Allison Chipps | Queens University News Service

At Not Just Coffee, the usual rhythm of espresso drinks, laptop work sessions and café conversation plays out as expected. But near the counter, tucked into an unassuming corner, sits something slightly out of place: a battery drop box.

In Charlotte, the most important decisions aren’t always made under the bright lights of a full council vote. Instead, they begin in quieter rooms — inside committees of the Charlotte City Council — where fewer people are watching and even fewer know how to speak up.

In Charlotte, cranes dot the skyline and “For Rent” signs line busy corridors — but for many college students, those signs signal competition rather than opportunity. The city continues to grow at one of the fastest rates in the United States. But that growth has come with a cost: rising rent, shrinking availability and increased corporate ownership of housing.