Tiny town of Rolesville booming as population grows

It's a day to gobble up some quality time at the park with her daughter and her neighbor's kids.

“It’s great to be out on Thanksgiving,” she said. “We’re originally from Michigan, so to be out in a park in Michigan at this time probably wouldn’t happen.”

McGinn moved to the town of Rolesville, north of Raleigh, four years ago and is loving every minute of it.

She’s not the only one. The town has grown from 900 people in 2000 to nearly 3,900 today.

“I’ve talked to people who’ve been here longer than I have, and they just can’t believe how much it’s grown,” McGinn said.

Mayor Frank Eagles has lived in Rolesville since 1986.

“I think Rolesville’s been known to be one of the fastest-growing small towns in North Carolina for quite a few years now,” he said.

One side effect to all that growth is traffic.

Eagles said there are 47,000 cars that drive along Rolesville’s stretch of U.S. Highway 401. But he said there are plans to ease congestion, including the construction of a Rolesville bypass that should open in 2014.

A new middle school is open and a new high school set to open next year. And there’s talk of a new Wal-Mart Express near the town’s main shopping district.

“We’ve got great people who are moving here,” Eagles said.