New Year's Eve 2009 - Raleigh

The Mint is set to have their first ever New Year's Eve celebration this evening. The Office Nightclub's resident DJs Riot the DJ and DJ Rozeman. The restaurant will transform into a nightclub with both their house bar upstairs and a made-for-New-Year's-Eve bar down in the main dining room. There's no cover charge, either!

Also happening on New Year's Eve is the 18th annual Artsplosure's First Night Raleigh.

Capital City Grocery Closes

Against the small hope that many had for this downtown Raleigh grocery store, as reported by WRAL, signage was posted on the door today stating that today will be its last day open... permanently.

Reason for closing has yet to be identified, but I'm sure with the economic issues that didn't help too much. The fact that many of their shelves are empty also didn't help for business, especially considering a full-fledged grocery store, Harris Teeter, is less than two miles up the street.

As WRAL also reported, downtown Raleigh has acquired two more grocery stores since 2007, of which I haven't seen, however they did state one more is set to open next summer.

I personally would enjoy to see a true downtown grocery store location, right near Fayetteville St.

Raleigh Christmas Parade

Just a friendly reminder to everyone that the 64th annual Raleigh Christmas Parade is happening in downtown Raleigh tomorrow starting at around 10:00 AM. Festivities begin at 9:30 AM, so make sure you bring your gloves and overcoats as to stay warm during the cold day's activities!

To find out more info about the parade, you can go to WRAL for more info.

First Snow of the Season!

If you live in the Triangle (and even further out around), then you may have noticed some on-again off-again snow flurries blowing through the breezy North Carolinian air. For me, the first time I saw the snow today was earlier this morning while I was at work. Many of us got so excited to see the first snow fall of the season that we all bolted out the door and onto the sidewalks of Cameron Village to enjoy the short novelty.

The brief snow didn't accumulate to much in the Triangle with no reports of it actually sticking to the roads (or hardly even to front lawn from what I've seen).

I don't know about any one else, but I surely hope this is setting us up for quite a white Christmas! One can only hope...

NCScoop - Burning Coal Theatre Presents Hysteria

Burning Coal Theatre in downtown Raleigh will be premiering the play "Hysteria" this Thursday evening (November 6th) at 7:30 PM in their fairly new theatre Meymandi Theatre at the Murphy School Auditorium.

Hysteria is a dramatic farce fictionalizing a meeting between Salvador Dali and Sigmund Freud with a few other characters mixed in between. The play is full of great comedic scenes mixed together with some tense dramatic pieces and brought all together by some phenomenal acting talents and direction.

If you want to get tickets to one of the play dates, you can find all of those dates listed here. Don't forget to also check out Burning Coal Theatre's Website for any other information you may want to know.

Raleigh Obama March

After President-elect Barack Obama gave his Victory Speech, hundreds of Obama supporters marched and cheered on the streets of downtown Raleigh. The march started somewhere up in north downtown Raleigh, presumably from a massive watch party, and marched its whole way down Wilmington St. and what seemed to be ending at Shaw University.

The march appeared to be impromptu and was being maintained by local law officials keeping a close proximity of the fairly long march.

Barack Obama Rally, Plus Sarah Palin and Huckabee in Raleigh

Upon entering Halifax Mall in downtown Raleigh, the first thing I noticed were the security check-point they had up, which seemed very minimal compared to airport security. Of course, they needed to keep it simple to maintain the crowds. And crowds there were! From the video you can slightly see the crowds, but it felt like thousands upon thousands were in attendance for the Sen. Barack Obama campaign rally.

Also in Raleigh today was former Republican Presidential nominee, Mike Huckabee. He was only here for a brief while at the Raleigh Victory Office, but he's scheduled to make an appearance at 4:00 PM at the Charlotte Victory Office. He's also supposed to pop in for a 4:30 PM appearance at Hef's Bar & Grill Restaurant.

And some new information that was just reported by Charlotte Observer, Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin is scheduled to make an appearance at an hour-long event this coming Saturday night, November 1st. Any further details, such as location and whatnot, are not available yet.

