Friday, February 21, 2025

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2025

Good morning! On this day in 1828, the Cherokee Phoenix newspaper began circulating in North Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, and Alabama. It was the first Native newspaper in North America. The following year, the publication was renamed the Cherokee Phoenix and Indians’ Advocate to reflect its broadening scope and readership.

Check out Et Cetera to learn more about a North Carolina museum recognized for exhibits honoring the Cherokee people, among other subjects.

Did you brave North Carolina’s icy roads yesterday? At least 53 drivers likely wish they hadn’t. Learn more in Top Stories.

Our sponsor today is Pacaso, offering a new type of investment opportunity in the real estate industry.

Treacherous Roads, Outages Paralyze NC

This week’s winter storm caused over 1,000 crashes across North Carolina on Wednesday alone, with the State Highway Patrol reporting that 53 cars were involved in a dozen crashes in Orange County.

The pileup started after a tractor-trailer struck another vehicle from behind along I-40 West at the I-85 South connector, blocking I-40 and causing oncoming traffic to collide with the stopped cars. A Burlington woman was pronounced dead at the scene of one crash.

Power outages were also a problem and continued into Thursday morning, impacting thousands of Duke Energy customers in Duplin, Onslow, Bladen, and New Hanover counties.

By Thursday afternoon, around 4,900 North Carolinians were still without power, and flight cancellations totaled 240 at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport and 34 at Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

Trump Appoints Stein to Council of Governors

President Trump announced late Wednesday that he had appointed Democratic North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein as co-chair of the Council of Governors alongside Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

Trump appointed eight additional Republican and Democratic governors to the council: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.

The Council of Governors was established by the National Defense Authorization Act of 2008 and formally created by an executive order in 2010. It consists of a bipartisan group of 10 governors appointed to two-year terms who work to improve state-federal partnerships related to national security, disaster response, and military coordination.

UNC Sued Over Opaque Billing Practices

A Triangle attorney is suing the University of North Carolina for opaque billing practices and refusal to release transaction records related to its covert exploration of leaving the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Attorney David McKenzie, who specializes in intellectual property law, alleges UNC failed to produce complete and itemized billing records with the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP concerning the funneling of $600,000 toward legal fees related to the ACC matter. McKenzie seeks to illuminate what the law firm was actually hired to do.

This is McKenzie’s second suit against UNC. In May, he filed a complaint against the Board of Trustees for violating North Carolina’s open meetings law after seeing a report that it planned to hold a closed session to discuss athletics matters.

Do you have any friends or family who would like to receive Flyover North Carolina? Feel free to refer us to them!

Flying together with our sponsor

Zillow’s Co-Founder has a Big New Idea

Spencer Rascoff co-founded Zillow, scaling it into a $16B real estate giant. But everyday investors couldn’t invest until after the IPO, missing early gains.

“I wish we had done a round accessible to retail investors prior to Zillow’s IPO,” Spencer later said.

Now he’s doing just that. Spencer has teamed up with another Zillow exec to launch Pacaso. Pacaso’s co-ownership marketplace is disrupting the $1.3T vacation home market. And unlike Zillow, you can invest in Pacaso as a private company.

With $100M+ in gross profits and rapid international expansion, Pacaso is scaling fast. Investors like Softbank, Maveron, and others are already on board. Even better, the company’s now turning its focus to international markets, giving this disruptive model even more upside than before.

Join them as a Pacaso shareholder and lock in the $2.70 share price by 2/27.

