Theresa Opeka/The Carolina Journal As North Carolina House chairman of the Joint Legislative Commission on Governmental Operations, House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, has requested records from UNC-Chapel Hill regarding Dr. Ralph Baric and his work related to COVID-19. In a June 13 letter obtained by Carolina Journal through the speaker’s...

Elena Marsh/The (Southern Pines) Pilot A building moratorium that Taylortown implemented earlier this year to give itself time to cope with unexpected development requests could be overturned by pending state legislation. State Sen. Tom McInnis, whose district includes Moore County, requested the insertion of a clause in a bill before...

Jordan Valinsky/CNN At Home, a popular home goods retailer with 260 stores across 40 US states, has filed for bankruptcy, citing the backdrop of tariff increases and a slowdown in consumer spending. The Dallas-based company announced Monday that it had entered an agreement with its lenders that “will eliminate substantially...

Trista Talton/Coastal Review Online When Gigi Donovan looks at the dune fronting a row of largely undeveloped oceanfront lots across the street from her home, she sees a false sense of security. “We’ve seen this dune go away three times in 12 years,” she said. The sandy mound that separates...

Gerard Albert III/Blue Ridge Public Radio Henderson County recently passed its $215 million budget for next fiscal year – after Hurricane Helene damaged properties, interrupted tourism and left behind massive amounts of debris. Clearing debris from the storm is costing Henderson County millions of dollars and the county has used...

Pat Kimbrough/The High Point Enterprise A Triad developer of affordable housing communities has purchased a site in the Oakview area of High Point for a proposed multifamily project. Wynnefield Properties of Jamestown recently acquired 3.8 acres at the northwest corner of Old Winston Road and N. University Parkway for the...

Catherine Kozak/Coastal Review Online Jockey’s Ridge used to be known as the tallest natural sand dune on the East Coast, but now it’s described as its largest natural active sand dune system. While it may not be as high as it was in 1973, the unique phenomenon of nature is...

Greg Allen & Marisa Peñaloza/WFAE Radio U.S. Highway 70 is the main road through Swannanoa, a small town in western North Carolina, and it’s still a mess almost nine months after Hurricane Helene hit. There are piles of debris and buildings without windows and roofs. Most of the businesses that...

Ben Humphries & Chantal Brown/Education NC Lawmakers reconvened at the General Assembly to push a flurry of bills through the Senate and House education committees this week. At the Senate Education/Higher Education Committee meeting on Wednesday, among the bills up for discussion was a proposed committee substitute (PCS) which would...

Kate Denning/Carolina Public Press Central Piedmont Community College violated North Carolina’s open meetings and public records laws, as well as the First Amendment, according to plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the school that just moved to federal court at the request of the school. The Southern Coalition for Social Justice...

Brian Burns/WUNC Radio With its new partnership with Secretly Group, Merge Records hopes it can better serve its artists. “Merge artists already know our enthusiasm and love for their music and what they’re doing,” Merge Records co-founder Mac McCaughan said. “And I think this will also give them some assurance...

Cory Vaillancourt/Smoky Mountain News A pair of local bills pushed by Rep. Mark Pless (R-Haywood) — one welcomed by most, another, not so much — took important steps through the General Assembly earlier this week but still have a long way to go if they’re to become law. The first,...

WRAL News A man who died in a highly publicized shooting believed to be politically motivated has a Triangle connection. Democratic former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were killed in their Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, home early Saturday. Mark Hortman was a Raleigh native, according to a...

Charlie Fossen/Port City Daily The recent issuance and subsequent lifting of a stop-work order at The Haven at Galleria, prompted by the removal of several oak trees, has brought renewed attention to Wilmington’s ongoing efforts in tree preservation. This incident, while specific to one development, underscores the complexities of Wilmington’s...

Sarah White/The (Waynesville) Mountaineer Electric service providers in Haywood County are working around the clock to meet demands for electric generators following Hurricane Helene. Since Hurricane Helene ripped through the region last September, the demand for residential electric generators has skyrocketed. Scarred by days or weeks spent without power after...