“Ruffled Feathers: How Two Giant Cardinals Ended Up in Downtown Cary Park”

Two new additions to Downtown Cary Park have caught people’s attention – and ruffled some feathers – as construction continues at the 7-acre venue.

The giant wooden sculptures of cardinals — one red, one red, and yellow — sit beside a large bridge overlooking the area.

They’re in a section of the park called “The Nest,” and parkgoers will eventually get a “bird’s-eye view,” according to EarthScape. The birds are by Canadian design-build company in partnership with OJB Landscape Architecture and the City of Cary.

After they arrived in five trucks from Toronto, Canada, Dennis Midkiff, moderator of the Downtown Cary Facebook group, posted photos of them with the caption, “Ladies and gentlemen…I present Cardi A and Cardi B,” with the latter a nod to the famous rapper.

After that launch, some social media commenters said they were ready for the birds to fly before the park was even finished.

One person said the cardinals looked like they were “made raw from popsicles” and found them “disappointing”.

But after a few more Angry Birds jokes, the majority seem to be embracing the town’s new feathered friends and saying they can’t wait for kids to play with them when the park opens later this summer.

How did the Cardinals end up in Cary? In an interview with The News & Observer, two Downtown Cary Park directors gave details.

“Bring back the red bird”

Doug McRainey, the city’s director of community projects, said the Cary City Council made the ultimate call for the birds to be included in the park because “they loved them.”

When the park’s master plan was approved in 2018, a graphic of a red bird was included in the preliminary sketch, McRainey said.

“It was something that was put in just to show off a big game feature and get the public excited – and it did,” he said. “In fact, Council liked it. As we looked at the design and tried to finalize things, we tried to bring other proposals to the council.”

Some of these were tree forts and a large pine cone. However, McRainey was told to “bring back the red bird.”

“So the counselors complied, and since the council was so adamant about seeing a bird, they brought back two birds and they were cardinals,” he said.

The red cardinal is North Carolina’s official state bird.

“The Council was very, very excited. Our staff were too, and we think when the park opens, people will love it,” McRainey said.

In the park, the red cardinal is male and the yellowish one is female, according to Joy Ennis, the general manager of downtown Cary Park.

Ennis is in the park almost every day during construction.

The nest that the cardinals are in was designed so kids could let their imaginations run wild and make up games to play together, Ennis said.

Visitors can climb into the birds to look out of their eyes. Inside there are platforms to sit on and they have interior lighting for when it gets dark.

“(The Cardinals) are very striking,” said Ennis. “I like to call it, they’re for kids and for the young at heart. I’m definitely going to the birds.”

Mixed reactions

The park, bounded by South Academy, East Park, Walnut, and Walker streets, is an important part of Downtown Cary’s revitalization as executives used to call it downtown’s “crown jewel.” Construction on 1 acre of the park was completed in March 2017 and includes a large fountain on South Academy Street and Town Square.

It’s expected to cost nearly $69 million, The N&O previously reported. When complete, the expanded park will feature an elevated sky walk, splash pad, dog park, market and performance pavilion. There will be art exhibitions, classes, fitness group gatherings and films.

McRainey and Ennis said they expected to hear differing opinions and reviews about the park. This is typical for such a project.

“It’s always mixed reactions,” Ennis said. “We feel that with this project in particular. … We really tried to listen to the audience and understand what they want. We know it won’t always be 100% positive or 100% negative. It’s just, you know, everyday life.”

That’s evident online, where some vocal social media users think the birds might want to find another nest to perch on. One user said Cary is becoming the “next Asheville the way things are happening. So terribly sad.”

Midkiff, who lives with his family about a mile from the park, said people who have strong opinions about Cary’s transformation should realize that the changes mean there will be more things to do in town. He said he’s looking forward to taking his dogs to the dog park in downtown Cary Park and having a drink for himself at the bar.

“There used to be nothing to do. You’d have to go to Raleigh for everything,” Midkiff said in an interview. “Now there is a choice of restaurants and drinks.”

In an email to The N&O, Lawrence Cotton said he thought the Cardinals were “okay for now” but added he didn’t think they would survive well, “so in a couple of years they will be replaced. Children should love them.”

For every comment like that, there were several from Gina Grayer, who said she loved them and “really can’t wait for the park to open. Downtown Cary is awesome. I love the growth and development.”

Viranya Filipiak added that she “kinda liked” them and thought they looked cheeky.

In addition to the Cardinals for Downtown Cary Park, EarthScape is also responsible for designing the playground at E. Carroll Joyner Park in Wake Forest. The group has worked to bring playgrounds to life across Canada and the United States, including Texas, Colorado, Michigan, California and Florida.

When Cary’s Park opens, a project that has been in the works for years, it should “blow the socks off of everyone who visits the park”.

“What’s exciting for us is that we’re there with the renderings (of the park) and everything comes to life,” said Ennis. “It was very exciting for us to look at it and then see it in 3D.”

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