Cary officials are hoping that in the future, they'll have a solid plan for preserving the past.

Wednesday night, more than two dozen people turned out for the first of two historic preservation community meetings.

"The town has been working on preservation issues for years really, but it's been sort of when the property is threatened or when an issue comes up we try to deal with it at that time," said Anna Readling, Senior Planner for the Town of Cary. "We want to be more proactive."

The preservation plan is starting with a chance to listen; organizers want to know what types of properties, buildings or landscapes Cary residents think are important.

"We're going to get input that we're going to use to shape goals for the plan, and then we'll come back to the community with some draft goals," said Readling.

Over the summer, Readling and her staff will develop the historic preservation plan, and hope to have a final draft ready to adopt by the end of the year.

Right now, there are several sites in Cary that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but that doesn't offer much protection.

Readling says there are no local laws in place that prevent any of those places from being demolished.

"We're going to look for ways -- not just regulation -- but also incentives to help people preserve properties they think are important," said Readling.

The second public input meeting is set for Thursday night from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Page-Walker Arts & History Center.

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