Charlotte City Council member Tariq Bokhari steps down to take a position in the Trump administration. The Republican will serve as deputy administrator for the Federal Transit Administration, the No. 2 transit official in the Department of Transportation. The move comes as the Charlotte region is counting on federal grants to help pay for transit projects. We discuss the impact.
Meanwhile, immigration has been a hot topic in Mecklenburg County of late as Sheriff Garry McFadden continues to be at odds with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. At the same time, some immigrants face a standstill in court as a lack of resources has led to a massive backlog. The situation is especially bad in Charlotte’s immigration court, which serves North and South Carolina and has the ninth largest backlog in the country.
Charlotte continues to try to court the Central Intercollegiate Basketball Association men’s and women’s basketball tournaments to the city. Part of the challenge is getting buy-in on some of the CIAA’s requests, specifically hotel rates. The conference wants team rates capped at $125 per night and rates capped for fans at $225 per night. According to the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, it appears Charlotte is competing with Baltimore for the tournaments.
And fires continue to burn in western North Carolina. Firefighters and other emergency officials are struggling to contain the flames due to rough terrain and debris left over from Helene.
All that and more on the Charlotte Talks Local News Roundup.
GUESTS:
Julian Berger, WFAE race and equity reporter
James Farrell, WFAE education reporter
Steve Harrison, WFAE political reporter
Mary Ramsey, local government accountability reporter for the Charlotte Observer
Hunter Sáenz, WSOC-TV reporter
