Town of Cary Seeks Food and Drink Vendors for New Downtown Park

The town of Cary’s huge, soon-to-open downtown park has been 19 years in the making. Now, the town is putting the finishing touches on the park plans, including seeking out the vendors who will bring the park’s food and drink spaces to life.

The Town of Cary has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for three new food and beverage concepts for the second phase of the development of what’s currently being called the Downtown Cary Park. The town and other stakeholders have invested $69 million into this core of downtown attraction and the park is set to open to Cary residents in the spring of 2023. 

According to town officials, the park will total seven acres in size and will be located across Academy, Park, Walker, and Walnut Streets. The park will provide lots of green space, including a “great lawn,” fronted by a pavilion. Around the lawn, a series of unique spaces, or “rooms,” will link to one another via paved walking trails. Other features include performance places, market spaces, public art woven into the park and landscape, food and beverage facilities, a play area for kids, interactive water features, a dog playing field, and walkways for strolling and relaxing.

The RFP proposes three new food and beverage concepts for visitors to choose from: the Bark Bar, the Marketplace, and the Support Kitchen. 

The Bark Bar will be a coffee shop with juice and pastries in the morning and then serve beer and wine as the day transitions and will be located near dog play areas for pets and owners to hang out. The Marketplace will serve as a general store with food and drink options with more variety in its menu. It will serve pastries, picnic foods, and wines and champagnes. The Support Kitchen will be located underneath Academy Street Plaza, a new urban meeting plaza which is also a part of the phase two development of the park. The Kitchen will be much smaller and will provide easy grab-and-go items along with picnic essentials for park visitors. 

The Town of Cary is seeking vendors to submit proposals to cultivate and lease these three new spaces through August. Individuals or entities interested in leasing the spots in Downtown Cary Park should schedule a 20-minute appointment time for a phone call or virtual Q&A by emailing Joy Ennis. 

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