Gotta love to have everyone wanting a piece of North Carolina! ;)

Here's more information about Mike Huckabee's locations:

Wednesday October 29th, 2008

Charlotte Victory Office
4:00 PM
1515 Mockingbird Lane Suite 218
Charlotte, NC 28209
(704) 910-0696

Hef's Bar and Grill Restaurant
4:30 PM
1600 E Woodlawn Road
Charlotte, NC 28209
(704) 523-1008

Oh, and sorry for the shaky camera work. Between them not allowing tripods into the rally and the strong winds... it made camera work a nightmare (not to repeatedly mention the fact that there was no way to get a good, clear shot of Sen. Barack Obama).

Brad Cooper's Indictment

I know, I'm a good twelve hours or so late with this news, but chances are... some of you may not have heard of this yet either!

On Monday, October 27th, Brad Cooper was indicted for first-degree murder of his wife, Nancy Cooper. In the early morning on July 12th, Nancy Cooper was said to have gone jogging through the suburbs of Cary. Later in the morning, a man walking his dog discovered her body in a storm pond in the neighborhood. The investigation has been going on for three months with much speculation pointing to husband, Brad Cooper.

You can catch the full story over at WRAL!

NCScoop's NC State Fair Adventure!

Earlier this week, I had to do my annual ritual of going to the North Carolina State Fair on their can donation day. Usually, its one of the most crowded days out of the fair, but it really didn't feel as crowded as it usually does. I'll blame the economy for that. The fair was actually more pleasant for me with less people there; less elbow bumping and crowd swimming! It could be one of my best fair experiences to date!

Anyway, the fair had all the usual rides, vendors, and concessions... but some concessions received some new goodies I had never seen before there. Two of the things I sampled while there were the fried mac and cheese - which was rather bland and boring tasting - and the fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich; that was the real winner! If you only limit yourself to one fried delicacy, you should definitely make the fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich your pick!

Food within the fair ranged in price. If you're an avid hunter for the cheapest dishes, than just be patient and you'll find the stuff you're looking for that is almost affordable. Its a fair though, so you can't expect finding a dollar hotdog anyway. As for the rides... they were overpriced, as usual. I really think that they should continue doing the $25 unlimited ride pass for next year, but expand it to the ENTIRE duration of the fair instead of only on the preview day.

With each year I get older, the more and more I like the Village of Yesteryear. All of the craftsmanship vendors, olden-day North Carolina living, a peaceful garden area, and free hush puppies at the mill -- there's no wonder that this place is growing on me! Definitely make sure to check out the Village of Yesteryear when you make it to the fair.

Be sure to go to the fair soon though, since this coming Sunday on October 26th will mark the last day of the 2008 North Carolina State Fair.

You may have heard the music pieced into the video adventure. The band is named Grand Piano Falling and they are a local alternative rock band right out of Raleigh! I've been fans of theirs for nearly three years now and I definitely suggest for you all to give them a listen!

Craftland @ The Scrap Exchange

There are some who already may know of The Scrap Exchange, and then there are others who -- like me a few weeks ago -- have no idea what The Scrap Exchange is. That's where I'll be starting off first!

The Scrap Exchange is a creative reuse facility that houses hundreds of unique reuse materials that have either been donated to The Scrap Exchange, or one of their many volunteers have brought into the facility. The facility is located right on the edge of downtown Durham, very fitting for a street with various art galleries and stores.

The materials in the facility range from things like chemical beakers, to balls of yarn. The purpose of the facility is to redirect "junk" from going to the junk yards to The Scrap Exchange where people are encouraged to purchase these random objects to use in artistic projects -- or whatever you want to use them for. Its another form of traditional recycling, but with an artsy twist.

To show off their recycling creativity, The Scrap Exchange and the NC Triangle Etsy Street Team have teamed up to bring to the public the 5th annual Craftland event.

Craftland is a three-month long art show held in The Scrap Exchange's Green Gallery. The show features environmentally friendly purses, dolls, drawings, lamps, mittens, and various others products created by artists from all around the area. All items on display are available for purchase and are aimed to be the perfect, most environmentally-conscious gift you can give someone this Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or any other holiday you do or don't celebrate.

