Month: July 2026

3. Southport pivots to ‘appearance commission’ after state bans historic overlay district

Emily Sawaked/Port City Daily After months of public pushback over the city’s attempt at enacting an historic overlay district, as defined by its Historic Preservation Commission, the North Carolina General Assembly passed a bill preventing the city from having and creating an HPC and district. However, Southport found a workable solution: a Historic Preservation Appearance […]

Written by on July 8, 2026

6. Protecting what’s ours: Forest Service extends Max Patch camping, fire bans

Kyle Perrotti/Smoky Mountain News Following what appears to have been a successful ban on camping and fires on the popular Max Patch Bald in northern Haywood County, the U.S. Forest Service has extended the policy another three years. Overuse at Max Patch had been a growing issue beginning around 2010. Officially added to the Pisgah […]

Written by on July 8, 2026

8. Lawsuit from North Carolina alleging Meta harmed children to go to trial: NCAG

Matthew Sockol/WNCN A lawsuit from the North Carolina Department of Justice alleging Meta harmed children will go to trial, state officials said. In 2023, North Carolina joined 29 other states in taking legal action against Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, accusing the company of making its platforms addictive to children and misleading the […]

Written by on July 8, 2026

9. Dare Commissioners delay vote on Kratom ordinance to add criminal penalty

Kip Tabb/Outer Banks Voice Hoping to add stronger enforcement measures to a proposed ordinance regulating the sale of enhanced or synthetic Kratom products, the Dare County Commissioners, at their July 7 meeting, postponed action on that ordinance until Aug. 3. The original ordinance would have banned the sale of all Kratom products to minors and […]

Written by on July 8, 2026

10. Randolph commission appoints library trustees amid pushback

Amy Diaz/WFDD Radio Randolph County Commissioners approved a slate of new members to serve on the public library board of trustees on Monday despite community pushback. Back in December, commissioners dismissed all of the trustees after they voted to keep a book about a transgender boy in the children’s section. They nominated new members in […]

Written by on July 8, 2026

Health researchers criticize WakeMed/Atrium deal

Brown University analysts have joined State Treasurer Brad Briner and the rest of the chorus that contends the proposed WakeMed/Atrium Health merger will only wind up increasing healthcare costs. This is because mergers like this one give hospitals more leverage to use against insurers, says Dan Arnold and other researchers from Brown’s Center for Advancing […]

Written by on July 8, 2026

A win off the field for the Tar Heels and Wolfpack

UNC Chapel Hill and NC State are the big winners from the budget’s reshuffle of the split of the proceeds from North Carolina’s sport-book tax — but they both can lament what could have been. The fiscal 2026-27 for the first time allots the flagships a share of the money, joining a club previously reserved […]

Written by on July 8, 2026

2. Senate hopeful Whatley backed FEMA plan that could boost his portfolio

Cory Vaillancourt/Asheville Citizen Times   North Carolina Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley helped write federal disaster recommendations that could push flood insurance business toward private companies, even as he and his family held as much as $190,000 in stock in private companies tied to the flood insurance market. President Donald Trump tapped Whatley in […]

Written by on July 7, 2026

4. Mission Hospital to relax degree requirements for nurses

Ted Clifford/Asheville Watchdog  Beginning Tuesday, Mission Hospital will no longer require nurses to have a four-year Bachelor of Science Nursing degree or obtain one within five years of being hired. Instead, nurses will be required only to have a two-year Associate Degree in Nursing. “Our commitment to nursing excellence remains unchanged,” Ruth Kain, Mission Hospital’s […]

Written by on July 7, 2026

5. Manns Harbor Bridge repairs to be ‘most complete’ in decades

Kip Tabb/Coastal Review Online As the Manns Harbor Bridge over the Croatan Sound nears its 70th birthday, it’s getting what North Carolina Department of Transportation Resident Engineer Pablo Hernandez recently called “the first major renovation that I’m aware of in my 28-, almost 29-year career here in Dare County.” The bridge, he added quickly, needs […]

Written by on July 7, 2026