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NC ranks in top 10 of most financially distressed states: What to know
Many Americans are struggling financially - and a recent study shows that North Carolinians may be particularly strapped for cash. The goal of personal finance company WalletHub is to help consumers stay financially savvy with tools to improve credit scores, compare credit card offers and personal loans, gain a "holistic picture of your financial health" and more. The company's 2024 list of most financially distressed states analyzed nine metrics to gain an understanding of who is struggling the most.
HI-CHEW candy maker to expand NC facility, invest $134M, create 204 jobs in Orange Co.
Morinaga America Foods, Inc. confirms it will expand operations in Orange County and investment $136 million. The move will create 204 jobs in Mebane.The Japanese company established its American subsidiary in 2013 and chose North Carolina for its first manufacturing site outside of Asia.The Mebane facility opened in 2015 and produces one of the company's signature products, the fruity candy HI-CHEW. Morinaga says demand for its most popular candy is driving the need for expansion. As part of the expansion additional manufacturing space and production lines will be added to the Orange County site.According to the company, new positions will...
Teenager is youngest Black person to earn private license in his state, mother says
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WSOC) – A teenager in North Carolina is making aviation history. Ryan Garner is a 17-year-old pilot and the youngest Black person ever to earn his private license in the state. Garner took lessons at a small airport in Indian Trail. At first, his sights were set...
North Carolina approves party seeking to put RFK Jr. on the ballot, rejects effort for Cornel West
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s election board voted Tuesday to certify a political party that wants to put Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on the state’s presidential ballot this fall. The panel rejected a similar petition effort by a group backing Cornel West, citing questions about how signatures were collected. After weeks of reviewing the signature drives, the board voted 4-1 to recognize the We The People party that supporters of Kennedy, an author and environmental lawyer, are using as a vehicle for him to run in a handful of states. The election board decision means the party can place Kennedy on statewide ballots. But the board’s Democratic majority voted 3-2 along party lines to block the Justice for All Party of North Carolina from ballots. That group supports West, a professor and progressive activist. Board staff said We The People and Justice for All each collected enough valid signatures from registered and qualified voters. The 13,865 required are a small fraction of those needed to run as an independent candidate in North Carolina, which Kennedy initially attempted.
Clean energy batteries tied to toxic chemical pollution
Lithium-ion batteries are powering the clean energy future, from electric cars to grid storage. However, Duke professor Lee Ferguson and colleagues discovered the production and disposal of many of these batteries are a troubling source of toxic chemical contamination. "Clean energy is something we absolutely need to move towards in...
MUSC addresses SC shortage of physical, occupational therapists with new program
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - As the demand for occupational and physical therapy increasingly exceeds the number of available therapists in South Carolina, the Medical University of South Carolina is making a substantiative program change in hopes of offering a solution to this issue. Data from MUSC shows that, of South...
Reparations commission to ask for six-month extension
In its final meeting July 15, the Community Reparations Commission agreed to request a six-month extension from the Asheville City Council on Tuesday, July 23. City staff, however, plans to recommend the commission get only another three months to complete its task of finalizing recommendations for how the city and Buncombe County can repair harm caused by generations of systemic racism and produce a final report.
In 2025, the Buncombe County tax department will have a new home. Where is it going?
ASHEVILLE - Several public-facing county departments are on the move. Likely by March of next year, residents visiting the tax department, election services or the permitting office will find them co-located at 35 Woodfin St., along with others, a consolidation that staff says will help "centralize" essential Buncombe County services.
Mission/HCA suit: county can't sue for $3M in EMS costs; NC AG Stein fights deposition
Buncombe County can't join a suit against HCA-owned Mission Health in which the county hoped to recover $3 million Emergency Medical Services it said it spent caring for patients not helped in the hospital. The judge's July 9 decision against the county is part of the high-stakes lawsuit over whether the massive for-profit...
Asheville police charge man with ethnic intimidation after assault at library
ASHEVILLE - City police detectives charged a man with ethnic intimidation after an assault of three seminar attendees at the West Asheville Library June 29. Michael Solomon Brocenos, 34, of Maryland, faces one charge of misdemeanor ethnic intimidation "specifically for his actions" at the library, according to a July 16 news release from...
'Time for a 21st century bridge': Leaders celebrate funding boost for new Cape Fear bridge
Gov. Roy Cooper joined local, state and federal leaders in Wilmington on Wednesday to celebrate the recently announced $242 million in federal grant funding that will help cover the cost of replacing the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge. Last week, Cooper announced the receipt of the discretionary grant, which is funded by President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The steel vertical-lift bridge was built in 1969 and recently underwent a preservation project that disrupted traffic in and around...
Chris Herndon joins NC Sierra Club as chapter director
Chris Herndon of Cary is the new director of the North Carolina chapter of the Sierra Club. The Raleigh-based nonprofit organization, which advocates for a clean, healthy environment and the well-being of all who live in it, made the announcement Wednesday. Herndon, who has spent most of the past 12...
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