Craftland is running from October 17th through January 5th. There are two more grand opening receptions to be held on November 21st and December 19th in The Scrap Exchange, both from 6PM-9PM.

Will to Power Film Debut

Recently, the The School of Communication Arts hosted a film debut screening of Will to Power. The film stars some Hollywood familiars such as David Rountree (xXx: State of the Union), Kiko Ellsworth (Heroes: Going Postal), Jerry Mathers (Leave it to Beaver), Jonathan Breck (Jeepers Creepers 1 & 2, W.) and Kathy Lamkin (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, No Country for Old Men).

A little excerpt about the movie:

“Will to Power’s” story is a psychological thriller of intrigue, betrayal and dark ambition set in North Carolina. Demers comments, “No one under 18 years of age will be allowed into the theatre without their parent in attendance.” Further Demers adds, “You will need to see “Will to Power” as it addresses some very social issues, with dark elements. And points what can happen with the abuse of drugs and alcohol among college age students." David Rountree, states, “I wanted my first script and my first directorial debut to be in North Carolina. Great talent in front of and behind the camera. With all the locations this is a great state to make a movie.”

With this film's completion, it adds another film under North Carolina's belt. Not many people know, but North Carolina has been at the number 3 spot of annual films produced in the state out of the whole country for the past twenty years. With notable films such as Junebug, 28 Days, Hannibal, Nights in Rodanthe, The Last of the Mohicans, Patch Adams, Hounddog, Idlewild, Leatherheads, Cabin Fever 1 & 2, and of course Bull Durham, its no real surprise that North Carolina has stayed at the top of the list.

In recent times, North Carolina has been gaining on NY's film productions and has even surpassed their annual total. Its no surprise though, with such vast filming locations such as the beach, the mountains, the city, and the countryside. If that isn't a big enough reason why people bring their films to North Carolina, then maybe its the incentives that the state offers to productions.

North Carolina's State Fair is Here!

Technically, I lied. As I'm writing this, the gates haven't opened yet. But come 3:00 PM later on today (Oct. 16th), the gates will swing open and all kinds of people from the state (and maybe further) will shuffle on in during a crowded frenzy. We can't escape the crowds... however, we can escape the driving crowds!

This year, I'm a huge supporter for the Park-and-Ride system that the North Carolina State Fair has this time around. With the addition of a new weekend Park-and-Ride lot in Garner, an expanded bus line from Durham's DATA buses, and with a North Raleigh and Cary lot from CAT, there are plenty of options to get you to and from the North Carolina State Fair. Even Amtrak's Carolinian's train is making a special stop right in front of the State Fair at Blue Ridge Road.

You can get all the info needed by going to North Carolina State Fair's transportation page.

Another thing worth mentioning is something that could make this year's fair profitable to you. The North Carolina Department of State Treasurer will have a booth open for the entire length of the fair that will be used to find unclaimed property for North Carolina citizens.

If you feel that you may have some unclaimed wages, utility deposits, bank accounts, etc., then you may want to check out the booth.

For more information, you can check out NC Cash.

School of Communication Arts - Site Update

Viddler:

YouTube:



First, just want to mention that I'll still be uploading all videos up onto NCScoop's YouTube page (and the less popular MySpace page).

In regards to the upcoming open lecture/ seminar at the School of Communication Arts, Jim Laing will be speaking about audio, video, and computer media and how they all relate to one another. It'll be a great event to attend if you're interested or already involved in the media realm.

Here's a little excerpt from the School of Communication Arts in regards to Jim Laing:

"School of Communication Arts would like to present Jim Laing in the theater on Monday, October 13th at 1:30pm.

Jim Laing owns JL Media Services and graduated from Boston College with a Masters in Computer Science. He will be speaking about the importance of merging the ever-changing world of computers to the audio/video production realm.

Mr. Laing has worked in video and audio production for fifteen years and is a consultant in the Triangle area with clients who include; Glaxo, IBM, Duke and UNC-TV.

Also a musician, Jim plays in two local bands Back Sense, and TMC, his unique insights will give students tips and trends about the industry and a history lesson on how the two mediums converged in his career."

