Binns shared the county-level list at a press conference in Plaza Midwood alongside North Carolina State Sen. Caleb Theodros (D-District 41), local leaders and business owners. The permit data came from the North Carolina Department of Transportation's Roadside Environmental staff, according to NCDOT.

The disclosure follows the October removal of a stretch of trees along Commonwealth Avenue to clear sightlines for an Adams Outdoor Advertising billboard. The clearing left an empty hill behind several businesses, exposing them to Highway 74 traffic that the vegetation had previously screened.

"Now our customers are subjected to very loud traffic," said Michelle Castelloe, owner of Moxie Mercantile, Betty and Bev. Castelloe opened Bev, a prosecco bar, behind Moxie Mercantile last year and said the business depended on the peace and quiet of the neighborhood.

Under a 2024 state law, permit holders may remove all vegetation except dogwood trees within a 500-foot perimeter of a billboard and along the state's right-of-way, according to NCDOT. A permit remains valid for one year, and NCDOT must be notified 48 hours before work begins.

The permits have unsettled residents and local officials who worry the Plaza Midwood clearing is a preview of what could happen at dozens of other sites across the county. At Thursday's event, local leaders called on Adams Outdoor Advertising and Lamar Outdoor Advertising "to pause all further removal or cutting of vegetation on these permitted sites," Binns said.

What the Plaza Midwood site will ultimately look like remains unclear. Binns said he hopes to see a sound barrier wall installed and the site replanted.

Adams Outdoor did not respond to a request for comment.