Pure Gold & Pizza Tirolese

👋 Good Morning, Apex! Today is Thursday, February 26, 2026 and this is the 60th consecutive weekly issue of The Peak Weekly.

I’d like to introduce you to Axel. He's our intern this week:

He wants you to know that he’s responsible for any typos in today's email. He also wanted to remind you that the Wake County Animal Center has been closed since January 16 for repairs, but is set to open back up on Monday, March 2nd. He says you should adopt, not shop and that he’s really excited to grow up a bit more so that he can get neutered because that’s really important.

That advice is pure gold.

Also pure gold - a 17 pound rock used as a door stop in North Carolina back in 1799.

Conrad Reed, a 12-year-old, found it while bow-fishing, thought the big shiny rock looked cool, brought it home and then his family used it as a door stop for about 3 years before they discovered that the rock was pure gold.

That is the first documented gold discovery ever in the United States, which kicked off the very first gold rush in our country’s history - right here in North Carolina.

That’s a big discovery.

Also a big discovery - local officials in Warrenton, Virginia, Orange County, Virginia, and Falls Township, Pennsylvania all signed NDAs practically identical to the one signed in Apex. And in all cases, the other party of the NDA was Amazon, for the development of a data center.

We have submitted a public record request for the Town to state the name of the other party on the record, as required by North Carolina Public Record Laws.

The evidence points to Amazon. But the question remains, whether it’s Amazon or not, why did the Town and this other party sign an NDA that was meant to go unnoticed in a records request, and why did it contain language that, if followed, would violate North Carolina public record laws by illegally destroying public records? And why was staff, under the direction of a Town Manager bound by an NDA, put in charge of research and UDO recommendations rather than hiring an independent, outside consultant and subject matter experts?

There are still a lot of questions that need to be answered. And I will keep you posted as I find out those answers.

In the meantime, if you feel like digging into the details of the NDAs, outcomes of those other Amazon data centers, concerns about the internal data center research and more, you can read all about it here.

It’s about a 10 minute read, but gives some pretty good context to what's going on. I punted the social media story to next week because of these developments, but stay tuned for that!

Miscellaneous Info:

🏢 Morrisville Apartment Fire: How to Help
More than 70 residents were displaced Monday, Feb. 23 night after a fire tore through the third floor of a Morrisville apartment complex. The following donations and fundraisers have been started to help the displaced residents: the Red Cross is accepting donations, the Carolina Asian Alliance is holding a food drive, and NeighborUp is also raising donations (make sure to indicate for “fire relief”)

💡 Preparing Youth to Lead and Thrive
Today, February 26 from 6-8pm at the Apex Senior Center, the Town will be hosting the next in its series of CommUniversity workshops for the community to learn how to intentionally design programs and opportunities that prepare youth to become confident and effective community leaders, while also giving them the skills and experiences needed for future career success.

🥙 Apex Restaurant Week
This is going on now and will continue through Sunday 3/1. This annual celebration invites residents and visitors to explore Apex’s diverse dining scene through specially priced lunch and dinner menus at participating local restaurants.

🏃 Run the Peak
Next Saturday, March 7, is the Apex Chamber’s 5th Annual Run the Peak event. The 5k/10k will start at 8am. The kids Fun Run will begin at 9am. Register here.

🏘️ Developer Roundtable
The Town of Apex Community Development & Neighborhood Connections (CDNC) Housing Division will convene local and regional development partners (homebuilders, affordable home developers, and nonprofit partners) for a Developer Roundtable, “Partnering to Build Homes for All in Apex,” on March 11th 12:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Apex Senior Center.

🗳️ Wake County 2026 Primary Election
The last day for early voting is this Saturday, February 28. And then you’ll have one last chance on election day, Tuesday, March 3. All the details on early voting and election day voting can be found here. If you’re unsure what the primaries are all about, we shared some details in last week’s newsletter, which you can see here.

🏞️ Beaver Creek Greenway
A section between Kelly Road and Patterson Grove will be closed February 26–27 (this Today/Friday) for bridge repairs.

