School board weighs options for attendance boundary changes

After a summer of controversy, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board will take on a task that's difficult for any school board: deciding where students go to school. CMS plans to reopen Elbert Edwin Waddell High School as a comprehensive high school and open a new middle school on Stumptown Road — which will affect other schools’ attendance boundaries.

Charlotte Adds Hundreds More Jail Beds as Repeat-Offender Concerns Grow

Charlotte has reopened a massive jail facility as local officials try to ease overcrowding and reduce the pressure behind the city’s revolving-door criminal justice problem. Mecklenburg County’s Jail North has more than 700 beds and is now housing detainees again after years of limited use. The move gives...

County officials face tough calls in the Rock Hill region. Just not on the ballot

The easiest races to call on election night are for seats that handle some of the most contentious public issues across the Rock Hill region. Yet most of those races were all but decided before polls closed. Residents have poured into York County Council meetings each month for years now to debate data centers and solar panel manufacturing. A little more than a week ago, the latest protest drew a large crowd asking the county not to allow Canadian manufacturer Silfab Solar to use industrial chemicals near schools in Fort Mill. The county is involved with multiple lawsuits on the issue. Yet with three York County Council seats on the ballot this fall, all three saw incumbents run unopposed. Republicans Tommy Adkins and Debi Cloninger will keep their seats, as will Democrat William “Bump” Roddey. It’s a similar story in Lancaster County, where residents routinely plead with Lancaster County Council to slow down growth, improve infrastructure or deny new projects in the fast-growing Indian Land area. They’ve tackled hot button issues of late from where to allow data centers to a moratorium on places of worship . Lancaster County Council had three contests on the ballot Tuesday. All three saw

‘I want to send a message': Inside NC's blue wave are Charlotte voters fed up with Trump

One by one, an assortment of Republican and independent voters walked out of a south Charlotte polling site last week. Few appeared to be particularly thrilled after having cast their ballots. Several said they felt exasperated about the toxicity of politics in Washington, about the high cost of gas and food, about the treatment of immigrants. They weren’t thinking so much about state or local issues in this election; in many cases, it wasn’t even about the names on the ballot. This was a referendum on President Donald Trump. “People want a more balanced government,” said Jill Heddleson, an unaffiliated voter. “In general, you really should be educated on each individual race and what each candidate stands for, but I guess I want to send a message.” Heddleson and her husband, a lifelong Republican, said they voted straight Democratic tickets in a departure from their typical voting habits. They weren’t alone. The blue tsunami that swept the nation Tuesday included North and South Carolina, where voters elected Roy Cooper and Annie Andrews to U.S. Senate seats. Tar Heel Democrats also flipped the state House and broke the GOP’s Senate supermajority. On Tuesday night, the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party celebrated one

Mecklenburg County Initiative AddressesAffordable Housing for Employees

One of Michael Bryant’s early priorities when he was appointed as the new Mecklenburg County Manager in April 2025 was to find solutions to Charlotte’s affordable housing crisis. Bryant, who served as deputy county manager for 5 years before his appointment to the county manager position, was a budget analyst for the county. In his new role, he leads 6,500 employees and oversees a budget of $2.5 billion.

Denver Vietnam veteran punches out Parkinson’s

DENVER – Diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in early 2021, Charles “Chuck” Killingsworth, a Vietnam War veteran, is one of the many veterans exposed to Agent Orange who suffer from the exposure. “I was exposed to Agent Orange when I was a Marine in 1966,” he said....

New members headed to Mecklenburg County commission; DA and sheriff win unopposed

Mecklenburg County will once again have an all-Democratic county commission, with nearly all races in Tuesday's election unopposed and three new members coming to the board. Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden and District Attorney Spencer Merriweather, also Democrats, were reelected without opposition. On the Mecklenburg County commission:. Leigh Altman, Arthur...

Matthews animal hospital closing this month

The Florida-based company has locations nationwide.

Ridgeway Army Veteran Raising Two Sons Alone Scheduled to Receive Ford Bronco

Retired U.S. Army Cpl. David Lewis, a South Carolina veteran who was wounded during a combat deployment to Iraq, was scheduled to be presented with a Ford Bronco this week. Lewis, who lives in Ridgeway and is raising his two teenage sons alone after his wife died unexpectedly in 2024, was scheduled to receive the vehicle at the 13th annual Veterans and First Responders Golf Outing in Indian Land, South Carolina, on Wednesday.

