Local Limelight with Morrisville Mayor TJ Cawley

TJ Cawley is the mayor of Morrisville, one of the fastest-growing towns in the Triangle.

• He spoke with Axios for our "Local Limelight" series last week about the growth of Morrisville and the joys of sports with discs.

🇲🇽 Favorite place to eat in the Triangle: Mi Cancun in Grace Park Shopping Center in Morrisville. There is something fun about assembling the fajitas yourself from sizzling ingredients.

🚃 What the Triangle is missing: Commuter rail will be a game changer for our region and many organizations are working hard every day to make this transportation option a reality.

🤳 First thing he reads in the morning: My emails.

⛳ How he unplugs: I love to play disc golf. There are a number of great courses nearby, including Diavolo in Cary. One of my favorites is in Carolina Beach.

📚 Last great book he read: "Way of the Peaceful Warrior" by Dan Millman.

🎧 Go-to podcast: I get my daily dose from my favorite "Axios Today" and also enjoy various "Ted" Talks and "Dare to Lead" by Brené Brown.

🧳 How he ended up in the Triangle: I was living in Washington, D.C., after graduating from the University of Virginia and was looking for a change. We had visited North Carolina a number of times to play ultimate frisbee and moved to Chapel Hill first. Over the years I have lived in Raleigh, Cary and in 2007 Kathy and I chose Morrisville as the place to raise our three children, Katie, Shannon and Ryan.

🏏 Favorite long weekend spot: Church Street Park when there is a cricket tournament. It's one of the premiere grounds on the East Coast. I love riding my bike along our greenways to cheer for our hometown Morrisville Raptors.

🐶 His pets: Ginger is our goldendoodle and Rocky is our labradoodle.

🗺️ The one law he would pass if he could: A law which requires election maps to be drawn by an independent, nonpartisan organization. Only when the voters are granted the ability to choose their representatives, and not the other way around, will our government function as intended: A group chosen through free and fair elections working collaboratively to preserve and enhance the quality of life for all of us.

✈️ What he's looking forward to: I will be traveling to Taiwan to present at the 2023 Smart City Summit and Expo. I look forward to sharing our lessons learned and bringing back new ideas from around the world to keep innovating here in Morrisville.