The Charlotte Observer
Charlotte area outpaced most US metros for 5-year growth
The Charlotte metro area continues to attract thousands of people to the region each year. And the total number puts the area in the top 10 nationally, new Census Bureau estimates released Thursday found. The Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia metropolitan...
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For now, ICE agents have not replaced TSA at CLT airport
While the Trump administration dispatched ICE agents to 13 major airports on Monday, Charlotte has been skipped over — for now. ICE agents are at the terminals to help the Transportation Security Administration during a partial government shutdown...
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Thousands call for audit of Duke Energy after high bills
Thousands of residents across the Carolinas are calling for an independent audit of Duke Energy, saying unexplained spikes in electric bills are putting financial strain on households across the state. An online petition demanding an investigation...
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NC girl diagnosed with rare disorder after doctor saw bruise
Six-year-old Annie Smith hadn’t even been the patient that afternoon. Her father, Jason Smith, had brought Annie’s older brother Wilson, 10, to their longtime pediatrician for a simple case of swimmer’s ear. Annie was just tagging along — and at...
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County says I-77 South toll plans will hurt parks, greenways
Under proposed designs for the controversial I-77 South toll project, 11 parks and several Charlotte greenways would be harmed, with some losing space and amenities, according to Mecklenburg County staff. That includes the complete removal of Wilmore...
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Hegseth: Military giving Trump ‘maximum options’ in Iran war
As Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed that Tuesday would be the “most intense day” of U.S. strikes against Iran since the start of the war, the Trump administration has started to loosen restrictions on Russian oil exports in a bid to temper rising...
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NCDOT pauses I-77 toll lane project
The North Carolina Department of Transportation is delaying its Interstate 77 toll lanes project by several months to make time for additional community engagement, the agency announced in a news release Monday. The announcement follows mounting...
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Woman answers HBCU president’s plea for new kidney
Five feet inside the hospital entrance in Winston-Salem, Heather Patrek saw the man she had been thinking about for more than five months — a man who had no idea she even existed — and she panicked. “Oh, s---,” whispered Patrek, a 35year-old Belmont...
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‘Stop the expansion.’ Charlotte commits to vote on 60-day pause for I-77 tolls
Charlotte City Council committed to vote on a 60-day pause on the Interstate 77 toll lane project as a raucous crowd demanded action during Monday night’s meeting. Council members are in near unanimous agreement to stop the project, at least...
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‘One day’: Boy paralyzed by spinal cord injury radiates hope
Four-and-a-half-year-old Logan Reese has a slogan — one he delivers in a squeaky voice his parents say sounds like a cartoon character. The slogan is only two words, but it rarely stands alone. “One day … I’ll play soccer again.” “One day … I’ll jump...
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Civil rights leader the Rev. Jesse Jackson dies at 84
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, the civil rights leader, Baptist minister and twotime presidential candidate, died Tuesday morning, his family said in a statement. He was 84 years old. “Our father was a servant leader — not only to our family, but to the...
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Bride-to-be faces uncertainty as US freezes immigrant visas
Gabby was among a throng riding the London tube toward Stamford Bridge stadium on Jan. 14 when she glanced down at her phone. Does this affect you?, a friend back home in Charlotte had texted her. Then there was a link to a news story. At first, she...
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Charlotte area faces ‘severe drought.’ Will towns, cities have enough water?
The Charlotte region’s drought could worsen in the coming months if rainfall doesn’t keep up with growing demand for water, the Catawba Riverkeeper says. Mecklenburg County and surrounding counties, including Union and Cabarrus, are currently...
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CATS bans don’t keep dangerous riders away, records show
When Oscar Solorzano stabbed another passenger aboard the Charlotte Area Transit System’s LYNX Blue Line train in December, he wasn’t supposed to be on the train at all. He’d been banned from using CATS transportation a few months earlier. But violent...
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Trump admin cites Charlotte for transit safety issues
Federal transit authorities called out Charlotte’s transit system for failing to meet multiple mandated safety requirements in a new report triggered by a high-profile killing on the city’s light rail. The Federal Transit Administration released its...