RDU - Terminal 2 Tour

Raleigh-Durham International Airport is officially opening up Terminal 2 (formally Terminal C) on the morning of Sunday, Oct. 26th. On the night of Oct. 25th, the existing Terminal C will close down permanently to continue on with Phase 2 of the project to fully complete Terminal 2 in the winter of 2011. Once Terminal 2 is fully completed, the terminal will reach a size of 900,000 sq. ft., which is three times the size of what used to be of Terminal C.

Some amenities that Terminal 2 will have once Phase 1 opens:

- 25 specialty shops and restaurants, including 42nd St. Oyster Bar, Carolina Ale House and California Pizza Kitchen!

- 2 moving walkways

- 19 boarding gates; 3 of which are for international use

- reclining chairs

- 500,000 sq. ft.

- 7 security check points

- a duty free shop

- a pre-security restaurant (first at RDU)

- 2 island check-in areas

- 40 self check-in kiosks

- 20% of all seating will have electrical and USB outlets at the seat itself

Some amenities that Terminal 2 will have once Phase 2 opens (2011):

- 17 more specialty shops and restaurants

- 13 more gates

- 1 more island check-in area

- 3 more security check-points

On Saturday, Oct. 11th, there will be an open house of the new terminal from 10:00 AM till 4:00 PM. All are invited! Its a family friendly event with activities to keep both young and old entertained, so bring out the entire family!

North Carolina's State Fair is Coming...!

Whether you fear it or love it, the North Carolina State Fair is coming. In ten days from now, you'll be able to experience all of the turkey legs, fried "creations", interesting locals, and exhilarating rides to your heart's content! The festivities kick off on Thursday, October 16th and end on Sunday, October 26th.

No matter what your race, religion, age, gender, sexual preference, social stance, or political stance, I whole-heartily believe that the State Fair is the one event that nearly every state shares in bringing everyone together. Its that one event that you may not want to go to, but you have to go to at least for one night.

Like every year at the State Fair, they have a music line-up with some names you may recognize. One of the names not appearing is county fair queen Jessica Simpson. Sad day.

Josh Turner Thursday, Oct. 16

Jason Aldean Friday, Oct. 17

Toby Mac Saturday, Oct. 18

Lady Antebellum & Heidi Newfield Sunday, Oct. 19

Bobby Flay Monday, Oct. 20

Bucky Covington Tuesday, Oct. 21

Rodney Atkins Wednesday, Oct. 22

Mario Thursday, Oct. 23

Skillet & Leeland Friday, Oct. 24

Joe Nichols Saturday, Oct. 25

Montgomery Gentry Sunday, Oct. 26

If you're wanting to check out more information on the State Fair, then you can check them out on their official website.

Revolver's Trunk Sale!

Revolver Consignment Botique is having a trunk sale on Friday, Oct. 2nd from 6PM to 10PM. The trunk sale will be featuring clothing and accessories from local artists Lauren Smith of LLLavender clothing and Jill Heffinger's jewlerly line. Its all part of First Friday!

Revolver is located at 124 Glenwood Ave., Raleigh, NC! If you'd like to get in contact with them, you can reach them at (919) 834-3053.


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Prime Only Closes Its Doors!

UPDATE: With further investigating (IE, simply calling the restaurant to have someone tell me "We're closed for good."), Prime Only is officially closed beyond re-opening.

Its a sad day for Glenwood South dining, that's for sure.

"The owner of the restaurant, located off of Glenwood Avenue, blamed tough economic times for the closure. " - WRAL.com

With that said, the speculation of financial issues proved to be true, unfortunately.

Now the harder part will be to find something adequate to fill the space. Its a GREAT location, but an insanely large space for a non-chain (or for a small chain) to fit into. Plus, with a supposed estimated $12,000 monthly price tag, it may make even more challenges to fill the space. A good idea would be to separate the restaurant area from The Rat Pack Lounge in the back to make two different tenants. We'll see.

VP Debate - Thursday Oct. 2nd

What is a "Watch Party"? Essentially, it is a place where voters, potential voters, and everyday people will come together to watch the debates in a public setting. Some watch parties are private events, however. The ones posted below are all public events.

