Charlotte area schools face layoffs, NC mansion’s ties to founding father: Today in CLT
From a massive jobs announcement to a school funding crisis, here’s a rundown of the day’s top stories in Charlotte on June 8, 2026.
Here are key takeaways:
- Amazon and Corning Inc. struck a multiyear, multibillion-dollar agreement for fiber optic cable technology that is expected to create 1,000 jobs in the Charlotte region and other parts of North Carolina. As part of the deal, Amazon will work with Corning to expand a fiber-optic technician training program at Catawba Valley Community College in Hickory.
- Gaston County Schools faces 75 more layoffs next fall without additional county funding, on top of 174 positions already eliminated earlier this year. County commissioners declined to increase operating funds but voted to ask state lawmakers for permission to put a quarter-cent sales tax on the November ballot, which could generate $9.5 million to $11 million for schools.
- A 1923 Colonial Revival mansion in Biltmore Forest known as “New Gunston Hall” is listed for $9.75 million. The 8,688-square-foot estate was commissioned by William Mason, great-great-grandson of Founding Father George Mason, and is recognized as the first known replica of a landmark 18th-century American home built by a direct descendant of the original owner.
- Stephen Montgomery Kerlew, 64, a tennis professional at Westport Swim & Tennis Club in Denver, was arrested on child sex charges including three counts of indecent liberties with a child and two counts of statutory sex offense with a child 15 or younger. A judge denied him bond Monday, and the Lake Norman-area club said it removed him from his position and barred him from the premises.
This report was produced with the assistance of a proprietary tool powered by artificial intelligence and using our own originally reported, written and published content. It was reviewed and edited by our journalists. To learn more about how The Charlotte Observer is using AI in our newsroom, see our policy here.
This story was originally published June 8, 2026 at 3:22 PM with the headline "Charlotte area schools face layoffs, NC mansion’s ties to founding father: Today in CLT."