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Snow, brutal cold predicted for Charlotte region
A Winter Storm Watch has been issued for Charlotte in advance of a weekend storm that could dump between two and seven inches of snow on the region. The watch will be in effect from 4 p.m. Friday through 7 a.m. Sunday, when a dangerous combination of...
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Apartment complex brings affordable housing to uptown
Uptown Charlotte isn’t known to have affordable housing. The average rent price for a one-bedroom apartment in uptown is about $1,800, according to Apartments.com. So, a first-year teacher at CharlotteMecklenburg Schools who makes $48,600 annually...
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Charlotte likely to get freezing rain, NWS says
There’s little doubt Charlotte will be hit by a winter storm this weekend, and forecasters say it appears Mecklenburg County is likely to get more freezing rain than snow. That means dangerous roads, slippery sidewalks, falling tree limbs and power...
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Kroger nixes plan for 700-job fulfillment center in Concord
Harris Teeter’s parent company Kroger has quietly killed plans for a $92 million, 700-job delivery fulfillment center in Concord, dealing a sharp economic blow to Cabarrus County, the Charlotte region and the state. In 2021, the state announced to...
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Steeple without a church becomes symbol of hope for NC valley
A weathered church steeple and bell that rang for more than a century in North Carolina’s Swannanoa Valley has become a peculiar symbol of hope in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Bee Tree Christian Church was deemed “not salvageable” and torn down...
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NC expects a boom in seniors, and caregivers are exhausted
her husband’s stage 3 oral cancer spread to his tonsils in 2021, Leigh Anne Staton stepped in as his main caregiver. Her care for him consists of everything — bathing, mixing up his nutrition shakes to satisfy his poor appetite, helping him get to the...
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ICE agents tell NC men to quit recording traffic stop
Cellphone video circulating online shows Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents telling two men in Salisbury to stop recording them at a traffic stop on Monday, as well as the fracas that followed. Charlotte ICE spokesperson Lindsay Williams...
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Panthers’ 17 playoff appearances, ranked from best to worst
For all their flaws in a checkered 31-season history, the Carolina Panthers are pretty darn good when they reach the playoffs. They’ve only had seven winning seasons in those 31 years. They’re 46 games under .500. But in the playoffs? The Panthers...
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$40M campaign aims to save NC game lands from development
Conservationists launched a $40 million campaign Thursday to save 4,000 acres of pristine North Carolina game land from development. The owner of the land along the Yadkin River between Salisbury and Albemarle allowed public access to hunters, anglers...
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Homeowners press state to block 34% water rate hike
For homeowners served by Carolina Water Service, there is no shopping around — and many say their water bills are rising faster than they can afford. Homeowners in more than 40 communities across North Carolina are urging state regulators to reject...
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NC veteran’s mission is to spread cheer as Santa
Cash or coal? To shoppers at Mighty Dollar on Union Road Dec. 12, Santa posed the question before inviting them to crank open a box to see what they won. At least 100 people lined up for a free customer appreciation raffle ticket. If their number...
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Can Sycamore Brewing survive co-founder’s arrest?
Amid swift public backlash in the week following child rape charges against Sycamore Brewing co-founder, the Charlotte brewery faces an uncertain future: can the company survive, should it rebrand, or will it be forced to close? The arrest of Justin...
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US Senate votes to recognize Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina
More than 80 members of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina sat Wednesday in the Senate gallery watching lawmakers take a vote that was 137 years in the making. Senators agreed to recognize the tribe and provide full federal benefits in a 77-20 vote....
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With funding squeeze, CMS to cut hiring next year
With a drop in enrollment and an expected funding squeeze, CMS plans to cut back on new hires by about 10% next school year. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education held a budget workshop Monday where district leaders started planning for the...
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Duke Energy pledges fair bills, even with data center surge
Duke Energy is investing billions to upgrade its power grid, in part responding to unprecedented demand expected from a surge in new data centers. The Charlotte utility giant is adamant, however, that residential customers’ bill will not grow because...
