Articles

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Facing more investor purchases, Charlotte considers tweaking housing programs
   March 29, 2022

As investors — including Wall Street-backed single-family rental companies — buy more homes across Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, the city of Charlotte is considering changes to some of its homeownership assistance programs.

Buyers in the region face record-high prices and record-low inventory. In January, the median sales price in the Charlotte region was almost $350,000 up 22.7%...

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Outlaws and Bounties: Bradford pear edition
   March 25, 2022
Ruth Ann Grissom

Bradford pears are a problem. For years, I didn’t want to admit it. I’d drive the highways of the Piedmont and the backroads of the Uwharries in early spring, noting the occasional white-blooming tree at the edge of the woods and trying to convince myself they weren’t as invasive as privet. And then came the fateful day I spotted an eye-popping thicket on a tract of fallow land along Highway...

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How the cost of widening a Matthews road increased 10x
   March 24, 2022

This story was originally published in Transit Time, a collaborative newsletter published by The Charlotte Ledger, WFAE and the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute. 

Like a lot of roads in the Charlotte region, Matthews Township Parkway (N.C. 51) is becoming more congested.

Apartments, office buildings and...

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Charlotte will ask voters for millions to fund transportation upgrades, but bonds won’t cover all needs
   March 14, 2022
Ely Portillo

Charlotte is planning to ask voters this year to approve more than $100 million worth of new transportation bonds — an amount that would allow the city to make progress on goals like building more sidewalks but still fall short of covering many crucial needs.

Municipal bonds aren’t quite as sexy as a multibillion-dollar new light rail line or as captivating as a pitched political...

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Consultant: To win federal funding, CATS should consider new uptown route for Silver Line
   March 10, 2022

Tony Mecia and Steve Harrison

This story was originally published in Transit Time, a collaboration between the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute, WFAE and the Charlotte Ledger.

A new report from outside consultants says Charlotte transit leaders should consider changing the planned Silver Line light rail route through uptown, in order to attract...

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Here's how Pam Murray lives car-free in Charlotte
   March 9, 2022
Ely Portillo

Pam Murray sees Charlotte through different eyes — and from a different seat —  than most people as she moves about the city. 

Murray, one of the biggest bicycle advocates in Charlotte, uses her bike for everything from getting groceries to hauling furniture. She bikes somewhere around 20 miles a day on average, only using her car occasionally to keep the battery charged.

...

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Explore these data sources to learn more about Charlotte
   March 2, 2022
Ely Portillo

Charlotte is a fast-growing city where the skyline changes by the month and neighborhoods are reshaped at a disorienting pace. But there are a multitude of data sources to help you understand the city and your community. 

You can start with interactive maps like the Quality of Life Explorer (produced by the Urban Institute in partnership with the...

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The charm of sourwoods in the winter woods
   February 24, 2022
Ruth Ann Grissom

For those who are partial to the charms of a lush forest in spring and summer, don’t throw shade on the winter woods – they’re far from rigid and stark. Sourwood trees animate the slopes and ridges of the Uwharries with their contorted and even whimsical shapes. They bring a prankish personality to the stately but somewhat staid canopy of hickories and oaks.

The sourwood (...

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What does the future hold for Charlotte's airport?
   February 21, 2022
Ely Portillo

Charlotte Douglas International Airport is one of the busiest hubs in the world, despite the city of Charlotte's modest size. That disproportionate air service is usually cited as one of the city's biggest economic advantages, making the airport one of our most important economic engines. 

But COVID-19 impacted the air travel industry in a profound way, with Charlotte Douglas in the...

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Charlotte transit system reckoning with pandemic struggles and 'structural weakness'
   February 14, 2022
Ely Portillo

After almost two years of pandemic-related challenges, the Charlotte Area Transit System is trying to balance the need to restore service and lure back riders with the need to grow and meet the challenges of a growing region. 

And CATS chief executive John Lewis has a simple message: Charlotte’s transit...

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