Before we get too far into the new year, let’s take a brief moment to look back — this time at some of the top Charlotte-area business news of 2025. To do that, Tony Mecia of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter joined our Marshall Terry for our segment BizWorthy.

It’s now been a week since Charlotte’s biggest brewery was rocked by the bombshell arrest of its co-owner for alleged child sex crimes. The backlash against Sycamore Brewing has included bars, restaurants, grocery stores, and even the airport pulling their products. For the latest, Morning Edition host Marshall Terry is joined by Ashley Fahey of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter for our segment BizWorthy.

Time is running out for those still working at home since the pandemic. One of the changes that could be coming with the new year is a return to the office for five days a week. That’s according to recent data and a survey of business leaders. For more, Tony Mecia of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter joined WFAE’s Marshall Terry for our segment BizWorthy.

This week, the leaders of some of Charlotte's biggest companies gathered uptown for the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance's annual economic forecast. The takeaway for next year is that there are some big challenges on the horizon. For more, Tony Mecia of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter joined WFAE’s Marshall Terry for our segment BizWorthy.

Let’s turn now to an update on part of Charlotte’s Unified Development Ordinance, which took effect in 2023. The overhaul of the city’s development rules allowed denser housing in more places, including accessory dwelling units or ADUs. But despite high interest and demand for ADUs, so far, few have been built. For more, Tony Mecia of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter joined Marshall Terry for our segment BizWorthy.

Charlotte’s immigrant community remains on high alert after federal agents have arrested more than 250 people in an operation that began over the weekend. The fear means businesses are seeing fewer customers as people stay home. Some have even closed temporarily. For more on the impact this crackdown is having on Charlotte’s business community, Ashley Fahey of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter joined Marshall Terry for our segment BizWorthy.

Let’s take a break from talking about this week’s election results for a moment to look at some business news in the Charlotte area. As usual, Tony Mecia of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter joined WFAE’s Marshall Terry for our segment BizWorthy.

Before the decade is out, uptown Charlotte and South End will be knit together a little more tightly.

You can probably picture one right now: A vacant, overgrown piece of land, maybe fenced off, where nothing ever seems to get built even though everything around it is booming. These lots dot Charlotte, blank spaces in a sea of construction that become permanent question marks. The Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter this week dug into the question of what plagues some of these more prominent spots.

Charlotte this week is remembering one of its best-known CEOs. Doug Lebda co-founded LendingTree in 1996 and it has become one of the city’s most enduring tech companies. Lebda died Sunday in an ATV accident. He was 55. To talk more about Lebda and other business news of the week, Tony Mecia of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter joined WFAE’s Marshall Terry for our segment BizWorthy.