Cary Mayor Pledges to Rebuild Trust After Town Manager Scandal, ICE Protests

Mayor Harold Weinbrecht opened Cary’s State of the Town address by promising to rebuild public trust after the forced resignation last December of former town manager Sean Steagall, announcing a State Auditor review and an internal probe by law firm Womble Bond Dickinson even as activists gathered outside Cary Town Hall. The address began at 6 p.m. and protesters had assembled for hours beforehand, marching with signs and projecting messages onto the building.

Weinbrecht tied the transparency commitments to specific oversight steps, saying Cary will be audited and investigated and framing those reviews as the route to restoring confidence. An audit had revealed financial irregularities, including questionable spending that led to Steagall’s departure, and the Wake County District Attorney and the State Bureau of Investigation have been prompted to look into the matter. Deputy Town Manager Russ Overton has been appointed interim town manager as the investigations proceed.

Alongside the town manager controversy, the crowd’s immediate focus was a rumored federal lease on Regency Parkway that residents fear could be used by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Weinbrecht told the audience that it has not been confirmed what the leased office will be used for, and that the town has, “absolutely no authority to stop it.” Activists, including group Cary Indivisible, projected images and the message “STOP ICE TERROR” onto Cary Town Hall and several speakers who entered during the event pressed the mayor and council during the Q&A.

Council Member Carissa Kohn-Johnson said she is engaging directly with residents about possible responses, “I am all ears, I am talking to anybody that will talk to me about this and seeing what avenues are open to us and what aren't and trying to be open-minded about what the community wants to see us do.” Other council members expressed sympathy for community worries and said they would explore legal options within their authority as details about any lease remain unconfirmed.

Weinbrecht struck a cautious tone on national politics while signaling concern for immigrant residents, saying, “I'm not here to do political statements,” and adding, “You can call me all the names you want. I’m here to protect the people of Cary, and if something I do is going to cause them harm, I’m not going to do it, and I’m worried about our immigrants.” He also accused the former manager of having “exploited his job's duty to handle the flow of information between the Town Council and town staff.”

Reporting includes inconsistent spellings of the former manager’s last name across accounts, most using “Sean Steagall” while one report used “Stegall.” For now the town’s next steps are the State Auditor review, the Womble Bond Dickinson internal investigation, and inquiries prompted with the District Attorney and State Bureau of Investigation, processes Mayor Weinbrecht said will proceed with transparency as Cary seeks to restore public trust.