Retiring CaryCitizen
Cary, NC — Effective February 23, 2022, Goodtree and Company Inc., the parent company of CaryCitizen, will retire the CaryCitizen news website. “It was a difficult decision, but one we had been contemplating for a while,” said CaryCitizen publisher Hal Goodtree.
Other aspects of Goodtree & Co. will continue, including festivals, film production and the Downtown Cary Map.
Why Now?
Making the call to retire the site was certainly not an easy one, but one that the founders of CaryCitizen have contemplated for a while. Co-founders Lindsey Chester and Hal Goodtree have been lining up their retirement plan and CaryCitizen’s web editor, Ashley Kairis, will be starting a new job at CBS-17 later this month.
In short, a door opened up and Lindsey and Hal are using it as an opportunity to pivot into their next act.
For Lindsey, her retirement as CaryCitizen’s head of sales and marketing will open up new opportunities for her to grow her fine art career and to continue connecting people and community.
For Hal, his retirement as CaryCitizen’s publisher will allow him to put more time into his two newly-registered businesses, a record company and a music publishing entity.
In true Hal and Lindsey fashion, their retirement plan is quite eventful and most importantly will continue to be rooted in something they both love—creativity.
Heartfelt Thanks to Our Readers
“We are very grateful to all the writers, photographers, advertisers and readers who helped us put Cary, North Carolina on the Triangle news map,” continued Goodtree. “We are also grateful for the privilege we have enjoyed telling the stories of Cary.” Since 2009, CaryCitizen has published over 6,650 stories.
“We will continue to be here publishing, building community and telling stories, albeit in different ways,” said Goodtree.
“We are looking forward to what comes next in the Cary news space,” Goodtree concluded.
If you’d like to send us a farewell note, please get in touch with [email protected] or leave a brief message in the comments.
I’ve really enjoyed staying abreast of local Cary info via your site. I will miss the content and focus but know it takes a lot of work to keep something like this going.
The end of an era. I certainly was proud to be part of the initial launch. It has been a pleasure to watch CaryCitizen grow and provide the community with so much information and so many stories. Thank you and best of luck in your future endeavors.
CaryCitizen has been a class act from Day One. Lindsey and Hal, thanks for telling Cary’s stories so beautifully and well. All the best in your next adventures!
I miss seeing you at Starbucks. i think a lot of us will miss the cary citizen. it’s been a rare source of info i actually pay attention to.
Congratulations to Lindsey & Hal but what a loss to our Community in informing readers if news and events and education on various topics. I appreciate the opportunity to write the “Aging in Place” series many years ago as a Senior Real Estate Specialist. The Cary Treasure Hunts were enjoyed by all! The elected official blogs were always informative also. The Cary Citizen will be missed! Thank you, Nancy
Going to miss Cary citizen only lived here a short time but have enjoyed reading Cary news on here.
It is unfortunate news. All good things must come to an end though. Thanks for all your content. I guess I will have to get my Cary news from random nextdoor posts.
In 2010, my Cary Citizen Press Pass provided the open door I needed to connect with the community where I’d lived for a dozen years and didn’t know. It was how I discovered Cary Ballet Conservatory. That was life changing, in the very best way. So go and do the voodoo, that you do! I will miss the credentials and parking pass for the NC State Fair though!
So sad to see Cary Citizen go. But wishing you all the best of luck with your new endeavors.
Sorry to see this but understand
Enjoy the next step and good luck!
Lindsey, I hate to see you go but rest assured you will succeed on your next journey. All of you will be missed and many thanks for helping Cary American Legion Post 67 through the years. If ever I can be of any service to you, please contact me. Our best to you and yours going forward.
Curtis Leary
Post 67 Public Relations Officer
Thank you Curtis! We appreciate your kind words.
Thank you for all the passion you have put into this project. After the end of the The Cary newspaper, this has been my source of all things Cary, from events, statistics, politics, and of course, the local stories that connect me to my town and to others who live here. I hope someone will fill the information and inspiration hole left by the loss of Cary Citizen news. Enjoy your next adventure.
We love hearing from folks such as yourself Cindilee. Thank you for following along with us.
Very sorry to see this wonderful resource is ending. Thank you to all involved for all the hard work over the years. Best of luck to everyone with your new adventures.
I just want to say thank you for the many contributions the CaryCitizen has made over these many years to enriching Cary. It will be missed!
Thank you Jack for your support through the years. We truly appreciate it.
Cary Citizen has been instrumental in covering all things Cary from the possibly mundane to serious matters such as the changes that Cary is going through as it continues to grow. It is how Phil and I have kept up with Cary and what is happening from afar. I’ll certainly miss it, but I know that you will continue to support Cary – just in different ways.
Thank you, Barbara. You an Phil have been a part of our fondest memories with CaryCitizen
Well, this is quite a shock, but understandable. Publishing is a great responsibility and a whole lot of work. The Cary Citizen was THE BEST source to find out about all-things-Cary. Caryites were so blessed — and spoiled — for so many years having such wonderful coverage our community. I am surprised that no one was interested in picking up the torch. You will be so missed! Thank you!
Who knows! Thank you for being a part of our journey.
Lindsey and Hal. Wishing you all the best as you enter this next chapter in your professional life. Many thanks for all of the support that you gave me with the Concert Singers of Cary.
Thank you so much Larry. We enjoyed getting to know you along this journey.Lindsey
Sorry to see CaryCitizen end. I look forward to reading every week. Thank you for sharing our community happenings over the years. Good luck on your new endeavors.
Thank you so much Elizabeth. Your comments mean a lot to us.
Thank you for stepping up and helping us to stay abreast of what’s happening in Cary for all of these years. There will definitely be a void, but I’m excited for all of you!!!
We hope that someone will come in to fill that void. It takes some energy and connectedness. Thank you for being a supporter of CaryCitizen.
I was a latecomer to Cary Citizen and wish I had discovered it earlier. You will be missed!!!
This site has been my go-to source for local news and upcoming events. I especially enjoyed stories about Cary’s history and blog posts from local leaders. Thank you for 10+ years of service to the community.
I’ll be sorry to see the CaryCitizen go, it’s too bad it couldn’t be passed on to someone else, but at any rate, the best of luck with your new ventures. Hoping you’ll enjoy them.
Heartbreaking. Thank you, thank you, thank you for the many years of newsworthy reporting on the heart of Cary. We truly enjoyed the articles and keeping us informed of our beloved town. Wish you all the best.
Thank you for your passion to share news and photos about Cary, and for your creativity in also searching out public interest and educational stories about Cary–for the newcomers and the old timers! I will miss Cary Citizen! We were lucky to have you as a part of our lives! Best Wishes….
Farewell, and thank you.