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Wednesday, February 12, 2025
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Skanska to build $137M STEM center at N.C. State

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Artist rendering of $136.7 million science building being built on the N.C. State University campus.

N.C. State University picked multinational contractor Skanska to build the $136.7 million Integrative Sciences Building, marking one of the biggest UNC system projects of the year.

The 164,947-square foot building will be used to promote STEM teaching and research as part of the university’s efforts to expand science education. It will include classrooms, teaching and research labs, faculty spaces and a cafe.

Departments using the building will include chemistry, biochemistry and biotechnology research.

The building will “revitalize the marquee Brickyard, one of the nine hallowed places on the north campus,” said Mark Balling, Skanska’s executive vice president for North Carolina and Virginia building operations, in a release. Richmond, Virginia-based Moseley Architects is the building designer.

The project is expected to be completed in September 2026.

Skanska, which is based in Stockholm, Sweden, has previously built several N.C. State structures, including Fitts-Woolard Hall; the Golden LEAF Biomanufacturing Training and Education Center; the James B. Hunt Jr. Library; and Engineering Building III at N.C. State.

Democratic leader Jeannette Hyde dies at 86

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Jeanette Wallace Hyde, who with her late husband Wallace were among North Carolina’s leading Democratic fundraisers for decades, died at age 86. She served as U.S. ambassador to several Caribbean nations and hosted many state and national Democratic candidates over the years.

Cary OKs rezoning along NC 55 for apartments, hotel, town park

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Raleigh-based developer Heritage Capital Partners has partnered with the town to build apartments, a town park and a hotel in a southwestern Cary area. Alston Yards is a planned, mixed-use project that includes 7 acres of open space, 400,000 square feet of office space, 815 apartments, a 380-room hotel and 55,000 square feet of commercial space.

N.C. House considers new retirement option for small business workers

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New legislation in the state House would give employees of small businesses a new option to save for retirement. The proposed “Work and Save” program would allow workers to sign up for payroll deductions if their employer can’t afford a retirement plan. Rep. Jarrod Lowery, R-Robeson, said the idea has support from the AARP.

RJ Reynolds’ 150-year legacy celebrated with Winston-Salem historical marker

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A new historical marker has been unveiled in downtown Winston-Salem, celebrating 150 years of the RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company. Founded in 1875 as a small red factory, RJ Reynolds has grown into one of the most recognized businesses in the city and across the country. Historian Phil Archer says, “the company has contributed millions nationally.”

Bank of America CEO reports on inflation impact on U.S. economy

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Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said strong consumer spending so far this year means that the Federal Reserve will probably hold off on cutting its benchmark interest rate. The bank’s retail customers are spending about 6% more money in the first 40 days of this year compared to the same period in 2024, Moynihan told CNBC.

Cumberland County seeks $128.5M from state for projects

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The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners recently met with four of Cumberland County’s state legislators to request $128.5 million for projects to better the community. The Board of Commissioners presented seven projects for state lawmakers to partner in funding including a new school, an aquatic center and youth mental health services.

Charlotte Catholic High School principal steps down

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Charlotte Catholic High School Principal Lori Phillips is resigning effective Friday, the Diocese of Charlotte announced. The resignation comes after a flurry of controversies in recent weeks. Those include the diocese’s recent decision to switch to a Catholic-centric accreditation system called Lumen, which prompted petitions and pushback from parents, including a recent petition.

ASU, Elkin hospital form tuition-free pathway to nursing degree

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The continuing challenge to recruit more nurses has led Appalachian State University to partner with Elkin’s Hugh Chatham Health. ASU is providing Hugh Chatham’s registered nurses with a tuition-free pathway to complete a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree, courtesy of the Hugh Chatham Health Foundation. The foundation also is covering the cost of prerequisite courses.

N.C. lifts lid on new hospital bed construction in N.C. metro areas

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Once a year, a group of 22 appointed officials approves how many new acute-care hospital beds are needed in North Carolina.

The N.C. State Health Coordinating Council’s recent N.C. State Medical Facilities Plan, released Dec. 27, pegged the number at 1,042, compared with 407 in the same report issued a year earlier.

The 156% increase represents a larger allowance of new beds than in the previous five annual facilities plans combined.

The change has huge implications for N.C. hospitals, which fight vigorously to add new beds to hold or gain market share. Adding beds involves investments of hundreds of millions of dollars, mainly for hospitals operating in the Triangle and Charlotte metro areas, where most state growth is occurring. More beds mean more revenue and profit.

For example, WakeMed is investing $214 million in a 31-bed hospital in Garner that state officials approved in 2023. UNC Health Rex is asking the state for approval for a $400 million, 50-bed hospital in Wake Forest.

The facilities plan matters because North Carolina uses a “certificate of need” process that controls medical construction. That approach discourages excessive spending and costs, proponents say.

What caused the huge increase in the past year?

A Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson says the council historically used the growth rate in days of care offered by hospitals over the previous four years to determine the need for more beds.

But state regulators didn’t use that factor for the reports in 2022-24 because of the pandemic, believing it skewed hospital statistics.

Rather, they based their estimate on 2017-19 data, instead of 2020-22.

For this year’s report, they switched back to the old formula. That contributed to the massive increase, officials say.

Now, the state says Wake County needs 267 more beds by 2027, versus 70 in the previous report. The state’s most populous county has 1,464 licensed beds and 159 more in the pipeline.

Mecklenburg County needs 210 more beds by 2027, compared with a previous allotment of 89. Mecklenburg now has 2,194 beds and 591 that are planned or under construction.

Charlotte fast-growing suburbs are also primed for much hospital construction. Cabarrus has an allotment for 126 beds, versus 31 previously. Union County needs 136, versus 46 a year ago. Overall, there are 20,522 licensed beds in the state.

Whether the new report will lead to a significant uptick in construction isn’t clear. Officials of the N.C. Healthcare Association, which represents hospitals, declined to comment.

State hospital executives have historically favored Certificate of Need laws, contending they keep groups from siphoning off some of healthcare’s most lucrative services, leaving the rest for general-purpose hospitals.

Some lawmakers, including Senate Deputy President Pro Tem Ralph Hise, favor doing away with the CON process, saying they contribute to excessive healthcare costs. To date, they have not convinced a majority in the General Assembly. North Carolina’s hospitals are the biggest employers in many N.C. counties.

“North Carolina’s fortunate the economy’s been good, the population’s been growing, businesses [are] relocating here, and I think that’s part of what’s driving acute care beds, as far as the need for those,” says N.C. Rep. Denny Lambeth, who is a former hospital president in Winston-Salem.

Some growing markets are not approved for bed expansion. N.C. Rep. Tim Reeder says his experience as an emergency room physician at ECU Health in Greenville suggests Pitt County needs more beds. “We have no inpatient capacity on most days; our emergency department is holding admitted patients all the time,” he says.

But the plan doesn’t call for any new beds in Pitt County, tying it to three nearby counties, Greene, Hyde and Tyrrell, that have a shrinking population and no hospitals.

Here’s a list of members of the coordinating council, which oversees the facilities plan. The chair, Sandra Greene, is a health policy professor at UNC Chapel Hill.

Wilmington firm nCino continues buying spree with $52.5M acquisition

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Wilmington banking software firm nCino announced the $52.5 million acquisition of another fintech firm, Sandbox Banking. The purchase price includes an additional earn-out opportunity of up to $10 million. Last year, nCino acquired London-based FullCircl, a business-to-business, software as a service (SaaS) platform, for $135 million and South African onboarding software company DocFox for $75 million.