I cover the city of Charlotte, North Carolina for NewsBreak's Creator Program. Check back often for daily headline roundups to learn what's happening in the Queen City!
(CHARLOTTE, N.C.) With the weekend upon us and 80-degree highs on the radar, today's Roundup welcomes Charlotteans to Friday through Sunday by suggesting new music from Charlotte-based producer Jeremy Hunt and his Ain't Pancakes project, which just released a new album in October. Consisting of a single expansive, droning experimental treadmill of a track, readers can stream or purchase "Holy Roller Heebie Jeebies, Vol. 2" below.
Before the weekend begins, we recount new stories dealing with a trio of homicides to occur in the Queen City in under 48 hours, an inmate found hanging in their cell at the Mecklenburg County detention center and a roundup of the latest high-rise towers to start construction in Charlotte. It is Friday, April 22, and here's what every resident of the Queen City needs to know until Monday.
But first, feedback: We want to hear from you to help improve the Roundup. Have a suggestion for changes or new daily features, or want to sound off on a recent story? Drop us a line in the comments section.
What happened: Monday's Roundup reported on a series of shootings that left two people dead and another person injured in Charlotte, and in the following days the violent trend continued. Local police initiated three murder investigations in response to a shooting near Northlake Mall and a body being discovered near a pair of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools buildings.
The news comes within a month of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department's latest quarterly data report, which showed a 5% decrease in homicides between the first three months of 2021 and 2022. Charlotte witnessed 19 homicides between the start of 2022 and April 7.
Northlake mall shooting: Medical officials declared 19-year-old Aveon Baker dead from a fatal gunshot wound sustained outside of the Wendy's at 9905 Northlake Centre Pkwy., less than a half-mile from Northlake Mall. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officers arrived at the restaurant around 8:45 p.m. on Wednesday to find the injured victim, but law enforcement has yet to announce any suspects or a possible motive in the murder.
Recalling Baker, the victim's relatives told WSOC that he had been working at Wendy's when the crime took place. “He was a young man that graduated high school with good grades, out here working trying to maintain a positive life and live so he can be the best he can be for his siblings,” said Snow Simmons, a friend of the Baker family.
Homicide near CMS elementary, middle: Returning to the Roundup for the fourth time this week, some Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools parents were upset to learn a man was found deceased of "apparent trauma" not far from the district's Albemarle Road Elementary and Middle schools. CMPD officers made their way to the area of Albemarle Road in east Charlotte around 6:30 a.m. Thursday after receiving reports of a suspicious person, but failed to locate a possible suspect.
Speaking to WBTV, Audrey Hayden, a grandmother of a student who attends the elementary building, said hearing the news made her "uneasy." Neither CMS school altered operations in response to the police person, but Albemarle parents did receive an email from the district stating that they would be informed when CMPD released additional information.
Markland Drive homicide: The CMPD opened its most recent murder investigation Thursday night after traveling to Markland Drive to respond to a call about a possible assault in Charlotte's Pinecrest neighborhood. Upon arriving at the 3000 block of the west Charlotte street around 10:45 p.m., police found a victim with an apparent gunshot wound. The injured person soon died at the scene, but police have yet to release the name of the victim or a possible suspect.
The latest incident to underscore safety concerns at the Mecklenburg County Detention Center Central came Tuesday when officers from the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office announced that 47-year-old inmate William Rhinesmith had been found suspended from a rope in his cell. Attributing the death to an apparent suicide, MCSO officials said staff initially tried to perform CPR on Rhinesmith, who had been imprisoned in the county facility for less than a week before his death.
Addressing the incident to Queen City News, Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden said "It's very stressful to be incarcerated" and that "the stress we have in society" is also prevalent inside the jail he manages. McFadden was recently named in a lawsuit stemming from another inmate's suicide in 2020. In November of that year, Queen City News reported separately that a 17-year-old man had died in county custody, and a lawsuit filed Tuesday claims law enforcement and other administrators "took a cavalier approach" in their treatment of the teenager.
More recently, McFadden has faced criticism at the hands of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, which issued a report urging the sheriff to depopulate the jail in January in response to overcrowding, lack of staffing and a COVID-19 outbreak. The state also turned its attention on the incarceration facility with an investigation in response to a 31-year-old woman who was found dead at the jail in March.
