“The part that breaks my heart is just their experience of school being a potentially dangerous place, which I wish that it wasn't something they felt,” Chandra Lovejoy, the parent of a student at Chapel Hill High School, said.
“This, to me, doesn't feel like a political issue,” UNC junior Caroline Butler, a member of UNC March for Our Lives who attended the protest, said. “This is me going to the steps of the General Assembly begging for my life.”
The owners of Julian's, University Florist, Mama Dips and Sutton's Drug Store share their experiences as owners of businesses passed down from generation to generation. These Franklin Street storefronts have been staples in the community for decades.
The N.C. General Assembly is scheduled to vote on the overdue budget for the next two fiscal years in mid-September, according to a state representative. Without a new budget, Medicaid expansion and scheduled state employee salaries are stalled.
Two local affordable housing nonprofits, EMPOWERment, Inc. and CASA, are embarking on their first solarization projects with the help of SolarEquity, a nonprofit organization and club at UNC that works to install solar panels on affordable housing developments.
If passed, House Bill 596, otherwise known as the Hate Crimes Prevention Act, would increase punishments for those who commit hate crimes, require additional training for law enforcement and prosecutors and mandate the establishment of a hate crimes statistics database.
Chapel Hill resident Bobby Woodlief said he has endured a variety of difficulties during his 18 years of experiencing homelessness in the town. As a result of his living situation, he and others have had mixed interactions with police.
After a recent report of sexual assault on a Chapel Hill Transit bus, leaders are working to ensure passenger safety – both on buses and at bus stops. Director Brian Litchfield said Chapel Hill Transit is “incredibly safe” because of well-trained staff, supervisors and a crisis team equipped to deescalate situations.
Raleigh-Durham International Airport plans to nearly triple the size of one of its parking lots to accommodate an increase in passenger traffic, raising environmental concerns as the construction will increase the lot’s proximity to William B. Umstead State Park.
Allison Riggs was sworn into the N.C. Court of Appeals on Jan. 1, filling a vacancy left by Richard Dietz, who was elected to the N.C. Supreme Court in November. Riggs will serve on the state Court of Appeals until at least 2024 when she must win an election to keep her seat.
