The owners of the Durham Bulls minor league baseball team and WRAL are making a pitch to Wake County to operate Five County Stadium in Zebulon and keep baseball there after the departure of the Carolina Mudcats.

Why it matters: After more than 30 years in Zebulon, this was the last season at Five County Stadium for the Carolina Mudcats, whose owners, the Milwaukee Brewers, decided to move the team to Wilson.

• The Wilson Warbirds will play in a city-backed stadium and mixed-used development project. Five County Stadium no longer meets MLB standards.

Driving the news: The Wake County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday to approve a plan from the Bulls' owner, Capitol Broadcasting Co., to lease and operate the stadium.

• The county will now draft a lease agreement with the team. The town of Zebulon, which owns part of the stadium, will need to approve the proposal as well.

Zoom in: Under the deal, Capitol Broadcasting would use Five County Stadium to host a Coastal Plain League team as well as a Wake Technical Community College baseball, softball and soccer teams.

• The Coastal Plain League is a summer baseball league that features college baseball players. Capitol Broadcasting owns the league as well as the Holly Springs Salamanders that play in it.
• Capitol Broadcasting will pay $710,000 in lease payments over 10 years to Wake County and the Town of Zebulon. It'll also receive 10 rent-free event days.
• Additionally, Wake County will invest $10 million into enhancing the stadium facilities.

The big picture: The deal with the county could also give Capitol Broadcasting's real estate arm a chance to present a plan to redevelop land around the stadium.

• This has long been in Capitol Broadcasting's wheelhouse. The company helped transform the area around the Durham Bulls stadium in downtown into one of the Triangle's biggest destination districts, filled with restaurants, cafes, entertainment, housing and more.

Read about what's next for the proposal

Raleigh is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country, but downtown's growth stands out even more.

Why it matters: Downtown Raleigh's population has more than doubled in the past decade, growing 101% to 15,681 residents, according to the Downtown Raleigh Alliance's annual State of Downtown report.

Between the lines: The growth doesn't look like it is slowing down, according to the DRA.

• More than 1,200 apartment and condo units are currently under construction in downtown — including the 37-story Highline Glenwood — and nearly 6,500 units are planned.
• Those units could add another 8,600 residents by 2030, according to DRA projections.

State of play: It's not cheap to live downtown, with the average asking rent now $2,019 per month.

• The influx of new units has sent vacancy rates above 15%. However, vacancy rates at buildings no longer in initial lease-up phases is at 7.9%, according to CoStar data.

🎓 St. Augustine's University's interim president resigned just two days before the start of classes at the beleaguered Raleigh college. (WRAL)

🏦 Banc of California's name will now appear atop the 555 Mangum tower in downtown Durham. (Triangle Business Journal 🔒)

🛜 North Carolina hopes to ramp up more rural broadband investments using nearly $1.5 billion from the federal government. (WUNC)

🤖 Gov. Josh Stein has issued an executive order on artificial intelligence that establishes, among other things, an AI Leadership Council that will advise the governor and state agencies on AI strategy, policy and training.

• "AI has the potential to transform how we work and live, carrying with it both extraordinary opportunities and real risks," Stein said in a statement.

North Carolina is one of 13 states where CVS will only offer COVID vaccines to those with an authorized prescriber's prescription, CVS told Axios' Jason Lalljee.

Why it matters: Following Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s major curtailing of COVID vaccine eligibility las week, many Americans are left confused about whether and how they'll be able to get shots amid a surging "stratus" variant.

Driving the news: CVS spokesperson Amy Thibault said the "current regulatory environment" means that CVS is offering vaccinations in 34 states, offering them only with prescriber authorization in 13 others and D.C., and completely barring access in three.

• Those lists "may change at any time," Thibault said.
• Following RFK Jr.'s announcement, The New York Times reported that CVS and Walgreens, the country's two largest pharmacies, restricted vaccines in more than a dozen states.

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Downtown Raleigh's future Omni Hotel has named its first restaurant tenant: Bob's Steak and Chop House, a Texas-based chain that has opened in several Omnis.

Why it matters: The expansion of the Raleigh Convention Center and the addition of an Omni Hotel are two of the biggest projects planned for downtown Raleigh in the coming years.

• Local elected leaders are hoping the projects, funded through tourism-funded tax money, will bring a steady stream of foot traffic and business to downtown.

Zoom in: The 27-story hotel, which will have more than 500 rooms, a wellness center and ballrooms, is expected to open in 2028, Brett Cimorelli of Omni Hotels, said last week at the State of Downtown event in Raleigh.

• Cimorelli said Omni hopes to also work with local groups on other parts of the hotel, including its cafe space.
• Hotel leadership previously said they would add a sports bar on the ground floor facing Fayetteville Street.
• The Omni will be built on a city-owned parking lot on Fayetteville Street between the convention center and the Martin Marietta Center for Performing Arts.