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In March, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Martray Proctor killed Shatona Robinson when he slammed into her Ford Escort while doing 90 mph. No blue lights, no siren. Two months later, a Concord police car chase ended in a crash that killed 84-year-old Docia Barber, who was on her way to get a prescription refilled. Police speeders killing citizens is one national trend this area can do without, but Char-Meck Police Chief Rodney Monroe has said he wants to actually loosen regulations on police high-speed chases. We think the police should take their own advice and slow the hell down.
LOUSIEST PROTEST GROUP
Tea Partiers
When you think of tea parties, the first thought is little girls in boas and their mother's high heels. It's no wonder that the Tea Partiers remind serious people of children. Who schedules a protest on July 4? Obviously Tea Partiers don't believe families should celebrate the good old U.S. of A.'s independence together. Another thing these protesters don't believe in is profanity -- even though they are so mad they want to protest. On their Web site, the head of the party apologizes for one of the entertainers at the July rally. Really? And like their hero, Sarah Palin, the Tea Partiers whine and complain about the media. That's probably why no one but a few wackos show up to these things.
BEST USE OF TAX MONEY
Public Transportation
Political factions today don't just disagree; they seem to live in different realities. For some people, choosing to build more roads rather than increase spending for mass transit is a no-brainer. For others, including CL's Best of Charlotte deciders, the opposite choice is equally obvious and clear cut: Mass transit should trump more roads (as long as existing roads are maintained adequately). It's simple: The more we can wean ourselves from our utter dependence on cars, the better off we, our city, and our air will be.
BIGGEST WASTE OF TAX MONEY
NASCAR Hall of Fame
Believe us, we have nothing against NASCAR or auto racing per se, although even huge NASCAR fans will tell you it's not as exciting as it used to be. All that aside, though, you gotta admit that spending public funds on a museum honoring a sport whose fan base was waning before the Great Recession hit, and has shrunk even more since then, is not exactly a smart investment.
BEST LOCAL ATHLETE
Charlotte Roller Girls
If you don't want to be them, you at least have to see them. Since its resurgence in 2001, roller derby has rocketed in popularity ... especially in Charlotte. These bad-ass women on wheels have one of the largest roller derby fan followings in the nation. Emmylou Harrass, Court'her Pound'her, Drew FearMEmore (porn stars can't beat these names) and the rest of the Charlotte skaters aren't out there squealing and pulling hair -- the fast-paced derby action requires endurance and serious athletic ability. And at $4-$10 per ticket, it's also your best value for a spectator sport. See what these hard-hitting bouts are all about at The Grady Cole Center, 310 N. Kings Drive.
BEST THING TO SHOW OFF TO OUT-OF-TOWN GUESTS
All The Cranes Downtown
We know that the cranes themselves aren't oh-so-exciting, but it's what they represent. Amidst the economic woes, Charlotte's movin' on up. High-rises are sprouting up like daisies (or dandelions, depending on how you feel about them). Commercially speaking, the Ritz Carlton is nearing completion adjacent to a new B of A building, and of course there's next year's controversial NASCAR Hall of Fame. So if your guests aren't impressed with our booming metropolis, they should be soon. See? See? I told you Charlotte doesn't suck.
BEST NEW BUILDING/ATTRACTION
Afro-American Cultural Center
While the new NASCAR Hall of Fame will do as much to improve Charlotte's ritzy cracker image as an Iranian cyclotron, literate folk who still have all their teeth can point with pride to the new Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts and Culture a couple of blocks west at the crossroads of Tryon and East Stonewall. Standing boldly like a giant wedge of smoked gouda, Gantt Center's upward aspiring facade triumphs over the design challenges of the site's 45x400 footprint. The four-storey $18.6 million fromage is set to officially open with a "Where You Belong" gala on Oct. 17. That's when the African-American community and the general public can begin to savor the Gantt Center's state-of-the-art galleries and classrooms -- and a new museum store! -- a quantum leap from the Afro-Am Cultural Center's former hub on Myers Street. With a multipurpose theater/lecture hall, the Gantt will glow golden in the night while offering enlightenment within.
MOST MISSED OLD BUILDING
Charlotte Coliseum on Tyvola Road
Sports fans will remember it as "The Hive" (you know, when we actually had a decent basketball team and even better attendance?) and host to 1994's NCAA Final Four. But the lack of luxury seats sent the Hornets further south and TWCA, with all its bells and whistles, books all the big gigs downtown. Sure it wasn't as "centrified" and shiny as its competition, but the Coliseum had its benefits like ample parking... and ample parking.