WakeMed has been an integral part of the Southeast Raleigh community for nearly 50 years, and as the largest organization in the area we are committed to being a good neighbor.
Transforming the Gateway Into Raleigh, NC
We’re partnering with our community on several initiatives designed to transform this important gateway into our city, making New Bern Avenue an attractive welcome to people entering Raleigh from the I-440 Beltline, Highway 64 or downtown. We are hugely impressed with the revitalization of downtown Raleigh and are hopeful that it can extend into our community.
Creating the “Medical District”
As part of Raleigh’s new comprehensive master plan, which went into effect on November 1, we will be working with city officials on the creation of a “Medical District” that encompasses WakeMed, Wake County health offices, WakeTech’s Health Sciences Campus and other health-related organizations located near New Bern Avenue. This will allow us to better coordinate future development and create a better neighborhood atmosphere. Part of that involves transportation issues. One of our goals is to make the area around WakeMed easier to navigate – with more sidewalks, bike routes and bus stops.
Partnering with the NCDOT & TTA
One of the first things we’ve recently accomplished is our partnership with the N.C. Department of Transportation, the City of Raleigh and Triangle Transit Authority (TTA) to build a signalized pedestrian crosswalk on New Bern Avenue. Since the construction of two pharmacies across the street from the hospital, we’ve seen patients and their children make this dangerous walk across New Bern Avenue – one of the busiest thoroughfares in Wake County. A new crosswalk will help prevent accidents and will keep our patients and their families safe after they leave our campus.
In addition, we have been talking with the Raleigh Police Department about how we can work together to improve public safety and reduce violent crime in the community. We will share more information about those efforts in a future blog post.
Welcome aboard, WakeMed! As the head of Raleigh’s East Citizens Advisory Council which encompasses WakeMed, I’ve been working closely with citizens in our community to address their concerns about crime and economic development. We realize WakeMed is a big part of this process and would like to invite you to attend our meetings which are held the third Monday of each month at 7 PM in Lions Park Community Center at 516 Dennis Avenue.
Our upcoming meeting is this Monday Nov. 16th, and will feature David Thompson, a representative from Raleigh’s Transportation Services department, who will give us an overview on traffic calming measures. We will follow that with a holiday social featuring free pizza from our own Frank’s Pizza and wings from MoJoe’s Burger Joint. It will be a great chance for you to meet our neighbors!
You can find out more about the East CAC by visiting our website: http://www.eastraleigh.org. I also encourage you to sign up for our email lists at cac.eastraleigh.org.
I hope to see you Monday evening and look forward to joining forces with WakeMed to make our community the very best in Raleigh!
Mark Turner
East CAC
919.741.6329
Greetings~
The neighborhood is smiling with this expressed partnership. I am a 18 year resident on Albemarle Ave and fully understand the potential of our neighborhood and would be PROUD to claim a part of the “Medical District”. Wake Med is an essential staple to the citizens and workforce of Raleigh.
I often times see patients (often with childern) attempting to navigate crossing the street to get to the pharmacies, sitting in the rain while waiting for a bus or walking from the hospital towards downtown without sidewalks; anything we can do to make their journeys more safe is a plus.
We have a great neighborhood of people from all walks of life and it can only get better!! There are many things we would like to change and things we would like to promote and this partnership would be a great opportunity.
I encourage you to join up with the East CAC and the Longview Gardens Neighborhood Association (www.longviewgardends.org)for history and advocacy.
Feel free to contact me via the email above if you need assistance or additional information.