Deputy Fire Chief Brad Best will take over as Gastonia’s fire chief on May 1, 2026, when Phil Welch retires. Best brings decades of experience and advanced fire‑service credentials.

HSI Charlotte says a federal indictment alleges a fraud ring stole more than $3.5M from over 100 victims, many of them seniors.

A Lewisville man was convicted in Rowan County’s undercover chat sting and given a short prison term and 30 years of sex‑offender registration.

Permit records and local job listings point to a new Insomnia Cookies at 2130 Ayrsley Town Blvd, suggesting a new Charlotte outpost is in the works.

Engine 33 and Charlotte firefighters responded to a two‑story house fire at 9500 Bird Watch Lane; the department's initial alert gave no immediate details on injuries or cause.

A fox found on Padgett Road in Shelby tested positive for rabies, county officials confirmed. It's the seventh animal to test positive in Cleveland County this year.

Equus Capital Partners paid $102M for the 19‑building Greylyn Business Park on Monroe Road in southeast Charlotte and plans capital improvements. The price is roughly double the 2015 sale.

Rockpoint bought six light‑industrial buildings in Raleigh and Charlotte, adding roughly 279,507 square feet to its Southeast portfolio and tapping local infill demand.

A Charlotte Observer payroll review shows more than 1,000 Mecklenburg County and Charlotte city employees earn six‑figure salaries, while the county median household income is about $87,005.

Twenty years after North Carolina’s first lottery ticket, the poorest counties still spend far more per person on tickets than wealthier areas, renewing equity questions as education funds flow.

Mecklenburg County led North Carolina in ABC gross sales — about $280M across FY24–25 — with Tito’s Handmade Vodka topping the product lists and a state audit flagging distribution gaps.

An Army veteran and former personal chef opens Sage & Citrus at Camp North End, promising farm‑forward bowls, smoothies and seasonal soups.

HB Wealth has opened a permanent Charlotte office in Elizabeth on Seventh after recruiting a five-person J.P. Morgan private bank team that had overseen about $15 billion.