to be Atlanta with sprawl and $1M condos at the "midtown" Soleil Center? I'll echo what I've heard others say - there doesn't seem to be "vision" - and I really hope that changes. Durham, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro all have a vibe that's easily distinguishable - can't quite make out Raleigh.

(Sorry this post is so long - once I got started, I couldn't stop! Think I'll post to NC - would love feedback from others in the area.)

[KoKo]

11. I understand what you say....

Raleigh doesn't know what it wants to be. It had a chance about 14 years ago before the big boom...but the developers took over and have gone wild. No planning for all the children that would be moving into all those houses and apartments....and folks won't pay taxes to build schools or pass laws to limit the development or at least tax the developers to pay some money like a "use fee" to pay for the schools that will need to be built. Raleigh lost it's small town friendly feel and now it's just a suburb with big beautiful houses and people who have little in common with each other.

The downtown is the old South and that maintains a community but the rest of us are out in la la land....

The weather keeps us and that we have a business. The taxes in the NE would kill us now... But we need to pay more taxes for education and more arts. I'd be happy to but most wouldn't.

Thanks for your post.... I didn't want to sound cranky...there's lots to like about Raleigh...but the lack of identity, is worrisome to us, too.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

12. Thanks for responding, you make good points.

I didn't mean to seem cranky either, it's just this bothersome realization that there isn't much of an identity. Not sure how it will get one either, but it should be interesting to watch the powers-that-be work toward it.

[bowens43]

9. You'd lose.

[Control-Z]

13. No, Apex is very

nice. The future ex an I live in Cali and just by chance our families all ended up in NC. His sisters, both in Apex, evacuated very large homes. These people are far from poor or minority. They are white, well off and their shit don't stink. (well, not 'til this morning. :evilgrin: )

Edit: for lots of typos because my contacts are dry and stuck to my eyeballs:eyes: