Charlie Fossen/Port City Daily A legal investigation into Councilmember Frank Pendleton’s attempt to expedite a town-purchased laptop has concluded no laws were broken, though official Leland town policies were violated. Detailed in a legal advisory opinion by Town Attorney Stephen Coggins, the investigation determined Pendleton bypassed standard procurement procedures in January 2026. Pendleton claimed he […]
Lily Levin/Smoky Mountain News Former Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Principal Chief Patrick Lambert and Beloved Woman Myrtle Driver proposed a resolution renaming the tribe the “Eastern Cherokee Nation” and later encouraged tribal council to withdraw it. In those 30 minutes between Resolution 147’s introduction and withdrawal, tribal council and public commenters engaged in rich […]
Julian Berger/WFAE Radio CVS Health announced Tuesday it will invest more than $2.2 million to expand access to community-based health care and healthy food in Charlotte’s Historic West End. The funding will support a new CVS Health “Health Zone” in west Charlotte, with the investment going to the Westside Wellness Collab, a coalition of local […]
New estimates are once again predicting that the State Health Plan faces a deficit in the not-too-distant future. Plan executive administrator Tom Friedman’s briefing of trustees on Tuesday shows its cash balance dropping into negative numbers by the middle of 2027. “We’re candidly never going to be done having to actively manage this thing, Friedman […]
Checkmate Government Relations, the Raleigh-based lobbying firm led by Ches McDowell, hired Rep. Richard Hudson’s chief of staff Luke Blanchat to lead its congressional lobbying business Checkmate has drawn lots of attention because of its fast growth and McDowell’s close ties to the Trump administration. The firm opened its Washington D.C. office after Donald Trump’s election in 2024. It […]
As was widely expected, Senate leader Phil Berger has asked for a recount of the results in his District 26 GOP primary that show Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page beating him for the party nomination by 23 votes. The request came with a twist, namely that Berger wants the Rockingham and Guilford elections boards to […]
Ashley Murray/NC Newsline Electricity rates “increased significantly” in nearly every U.S. state in 2025, with residents in a dozen states seeing at least a 10% jump, according to a congressional report released by Democrats Tuesday. Minority members of the Joint Economic Committee released state-by-state figures from monthly utility bill data showing, on average, American households […]
Kelly Kenoyer/WHQR The legal memo related to Leland’s laptop dust-up in February is out, and indicates that the efforts to circumvent city staff to procure a laptop were potentially unlawful. But, intervention by the town manager to stop that process prevented any illegal action from occurring, the memo notes. That legal advisory opinion will be […]
Annie Dance/The Carolina Journal Leaders guiding long-term recovery efforts for western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene are exploring a sweeping strategy to attract private investment, rebuild infrastructure, and strengthen the region’s workforce pipeline as communities continue to recover from storm damage and economic disruption. Members of the Governor’s Recovery Office for Western NC (GROW NC) […]
Alan Wooten/The Center Square Voter registrations in North Carolina remain down for a fourth consecutive week, according to the State Board of Elections. The trend includes each of the major voting blocs. Because of work for the county boards of election leading up to the primary and coming out of it, the declines are not […]
Jamiese Price & Bianca Holman/WTVD News Disruptions at Raleigh-Durham International Airport are expected to worsen in the coming days. A source told ABC11 that nearly half a dozen TSA workers at RDU have submitted their notices to leave, and the number is expected to grow in the days ahead. As the partial government shutdown enters […]
James Farrell/WFAE Radio Middle and high school basketball players from North and South Carolina gathered recently at the historic Second Ward High School Gymnasium in uptown Charlotte for a showcase that blended competition with education — and highlighted the growing role of money in all levels of youth sport. The event, hosted by the Wisdom […]
Matt Lamb/The Southern Pines Pilot When the N.C. Department of Transportation said its latest design for the historic Pinehurst Traffic Circle was its final offering, the organization meant it, according to a recent response it sent to Pinehurst officials. Last month, the Village Council submitted a resolution to DOT lauding its efforts to work with […]
Jack Igelman/Carolina Public Press How do you put a price on a 122-year-old mass of concrete sitting in the middle of a river? The value of Craggy Dam on the French Broad River in Buncombe County is now at the center of a debate over river restoration, flood mitigation, power generation and the future of […]
Paul Woolverton/CityView As Cumberland County employees work to convert a former parking lot in front of the county courthouse into a temporary greenspace, the county commissioners are looking for ways to replace the 204 parking spaces that used to be there. At the same time, commissioners are still seeking to get the property developed into […]
