What’s next for Bird Pizzeria? + School bus driver arrested after allegedly trying to give students a COVID test
Hey everybody! For the last time ... this is Kristen. If you missed my announcement a couple days ago, this is my final day with the Observer. It’s been an honor writing this newsletter for you all. Some details to know: My colleagues Molly and KJ will be picking this newsletter up from me, and the time it lands in your inbox is going to change from 4:50 p.m. to 3:50 p.m. Thanks for reading, folks!
Here is today’s news:
1. A new Charlotte spot is already known as the ‘best pizza in town’. What’s next?
Bird Pizzeria opened in Optimist Park in December, and since then, the restaurant has been busy. As its success has grown, co-owners Kerrel and Nkem Thompson have been deliberately working toward what they want the space to be. Despite new-restaurant-growing pains, the couple is forging ahead with their mission in mind.
And it’s paying off. One diner said Bird has the “best pizza in town,” while another said it “lives up to the hype.”
Building on that success, the duo is preparing to make some changes:
- Local veggie plates
- A wine list
- Partnership with a local brewery
Learn more about what’s ahead for the pizza shop with yours truly for CharlotteFive.
2. Today’s crime news
A Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools bus driver *checks notes* ... paid students $5 to swab the inside of their cheeks for a COVID test, according to an arrest warrant. Interesting. More details can be found here with the Observer’s Jonathan Limehouse.
And in a southwest Charlotte apartment complex, a CMPD officer shot someone in the leg early Wednesday, according to CMPD. Learn more with the Observer’s Mark Price.
Also, in analysis from the (Rock Hill) Herald’s Andrew Dys — a year after former NFL player Phillip Adams killed 6 people, no one can explain why it happened.
3. Early 1900s Cornelius home likely to dodge demolition
It looks like an early 20th century tenant farm house in Cornelius, which is significant to the history of the Black community in the area, could be spared from demolition.
The J. Wilson Alexander house, built in the early 1900s, sits on the site of a proposed mixed-use residential and commercial development. But a new agreement between the town and developer will lead the historic building to be moved to another part of the property, according to a local historian and Cornelius town officials.
Learn more about the plan for this home and site with the Observer’s Gordon Rago.
4. Latest CMS news
On Tuesday, the Board of Education unanimously approved a plan to phase out Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ virtual learning option for elementary students over the next two years. The Observer’s Anna Maria Della Costa has the full details here.
Also from Della Costa: More than a week after the discovery of cancer warnings for clear backpacks, next steps for CMS’ clear backpack initiative remain unclear.
5. Housing, retail development near Camp North End to receive $1 million tax grant
A $30 million housing and retail development north of uptown got approval Tuesday for a $1 million tax grant from the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners.
By the numbers:
- The money will be provided to the developer as a 45% rebate on property taxes over 15 years.
- The grant will help the project create 92 townhomes and retail space.
- The city of Charlotte will commit about $577,000 in tax rebates.
The Observer’s Will Wright has all the details here.
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This story was originally published April 6, 2022 at 3:47 PM.