WFAE Local Content

It’s now been three years since Charlotte City Council allowed for the creation of social districts. You know those areas where you can walk down the sidewalk while drinking alcohol. Several businesses and neighborhoods immediately expressed interest, but so far Charlotte only has one. It’s in Plaza Midwood. For more on this and other business stories, Lindsey Banks of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter joined WFAE’s Marshall Terry for this week's BizWorthy.

Building, rehabilitating, instructing, developing, growing, employing. Those are the promises made by the BRIDGE program, which trains incarcerated young men to fight fires, among other skills. But does it hold true to those promises?

Mecklenburg County Commissioners gathered in uptown today to approve the wording of a 1-cent sales tax referendum for this year’s municipal ballot.

A group of Jewish Charlotte residents are expressing their support for Palestinians and condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza, while also acknowledging the complexity of the issue.

So far this year, there have been 35 traffic-related deaths in Charlotte, including four cyclists and eight pedestrians. This has happened despite the city's Vision Zero plan to eliminate all traffic deaths by 2030. We explore what’s behind this rise in traffic-related deaths, its relationship to road design and what is and isn’t being done to make our streets safe.

Many non-profits across the country have lost federal funding since President Trump took office. Habitat for Humanity Charlotte Region remains funded, but is worried about what's to come.

Unemployment slightly increased in 92 of 100 counties last month according to the North Carolina Department of Commerce. Officials also said in June, all 15 of the state’s metro areas, including Charlotte, experienced increases. The Rocky Mount area experienced the highest unemployment rate at 5.3% while Raleigh was the lowest at 3.4%. The statewide rate last month was 4%.

The Charlotte 49ers football team opened practice Tuesday as they prepare for the upcoming season with new coach Tim Albin (ALL-bin). He said the hot weather was a factor, but he wants a different kind of heat from his team.

The N.C. state legislature overrides Gov. Josh Stein's veto of Senate Bill 266. Democrat Wiley Nickel drops out of the race for U.S. Senate, backs former Gov. Roy Cooper. Duke University faces two new federal investigations. S.C. drops its sales tax on many items this weekend.

This week on SouthBound, we air our final episode. WFAE’s Ely Portillo interviews host Tommy Tomlinson about Tommy's favorite SouthBound moment, the future of journalism and what still gives him hope. Please join us.

This week, WFAE's Marshall Terry and WRAL's Paul Specht are fact-checking a claim Gov. Josh Stein made in June. In a post on X, Stein wrote, “Guns are the leading cause of death for children in North Carolina.” For more, Paul Specht of WRAL joined WFAE's Marshall Terry.

The state legislature has overridden Gov. Stein’s veto of Senate Bill 266 with the support of two Mecklenburg County Democrats. The bill eliminates a key climate target for the state and Duke Energy.