Christmas in September

👋 Good morning, Apex! Today is Thursday, September 4, 2025 and this is the 35th weekly issue of The Peak Weekly.

The NFL season kicks off this evening. This is getting harder and harder to say every year but… go Cowboys! (sigh)

But what I really need to talk to you about on this hot September day is Christmas.

Want to be in this year’s Annual Apex Rotary Christmas Parade?

Registration for parade participants opened up 3 days ago and is already about 50% full. So if your business, group, club, etc. wants to march down Salem Street on December 6, you better hurry!

It sounds like the parade (and those in it) will get a little extra exposure this year too. The Rotatry Club’s media partner this year is WRAL who will be live streaming the event on their website, replaying it at a later date, and promoting the event on all their platforms.

Register Here | General Parade Info

🎄 Since we’re talking about it… Christmas Tree pre-order pricing at Neighbor Boy Farms is now through the end of the month. Pre-order your tree here and then pick up Nov 20 - Dec 7.

(It’ll prompt you to pick a fundraiser to support when ordering. If you don’t have a preference, choose AFHS Band, which is how I found out about it).

Lastly, before we get into all the updates, my mom (who lives in South Carolina) sent me this and told me to put it in the newsletter. She’s already packing to make the 4-hour trip.

Next Saturday, if you are one of those Gilmore Girls people, put this in your calendar. Event info here

Ok let’s get into the good stuff…

Miscellaneous:

🚏 GoTriangle Senior GoPass
Those who are 65 or older are eligible for a free GoTriangle Senior GoPass. You can sign up on Thursday, September 25th from 10am-12pm at the Senior Center.

👝 Lunch with the Town Clerk
At the Halle Cultural Arts Center, today at noon, you are invited to bring your lunch and join Allen Coleman, Apex Town Clerk, for this quarter’s Brown Bags to Building Bridges Series. Get a behind-the-scenes view and learn more about the vital role that the Town Clerk’s Office plays in the day-to-day operations of the Town.

🏭️ Data Storage Facility
On Tuesday, Natelli Investments officially filed a zoning / land use amendment and annexation request with the Town of Apex for their proposed data storage facility in New Hill. According to the press release, Duke Energy’s transmission grid will serve the facility and it won’t create a strain on the town’s allocated power supply. Also, according to the release, water used to cool the facility will come from recirculating non-potable water and the facility will meet all land use requirements including noise, lighting and landscaping standards. Next stop: Town Council meeting for approval.

👩‍🏫 10% Off at Prepaze Academy
As a grand opening offer, if you register with Prepaze Academy in Sweetwater by tomorrow, Sept 5, you can get a 10% discount if you mention you read about Prepaze Academy in The Peak Weekly.

🏫 Proposed School Assignment Changes for 2026-27
On Tuesday, Wake County school administrators presented the first draft of a student assignment plan for the next school year. The part specific to Apex includes moving some students from Lufkin Road Middle and Salem Middle to Apex Middle, and to move some students from Apex Friendship High to Apex High. You can look up your address here to see if your student would be affected. The school board will hold a public hearing on October 21 and the final plan will be presented to the board on November 18 for a vote.

🥏 DISCover Ultimate Day
This fun, free event introduces youth athletes (ages 11-18) to the game of Ultimate Frisbee. It takes place this Saturday, September 6 from 9am-11am at Pleasant Park. Registration is recommended, but walk-ins are also welcome.

Things to Do This Weekend in Apex:

Today, September 4

🏍️ Motorcycle TransAm
3:30pm - 7pm | Apex Community Center

🍷 Tasty Wine Flight Thursday
7:30pm - 9:30pm | Peak of the Vine

Friday, September 5

🎸 Heather Rogers Live
7pm | Oaklyn Springs Brewery

Saturday, September 6

🧑‍🌾 Apex Farmers Market
8am - 12pm | The Depot

🤸🏼 Peak City Fitness Fest
9am - 4:45pm | Town Hall Campus

🚁 Change of Command Ceremony
10am | RDU

🎨 SuperFun Saturday
Free arts & crafts with Ms. Claudia
10:30am - 12:30pm | The Halle

🫜 Lifelong Gardening with NC Extension Master Gardeners
2pm - 3:30pm | Eva Perry Library

🪴 Plant/Seed Swap
2pm - 2:45pm | The Peak Church

🎸 Maskell Freeman Band
8pm | Peak of the Vine

Local Business Updates

🧂 The Spice & Tea Exchange is Now Open

The much-anticipated Spice & Tea Exchange at 104A North Salem is now open with over 140 spices, 85 hand-mixed blends, sugars, salts, 40+ teas, gifts and accessories.

→ See more on Facebook / Instagram

🕑️ Serafina Ristorante New Hours

Serafina is now open every day for lunch (menu), and on Sundays for brunch (menu).

