Cary Showcases Downtown Park as Model for Smart City Technology

Downtown Cary Park, the seven-acre green space two decades in the making that opened on November 19, 2023, served as the centerpiece of Cary's presence at Smart Cities Connect in Raleigh, where the town positioned its sensor-laden park as a replicable blueprint for municipal technology.

The conference, held March 10-12, opened the day before with a reserved "From Smart to Cognitive Tour" at the park itself, giving attendees a firsthand look at the infrastructure running quietly beneath the Great Lawn Pavilion and the Gathering House and Gardens. Cary Chief Information Officer Nicole Coughlin moderated a main-stage session on March 10, joined by Cary Councilmember Lori Bush, Houston Councilmember Mario Castillo, Mableton Mayor Michael Owens, and Washington D.C. Assistant City Administrator Dr. Chris Rodriguez.

The session used Downtown Cary Park's flood prediction projects as its launching point, with Coughlin and NVIDIA State and Local Government Leader Jayson Dunn framing the conversation around converting isolated IoT pilots into what they called a citywide "brain" that correlates sensors, cameras, and community input. NVIDIA's Smart City AI Blueprint, running digital twins on Lenovo hardware, would power custom event detection and video summarization as part of that vision.

The park's existing sensor network is already more extensive than most visitors realize. Tree trunk sensors detect subtle movement to flag trees at risk of falling before they become hazards. Trash can sensors alert staff the moment bins fill up. Bluetooth signals count nearby cell phones to estimate crowd density, helping staff decide where to deploy resources. Sound level monitors ensure that event programming does not disturb surrounding neighborhoods. Bathroom door sensors track foot traffic in and out, though the town has been explicit that these devices are not cameras and collect no personal information; all data is anonymous.

Connecting the sensors is a LoRaWAN, or Long Range Wide Area Network, a low-energy protocol that allows IoT devices to share data across the park without demanding heavy power or expensive infrastructure. Free WiFi branded "Cary-On," built and supported by technology partner NWN, layers on top of that foundation, delivering weather alerts, public service announcements, and event promotions to visitors across the park's acreage.

NWN's involvement goes well beyond the park's opening. The company has partnered with Cary's IT team for 16 years, working across security, device management, cloud migration, and data analytics. "NWN is thrilled to collaborate with the Town of Cary as it uses technology and data analysis to drive innovation," said Jim Sullivan, NWN's president. "The Town has enthusiastically adopted our cloud communications portfolio, along with the Experience Management Platform, contributing to the enhancement of Cary, as a vibrant and connected community."

The work has drawn formal recognition beyond the conference stage. Cary's IT team accepted the Outstanding Leadership and Innovation award at the North Carolina Digital Government Summit in August and took home NC TECH's Public Sector Project of the Year award last December. Justin Sherwood, the town's assistant director of information technology, credited his colleagues rather than the accolades themselves. "They're doing a phenomenal job with the work that they're doing. I really wanted to call attention to them," Sherwood said. "I hope it feels good at the end of the day to be recognized for some of the hard work that they do."

With more than half the world's population already living in urban areas and projections placing that figure at 70 percent by 2050, the pressure on municipal governments to manage infrastructure more precisely is intensifying. Cary's bet is that a park with sensors in its trash cans and on its bathroom doors is as good a proof of concept as any conference slide deck.