FAQ City

FAQ City is taking a break until June to work on a brand-new season full of colorful and exciting episodes based on questions from you, our listeners.

Charlotte is known for its abundance of trees. Where can you find the biggest, most storied ones in the city?

Charlotte's skyline is a hit on Instagram. Where are the best spots for panoramic pictures of the city?

Charlotte has at least 125 different food trucks serving a wide variety of cuisine. What's it like to run a food truck? And how can you find the food trucks closest to you?

Charlotte has quite a few professional sports teams. Of course, there's the NFL team the Carolina Panthers and the NBA team the Charlotte Hornets. Soon there will also be a Major League Soccer team, Charlotte FC. But why doesn't Charlotte have a Major League Baseball team? Could it ever happen?

You've probably seen those electric vehicle charging stations outside grocery stores and other businesses. How do they work? And what kind of insurance do you need for EVs? FAQ City powers through more of your questions about electric vehicles.

We've all heard of Tesla. What are some other electric vehicle options? How much do they cost? Can you buy used? FAQ City charges into all of your questions about electric cars.

Charlotte seems to be made up of a lot of transplants, or people who moved here from other parts of the country or world. How many Queen City residents were actually born and raised in Charlotte?

Queens University in Charlotte is rumored to be a major site of paranormal activity. Is there any truth to these ghost stories?

When you're driving, nothing is more annoying than a string of red traffic lights. Why are some Charlotte traffic signals so poorly timed? And is there anything you can do about it?

Why do some sidewalks in the Charlotte region come to an abrupt end? This special rebroadcast of an FAQ City episode tells you some reasons why.

Some of the Charlotte region's streetlights are mysteriously changing color. We illuminate why — and how — some people are seeing purple.

There's something awfully suspicious about that pine tree off the side of Interstate 485 in Charlotte. What is it? And why are there more like it?

If you've ever looked at the Charlotte skyline at night, you might have noticed that sometimes all of the buildings are lit up the same color. Who's in charge of deciding when and how the buildings are illuminated?

The 60th floor of the Bank of America Corporate Center is a mysterious, mythical place. At nearly 776 feet above the ground, it's one of the highest spots a person can visit in Charlotte. What's up there?

It's summer, and lots of us are headed to the beach to play in the sand and see the marine wildlife. But some of our listeners say they've seen what they think are coastal creatures right here in Charlotte.

WFAE listener Summer Cook wrote to FAQ City wondering where all of Charlotte's neighborhood names came from. For example, who is Elizabeth? Or Cherry? What about Dilworth?

The spelling and pronunciation of Little Sugar Creek, which flows into Sugar Creek (or is it Sugaw Creek?) have been a source of debate for well over 200 years. Which is right?

Last month, Charlotte celebrated what’s known as “Meck Dec Day," the annual holiday in honor of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. On May 20, 1775 — more than a full year before the United States Declaration of Independence — it's said that influential men of Charlotte declared themselves "free and independent" of British rule. In honor of Meck Dec Day, this week FAQ City is revisiting a 2018 episode about Charlotte's Revolutionary war history.

Charlotte is one of the top destinations for disc golf players, and the sport continues to grow as people across the Queen City — and the world — are playing.

If you travel past schools in Charlotte, you’ve seen the giant decorated rocks outside. But why, exactly, are they there?

At a time when bicycling is on the rise because of the pandemic, find out the history and future of lanes, routes and cycling infrastructure in the Queen City.

On the latest FAQ City, take a trip back to an important year in Charlotte’s history — 1910.

Sharon Road, Sharon Lane, Sharon Amity, Sharon Woods Lane, Sharon Township Lane, Sharon Avenue, Sharon Chase Drive, and ... well you get the point. With so many roads named after her, it's no wonder Charlotteans are curious to know who is Sharon.

There are some restaurants from years past that are part of the city's past, present and, hopefully, future.

Grier Heights, a historic Black neighborhood in Charlotte, has changed throughout the years. The community is now starting a new chapter of giving back, while remembering its strong history.

The Queen City…the crowns on everything from street signs to trash cans…there are just some common things associated with Charlotte. We look into why these things represent Charlotte and answer questions about the city’s origins.

In November, The Pew Research Center found that 42% of African Americans would take the COVID-19 vaccine — the lowest among any other racial and ethnic group. Davida Jackson of Charlotte wanted to know why.

We get it: Recycling can be confusing. Do you keep the bottle caps on plastic water bottles or take them off? Should you break down cardboard boxes before putting them in the bin? What about office paper with staples? Do you have to take the staples out?

Charlotte is known for its abundance of trees. Where can you find the biggest, oldest ones in the city?

Across North Carolina, health care workers are rolling up their sleeves to get the COVID-19 vaccine. The first shipments of vaccine doses arrived at hospitals this week after being developed and approved in record time. So how does the vaccine work? And when can you expect to get a shot? FAQ City answers your questions.

Charlotte’s skyline is a hit on Instagram. Where are the best spots to get panoramic pictures of the city?

Lately, there’s been a lot of focus on whose names are in history books and on monuments, streets and buildings, especially after the recent protests over racial injustice. So how can you request to have a Charlotte street renamed?

It’s been a noisy election season. You might be looking for some peace and quiet—a place to get away for a few calm moments amid all of the Election Day news. Or you may just want an escape from the constant racket that can come from living near the city. That might be why WFAE listener Katrina Lee wrote to FAQ City asking where she might find Mecklenburg County's quietest outdoor spot.

