Character Studies: Josh Morin, the Guy Who Runs While Punching a Ball Morin and his unconventional workout routine have become a fixture in Durham, where he takes therapeutic daily runs.

Morin and his unconventional workout routine have become a fixture in Durham, where he takes therapeutic daily runs.

Fifteen Years Ago, It Was a Vacant Lot. Now Raleigh City Farm Helps Feed the City. The nonprofit urban farm celebrates fifteen years in Raleigh's Mordecai neighborhood, with a second farm now open in Marsh Creek Park.

The nonprofit urban farm celebrates fifteen years in Raleigh's Mordecai neighborhood, where it distributes much of its produce to community partners focused on food insecurity.

Earth Month Profile: Louise Omoto Kessel, Clapping Hands Farm As the director for an off-grid camp, artist and storyteller Louise Omoto Kessel finds “the more you delight in and experience just being outside, things happen.”

“It seems to me that the more you delight in and experience just being outside, things happen,” Kessel said. “A snake will appear, a butterfly will land on you. Things happen. People are more connected, and then they learn things.”

Print Matters: Talking With Rob Christensen about The News & Observer’s Legacy Christensen's new book "Southern News, Southern Politics: How a Newspaper Defined a State for a Century" comes out from UNC Press this month.

NBCC member Carr Harkrader interviewed Rob Christensen about his new book, "Southern News, Southern Politics: How a Newspaper Defined a State for a Century," for IndyWeek:

I Salvaged $6,000 of Luxury Items Discarded by Duke Students. Why Did It Make Me Feel So Terrible? At the end of the school year, a lot gets tossed by Duke students at my downtown Durham apartment building. This year I decided to dive in.

From the archives: "At the end of the school year, a lot gets thrown away at my downtown Durham apartment building. This year, I decided to dive in."

Six Takeaways From a First Look at Apex’s Budget How much property taxes may go up, why the Salem Streetscape project is costing more than expected, and how much a new firetruck costs.

How much property taxes may go up, why the Salem Streetscape project is costing more than expected, and how much a new firetruck costs.

At the Marian Cheek Jackson Center, a Living Archive and a Look Forward From The Rock Wall is an oral history repository of Chapel Hill and Carrboro's historically Black neighborhoods.

From The Rock Wall, an ongoing project of the Marian Cheek Jackson Center, is a vast repository of oral histories from Chapel Hill and Carrboro’s historically Black neighborhoods.

Apex Approves One-Year Moratorium on Data Centers The temporary ban gives Apex time to develop regulations for data centers and related uses.

Apex is the latest jurisdiction to consider such a moratorium. Data center bans are popping up around the country, and similar federal legislation has been introduced. Chatham County passed a moratorium earlier this year.

I Salvaged $6,000 of Luxury Items Discarded by Duke Students. Why Did It Make Me Feel So Terrible? At the end of the school year, a lot gets tossed by Duke students at my downtown Durham apartment building. This year I decided to dive in.

From the archives: "At the end of the school year, a lot gets thrown away at my downtown Durham apartment building. This year, I decided to dive in."

Character Studies: Josh Morin, the Guy Who Runs While Punching a Ball Morin and his unconventional workout routine have become a fixture in Durham, where he takes therapeutic daily runs.

Morin and his unconventional workout routine have become a fixture in Durham, where he takes therapeutic daily runs.

Earth Month Profile: Kathleen Liebowitz, Toward Zero Waste For mom and Toward Zero Waste director Kathleen Liebowitz, reducing household waste is about making practical changes at home, and systemic changes in the community.

For mom and Toward Zero Waste director Kathleen Liebowitz, reducing household waste is about making practical changes at home, and systemic changes in the community.

Lawsuit Alleges Repeated Sexual Assault by Durham Rescue Mission’s Former Volunteer Coordinator In the suit, an anonymous plaintiff says Mission leadership discouraged him from reporting the abuse.

In the suit, an anonymous plaintiff says Mission leadership discouraged him from reporting the abuse.

The INDY at 40: The Paper Route Forty years and more than 2,000 issues after it began, the INDY is still producing powerful news and culture journalism grounded in progressive politics.

This week, the INDY celebrates 43 years in print. From our 40th anniversary, here's a history of the paper's start.

Duke Bought a Duplex That Housed a Thriving Community Space. Within Months, It Was Gone. Was That a Coincidence? The closure of The Living Room is resurfacing questions about what growth costs Durham.

Several noted critics of Duke’s land use practices speculated whether dimensions beyond the condition of the duplex could have influenced the university’s approach to 407 Swift.

Lawsuit Alleges Repeated Sexual Assault by Durham Rescue Mission’s Former Volunteer Coordinator In the suit, an anonymous plaintiff says Mission leadership discouraged him from reporting the abuse.

In the suit, an anonymous plaintiff says Mission leadership discouraged him from reporting the abuse.

The Filmmakers Behind "The Great Experiment" On Resisting Tidy Narratives Eric Daniel Metzgar and Steve Maing's new documentary paints a portrait of the national mood during the first Trump administration.