Their new official hours are:

Monday through Thursday: 11AM–9PM
Friday & Saturday: 11AM–10PM
Sunday: 10AM(brunch)–9PM

✂️ Upcoming Grand Openings

💇‍♀️ Danielle Marie Hair Co.

Saturday, September 6 | 1pm-4pm
1451 Richardson Rd., Suite 111

There will be a mini style bar, a demo station, food & drinks, and raffles / giveaways. More info here. (Mention that you read about the Grand Opening in The Peak Weekly to get 5% off their Grand Opening new client offer.)

⚕ Black Diamond Chiropractic and Sports Performance

Friday, September 12 | 6pm-10pm
1541 Richardson Rd., Suite 128

Stop in (during Night Market) to learn more about Black Diamond and register for a chance to win $100 Fratelli’s gift card, $100 Mi Cancun gift card, or $100 Mama Bird’s Ice Cream gift card. More info here.

👀 A Little Speculation

I don’t have all the details on these, but here’s a little teaser on a few things to keep an eye on:

🛏️ Harmony Home
Harmony Home Furnishings is coming to Sweetwater, expected to open this month. According to their website, they provide, “Home Furnishing with a priority on sleep, beauty, and bringing Harmony to your home.”

🍛 Kaara the Modern Indian Restaurant
Located next to Mama Bird’s Ice Cream in Sweetwater, Kaara’s Instagram says opening this month.

🍛 Cinnamon Indian Cuisine
They filed a Certificate of Zoning for 1015 Davis Drive. I believe this would be the same restaurant as the Cinnamon Indian Cuisine in Greenville. That’s all the info and speculation I have at this time.

🪴 Lichen or Know Living & Plant Co
If you recall from the July 3 newsletter, I mentioned that Lichen or Knot was coming to Apex. There are now some signs up in the windows at 122 N Salem St. While I don’t have any further information on an opening date, this seems to indicate that things are moving along. Lichen or Knot originates in Virginia and you can check them out here.

Civil News:

💡 Utility Update
During the week of August 25, the Town’s Call Center received approximately 800 phone calls specifically related to utility billing. In the 14 months since the cybersecurity incident, not only has a resolution to that issue still not been delivered, the issues and trust have been largely compounded.

Mayor Gilbert has asked the Town Manager to stand up an Emergency Operations Center for stronger oversight and accountability. You can watch him talk about it here.

🚪 Closed Sessions
Yesterday, Town Council held a special closed-door session. Today, they will hold another. The purpose is to conduct an annual performance review for a few contracted positions. Since it is personnel related, it takes place behind the scenes.

🏚️ Tunstall House Renovation
This project has officially kicked off. The Apex Senior Center Lot is now closed and will remain closed for the duration of the project (about a year). The handicapped parking spaces in front of the Senior Center, the Go Apex bus stop, and the covered drop-off are not impacted. 

🛣️ Olive Chapel Road Closure
NCDOT has updated the project page to reflect an anticipated re-open date of November 26, 2025.

👩🏻‍💻 New HR Director
The Town recently hired a new Human Resources Director, Karmen McGee. Get to know her here.

🗓️ Important Upcoming Dates

Monday, September 8
Planning Board Meeting
4:30pm | Town Hall

Tuesday, September 9
Regular Town Council Meeting
6pm | Town Hall

Wednesday, September 10
Multimodal Transportation Advisory Board
4pm-5:30pm | Town Hall

Thursday, September 11
Patriot Day Ceremony
9:30am | Saunders St. & N Salem St.

A September Look Ahead:

September 11, 2025
Patriot Day Ceremony
9:30am | Saunders & Salem

September 13, 2025
Eco Kids: Animal Signs Discovery Walk
1pm - 3pm | Harris Energy & Environmental Center

September 19, 2025
Apex Community Dance
7pm - 9pm | The Halle

September 20, 2025
Festa Italiana
11am - 7pm | Town Hall Campus

September 25, 2025
Explore S’more
6pm - 7:30pm | Nature Park Amphitheater

September 27, 2025
Latino Arts & Culinary Festival
3pm - 9pm | The Depot

In Case You Missed it:

🌈 The More You Know
Did you know that you can email the Town Council all at once? Questions, comments, concerns, etc. can be sent to all council members by emailing [email protected]

📱 Project Development Map
I developed an updated and more mobile-friendly version of the Town’s Development Dashboard. Curious what is taking the place of the old car wash on 55? You can find the answer using the development map tool! (if you don’t want to be click-baited, the answer is The Look Salon Suites)

🌳 Trees for the Triangle
Tickets are now on sale for this year's Cary Environmental Symposium. Four amazing weeks featuring guest speakers from all walks of life as they discuss hands-on ways we can confront climate change and mitigate environmental issues. Get more info and grab tickets here.

A Final Note:

Thank you for taking time out of your day today to read this week’s edition of The Peak Weekly.

As always, if you have any ideas of how to make this newsletter better, want to nominate a local business or organization to be featured, or anything else, please respond to this email or email me directly at [email protected]

See you next Thursday... 😘