Month: April 2024

6. City adds robots to its grounds maintenance fleet

While the idea of robot helpers may seem farfetched, the City of Sanford has put several to work over the past month. Visitors to the Sanford Municipal Center have likely seen autonomous lawn mowers moving around the campus lawn. While they are fun to watch, these small, efficient robots offer more than entertainment. Key benefits […]

Written by on April 29, 2024

8. Elm City water system flagged again

For the sixth time in six months, Elm City’s water system was flagged by the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality. The town posted a notice Wednesday afternoon for its fourth violation since Oct. 31 related to the presence of trihalomethanes, a cleaning byproduct chemical in the water. Trihalomethanes, or TTHMs, can cause cancer with long-term […]

Written by on April 29, 2024

9. PTI Airport is getting a major, and expensive, makeover

Anyone who’s been flying in and out of Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTI) in recent years has noticed constant work going on all around the place – and not just work related to the new 1000-acre aviation megasite that’s drawing in new companies. The airport’s main terminal, the parking lots and parking systems, the road […]

Written by on April 29, 2024

10. How UNC leaving WakeBrook will impact mental health in Wake County

For a little more than a decade, UNC Health Care has provided care at WakeBrook, the mental health hospital in east Raleigh. Wake County owns the facility, but UNC has been the care provider. Earlier this year, UNC Health announced it will transition away from WakeBrook, a move advocates say will leave a hole in […]

Written by on April 29, 2024

1. Rural communities face primary care physician shortage

A new study from the American Academy of Family Physicians’ Robert Graham Center (AAFP), co-funded by the Milbank Memorial Fund and The Physicians Foundation, has found that communities across the country are struggling to meet the demand for primary care physicians, as well as to retain those physicians in their communities. While it’s difficult all […]

Written by on April 28, 2024

3. UAW strike at Daimler Truck averted at 11th hour

Union workers at Daimler Truck who make Freightliner and Western Star trucks and Thomas Built buses in North Carolina won significant raises and cost of living allowances. The United Auto Workers union announced late Friday it had struck a favorable new contract deal for 7,300 Daimler Truck North America workers. The union had threatened a […]

Written by on April 28, 2024

4. Cooper nominee to head DOT paves the road toward confirmation

Governor Roy Cooper tapped Joey Hopkins to serve as Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) last September, but Wednesday was his first day before the Senate Transportation Committee that will vote on the appointment. Hopkins, who has worked at NCDOT for more than 30 years in a variety of capacities, fielded numerous […]

Written by on April 28, 2024

5. Planned Parenthood announces $10 million voter campaign in North Carolina for 2024 election

Abortion continues to be a key part of Democrats’ election playbook in North Carolina, which for 2024 will include what abortion-rights advocates call an unprecedented investment in get-out-the-vote efforts. Planned Parenthood affiliated groups in North Carolina announced on Thursday a $10 million campaign in the state that largely focuses on persuading people concerned about narrowing […]

Written by on April 28, 2024

6. Anduril, General Atomics chosen in Air Force contracts

The 7-year-old company that last year bought North Carolina-based Blue Force Technologies was chosen Wednesday for contract by the Air Force with one other ahead of three giants in American defense. Anduril Industries, headquartered in California and founded in 2017, was chosen as one of two vendors in the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program. Anduril is […]

Written by on April 28, 2024

7. Chancellor marks progress, but faces crisis as he enters his fourth year

As Fayetteville State University Chancellor Darrell T. Allison finished his third year at the helm of the storied campus on March 15, he had accomplishments to celebrate. Some of these: Enrollment is up and dropouts are down. Research grants from outside sources have nearly doubled, from $15.2 million in the 2020-21 academic year to $28.6 […]

Written by on April 28, 2024

8. American Indian education advisory council calls for state-level director, academic supports

The State Advisory Council on Indian Education (SACIE) shared its annual report with the State Board of Education earlier this month. The report, which SACIE presents to the Board each year, provides an analysis of American Indian students’ performance regarding end-of-grade (EOG) scores, dropout and graduation rates, and suspension data. SACIE, established in 1987, analyzes […]

Written by on April 28, 2024

9. Local environmentalist joins factory-farm pollution lawsuit against EPA

Cape Fear River Watch’s designated Riverkeeper is petitioning the Environmental Protection Agency to enforce protections for an industry he believes is at the heart of local water pollution. In September, Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Food & Water Watch, the North Carolina Environmental Justice Network, and 11 other groups sued the EPA over the failure to regulate […]

Written by on April 28, 2024

10. Henderson County identifies more than two dozen cases in whooping cough outbreak

Henderson County health officials are tracking a local outbreak of whooping cough. The Health Department has confirmed 27 cases, with most occurring among school-aged children, officials said in an April 25 news release. Parents, guardians and close contacts of the affected individuals are being notified by letter or phone call, according to the release. Kimbrell […]

Written by on April 28, 2024