General News

Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to spend a day in the field with two luminaries from the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences. Ornithologist John Gerwin has studied the special population of black-throated green warblers that breeds on forested peaks in the Uwharries, and he was eager to spend some time in our grasslands. […]

Last month PlanCharlotte reported on events that bode well for an evolving local biking culture. (See “To create a bike culture, Charlotte needs …”) Perhaps the capstone came Nov. 4, when the Charlotte voters approved by a whopping 70.2 percent majority allocating $5 million in planning funds for a $35-million cross-county bike-pedestrian trail. Many of […]

Charlotte’s transportation department is launching – again – an initiative to highlight pedestrian needs and improve policies for walkability. The new energy comes after the city landed on some not-so-flattering lists in the past year. In May, the Dangerous by Design report from the National Complete Streets Coalition and Smart Growth America ranked the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia […]

You have probably heard of a number of “Friends” groups, such as “Friends of State Parks,” or “Friends of the Library,” or any of a number of other groups. These groups are typically nonprofit organizations formed to help support the work of a local, state or federal government agency. These groups don’t have to be […]

A Friday “sustainability fair” in uptown Charlotte will mark the city’s participation in America Recycles Day. The event will be 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at The Square (Trade and Tryon streets). More on recycling The story behind your recycling bin Why you can’t toss these in your recycling bin Facts, figures on plastics and recycling Hosts […]

Last fall, as the trees surrendered their leaves, I discovered four large hornets’ nests along my regular mile-long route through Atlanta’s Piedmont Park. Despite passing within a few feet of them on an almost daily basis throughout the spring and summer, the hornets had never given me a bit of trouble. The bald-faced hornet (Dolichovespula […]

Since the invention of zoning codes early in the 20th century, they have focused on separating uses. Houses could not mingle with offices or stores or apartments, and offices could not mingle with shops or factories, no matter how small or unobtrusive the factory. Apartments over stores were banned. Buildings were required to be set […]

This multimedia presentation shows the results of research into dropout behavior in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools from school years 1995-1996 to 2009-2010. It shows how concentrated poverty at a school makes the dropout situation worse for black and Hispanic/Latino students. It also shows how positive academic climate at a school lowers the chances of dropping out for […]

Talk of the Towns is a PlanCharlotte series visiting planners from the 14-county Charlotte region. This installment takes us to Lincolnton. Lincolnton is a city of 10,486, a former textile town and the county seat of Lincoln County. Laura Simmons has been the city’s planning director since 2010. She talked about intersection improvements, downtown development […]

During one hike over my summer internship with The Land Trust for Central NC, we were able to spot a small and sweet little bird. Here, in the Uwharries, if you hear birds calling “peetsah” or making sounds that are akin to funny laughter, they are most likely flycatchers. We have Great Crested and Acadian […]