Articles

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Easy access to work? Charlotte’s not atop list
   April 9, 2013

A new study of access to jobs via automobile, across the United States, ranks the Charlotte metro area near the bottom. Unlike simple congestion studies, this one looks at land use as well as the transportation system.   Read more


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Investing in our past, present and future
   April 4, 2013
Crystal Cockman
If I didn't have natural places to visit – trails to hike, rivers to kayak, mountains to climb, the sound of total quiet deep in the woods and of running brooks and streams  – my life would be far less full. (Photo: Crystal Cockman) Read more


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The measure of a metro
   April 2, 2013
Mary Newsom
In January, Charlotte had 1.8 million people. Today it has 2.3 million people. And no, there was no airlift of half a million residents from the Rust Belt or anywhere else. How can a city gain a half-million people almost overnight? (Staff photo) Read more


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Charlotte spends a day learning about data
   March 28, 2013

More than 150 neighborhood organizers, nonprofit leaders, local government staff, academics, and interested citizens gathered March 26 at UNC Charlotte’s Center City building for the inaugural Charlotte Data Day. Materials presented at the event are now available online. (Photo: Selena Skorman) Read more


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Commuting in Charlotte region: Where do people work?
   March 28, 2013

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 153,015 individuals who worked in Mecklenburg County commuted from another county in the Charlotte MSA – among the highest number of county-to-county commuters in the U.S. (Photo: Nancy Pierce)  Read more


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Boundary change boosts Charlotte metro population
   March 28, 2013

In January, the Charlotte metro area population was 1.8 million people. In February, the metro area population was 2.3 million. Where did the half-million people come from? New boundaries were drawn for metropolitan statistical areas. (Photo: Downtown Chester, S.C., in Chester County, which was added to the Charlotte MSA. / Nancy Pierce) Read more


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Concord and Davidson Main Streets named ‘Great Places’ in state competition
   March 21, 2013

Two of the region's main streets have won this year’s Great Places in North Carolina competition. Union Street in Concord and Main Street in Davidson were recognized among the state’s top downtowns in a competition from the N.C. chapter of the American Planning Association.(Photo: Nancy Pierce) Read more


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Bill to limit local zoning powers: Two views
   March 20, 2013
Mary Newsom
A bill before the N.C. General Assembly would restrict cities' and towns' power to put design standards into zoning ordinances applying to residential development. We invited writers from opposite sides of the debate to offer their views. Read more


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Explore nature: Uwharrie Naturalist Weekend May 4-5
   March 20, 2013
Crystal Cockman
The LandTrust for Central North Carolina and staff from the North Carolina Museum of Sciences are hosting the Uwharrie Naturalist Weekend on May 4 and 5 – a first of its kind in the area. (Photo: Ruth Ann Grissom) Read more


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Charlotte metro: Still high-growth, still strong at core
   March 20, 2013

Of metro areas with more than 1 million people, Charlotte ranked ninth nationally in population growth from 2011 to 2012. That growth was strongest at the center of the metro area, in Mecklenburg County, which outpaced the suburban counties in the region for the second year. (Image: Bing maps) Read more