➤ Lake Waccamaw: A boil water advisory was issued Thursday for those who live from 702 Canal Cove Road to Waccamaw Shores due to loss of pressure and power outages. (More)

➤ Richmond County: Residents who live near a proposed industrial plant that railroad giant CSX would use to burn old railroad ties are a step closer to defeating the plan. (See Details)

➤ Alligator River: The first concrete pile was driven into the bed of the Alligator River Tuesday as part of a $450 million project to replace the Lindsay C. Warren Bridge on U.S. 64 between Tyrrell and Dare counties. (More)

➤ Concord: Houston-based Shipley Do-Nuts announced the opening of its first North Carolina location on Wednesday. The company makes 60-plus varieties of fresh donuts cut in a hexagon shape and is known for its kolaches. (More)

➤ Wilmington: The home of Katie Holmes’ Dawson Creek character, Joey Potter, is for sale and being auctioned off through Luther Bros Auction Company. The six-season series was filmed in Wilmington from 1998-2003. (More)

➤ Wake County: A great horned owl was diagnosed with the county’s first known case of bird flu after wildlife officials found a hawk and multiple geese that had died in the same area. (More)

➤ The Carolina Panthers will have approximately $25 million in cap space for the 2025 free-agency period. That number dwindles to just under $20 million when accounting for contracts for the team’s 2025 draft picks. (More)

➤ LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges combined for 56 points Wednesday night to help lead the Charlotte Hornets to a 100-97 upset win over the Los Angeles Lakers. (More)

➤ Duke men’s basketball coach Jon Scheyer told reporters he is optimistic that standout forward Maliq Brown can return this season, despite dislocating his shoulder earlier this week. (More)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Active Skin Repair offers natural, non-toxic solutions for minor cuts, scrapes, rashes, and burns. Utilizing medical-grade hypochlorous acid, these products support your body’s natural healing process without stinging or irritation. Safe for all ages and skin types, they provide effective, gentle care for everyday skin issues. (See It Here)

➤ Provalus, an information technology outsourcing firm, will invest $6.48 million and create 61 jobs in Edenton. Provalus was founded in 2017 and operates in Whiteville with plans for a site in North Wilkesboro. (More)

➤ Greensboro-based Kontoor Brands, which owns Wrangler and Lee jeans, agreed to buy Norwegian outdoor and workwear brand Helly Hansen for $900 million. (More)

➤ North Carolina ranks 13th in states where employers are struggling the most in hiring due to labor shortages for new job openings. (See Map and Data)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Relieves Pain FAST—And It’s So EASY! Paingone Plus fits the power of TENS into a tiny, portable pen that anyone can use. And it only takes 60-90 seconds of treatment time! With zero setup and zero troubleshooting to place the sticky pads, you’ll be feeling better ASAP.

Flying together with our sponsor

Top investors are buying this “unlisted” stock

When the team that co-founded Zillow and grew it into a $16B real estate leader starts a new company, investors notice. That’s why top firms like SoftBank and Maveron invested in Pacaso.

Sending shockwaves through the real estate industry once again, Pacaso’s streamlined platform offers co-ownership of premier properties—completely revamping a $1.3T market.

And by handing keys to 1,500+ happy homeowners, Pacaso has already made $100M+ in gross profits.

Now, they’re focused on international expansion—achieving record-breaking sales in Paris, securing 7 homes in Cabo, and recently acquiring their most valuable European property yet in London.

You can join them as an investor—but with this expansion underway, the current share price will be gone tomorrow. Invest at $2.70/share by 2/27 PST.

This is a paid advertisement for Pacaso’s Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular at invest.pacaso.com.

➤ Beech Mountain History Museum ranked fifth on USA Today’s top 10 list of best small-town museums thanks to exhibits focusing on the Cherokee people, logging and milling industries, development of Ski Beech Resort, and Land of Oz amusement park. (See List)

➤ NC State researchers have shown that using light to adjust the optical characteristics of quantum dots—which are used in LEDs, solar cells, displays, and other technologies—will make the process quicker, more energy-efficient, and more environmentally sustainable. (More)

➤ UNC-Chapel Hill celebrated Wednesday’s snowstorm by publishing a collection of photos showing snow day traditions from years past, including students skiing to campus, snowball fights, and the Old Well covered in snow. (See Photos)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Discover Akka Superbiotic, formulated by top NYC gastroenterologist Dr. Gina Sam, MD, to detoxify your liver, boost metabolism, and enhance vitality. Order now and receive the “Skinny Liver Cookbook” and “Liver Cleanse Protocol” guides free with any multipack purchase. Experience improved liver health and increased energy today!