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STORM LEFT BLANKET OF BEAUTY IN NC MOUNTAINS
Rodney Allen shared this photo on Facebook after snow fell in Banner Elk. “The NC mountains are getting a good snow today! Looks like a few inches up there in Banner Elk,” Allen said in his post.
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Neese’s livermush lovers in limbo: Why have shelves been bare?
Long a staple of North Carolina culinary traditions, you’ll find livermush on menus at mom-and-pop restaurants around the state. Lately, however, one of the state’s most recognizable brands of the pork product, Neese’s Country Sausage, has quietly...
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TSA offers $45 option for those without REAL ID or passport
The Transportation Security Administration announced Monday that fliers who don’t have an acceptable REAL ID or passport can pay a $45 fee and use Confirm.ID, a modernized identity verification system to confirm their identities at security checkpoints...
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Charlotte retirees tried to keep ‘patriotic marches’ simple
They’re asking for honks via their wearable sandwich-board signs, and they’re getting them. Honks punched out by passing drivers in, more often than not, a rapid-fire staccato rhythm — beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep — routinely with a drawn-out...
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Two men sentenced to life in Brooks Sandwich House murder
Two men accused of shooting and killing Brooks Sandwich House co-owner Scott Brooks six years ago during a robbery were found guilty of first-degree murder by 12 jurors on Monday. Steven Staples and Terry Connor Jr. were sentenced to life in prison...
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With Border Patrol in the city, Charlotte speaks out — loudly
For much of the year, protesters with the liberal group Indivisible Charlotte have been meeting on the Hawthorne Lane bridge that overlooks Independence Boulevard, holding up anti-Trump signs and waiting for a reaction. On Tuesday, they got a big...
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Historic school demolished for newest apartment building
A former historic elementary school in Plaza Midwood will soon be turned into an apartment building. Ares Management Corp., a Los Angeles-based investment firm, will be turning the Midwood Elementary School at 1817 Central Ave. into a seven-story...
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FAA orders Charlotte airport to reduce flights by 10%
Charlotte’s airport is one of 40 that the FAA has ordered to reduce flights by 10% starting Friday and in the middle of the federal shutdown, the airport said in a statement Thursday morning. Charlotte Douglas International Airport already has faced...
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SNAP shutdown upends food security for Charlotte
Kay Soto-Padgett and their wife didn’t even bother waiting to get into the Bountiful Blessings drive-up food pantry on Thursday. Its line snaked around several streets in a quiet Gastonia neighborhood. The couple spent some time driving around, hoping...
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Mayor promises rule change to allow naturalistic gardening
More front yards could grow wild under a suggested amendment to Charlotte ordinances. Mayor Vi Lyles told dozens of environmental advocates at a City Council meeting on Monday that the city would act on a change the activists have been pushing for...
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American Airlines, Sinise help WWII vets take special flight
As a youth, Vic St. Pierre always had a passion for travel while growing up in Central Falls, Rhode Island. It’s the reason he left the close-knit mill town and joined the Marines at age 17. “My school chum’s brother was in the Marines, and he would...
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Davidson College honors enslaved people who built school
Nestled between four red brick buildings at the center of Davidson College, two bronze, work-weathered hands cradle the earth. It’s a newly installed sculpture named “With These Hands: A Memorial to the Enslaved and Exploited” that was dedicated on...
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Memorial celebrates legacy of LendingTree CEO Doug Lebda
Hundreds of mourners remembered LendingTree CEO Doug Lebda as an idea guy like no other at a public memorial held Sunday afternoon at Founder’s Hall in uptown Charlotte. Former Gov. Pat McCrory, also Charlotte’s longtime mayor, was a friend of Lebda’s...
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As Spectrum Center turns 20, we pick its most memorable moments
Since opening 20 years ago, the big arena in the middle of uptown Charlotte has had three different names — Charlotte Bobcats Arena, Time Warner Cable Arena and its current one, Spectrum Center — but, much more impressively, has hosted nearly 2,500...