As Mecklenburg County commissioners seek out solutions for a glut of corporate landlords, other mixed-use high-rise projects are getting underway or receiving approval to begin building.
Theater to tower: During their meeting on Monday, Charlotte City Council approved a proposal that will see the Regal Phillips Place movie theater in South Park be demolished to make way for a 10-story skyscraper. Office cubicles and cash registers at a planned retail space will eventually replace silver screens, despite the concerns of neighbors who think the building's height will compromise SouthPark, per WBTV.
Building near Bank of America Stadium: Two stories taller than the tower planned for South Park, crews started work on a 12-floor residential building that will bring 393 units and a five-story parking garage to Charlotte's Third Ward at a $166 million price tag. Hoping to start leasing at the site near Bank of America Stadium before the end of 2023, Texas developer Aspen Heights Partners was able to build on the arena-adjacent property due to a rezoning request approved by Charlotte City Council in December that could drive the development of a new Carolina Panthers stadium.
Pickleball planned: Also on the docket for Charlotte is the first in what Rally Entertainment hopes will be a series of upscale pickleball facilities. Expect the entertainment complex, dubbed "Rally," to open at the corner of Old Pineville Road and Southside Drive in the first half of 2023 with eight courts to practice pickle paddling, a pair of cocktail bars and space for large events or small parties.
It was a busy week in Charlotte. and the Roundup can only be so long. Here are a few stories that weren't touched upon but still deserve readers' attention.
I cover the city of Charlotte, North Carolina for NewsBreak's Creator Program. Check back often for daily headline roundups to learn what's happening in the Queen City!
(Mark Kolbe/Getty Images) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Good morning and welcome to the end of the workweek, Charlotte! Any weekend warriors should carry an umbrella today and tomorrow as Weather.com predicts a 70% chance of rain starting around 2 p.m. today and continuing through the early hours of tomorrow.
Announced Wednesday, a new merger will see Charlotte's largest hospital system join with the biggest care provider in Milwaukee.(Cytonn Photography/Unsplash) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Welcoming you to the last rain-free day of the workweek, this Thursday, May 12 Queen City Roundup shares stories relating to budgets, buses, businesses and boards.
Currently there is no COVID-19 vaccine for children under 5. Atrium's clinical trial looks to add to a data pool to expand that group.(Pedro Vilela/Getty Images) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Greeting Charlotte, and hopefully you're ready for some momentum on this Wednesday, May 11. Today's Roundup is all about moving up — or down, depending who you ask. Staying the same is this week's sunny skies, which carry a Weather.com-ordained high of 81 and low of 60.
Since the start of 2022, experts have detected more than two dozen earthquakes across South Carolina. Five occurred on Monday.(Dimas Ardian/Getty Images) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Greetings and welcome to a sunny Tuesday, May 10, Charlotteans! This week's warm weather trend continues with a high of 80 and an overnight low of 52, while the rain predicted in Friday's and Saturday's forecasts has transitioned to thunderstorms.
Friday marks the unluckiest day of the year.(Anne Nygård/Unsplash) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Good morning, Charlotte! Readers' warm weekends will transition into a similarly sunny workweek, with Monday, May 9 kicking it off with a Vitamin D-infused sky and 74-degree high. Tuesday and Wednesday continue the clear-skyed trend, but expect clouds on Thursday and high chances of rain on Friday and Saturday, according to Weather.com.
Former Vice President Mike Pence plead for the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade via prayer during a South Carolina visit on Thursday.(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Good morning, QCR Readers, and welcome to the weekend, courtesy of a Friday, May 6 update. Today's 84-degree high in Charlotte will be buffeted by strong winds and, possibly, hail, showers and thunderstorms, That's according to a Thursday report from a South Carolina National Weather Service station, which also sets a "slight chance" for a tornado.
Both North and South Carolina lack medical marijuana after the southern state's legislature killed a bill seven years in the making.(Jeff W/Unsplash) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Good morning readers! It is Thursday, May 5, and as the fifth of the month aligns with the fifth month of the year, today's Roundup focuses on matching. South Carolina will not match the 37 states that have legalizedmarijuana for medical use after the state's legislators voted on the matter. We'll also discuss the newguilty pleamatching a North Carolinaresident to the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol Building.
