Author Archives: Justin Ritchie

Collaboration is the heart of Charlotte’s opportunity for a local dairy

14 Jun 09 – 12:14 pm

video: Justin Ritchie; view this video on Vimeo
Charlotte and the greater Mecklenburg County metro region has yet to gain a devoted local milk, cheese and yogurt source. North Carolina has only one commercial cheese processing plant (in Jefferson, NC) and 11 milk processing plants (8 large commercial and 3 producer processors). A recent report assembled [...]

Posted in Agriculture, Economy, Food | Comments (3)

BIKE! Charlotte Starts Tomorrow

30 Apr 09 – 6:11 pm

Photo: James Willamor see the original on Flickr
The Queen City gets ready to bike over the next ten days as BIKE! Charlotte kicks off tomorrow morning with the Mayor’s Ride and Bike to Breakfast, 7:30am at the Dowd YMCA where bikers will meet behind the building to bike with Mayor Pat up to the Wachovia [...]

Posted in City, Sports, Transportation | Comments (1)

Environmental groups protest at Duke Energy HQ

20 Apr 09 – 2:03 pm

Multiple environmental groups protested Duke Energy’s expansion of the Cliffside Steam Station about 60 miles West of Charlotte at Duke’s Uptown headquarters. CLT Blog’s @rhibowman will be posting more in-depth info later but you can catch some of the first photos from the scene after the break.

Posted in Environment, Events, Protest, Uptown | Comments (3)

Charlotte Clean and Green prepares the Queen City for Earth Day

18 Apr 09 – 3:29 pm

Charlotte Clean and Green on the campus of CPCC hosted a great turnout today as Charlotteans prepared for Earth Day this Wednesday. Local farms provided food and education to the community while local businesses offered products to support your responsible lifestyle.
This was just the first of a few Earth Day related events this week [...]

Posted in City, Environment, Events, Photography | Comments (1)

CLT Blog is a Five Ventures finalist

26 Mar 09 – 9:20 am

video: Erik Button; watch this video on Vimeo
Justin Ruckman and I made official appearances as CLT Blog editors in last Thursday’s presentation to the semi-final round of UNC Charlotte’s Five Ventures competition. We were selected as semi-finalists after submitting our executive summary, and prepared the presentation excerpted above for a shot at the finals.
Our eight [...]

Posted in City, Technology, UNC Charlotte | Tagged | Comments (9)

Crêpe Cellar Kitchen & Pub adds a new gastronomic dimension to Charlotte cuisine

9 Mar 09 – 10:00 am

photo: James Willamor; view this photo on Flickr
In just a few short weeks Charlotte will finally have a dedicated source for European style peasant food: simple, inexpensive and rich in flavor. In the site that Addie’s Jamaican Cuisine occupied before Addie moved back to New York, co-owners Jeff Tonidandel and Paul Manley are dedicating NoDa’s [...]

Posted in City, Food, NoDa | Comments (1)

Mike Collins talks Charlotte 49er Football with Athletic Director Judy Rose

4 Mar 09 – 12:04 am

photo: Kevin Harbin; view this photo on Flickr
Much of my undergraduate career was devoted to building student support for football at UNC Charlotte through the Student Government Association and as ‘07-’08 Student Body President.
Disclaimer: I think that the collegiate athletic scene in the United States is ridiculous. I prefer the international model of investing in [...]

Posted in Sports, UNC Charlotte | Comments (1)

Crime in Charlotte: a catch and release problem

2 Mar 09 – 10:12 pm

watch this video on YouTube
Meck Charlotte pointed me towards this video of Courtney James’ April 28th, 2008 speech to Charlotte City Council about the attempted robbery of his house.
Sure, Charlotte isn’t the safest city in the US but the reasons why are even more frustrating. Proven criminals in the city are caught and released on [...]

Posted in City, Crime, Government | Comments (0)

Shopping for Uptown retail

20 Feb 09 – 1:30 am

photo: Justin Ritchie; view this photo on Flickr
Uptown Charlotte is already an attraction, luring crowds from across the Carolinas by offering the NBA, NFL, nightlife, arts and culture, and fine dining. Yet the Center City still lacks personality. The humanity and convenience of storefronts along the streets can replace the faceless glass of what was [...]

Posted in City, Economy, Entertainment, UNC Charlotte, Uptown | Comments (7)

Charlotte 49er fans rush court after win over #17 Xavier

20 Feb 09 – 12:55 am

video: Justin Ritchie; watch this video on Vimeo
Even though the ‘08-’09 basketball season has been rough on the Charlotte 49ers with injuries and close losses, the team’s hard work finally paid off Thursday night with a big win over the #17 Xavier Musketeers. Before tonight, Charlotte was winless against the Muskies, dropping every contest [...]

Posted in Sports, UNC Charlotte | Comments (0)