This list will continuously be updated as new resources come in, so be sure to keep on checking back if you don't see your county listed yet.

The following watch parties are open to the public:

Wake County

Democratic:

Unofficial

Player’s Retreat Restaurant
8:45 PM - ???
105 Oberlin Rd.
Raleigh, NC 27605
Back of the bar
Player's Retreat Restaurant


Republican:

Official

Raleighwood Cinema Grill
8:45PM - 11:00PM
6609 Falls Of the Neuse Road
Raleigh, NC 27609
Tickets are on sale here
Wake GOP
Raleighwood Cinema Grill

Nonpartisan:

Unofficial

Cameron Bar and Grill
8:45 PM - ???
2018 Clark Ave.
Raleigh, NC 27605
919-755-2231
Cameron Bar and Grill
(Also, the added bonus to here is that you can come and visit me while I work! :P)

Durham County

Democratic:

Link to listed locations. Scroll down to the Oct. 2nd dates. Numerous unofficial watch parties are located there.

Republican:

No Location Set Yet

Forsyth County


Nonpartisan:

Unofficial

The Werehouse (AKA Krankies Coffee)
211 E. 3rd St.
Winston-Salem, NC 27101
9:00 PM – ???
Krankies Coffee

NCSU Homecoming Parade

Whether you're a NCSU student, an avid Wolfpack fan, or just someone who enjoys parades, then be sure to check out the upcoming NCSU Homecoming Parade. The parade is happening on Hillsborough St. this Friday, October 3rd, starting at 6 PM. The road will be closed around that time, so its also good to know about the time to avoid driving delays.

Of course, more information can be found here.

Red Bull Base Jumpers Almost Here!

So come Thursday Oct. 2nd, we should be able to watch the Red Bull Base Jumpers jumping off of the highest (and newest) skyscraper in downtown Raleigh, the RBC Plaza. The jumping is slated to start at 3:00 PM.

For more info, follow this link.

Maybe I'll see some of you guys there!

Capital City BikeFest!

Capital City BikeFest year 4 hit Fayetteville Street in downtown Raleigh on Friday, September 26th. If you missed the first day, Saturday the 27th, is its bigger follow-up day with accompanying fireworks later that evening.

The Saturday event is to be from 10:00 AM until 11:00 PM. If you still wish to attend Friday's event, is doesn't end until 11:00 PM, so you have some time!

NC Scoop Is Movin' On Up!

Well, in terms of development. We're striving for a bit of a more improved web-page, but for now, we'll just settle with a logo. And without further ado, I present to you for the first time NC Scoop's official first logo!



Thanks goes out to Digital Branding, LLC for putting together this little logo. We're sure to have a lot of fun in the future with this logo concept when it comes to special stories. You'll see!

Also, decided to change the layout of the page, so this should hopefully suffice until we come out with a real web page!

The Oxford - Taking Yancy's Space

The Oxford, which is in association with Mura and its neighbor Sono, is setting up to bring the newest dining experience to downtown Raleigh's core street: Fayetteville St.!

The British-pub inspired restaurant will be featuring traditional British delicacies at a fare that closely resembles that of which a dollar or two more than the Carolina Ale House, said General Manager James Park.

Be on the look-out for this potential new gem come the end of October!

Try Transit Week '08

Even though this is a non-video media post, I feel it is necessary since this sort of thing is what NC Scoop strongly supports!

In an attempt to draw in more appeal for public transportation, GoTriangle with the combined forces of Triangle Transit (TTA), Capital Area Transit (CAT), Durham Area Transit Authority (DATA), Cary Transit (C-Tran), Chapel Hill Transit, NCSU Wolfline, and UNC Chapel Hill, have created a week-long event known as Try Transit Week.

In this Monday thru Friday region-wide event, the various public transit companies will be doing special days, events, and appreciation nods on each of the days (including free ice cream and free bus fares!). They have similar, but different schedules, which you can read in more specifics at: GoTriangle's Try Transit Week '08

Try Transit Week is from September 22nd to September 26th, so mark your calendars!!