👗 The Prom Shoppe at Apex UMC
Free prom dresses, shoes, makeup and accessories for girls in need. Tomorrow (Friday, 27th) fro 3-7pm and Saturday 10am-1pm.

🏭️ Data Center Discussions - Air Quality
Several individuals spoke out against the data center proposal again during this week’s Town Council meeting. You can watch all of those speeches here. The primary theme from those discussions was air quality. One of those speakers was a 26-year resident of Apex who is a Chemical Engineer and Professor of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at UNC Chapel Hill. Additionally, he is the Director of the Center for Environmental Modeling for Policy Development at the UNC Institute for the Environment. You can watch his speech, among the others, at the link above. Or, read the transcript and see the supporting visuals on this blog post, put together by another Apex neighbor.

Things to Do This Week in Apex:

Friday, February 27

👠 Cinderella!
7pm | Apex High School

🎤 MikeMickXer Duo
8pm - 11pm | Peak of the Vine

Saturday, February 28

🏍️ Bikes and Coffee
8am - 11am | Fratelli’s Deli

🧑‍🌾 Apex Farmers Market
9am - 12pm | The Depot

🏃‍♀️ Run Club Apex
Meet at 9am | Foxtail Coffee

🪞 Winter Vintage Fest
11am - 4pm | The Vintage Nook

👠 Cinderella!
2pm | Apex High School

✂️ Crafter-noon!
3pm - 5pm | Bottle Theory

🎻 United Strings of Color: Partnership in Black Music
7pm - 8:30pm | The Halle

👠 Cinderella!
7pm | Apex High School

🎸 Skeleton Crew
8pm - 11pm | Peak of the Vine

🎤 Rudy’s Karaoke
9pm | Rudy’s Pub & Grill

Monday, March 2

📚️ Sweetwater Book Club: Broken Country
6pm - 8pm | Southern Peak Taproom & Pizzeria

🎲 Game Night
7pm - 10pm | Bottle Theory

Tuesday, March 3

🌿 Invasive Plant Removal Day
10am - 12pm | Apex Community Park

🧠 Trivia Night
7pm - 8pm | Abbey Road Tavern

🤣 The Backyard Comedy Night
8pm - 10pm | The Backyard Bar

Wednesday, March 4

🏌️‍♀️ Tees & Tea for Women’s History
6pm - 7:30pm | Knights Play Golf Course

🏃 Rudy’s Run Club
6:30pm | Rudy’s Pub & Grill

🏃 The Run Club at Sweetwater
6:30pm | Southern Peak Taproom & Pizzeria

🔤 Music Bingo
7pm - 8pm | Abbey Road Tavern

🔤 Music Bingo
7:30pm | Rudy’s Pub & Grill

Local Business Updates:

🎉 Maynor 30th Anniversary Celebration
Maynor Services Company (Heating, Cooling, Plumbing, Electric) is celebrating 30 years in business. They serve the broader triangle area, but are headquartered right here in Apex. They’re anniversary celebration is tomorrow at their Raleigh location.

🥤 BOGO Drive-Thru Drinks
The celebrate the Grand Re-Opening of Soda Box Apex, they are offering buy one get one dirty sodas on Saturday, Feb 28 from 10am - 6pm.

🍑 Tone What You Own
Neighborhood Barre, a fitness studio offering barre, strength, hybrid + HIIT classes is coming soon to Apex. Learn more here.

🍕 The Limited Edition Tirolese
The finest Speck (smoked prosciutto) straight from Südtirol in North Italy combined with fresh arugula and a drizzle of aged balsamic glaze is here for a limited time at Frasketta!

Reminders from recent newsletters:

🍪 Apex Oven Micro Bakery
A new micro bakery in Apex serving small-batch, handcrafted baked goods is now open! I ordered some cookies from them and tried the cinnamon rolls as well recently and 10/10!! Follow Apex Oven Micro Bakery on Facebook.

🐔 Wingstop
Wingstop will soon be replacing the GNC is Beaver Creek. Exact date TBD.

