Month: March 2025

4. ‘I want to build bridges’: Lt. Gov. Rachel Hunt on being a unifier, leader and daughter of a Democratic icon In statewide office for the first time, Hunt handles her role with a certain ease. But then, she’s no stranger to how Raleigh works.

Lucas Thomae/Carolina Public Press Just after noon in front of the manufacturing building at Guilford Technical Community College, first-year student Khniya Hames recited her lines. “She has remained dedicated to education and public service throughout her life. … She also served in North Carolina’s House of Representatives. …” Hames gazed toward the crystal-clear sky as […]

Written by on March 30, 2025

5. Helene damage repairs underway on Blue Ridge Parkway

Jacob Hancock-Hernández/WFDD Radio Six months after Helene wreaked havoc on Western North Carolina, roughly one-third of the 469-mile Blue Ridge Parkway remains closed. But the National Parks Service has begun projects to repair the damage. While there are areas all throughout the parkway that need to be addressed, these projects focus on emergency roadway repairs […]

Written by on March 30, 2025

6. A political power grab redirected funds for North Carolina’s sexual abuse survivors. Women in crisis paid the price.

Doug Bock Clark/ProPublica For years, North Carolina’s Republican-majority Legislature has taken steps big and small to wrench power from Democratic governors and the agencies under their control. One move that didn’t get much attention — tucked into a 628-page budget bill four years ago — was to direct $15 million in funding for sexual assault […]

Written by on March 30, 2025

7. 42nd St. Oyster Bar, a Raleigh institution, closes its doors

Willie Daniely/WRAL News Sunday marks the last day of service for 42nd Street Oyster Bar in Raleigh. The southern seafood restaurant opened in 1931. According to an employee of 42nd Street Oyster Bar, the famed Raleigh restaurant will close its doors on Sunday, March 30. The news was first reported by the Triangle Business Journal. […]

Written by on March 30, 2025

8. Apartments on Pickett, Chin Page roads win Durham Council approval

Wes Platt/Southpoint Access Pickett Road Apartments, a project whose consideration was postponed from February to allow developers to collaborate with opponents on points of compromise, on March 17 won approval from a divided City Council. Chin Page Road Apartments, expected to add about 360 apartment units across the road from Wolfspeed’s old industrial space, won […]

Written by on March 30, 2025

9. Chief nursing officer to leave Mission Hospital

Andrew R. Jones/Asheville Watchdog Melanie Wetmore’s tenure as chief nursing officer spanned some of the most tumultuous years in the history of Asheville’s Mission Hospital, including the COVID-19 pandemica mass exodus of nurses in 2022 and 2023, and a finding of immediate jeopardy in 2024, the most severe federal sanction any hospital can face. // […]

Written by on March 30, 2025

10. Mayor Cowell delivers inaugural State of the City address

Jackson Davenport/(NC State) Technician Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell delivered her first “State of the City” address Wednesday evening, focusing on housing affordability, public safety, transportation, quality of life and resilience in the city. Cowell aimed to highlight the work she and city council have done in the first 100 days of their terms, as well […]

Written by on March 30, 2025

NCCU gets a rough audit

State Auditor Dave Boliek says N.C. Central University’s bookkeeping for fiscal 2023-24 was riddled with more than $45 million in errors, a symptom of problems that “have snowballed over the last several years.” But he voiced confidence in the Durham university’s new chancellor, Karrie Dixon, and newly hired vice chancellor for finance and administration, Laurie […]

Written by on March 28, 2025

Senate bill filings and housing

This week’s Senate bill-filing deadline brought forth hundreds of new or recycled legislative proposals, including quite a few that address the shortfall of housing that business groups like the NC Chamber have called out. In the interests of brevity, let’s look at just a couple of the housing-related bills. Sens. Steve Jarvis and Tim Moffitt, […]

Written by on March 28, 2025

Senate health bill passes

Senators have sent the House their latest attempt to reduce healthcare costs. Senate Bill 316 cleared the chamber Thursday on a 46-2 vote, 10 days after its initial rollout by the chamber’s leadership. Along the way, sponsors rolled into it the provisions of Senate Bill 315, a parallel measure that addresses insurers’ use of prior […]

Written by on March 28, 2025

1. Trump officials working to strip FEMA’s role in disaster recovery by Oct. 1

Brianna Sacks, Brady Dennis & Jake Spring/The Washington Post Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem and other Trump administration officials expressed support in meetings this week for dramatically diminishing the role of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, with the aim of all but eliminating the embattled agency’s role in disaster recovery by Oct. […]

Written by on March 27, 2025

3. Wolfspeed hires industry vet Feurle as CEO

David Mildenberg/Business North Carolina Wolfspeed, the Durham-based semiconductor manufacturer, named Robert Feurle as CEO starting May 1. Predecessor Gregg Lowe, who had led the business since 2017, was fired late last year amid mounting losses. The company is nearing completion of its $5 billion factory in Chatham County, one of the biggest capital investments in […]

Written by on March 27, 2025

4. “Nobody in our industry makes minimum wage”: Talking with retiring NC restaurant lobbyist Lynn Minges

Lena Geller/IndyWeek As North Carolina restaurants and hotels navigate the pandemic’s lingering effects on worker expectations and wages—and brace for renewed scrutiny of immigrant workers under Trump’s second administration—the hospitality sector finds itself at a critical juncture. Amid these shifting dynamics, Lynn Minges will conclude her 13-year tenure as president and CEO of the North […]

Written by on March 27, 2025

5. Gov. Stein creates new Council on Workforce and Apprenticeships

Emily Thomas/Education NC Gov. Josh Stein signed an executive order on March 25 creating the Council on Workforce and Apprenticeships. The new council will be responsible for identifying workforce needs and amplifying strategies that help North Carolinians access the education and training needed for high-wage, high-demand, and high-growth careers. The group will consist of leaders […]

Written by on March 27, 2025