School looks different for most students these days because of the coronavirus pandemic. But whether classes are in person or online, a lot of Charlotte-area high schools start very early in the morning.

Carolyn Osberger's desire to support Black-owned businesses lead her to food trucks. Charlotte has at least 125 food trucks and they serve all kinds of cuisine: dumplings, tacos, barbecue, empanadas, curry, wings, ice cream.

This summer, Carolyn Osberger of Charlotte started looking online for Black-owned businesses to support. She said she was inspired by the renewed focus on racial injustice in the U.S. “As I was searching, I noticed that a lot of the Black-owned restaurants that came up were food trucks,” Osberger said.

This year’s hurricane season has been one of the most active on record. Scientists blew through the planned list of 21 tropical storm names -- from Arthur to Wilfred -- and now they’ve started using the Greek alphabet. How does North Carolina prepare when a storm is heading its way?

Editor's note: A version of this story was originally published in January 2020. For years, people in Concord have heard a tale that the city is built on an ancient volcano that once spewed molten lava across the prehistoric Piedmont. One WFAE listener, Ben Kesterson, wrote to FAQ City wanting to know if the story is just an urban legend, or if there's any truth to it.

It’s hurricane season in the Atlantic, and scientists say this year could be one of the busiest on record. We’ve already had a record number of named storms -- from Arthur to Marco -- and at least five people were killed as Hurricane Isaias swept up the East Coast several weeks ago. FAQ City wants to hear from you. What questions do you have about hurricanes and hurricane season? What do you need to know to feel prepared for a storm--especially during a pandemic? Share your questions and we’ll try to feature them in an upcoming episode. Keep up with future FAQ City episodes by subscribing to the podcast on Apple Podcasts , NPR One , or Google Play . _ _

If you’ve ever looked at the Charlotte skyline at night, you might have noticed that sometimes all of the buildings are lit up the same color — all red for Valentine’s Day or all blue for a Panthers game. “I noticed -- probably along I-77 when I was driving -- that the lights all seemed to be coordinated. So I was curious about how or why that happened,” said Jamie Brown, of Mooresville, adding that she probably first noticed the color coordination when the Panthers went to the Super Bowl in 2016. Brown wrote to FAQ City and asked: Who coordinates the lights on Charlotte’s skyscrapers? 'Make The Building Just Sparkle' One of Charlotte’s most recognizable buildings is the Duke Energy Center. Bob Bertges said it was his idea to add customizable lights when the building was under construction in the mid- to late 2000s. Bertges retired in 2019 from Wells Fargo, the company that owns the building. “This whole project was sort of my little baby,” he said. Bertges said he was inspired by the

It’s been about two months since protests first erupted in Charlotte over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Here, across the U.S. and the world, people took to the streets to demonstrate against police brutality and the mistreatment of Black people. We’ll take a look back at those protests and answer your questions about policing and protesting.

Schools in Charlotte and across North Carolina have been closed since mid-March because of the coronavirus. Online classes became the new norm. Many in-person graduations, sporting events and proms were canceled. Now, state health officials say North Carolina’s coronavirus trends are moving in the wrong direction. As fall draws closer, what’s next for schools? Will buildings reopen?

People in North Carolina are now required to wear face masks in many public places. It’s part of an executive order issued by Gov. Roy Cooper that takes effect at 5 p.m. Friday, June 26. When and where do you have to wear a mask? Can you get a ticket for not wearing one? We answer those questions and others.

Few Charlotteans may remember Earle Village, the public housing community built in First Ward just outside uptown. It was a bustling community that stretched from 6th Street to 10th Street, roughly bordered by Myers Street and Caldwell Street. It was the place where 400 of the city's poorest families resided — until the village was condemned to demolition in the 1990s.

This weekend... this week... this month... has been a lot. Monday night marked the fourth night of protests in Charlotte as a wave of nationwide protests continue in the wake of the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis. Throughout the weekend, thousands of protesters have expressed a range of emotions in Charlotte. Which is why FAQ City wants to hear from you.

Gov. Roy Cooper has begun gradually reopening North Carolina in a series of three phases. If you're not sure what to expect under each of those three phases, don't worry! You're not alone. Lots of WFAE listeners have been writing in with questions, and we're here to help.

For decades, a four-foot gold statue has stood at the intersection of Queens and Providence roads in Charlotte, his right index finger extended. Sometimes he's dressed up for sporting events or weddings at the Methodist church next door. For an extended period beginning September 2017, he disappeared from the intersection, leaving only a few patches of monkey grass where his pedestal stood.

We're now more than a month into the coronavirus crisis in North Carolina with still no end in sight, and the number of people out of work continues to climb higher and higher. According to some estimates, the U.S. unemployment rate could touch 16% by July -- higher than at any point since the Great Depression.

Hard to believe that just a month ago, the Charlotte area was still gearing up for all the usual springtime events. Our kitchen calendars still had spaces blocked off for college commencement, spring break, and opening day at the ballpark. Perhaps you were planning to hit the gym or the hair salon to look good for summer. Now, that's all out the window amid a fast-moving pandemic and a statewide stay-at-home order issued by North Carolina's governor.

The tumult caused by the coronavirus this week has many WFAE listeners writing into our newsroom with questions about the unfolding pandemic. For instance, "Why do news anchors alternate between saying coronavirus and COVID-19?" "Is there a difference between quarentine and isolation?" "What should I do if I think I have the coronavirus?"