Axios Raleigh

July 30, 2024
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☁️ Weather: High of 90°. Mostly cloudy then a slight chance of thunderstorms.
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Situational awareness: Gov. Roy Cooper opted out of being considered for Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate in the 2024 election, he confirmed in a post on X last night. (Axios)
Today's Smart Brevity™️ count is 774 words — a 3-minute read.
1 big thing: Raleigh's next music festival is born
The Raleigh Wide Open Bluegrass Festival will debut in downtown Raleigh in 2025, following the departure of the popular IBMA World of Bluegrass festival to Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Why it matters: For a decade the International Bluegrass Music Association has held its annual conference and music festival in downtown Raleigh, becoming one of the city's most popular annual events.
- But after landing $25 million from the state of Tennessee, IBMA will take its event south to Chattanooga after this year's edition.
Driving the news: PineCone, the Raleigh music organization that has coordinated much of the free music at IBMA's event, will introduce Raleigh Wide Open, resurrecting the branding of a previous street festival.
- The city of Raleigh, the Greater Raleigh Convention & Visitors Bureau and the State Department of Natural and Cultural Resources have pledged their support to the new festival.
- Raleigh Wide Open is set for Oct. 3-4, 2025.
The intrigue: Its name is a tribute to a 2005 Raleigh festival that was launched to bring life to downtown at the time, PineCone says.
- It wasn't an annual event, but IBMA used the Wide Open name from 2014 to 2019 before rebranding to World of Bluegrass.
Zoom in: The goal is that festivalgoers won't feel like Raleigh Wide Open is a completely new festival, executive director of PineCone David Brower says.
- The plan includes a mix of performances along Fayetteville Street and other downtown areas, with sights on keeping it a primarily free event.
- The festival will focus on bluegrass but will also include genres like Americana, alt-country and other folk music, especially those with North Carolina ties, per Brower.

2. Record-breaking volunteer surge in N.C. and other key swing states
In the days since Vice President Kamala Harris launched her presidential bid, more than 170,000 volunteers have joined her cause, her campaign said last week.
Why it matters: The numbers are yet another example of the momentum Harris has harnessed since President Biden's historic withdrawal from the race.
- The campaign has seen record-breaking fundraising and early polling bumps — a "honeymoon" phase that former President Trump's campaign hopes will soon end.
- The enthusiasm stretches down the ballot, as new donations and volunteers flock to Democratic congressional campaigns, the AP reports.
By the numbers: The campaign had recruited around 4,000 volunteers in North Carolina. As of Monday, that number had risen to 7,000, the campaign tells Axios.
- Florida had seen the largest volunteer totals of any battleground state with more than 7,000 as of Thursday, state director Jasmine Burney-Clark told Axios Tampa Bay in a statement.
- Elsewhere, the campaign had by Wednesday recruited about 5,700 volunteers in Pennsylvania, 4,300 in Georgia and 3,300 in Michigan, she added.
3. The Tea: Most expensive ZIP code in Raleigh
🏠 Raleigh's most expensive ZIP code was 27608, home to the Five Points area, with median home prices just below $950,000. (Triangle Business Journal 🔒)
- The second most expensive ZIP code, 27607, had a median home price of $690,000.
🍬 Zach went on WUNC's "Due South" to talk about the growing expansion of Japanese companies in North Carolina, including most recently the maker of HI-CHEW candy. (WUNC)
🩺 The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services approved a plan by Gov. Roy Cooper to use Medicaid funds to erase medical debt for some North Carolinians. (News & Observer 🔒)
- Hospitals in the state still need to sign on to the deal.
Chapel Hill is struggling to determine a path for developing a park on top of an area contaminated with coal ash. (INDY Week)
🍷 Postino Wine Cafe, a Phoenix-based wine bar chain, opened its doors in Raleigh's Village District yesterday in the old Carolina Cafe & Bakery space. (Postino)
4. No. 1 for college grads
Trying to establish your career as a recent college grad? A new study suggests sending your resume to companies in the Raleigh area.
Why it matters: Raleigh has continued to be a hot spot for young, college graduates coming out of the pandemic — which has helped fuel the area's economy and lead developers to build thousands of new apartments.
Driving the news: Payroll software maker ADP named Raleigh the most promising job market for recent graduates in a new study.
- Austin, Baltimore, Charlotte and Atlanta rounded out the rest of the top five.
Zoom in: ADP said that Sun Belt metro areas currently have the highest hiring rate for recent graduates.
- But Raleigh stood out because its middle-of-the-road affordability comes with wages above the 80th percentile nationally.
- It also has the best hiring rate for likely new graduates of all the metros studied, according to ADP.
The intrigue: All of the top cities are in the South, boast strong science and technology employment and are home to several universities.
🤤 Zachery tried knafeh at Al Baraka Market in Raleigh for the first time and it was mouthwateringly good.
🥰 Lucille is really obsessed with her 5-month-old's giggles right now.
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This newsletter was edited by Michael Graff and copy edited by Lucia Maher.
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