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New library offers sneak peek inside $137M ‘star project’
Construction is moving forward on Charlotte’s new Main Library, a $137 million project expected to open in spring 2027 in Uptown. The five-story building at North Tryon and Sixth Street will replace the former main library, demolished in 2023. Funded...
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Program brings mental health care to homeless population
Mental health treatment is on the way for people living on the street in Mecklenburg County. “Wellness Without Walls” is a new street psychiatry program connecting psychiatrists and registered nurses with those in the county’s homeless population who...
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Six things to know about proposed data center in Matthews
A 123-acre data center could soon rise along East John Street in Matthews, but many residents aren’t convinced it belongs there. At a packed community meeting Thursday night, developers with Project Accelerate fielded dozens of questions about water...
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Renaissance West STEAM Academy forges a new future
Despite her 29-year tenure with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, Demetrus McDaniel would tell you that it was never her aspiration to be an educator. A career in education didn’t come with money, she said. But her grandmother’s seeing her natural...
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Family of Charlotte stabbing victim upset over no trials
Mary Collins loved art, makeup and photography, wigs, hats and shoes. She played the guitar, sang and “loved gothic stuff,” part of her “quirky,” endearing personality, grandmother Mia Alderman recalled. “She liked to make people laugh, and would...
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Some Queens alums worry merger will erase school’s identity
University and elected leaders call the Queens-Elon merger a “bold step” that will benefit both schools and Charlotte, but some alumni want more transparency in the process. Queens University of Charlotte Acting President Jesse Cureton announced...
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Queens University, Elon University announce plans to merge
Queens University of Charlotte and Elon University announced Tuesday that they plan to merge. At the conclusion of the merger, which is expected to come by August 2026, Elon will operate Queens “in partnership with existing and legacy leaders,” the...
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Train stabbing on voters’ minds as primary turnout grew
Turnout in Charlotte’s primary came close to doubling results from two years ago as voters cast ballots amid growing national attention around a fatal lightrail stabbing. The fatal stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on the Blue Line light...
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Charlotte light rail riders recoil at deadly stabbing
Holding a clipboard with voter registration forms, Samantha Asbury waited for the next train to arrive at the JW Clay Blvd/UNC Charlotte light rail station in north Charlotte Monday. The Charlotte native uses public transportation to get around...
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Scotiabank chooses Dallas over Charlotte for regional hub
Charlotte, a city known as “banktown,” just lost out on landing a 1,000job bank hub for one of North America’s largest banks. Scotiabank chose Dallas, Texas, for its U.S. regional hub, the bank said Tuesday. Charlotte also was considered, city leaders...
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Freezers full of hope: A renewed effort to protect at-risk seeds
As Jim Veteto wrestled an old freezer from the mud that swamped his mountainside barn when Helene struck last September, he began to write a song. It felt like the land was speaking through him, he said, their shared resolve fixed on the hundreds of...
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Board backs data center on farmland in Iredell County
Despite neighbors’ protests, the Statesville Planning Board unanimously backed a Texas developer’s planned data center on hundreds of acres of lush green farmland in western Iredell County late Tuesday. Citing what they called the center’s low...
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Here’s a look at $245M Spectrum Center upgrades
Construction crews are putting the finishing touches on a dusty, chalkfilled Spectrum Center, and Billie Eilish fans will be the first to see the completed renovations when the arena reopens Oct. 19. The Charlotte Hornets hosted a media preview tour...
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NASCAR visionary Humpy Wheeler dies at 86
Humpy Wheeler, the longtime president and general manager at Charlotte Motor Speedway whose creativity helped lift NASCAR into the nation’s consciousness, has died. He was 86. Howard Augustine “Humpy” Wheeler Jr. passed away peacefully of natural...
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Two-Generation Clinic focuses on postpartum care
Almost 40% of moms miss their postpartum checkups, according to March of Dimes. It’s the time when mothers are most at risk for health issues. To help remedy that, a community health center has opened a Two-Generation Clinic in Charlotte — one of two...