Things To Do in Charlotte This Weekend: Nov. 6-8

Charlotte's first full weekend of November brings candlelit music, a holiday camp, and big laughs. Candlelight: Tribute to Dolly Parton reimagines the country legend's classics for strings at Triple C Brewing, while drag stars Jinkx Monsoon and BenDeLaCreme kick off their tour with The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show at Blumenthal Arts Center. Comedian Luenell brings her bold stand-up act to The Comedy Zone. Jazz, Checkers hockey, and Little Big Town round out the weekend, and the Hornets, Sleeping With Sirens, and more keep the momentum going into next week.

NC Democrats could still break Republican majority in the state Senate

Democrats will control the North Carolina House for the first time since 2010 and have broken Republicans' veto-proof majority in the state Senate, according to unofficial results. Control of the Senate remains undecided. Democrats won 71 of the House's 120 seats, compared with 48 for Republicans. One unaffiliated candidate who...

Ex-Hendrick Employee Says His Supervisor Struck Workers in the Head and Neck for a Decade, and N.C. Appeals Court Lets His Lawsuit Proceed

The North Carolina Court of Appeals ruled on Oct. 7 that Randy Hembree, a former employee of Charlotte-based Hendrick Automotive Group, can keep suing his supervisor, Eric William Wright, over allegations that Wright struck subordinates in the head and neck to motivate them. The allegations are unproven, and the ruling does not decide them. It decides where the fight happens: a superior court, not the state’s workers’ compensation agency.

The TJ Ritchie Show: DeSantis Comments On Midterm Losses

The TJ Ritchie Show is a nightly talk show on WBT Charlotte that covers news and politics, along with everything happening in entertainment, sports, and…well…life! Because he’s “America’s Coolest Conservative,” TJ breaks it all down in a way that everyone can understand and enjoy, delivering pinpoint political analysis with wit and a heaping dose of Southern charm. Not since Rush Limbaugh has a host combined serious political and cultural news with satirical humor. He has been one of America’s most well-respected radio hosts for over 25 years, and now he’s conquering the talk radio and podcast world. Liberals beware…you just might laugh at yourselves! There’s a new Sheriff in town, and his name is TJ Ritchie!

Decision made over controversial bell schedule for 1 Charlotte-Mecklenburg school

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools made a major decision regarding a controversial proposed bell schedule change for one of its schools. In an email obtained by WBTV on Thursday, Nov. 5, the South Academy of International Languages said its 2027-2028 bell schedule will remain unchanged. A new bell schedule was being considered for the school, which prompted pushback from parents.

With Democrats controlling NC House, Charlotte is optimistic about getting city’s priorities passed

Charlotte is the biggest city in North Carolina, but it’s the General Assembly in Raleigh that holds the legislative power.

Former Matthews town commissioner defeats Republican Tricia Cotham in state House race

State Rep. Tricia Cotham (R-105) was ousted in her re-election bid for the General Assembly Tuesday night.

How Ken McCool spent Election Day, when he defeated N.C. Rep. Tricia Cotham

Charlotte's marathon is sold out. But organizers now face a course correction.

The Charlotte Marathon has a problem that would have seemed enviable not so long ago: Too many people want to run it. Running clubs have multiplied across Charlotte, introducing newcomers to the sport and helping turn marathon morning into something resembling a citywide reunion — and this year, weeks before race day, registration for the Nov. 14 event officially sold out when it hit a record-setting 13,250 runners. Now, under new ownership , organizers are contemplating future growth that could involve perhaps 20,000 participants, more visitors from outside North Carolina and a place among the country’s premier destination races. But between Miles 22 and 24, where the full-marathon course squeezes onto a narrow stretch of greenway connecting NoDa to uptown, Charlotte’s ambitions run into a physical barrier. And that, according to the woman responsible for making the race work, is where ambition encounters reality. “The greenway is our clog point,” says Alaina Williams, who oversees operations for the Charlotte Marathon, noting that the width of the asphalt path is eight feet. “I cannot put any more runners on the greenway. Physically, it will not fit.” It’s one of several obstacles confronting a race whose popularity is testing the limits of

Billboard Crews Cleared the Trees Behind Elizabeth Alls' Charlotte Home Without Telling Her, and NCDOT Says a 2024 Law Allows It

Crews cleared trees behind Elizabeth Alls' Charlotte home for a billboard without notice. NCDOT says a 2024 law with a 500-foot view zone allows it.

Lake area towns to honor servicemen and women

LAKE NORMAN – Veterans Day, originally known as Armistice Day, commemorates the end of World War I in 1918. The armistice that ended the fighting took effect on the 11th day of the 11th month at 11 a.m. Armistice Day later evolved into Veterans Day, a day dedicated to honoring all who have served in the United States Armed Forces.