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Cliff Barrows, Music Director For Rev. Billy Graham, Laid To Rest; 'River District' Moving Forward

Cliff Barrows, the longtime music director and friend of the Rev. Billy Graham, was eulogized at Calvary Church in south Charlotte on Tuesday morning. He died last week at age 93.

More than a hundred mourners filled the church's pews, and all stood as the wooden casket was carried down the aisle. Speakers at the service included Barrows' daughters Bonnie Barrows and Ann Barrows, and longtime friend Tom Bledsoe, who led a rousing chorus of 'Blessed Assurance,' one of Barrow's favorite hymns.

Barrows was on his honeymoon in Asheville when he met Graham in 1945. The two joined forces to form the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in 1947, and went on to lead televised crusades around the country. Barrows will be laid to rest at the Billy Graham Library on Tuesday afternoon.

River District Gets Green Light From Charlotte City Council

The Charlotte City Council Monday unanimously approved a major development west of the airport, called the River District. It will cover nearly 1,400 acres between I-485 and the Catawba River. It's the biggest project in Charlotte since Ballantyne was built in the 1990s.

The council approved the rezoning request by developers Crescent Communities and Lincoln Harris. They say it will take 20 to 30 years to build.

"This will be self-contained with jobs, mixed income, (and) restaurants," said council member Claire Fallon, "It is the wave of the future for cities. I'm glad to see it. I'm happy to approve it."

"I certainly would much rather see this than a piecemeal development where we just put a road out there and wait to see who applies for what," said council member Ed Driggs.

Plans call for shops and restaurants, about 4,700 residential units, and about 8 million square feet of office space.

State Board of Elections Meets With McCrory And Cooper Campaigns

Now two weeks after the election, North Carolina election officials are still working on final vote tallies for the governor’s race. Unofficial results show Democrat Roy Cooper leading incumbent Governor Pat McCrory by about 65,000 votes.

The state board of elections heard from the two campaigns and their respective parties at a meeting Tuesday morning. They discussed a number of formal complaints about people who died before election day or may have voted in multiple states. Also at issue were more than 300 ballots that state officials say may have been cast by convicted felons during early voting.

Meanwhile the Civitas Institute, a conservative think tank, has filed a lawsuit arguing a final tally in the governor’s race cannot be called until thousands of voters who used same-day voter registration have their addresses verified. State law allows people to register and cast a ballot on the same day during the early voting period if they present proof of their address. The lawsuit says North Carolina law requires election officials to check the residency of same-day registrants by sending them mail and seeing if it comes back returned. Since state elections board guidelines indicate that 30 days should be allowed for the mailing process, the lawsuit says the overall tallying of votes can’t be finished before December 7.

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