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‘Torture house’: Renter struggles with corporate landlord
Beads of sweat dripped in jagged lines from Brandis Rogers’ temples and the nape of her neck. In the dark, she pulled a chair in front of a makeshift cooling station in her dining room — three mini fans powered by a generator in the backyard. August 1...
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Fentanyl overdoses soar in Charlotte’s communities of color
James Patton overdosed on fentanyl in a park just a few weeks ago. As an on-and-off cocaine user for more than 40 years, he was familiar with the white, powdery substance and the “good feeling” he got when it entered his system. But that day the...
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Q&A: Mecklenburg manager on Medicaid cuts, reorganization
After more than 20 years working for Mecklenburg government, Mike Bryant is officially the man in charge and implementing his plans for the county. Bryant, just the second Black manager to lead Mecklenburg County, took office in June after the...
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Stein tours Charlotte Coke plant, promotes job training
Gov. Josh Stein toured of the Coca-Cola Consolidated bottling facility in Charlotte Wednesday, and met with participants in its apprenticeship program. Stein toured the Snyder Production Center, off of Chesapeake Drive. It has six production lines...
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Prominent Charlotte civil rights lawyer Ferguson dies
James Ferguson II, a Charlotte civil rights lawyer whose landmark cases desegregated schools nationwide, has died. He was 82. Ferguson’s son Jay Ferguson told The Charlotte Observer his father had suffered from an “extended illness” leading up to his...
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How Camp Canaan in Rock Hill is preparing for floods
Just nine months ago, parts of Camp Canaan were under 7 feet of water, with decades of work destroyed. Floodwater from Tropical Storm Helene covered the camp’s multipurpose room, where campers spend their lunches laughing and bonding. Water lines left...
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1st Black NFL player from Charlotte, Pettis Norman, dies
There’s a story from long ago that still echoes around Johnson C. Smith’s campus. It doesn’t bounce off the same streets it once did, or linger in the same corner stores. But it’s there. It’s about a young man and a younger man and how their meeting...
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Lake Norman’s calm waters provide peace for combat veterans
Marine Corps veteran John Decoteau boats Lake Norman every chance he gets. A native of the Mississippi bayous, the 49-year-old Cornelius resident travels the country managing military recruiting for Universal Technical Institute. The school trains...
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Nations Ford leaders push for community recreational center
At the intersection of Nations Ford Road and Arrowood Road in southwest Charlotte sits a unique store. Andre Ross’ Metro Fashion Avenue is a one-stop-shop. You can get fitted for a custom mouth grill at the front desk, have your hair done in the...
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Decked out in duct tape, NC student named national Stuck at the Prom finalist
When Nicholas Moore says he sticks to a passion, he means it. The rising senior at South Iredell High School in Troutman is a top-five finalist in a national competition for his marching band-inspired prom tuxedo that he made with 42 rolls of Duck...
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Niner University Elementary closure shocks families
For many CMS teachers, students and families, the last day of school brought feelings of achievement, gratitude and joy. For the Niner University Elementary School community, it brought shock and devastation, said director Pamela Broome. The public...
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New NC bill aims to protect homeowners from HOA foreclosures
A Charlotte resident who’s spent years battling his homeowners association is now advocating for legislation that could change how similar disputes play out across North Carolina. Jeffrey Baldwin, who faces foreclosure over unpaid HOA fees he...
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Charlotte nonprofit Community Link closes after funding loss
In January, when Tameka Gunn tried to access unrestricted funds for Community Link, a Charlotte-based nonprofit she leads, that account was blocked. At the time, the Trump administration started suspending federal funds for many nonprofits, including...
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Development plans put mobile home community at risk
Off Prosperity Church Road nestled near newly built townhomes, apartments and shopping centers sits a community fighting for its existence amid the weight of development pressures. Last May, Leonel Chavez and many of his neighbors living in the Forest...
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Mecklenburg County Manager Diorio to retire at end of month
At Dena Diorio’s last Board of County Commissioners meeting, the word of the day was “GOAT.” Not the farm animal. The acronym for “Greatest of All Time” typically reserved for all-star athletes. Although, there was a pink goat embroidered on the...
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