Anne Blythe/NC Health News The growing season for many eastern North Carolina crops might be fallow right now, but that hasn’t stopped Margaret Sharp, a community impact director for the American Heart Association, and others from cultivating the seeds of a new healthcare program for farmworkers. Sharp, a Wayne County resident for the past decade, […]
John Boyle/Asheville Watchdog Two independent chemistry experts say lead could be more widespread in Asheville’s drinking water following Tropical Storm Helene than the city has suggested and both call for more public education and testing. Sally Wasileski, chair of the UNC Asheville chemistry department, and Abigail Cantor, a chemical engineer and president of Process Research […]
Jeff Brady/WUNC Radio The small town of Carrboro, North Carolina is suing one of the country’s largest electric utilities, Duke Energy, over climate change. While states and cities have filed lawsuits against big oil companies, suing utilities is less common. The arguments are similar though. Carrboro alleges Duke knew about climate change for over 50 […]
Rebecca Noel/The Charlotte Observer Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ new attendance policy is allowing more leniency for students. Previously, if a CMS student missed 11 or more class periods, did not make up missed time or have a medical waiver, he or she would receive an automatic F in the course under the district’s Attendance Recovery Regulation. The […]
Steve Harrison/WFAE Radio Charlotte Douglas International Airport is proposing more flight paths for departing aircraft, in order to disperse noise over a wider area. CLT currently has eight paths for departing aircraft — four to the north and four to the south. The airport is proposing that the Federal Aviation Administration create 27 total paths. […]
Gary D. Robertson/The Associated Press The very close election for a North Carolina Supreme Court seat heads next to a hand recount even as election officials announced a machine recount of over 5.5 million ballots resulted in no margin change between the candidates. The statewide machine recount — in which ballots were run again through […]
Peter Castagno/Port City Daily Several local governments are considering expansive revisions to flood protection regulations after experiencing severe flooding in recent months. A controversial hurricane recovery bill, Senate Bill 382, contains a provision that could put a brake on those initiatives. General Statute 160D-601 allows municipalities to initiate downzoning amendments — reducing development density or […]
Paul Woolverton/CityView Power on the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners took a major shift Monday night from the old guard to the new when newly elected Commissioner Kirk deViere defeated longtime Commissioner Marshall Faircloth in the election for chair of the board. The vote was 4-3 for deViere vs. Faircloth. Votes for deViere: deViere, newly […]
Outgoing Rep. Wayne Sasser, R-Stanly, will be joining the board of NCInnovation via an appointments bill legislators passed just before the Thanksgiving holiday. Sasser will become one of the House’s four appointees to the board. The Albemarle pharmacist, 74, replaces Beth Friedrich, a former aide to outgoing Speaker Tim Moore who recently resigned her seat […]
The state Commerce Department’s annual update of county tier rankings of economic distress is out, and as always, there are a number of moves up and down the list. Two of the 18 tier changes struck us as particularly notable: Randolph County’s slide to Tier 1 (the 40 most-distressed counties) and Granville County’s rise to […]
There’s a new face on the Golden LEAF Foundation board, with Pembroke insurance agent Jarette Sampson joining as of Dec. 1. Sampson replaces former member Johnathan Rhyne, a lawyer from Blowing Rock who didn’t seek reappointment. He served in the legilsature from Lincoln County in 1985-92 amd 2009-11. Outgoing House Speaker Tim Moore appointed Sampson […]
The completion of the Cone/Risant merger occurred on the same day as outgoing State Treasurer Dale Folwell’s valedictory monthly “Ask Me Anything” news conference. As might be expected, his comments included a blast at what he terms the state’s “health care cartel.” The trends there are “all going in the wrong direction,” Folwell said, adding […]
After receiving state and federal approvals, Cone Health of Greensboro said it completed its merger into Risant Health, ending 71 years of local ownership of the Gate City’s largest hospital operation. Risant has committed a minimum of $1.4 billion in capital to Cone Health over the next five years, and as much as $300 million […]
The completion of the Cone/Risant deal occurred on the same day as outgoing State Treasurer Dale Folwell’s valedictory monthly “Ask Me Anything” news conference. As might be expected, his comments included a blast at what he terms the state’s “health care cartel.” The trends there are “all going in the wrong direction,” Folwell said, adding […]
Jacob Biba/Asheville Citizen Times Unemployment rates rose sharply across Western North Carolina in October, according to the North Carolina Department of Commerce’s monthly report released Nov. 27. The latest unemployment figures, which aren’t seasonally adjusted, provide another glimpse of the economic toll Tropical Storm Helene has taken when it ripped through the region more than […]