“That space in between is where the curiosity is located. That’s where openness, in place of judgment, occurs. That’s where the magic of cinema happens. Where people are invited to participate in watching a film, and to consider that maybe there’s another way of engaging with the world.”

Sheldon Mitchell Reflects on a Decade Leading Urban Ministries of Durham After ten years working with Durham’s primary homeless shelter, Mitchell is moving on to be CEO of Big Brothers, Big Sisters of the Triangle.

After ten years working with Durham’s primary homeless shelter, Mitchell is moving on to serve as CEO of Big Brothers, Big Sisters of the Triangle.

The newsletter intro this morning by @sarahwillets.bsky.social on the 43th anniversary of the first issue of the @indyweek.bsky.social 😍

Apex Approves One-Year Moratorium on Data Centers The temporary ban gives Apex time to develop regulations for data centers and related uses.

Apex will be off-limits to data centers for the next year after the Town Council unanimously passed a 12-month moratorium at its Tuesday meeting.

Essay: When America Bombs Little Girls Like my elders and ancestors, this generation’s obligation is to resist a government, unapologetically draped in white supremacy, as it erases the lives of children at home and abroad.

Read our very own, Desmera Gatewood’s, personal essay ‘When America Bombs Little Girls’ featured in @indyweek.bsky.social

indyweek.com/firstperson/...

Apex Town Council to Hold Public Hearing on Proposed Data Center Moratorium Council members have indicated support for a year-long moratorium on the construction of data centers, which they’ll consider on April 14.

Council members have indicated support for a year-long moratorium on the construction of data centers, which they’ll consider on April 14.

How the Eno River Served as a Muse for Artist Silvia Heyden's Weaving Practice Small in size but not in scope, the Nasher Museum of Art's exhibition celebrates Silvia Heyden and the influence that nature had on her work.

Heyden didn’t seem to feel fidelity to two-dimensionality—rather, she wrote, surfaces were meant to be “transcended.”

Tapestries offered textural possibilities that, say, a painting or photograph couldn’t. As a result, there is much to notice within a Heyden tapestry.

At a Soon to Open Durham Garage, Community Is the Driving Force Mechanics Nikki Puckett Bosov and Bear O'Brien plan to offer regular mechanic services alongside classroom lessons at Fluid Community Garage.

Gods, I love my city.
indyweek.com/news/fluid-c... #cars #LGBTQ #DurhamNC

Six Takeaways from a First Look at Morrisville’s Next Budget “Unprecedented” property tax appeals, division over raising property taxes, and a suggestion to ditch lawn mowers.

The town is short just over $1 million, the gap between its annual revenues and the expenses proposed for this year. Council members will have to come up with more money or decide what to cut.

“A Little Part of Everyone Somewhere in Her Story”: Talking to Filmmaker Alan Berliner About BENITA The documentary, a posthumous portrait of filmmaker Benita Raphan, screens at Durham's Full Frame Documentary Film Festival this week.

"Benita taught me that our struggles, our alienation, our quirks, the things we overcome, those are the things that make us who we are …. Art is a safe space for people who feel different. You can transform your struggles into something meaningful, even beautiful.”

Lunch Money: A Chopped Cheese, the Ocky Way, at Grill & Go Deli A special chopped cheese sandwich order and two visits to a Grill & Go Deli, a New York City-style deli in Raleigh.

i went to a deli in Raleigh and ordered a chopped cheese the ocky way and the cashier laughed at me indyweek.com/news/culture...

Character Studies: Champ, the Durham Bulls’ Bat Dog Despite all the game day distractions, the highly trained Durham Bulls bat fetcher never fails to delight fans and demonstrate that he is indeed a very good boy.

Champ, who turned 3 in April, is rarely fazed by the variety of things Michael asks him to retrieve, a list that includes bats, bumpers, balls, and even eggs.

“Michael could throw a potato out there,” said Melissa, “and Champ will go get it.”

First Draft of Wake County Schools Budget Contains $15M in Cuts, Question Marks Superintendent Robert P. Taylor said he won’t reduce the WCPSS special education budget but hasn’t decided what he’ll cut instead.

At last night’s Wake County school board meeting, district superintendent Robert P. Taylor presented his $2.29 billion draft operating budget for the 2026-2027 school year.

How an ‘Agnostic Atheist’ Got Students to Scrutinize Their Faith Biblical scholar and ‘agnostic atheist’ Bart Ehrman wanted his students to think seriously about what it means to believe—and they did.

When Chris Huntley was thinking of how Bart Ehrman should bid farewell to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, there was only one place to look.

At a Rocky Time, Local Arts Institutions Reckon With America's Birthday Upcoming concerts reflect on the Declaration and ask what America might look like if the voices of Black women were valued.

“Becoming more involved with issues of civic consequence is something that we’re really interested in,” Rosen said. “There’s a lot of room to play great music really well and do work that resonates and connects with things that matter to people in Durham.”