Visitors to Carowinds, Charlotte's largest amusement park, got more vertigo than requested when the Flying Cobras coaster paused on Friday.(Courtesy of Carowinds) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Happy Wednesday, Charlotte! It is May 4 and readers should get ready for rain this afternoon as droplets are set to descend starting at 3 p.m. and continuing through 5 p.m., though less than an inch is expected. Accompanying that will be a high of 89 and low of 61.
At $3.2B, Charlotte's proposed 2023 budget is $500,000 heavier than 2022's fiscal forecast.(Mackenzie Marco/Unsplash) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Good morning, Charlotte residents, and welcome to your Tuesday, May 3 edition of Queen City Roundup. On this sun-soaked day expect a high of 87 around 3 p.m., but maybe bring an umbrella tomorrow as Weather.com predicts a 50% chance of rain in the afternoon.
If Charlotte leaders open the doors for alcohol-allowed social districts, Plaza Midwood would be one of the first areas under consideration.(Courtesy of Charlotte's got a lot) Greetings, Roundup readers, and welcome to a new week and new month! It is Monday, May 2, and today's mostly sunny skies and 88-degree high might put Charlotteans in the mood to be social. City Council is considering a new ordinance that would allow visitors to consume alcohol in previously off-limit areas, called social districts, and debut a 2023 budget proposal.
(Mark Brown/Getty Images) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Good morning, Charlotte residents, and welcome to a sunny Thursday, April 28 Roundup! Weather.com sets today's high of 75 starting at 4 p.m. and continuing through 7 p.m. with a somewhat rainy weekend ahead. Before that, with early voting for North Carolina's May 17 primary election beginning today, we take a look at candidates for Mecklenburg County Sheriff and how their discourse illuminates disturbances at the county jail.
Madison Cawthorn, the GOP representative of North Carolina's 11th Congressional District, lost his gun at the Charlotte airport on Tuesday.(Committee on Arrangements for the 2020 Republican National Convention/Getty Images)
(Claudia van Zyl/Unsplash) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Happy Tuesday, Charlotteans! Today's Roundup engages with education, recounting recommendations from a North Carolina education panel for the state's Department of Public Instruction to improve students' grades. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools students are prescribing their own wish lists for new interim Superintendent Hugh Hattabaugh, who took over this week after former leader Earnest Winston'sdeparture.
Former Hornets head coach James Borrego urged the team to 138 wins and 162 losses between 2018 and 2022.(Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Marvelous Monday, QCR readers! Entering a fresh week, today's Roundup is out with the old, in with the new as the Charlotte Hornets prepare to conduct an offseason hunt for a new coach after firinghead coach James Borrego following four seasons. In weekend news, a driver sustained serious injuries in the second accident to take place on Interstate 485 in a week, and a North Carolina court will have some say in how short-term rentals like Airbnbs will function in the Queen City.
(City of Charlotte/Twitter) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Happy Thursday morning, QCR readers! It is April 21, and hopefully readers can keep their heads up as clouds descend upon Charlotte and remain hovering above the Queen City through today's high of 76 and tonight's low of 54.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Earnest Winston is out of the job after the school board voted 7-2 to terminate him on Tuesday.(Superintendent Earnest Winston/Twitter)
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Earnest Winston bumps elbows with one of the district's over 140,000 students.(Superintendent Earnest Winston/Twitter) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Greetings, Queen City residents, and welcome to a day of decisions in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools board members prepare to fire Superintendent Earnest Winston over his leadership style. A trio of local Walmart stores are under fire after choosing to overcharge customers, while Mecklenburg County commissioners will decide whether to make it easier for families to access subsidizedchild care.
(CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Good morning, Charlotteans, and welcome to a wet start to your week. Weather.com predicts a high chance of precipitation in the Queen City through 12 p.m. as temperatures stay low, capping out at 56 around 4 p.m. but the rest of the week promises to be warmer.
Police in Troutman, North Carolina responded to a mansion owned by Charlotte rapper DaBaby over reports of a shooting on Thursday.(Paras Griffin/Getty Images) (CHARLOTTE, N.C.) Moving on toward greener pastures and Easter weekend, today's Roundup welcomes you to the Friday-Sunday period with stories of two shootings and where readers can acquire free tax help ahead of the April 18 filing deadline. We also recount an effort to blow the whistle against Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Earnest Winston over a possible state law violation before our weekend reading list and six-day weather forecast.