In Brief: Garner is one of the fastest-growing towns in the nation

Garner is experiencing rapid growth, with nearly 5,000 new residents between 2023 and 2024, making it one of the fastest-growing towns in the nation.

It is the 10th highest nationally for communities with populations larger than 20,000.

While downtown Main Street retains its familiar charm, significant changes are taking shape, including new small businesses, improved sidewalks, a Recreation Center that opened in 2021, and an upcoming mixed-use development—the first of its kind in Garner.

Mayor Buddy Gupton emphasizes that growth is inevitable, and town officials aim to manage it in a positive way.

The town’s leaders are working to accommodate this growth while maintaining its sense of community. Local business owners have noticed increased foot traffic, which is helping independent businesses thrive.

Town of Garner’s New Open Data Site Provides One-Stop Shop for Interactive Maps and Data Sets

The Town has launched a new open data portal, making exploration of interactive maps and data about our community easier than ever.

The site features information on parks and facilities, development activity, capital improvement projects, sidewalks, town limits and road maintenance responsibilities. The new platform is a valuable resource for residents, developers and anyone else interested in learning more about Garner’s growth and infrastructure.

Wake County Commissioners Approve Regional EMS Services Station in Garner

Wake County commissioners on July 11th agreed to move forward with plans to build a new, 12,748-square-foot regional emergency medical services station in the Town of Garner.

The Garner Main EMS Station is a prototype that will serve not only as a base of operations for the units and personnel deployed there, but as a hub for Wake County EMS providers throughout the region.

The station will offer expanded medical storage, oxygen inventory and dedicated space for on-duty training. It will feature six bay parking spaces for emergency vehicles and three covered service bays to service, resupply and stock EMS response units. An electric vehicle charging station, along with two parking spaces, will be located on site.

The Garner Main EMS Station will be the second county facility to open with solar panels built into its original design. This will generate 40,000 kilowatts of power annually, offsetting 34% of the building’s electric consumption and saving $2,600 annually.

This project is part of Wake County’s solar portfolio, which will total 530 kW-DC once this project is complete. That’s enough to power about 40 homes and offset the greenhouse gas emissions of 74 passenger cars each year.

Read more at https://www.wakegov.com/.../new-regional-ems-station...

The station will be located on Thompson Road, adjacent to Timber Drive Elementary.

Garner's Station Podcast #14: Jeff Triezenberg, Garner Planning Director

Rick Mercier sits down with Garner's planning director, Jeff Triezenberg, to talk about what a planning department does and how Garner continues to plan for future growth. Topics include reexamination of Garner's UDO (unified development ordinance), traffic impact, public transit and much more in this latest episode of Garner's Station Podcast.

Garner Announced as Location for New VA Clinic

Garner, NC—The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has announced that it recently accepted an offer to lease 244,860 square feet of space for a new outpatient multi-specialty clinic in the Town of Garner.

The site for the new construction is approximately 17 acres located on the west side of N.C. 50 between Rand Road and Arbor Greene Drive. The real property investment amount for the project is estimated to be about $100 million.

“This facility will be a great addition to our community. We are proud that the Town of Garner will be known throughout the region as a hub for veterans' health-care services,” Mayor Ken Marshburn said. “Our veterans deserve the finest of care, and I’m confident that this new facility will provide outstanding care to the men and women who have served our country in the armed forces. I’m sure the VA staff and veterans who come to Garner for services will find us to be a welcoming and compassionate community that deeply appreciates what our veterans have done to ensure our freedoms.”

VA officials said they were enthusiastic about bringing a facility of this scale to Garner and Wake County.

“The Durham VA Health Care System values our local community partners’ efforts in helping us to keep the nation’s promise to our veterans,” said DVAHCS Executive Director Paul Crews. “The new outpatient facility will employ nearly 400 VA employees, ranging from administrative support to health-care providers. It will offer primary care and mental-health services to nearly 25,000 veterans annually from Wake County and surrounding areas.”

Limited specialty services may include cardiology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, pulmonology, pathology, audiology and speech, rehabilitation medicine, and imaging services including CT and MRI. A pharmacy and eye clinic could also be a part of the facility. VA officials say that specialty services could change based on demand and need at the facility.

“We are excited about the development and construction of a modern, state-of-the-art facility that will allow the Durham VA Health Care System to ensure that veterans who choose VA receive the highest-quality care. This facility will allow us to provide veterans with the right care, in the right place, at the right time,” said Fred Roche, administrator of the new VA facility.

A joint venture, Atriax/PPGG JV, based in Hickory, N.C., will serve as the developer and lessor for the center. The majority of the lessor’s design, construction and operations team is based in North Carolina. The Atriax/PPGG JV is a service-disabled, veteran-owned business with years of experience in U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs projects.

“As a veteran-owned company, we couldn’t be more proud to serve the veterans of North Carolina through this important project and the critical health-care services to be delivered by the professionals in the VA,” Atriax principal George Auten said.

Brenda H. Compton with locally based Hartwell Realty represents the property owners in the sale for the project.

“It was truly an honor for me and the Hartwell Realty team to be involved in a project that will have such a meaningful economic impact on Garner while providing a much-needed service for our veterans,” Compton said. “This multifaceted transaction could not have been successful without the hard work and collaboration of the Atriax Group, property owners and local municipalities. It’s a huge win for Garner and our regional economy.”

For more information on the Durham VA Health Care System, please contact Shahron James at 919.928.3997 or by email at shahron.james@va.gov For more information on economic development matters in Garner, please contact Joe Stallings at 919.773.4431 or at jstallings@garnernc.gov.