Raleigh Wide Open 3 - Day 2

And here's day 2!

Raleigh Wide Open 3 - Day 1

Raleigh Wide Open is the annual celebration of Fayetteville St.'s reopening as a pedestrian-friendly, drive-able main street to downtown Raleigh.

Fayetteville St. is full of exciting dining options, ranging from every day prices to fine-dining organic dining. It is also home to the central spot of business in the downtown region.

This video showcases some of the great events that the city of Raleigh threw for Raleigh Wide Open on its opening day, Friday September 5th, 2008.

Water Main Break - Wilmington St. 7-23-08

Early morning on July 23rd, 2008, a water main broke off of Wilmington St. by the RBC Plaza, flooding the street and causing a road closure until the mid-afternoon. Also to be flooded was the basement parking deck of the Hudson Condominiums located right next door to the RBC Plaza, also causing the entire condo building to lose electricity for more than 24 hours.

The new, 12-inch water main hadn’t been mapped yet, so finding the cut-off point took many hours, causing over 200,000 gallons of water to flood the area.

Although officials said that it wasn’t due to construction on the RBC Plaza that caused the water main break, Highwoods Properties Inc. – developer for the high-rise – took some incentive and offered hotel lodging at the downtown Sheraton and rental car usage to the Hudson Condominiums’ residents.

Within 48-hours of the initial burst, everything – including the situation within the condo building – returned back to normal.

Starbucks - Fayetteville St.

NOTE: This is an experimental video used to test out a potential new reporter, Rachael Floyd. The below story, however, is not experimental. Enjoy! :)

Downtown Raleigh finally got a bit of a commercial chain face-lift. On July 31st, 2008 the brand-new Raleigh Marriott City Center opened its doors, as did the Starbucks Coffee Shop that sits at the bottom corner space of the hotel closest to the BB&T building.

The coffee-shop has everything that most Starbucks have to offer, except for fresh salads and deli-style sandwiches that some Starbucks offer. Lindley Thornburg of Heather Freeman Media & Public Relations had stated at one point that they anticipate to acquire those kinds of lunch options. I’d imagine that with further expansion of downtown Raleigh, they’ll soon have a wider food variety.

Urbanites who live within the vicinity of the Starbucks will be glad to know that they’re hours are from 6:00 AM – 7:00 PM Monday thru Friday, and 7:00 AM – 7:00 PM on Saturday and Sunday. Although not as late of hours as the Starbucks off of Peace and Glenwood, it still allows for downtown citizens to get their mid-evening coffee rush. As with a possible expanding menu, I also expect their hours to change in the near-future especially since the Raleigh Convention Center opened up.

Along with the Starbucks, the Raleigh Marriott City Center opened up a new downtown eatery: Posta Tuscan Grille! This 13,000 sq. ft., 192-seat fine dining restaurant brings another taste from around the world to Fayetteville St.

Executive Chef Giani Betti, born, raised, and studied culinary in Italy opened up Posta Tuscan Grille with brother Marco Betti. Having an authentic Italian definitely brings a bright shimmer of hope to my palette. In their own words below, an excerpt of what to expect when dining at Posta Tuscan Grille:

“The finest in Italian cooking, from classic favorites to authentic Tuscan fare. Posta Tuscan Grille will feature seasonal, fresh ingredient-driven fare and outstanding meats with menu highlights including La Coppa dei Betti: Betti family fennel-flavored air- dried cured Tuscan salami; Ravioli al ragù Toscano: Ravioli stuffed with spinach and ricotta cheese served with Tuscan meat sauce; Filetto di branzino al forno con verdure di stagione: Oven baked filet of sea bass, served with fresh seasonal vegetables and Lombatina di Vitella all griglia con verdure di stagione: Grilled veal chop seasoned with salt, pepper, extra virgin olive oil and served with sautéed seasonal vegetables.”

They’re open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner so you have many different food options for whatever time of day you’re craving some fine Italian cuisine!

Breakfast

M-F: 6:30 AM – 11:00 AM
Saturday and Sunday: 7:00 AM – 11:00

Lunch

Everyday: 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Dinner

Everyday: 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM