As Fayetteville seeks to keep young people living and working in Fayetteville and grow its regional economic impact, the Fayetteville City Council is exploring the possibility of establishing an innovation district in the city.
Evey Weisblat
Evey Weisblat is a journalist with five years of experience in local news reporting. She has previously worked at papers in central North Carolina, including The Pilot and the Chatham News + Record. Her central beat is government accountability reporting, covering the Fayetteville City Council.
Posted inCourts & Justice, Politics & Government
Crime in Fayetteville this year projected to be lowest in a decade as homicides plummet
The police department projects a total of 13,500 incidents by the end of the year, which would be the lowest number of crimes the city has seen in the past decade. Violent crime is also expected to reach its lowest point in a decade, according to Braden’s report.
Posted inNews
The unhoused may have fewer options for shelter on freezing nights in Cumberland County this winter
As winter approaches, people experiencing homelessness may be unable to access temporary emergency shelter when freezing temperatures hit.
Posted inPolitics & Government
Council divided over how to proceed with new bids after recent contract failures
After a disastrous experience with a contractor who defrauded the city by abandoning several parks and recreation projects, Fayetteville City Council members quarreled over how to proceed with new contracts for work on two of those projects — the Mazarick Park Tennis Center and Mable C. Smith Community Center — when bids were discussed at Monday’s council meeting.
Posted inElections
Final election certification delayed until Monday, but 23 challenged ballots resolved
The Cumberland County Board of Elections will not release final results of the Nov. 5 election until Monday — an unexpected delay caused by the discovery of over 100 invalid ballots at Friday’s canvass that need to be manually subtracted from the vote counts over the weekend.
Posted inEducation
School board faces lawsuit over bus driver license requirements for custodians
A former custodian at Cumberland County Schools is suing the Cumberland County Board of Education for unlawful employment discrimination, claiming he was fired after not being able to obtain a commercial driver’s license because of his disability.
Posted inFood & Drink, Place
Stedman community reels from loss of food trucks after county shutdown for zoning violation
After more than three years of operation, local food trucks can no longer serve at Bethany Crossroads in Stedman, after the county on Sept. 3 found the operation to be in violation of local zoning code.
Posted inPolitics & Government
Making up for past tardiness, Fayetteville gets audit done early this year
The City of Fayetteville has completed its 2023-24 fiscal year audit early — the earliest in about 15 years, a feat that comes after the city submitted the audit late the previous two years.
Posted inElections
School board may see major changes with new members taking reins
Voters have successfully replaced almost half of Cumberland County Board of Education with new members, unseating three incumbents in Tuesday’s election and casting uncertainty over the board’s future direction with a major shift in membership.
Posted inElections
Cumberland County Board of Education: winners and losers
In a key election this year, the Cumberland County Board of Education saw 15 candidates battling for just six seats.