Civic News:

📄 N. Salem Street Mixed-Use
Application #25CZ24, first submitted on December 1, has been refiled with the Town. It is a petition to rezone approximately 32.3 acres for a new mixed-use development called N. Salem Street Mixed-Use. The proposal aims to transition the property from its current various zonings (Residential Agricultural, Rural Residential, and Planned Commercial) to a Planned Unit Development-Conditional Zoning (PUD-CZ) district.

The development is envisioned as a "walkable community" serving as a gateway to downtown Apex. It is divided into five distinct districts with a focus on higher density near major roads and lower density adjacent to existing neighborhoods.

• Residential Units: A maximum of 450 total units, consisting of:

  • Up to 250 multi-family (apartment) units.

  • Up to 200 townhomes or small-scale multi-family units.

• Non-Residential: Approximately 5.0 acres (15.6% of the site) is proposed for non-residential development, primarily in the MU-1 district.

• Location: The site is situated at the intersection of N. Salem Street and All Wheel Drive, bordered to the north by Crossroads Ford and to the south/west by the Haddon Hall and Haddon Place neighborhoods.

⛪️ Apex Baptist Church Rezoning
The council heard a request from Apex Baptist Church to rezone to allow for a tabletop parking structure and the relocation of the historic Bailey House. Largely due to concerns that this would bypass UDO historic preservation rules, the rezoning request was unanimously denied.

🗓️ Upcoming Town Meetings

Monday, March 9
Planning Board Meeting
4:30pm | Town Hall

Tuesday, March 10
Town Council Meeting
6pm | Town Hall

Wednesday, March 11
Developer Roundtable
Partnering to Build Homes for All in Apex
12:30pm - 2pm | Town Hall

A Look Ahead:

Thursday, March 5
B4 Lunch Series | Apex Senior Center

Thursday, March 5
Thursday Night Movie | The Halle

Friday, March 6
Art Reception: Eggs in Nest | The Halle

Saturday, March 7
Run the Peak | Downtown & Town Hall Campus

Saturday, March 14
Day Market hosted by Makrs Society | Sweetwater Lawn

Saturday, March 14
Apex Holi Festival | Salem Middle School

Thursday, March 19
Women’s History Month: Time for Tea | Senior Center

Friday, March 20
Spring Concert Series | Sweetwater Lawn

Friday, March 20
Shamrock Showdown | Downtown Apex

April 10 & 11
Peak City Pig Fest | Town Hall Campus

In Case You Missed it

🚿 Water System Maintenance
Beginning Feb 27 thru April 6, the Cary/Apex Water Treatment Plant will undergo its annual maintenance. You may experience temporary low water pressure, slight chlorine taste or odor, and/or water discoloration during this time.

⛺️ Triangle Camps, Track-Out, and More
The Triangle Camps, Track-out, and More directory is a biannual publication which offers valuable information to parents about camps, track out programs, enrichment activities, and more for children in the Triangle region. View the Spring/Summer 2026 Triangle Camps Directory here.

🏘️ 444 Homes in Gracewood
Taylor Morrison, a national homebuilder out of Scottsdale, purchased 130 acres along Old US Hwy 1 in New Hill. They paid $446,000 per acre and are apparently still working on closing an additional 102 acres. [Correction: The $59M purchase price was for the initial 130 acres and the additional 102 acres making the price per acre approximately $253,000.] They will build 444 single-family homes starting in the $700,000s up to $1.3M in this 232 acre community.

🎭 Performance and Event Stage
The Wake County Board of Commissioners has approved $23.5M in hospitality tax funds for 12 projects across the county. Relevant to Apex is the $348k designated to construct a stage on the Town Campus to host concerts, performances and to support Town events. It will include roughly 600 seats and capacity for 1,100 on the lawn.

🚧 2026 Road Rehab Project
The road resurfacing and patching project has been awarded. Construction is expected to begin next month. The full packet showing what roads are a part of this project can be seen 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... 😘