Union County
201 5
Union County residents speak against Monroe Bypass in Raleigh page 4
page 18
Serving Indian Trail, Marvin, Stallings, Waxhaw, Weddington and Wesley Chapel
Locally Owned & Operated www.unioncountyweekly.com
Volume 10, Number 12 • March 19 to 25, 2015
Residents ask for help as economic development lands in their backyard by Ryan Pitkin ryan@unioncountyweekly.com
STALLINGS – A group of neighbors from the Chestnut neighborhood in Stallings addressed Stallings Town Council at its March 9 meeting to air grievances regarding a development that has disturbed the tranquility of their properties. Residents described issues they have experienced since Mario’s Pizza & Italian Restaurant and John’s Place Bar opened just feet from their property lines in February. They described how the placement of the Mario’s drive-thru line and the layout of the parking lot means headlights are constantly shining on nearby homes and employees can be heard emptying trash until about midnight. The residents asked the town to at least partially fund screening that would help mitigate the noise and light problem. The council and residents
Growing Pains in a Small Town
Stallings resident Bill Cox looks out at his backyard which was completely wooded until a recent development was built. Ryan Pitkin/UCW photo
(see Growing Pains on page 3)
Waxhaw chef competes in statewide competition Got to Be NC Dining series highlights local chefs, restaurants
by Hannah Chronis hannah@unioncountyweekly.com
Beginning March 22, select chefs from across North Carolina – including Waxhaw’s own Paul Verica of Heritage Food and Drink – will showcase their culinary abilities in a statewide competition for the chance to win $2,000, a handmade chef knife by Ironman Fore
and the coveted “Red Chef Jacket.” The Got to Be NC Competition dining series is a single elimination tournament and will pit 24 chefs from around the state against each other in a dualbracket regional tournament before winning chefs advance to a champions’ battle at the end of the year. The series, which has competitions in Charlotte, Winston-Salem and Raleigh, consists of 22 battles and will take place March 22 through May 19. Ticketed dinner guests will receive a
full-service, six-course meal prepared by one of the chefs in the competition, unknown to diners. Attendees will then vote on each course and help determine which chefs move on to the next round. Verica served as a judge in last year’s competition and will compete in the dining series for the first time this year. He opened Heritage Food and Drink in downtown Waxhaw in 2013. Verica said he hopes his experience as a judge last year will give him an (see Waxhaw Chef on page 11)
Paul Verica
INDEX: News Briefs, 6; Crime Blotter, 7; Education, 12; Rev. Tony, 16; Summer Camps, 18; Calendar, 22; Sports, 24; Classifieds, 27
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