Wake County Eyes Well Fed Garden Site for Athens Drive Library Replacement

Wake County commissioners moved Monday toward purchasing a community garden on Athens Drive as the future home of the Athens Drive Community Library, directing county staff to explore buying the 2.6-acre Well Fed Community Garden site at 1321 Athens Drive rather than relocating the library three miles away to Cary.

The decision came at a March 16 work session where commissioners bypassed two other options: a proposed site at the intersection of Tryon Road and Yates Mill Pond Road in Cary, and a one-year deferral. County staff told commissioners that retaining a library inside Athens Drive High School, the current location, would cost tens of millions of dollars and eliminate library projects elsewhere in the county. Security concerns at the high school have also ruled out any future on-site branch, making a separate replacement site unavoidable.

The Well Fed garden is operated by retired restaurateur Arthur Gordon and his wife Anya, who had filed a rezoning application with the City of Raleigh earlier to build affordable housing on the two parcels before withdrawing that application in July. County staff reported the Gordons' asking price at $1.8 million; the combined assessed value of the two parcels is around $840,000. The county has earmarked $16.3 million for the Athens Drive replacement out of a $67.1 million countywide bond that also funds new community libraries in Rolesville, Apex, Wendell, and southeast Raleigh. The county manager is expected to present more details about a possible deal in the coming weeks.

The Well Fed site's relatively small footprint would likely require a two-story building to meet program needs. Its proximity to the current library, less than a quarter-mile away and roughly a four-minute walk from Athens Drive High School, is central to why neighborhood supporters favor it over the Cary alternative.

The Cary site, owned by the Wake County Public School System, spans more than 12 acres and would provide ample parking, but opponents argue its distance and limited public transit access put it out of reach for many regular patrons. Emily Register, a mother of two who has attended library events with her family for years, put it plainly: "This library, I would say it's been the heart of our neighborhood." Register is part of a group opposing any move away from the Athens Drive corridor. "There are people from the community [who] are using the computers," she said. "There are kids like my kids in here, coming in for programs, for sessions, picking up books."

The urgency is driven by WCPSS renovation plans at Athens Drive High School set to begin in 2026, which will close the library at its current location. District 2 Commissioner Safiyah Jackson, whose district covers Fuquay-Varina, Holly Springs, and Garner rather than the Athens Drive area, attended a recent Saturday community meeting where roughly 70 residents gathered to weigh in. Jackson told the crowd she was happy to discuss the library with them, noting she is one of seven commissioners who will cast the final vote on a site.