Firefighters battle 50-plus square miles of WNC wildfires

Western North Carolina is ablaze with 22 wildfires currently burning through more than 50 square miles in the seven most western counties. Smoke from the fires is posing health hazards while continued severe drought conditions are leaving many communities with a limited water supply.

Holding the line
Arson suspected in WNC fires
Fleeing fire
Local water supplies drying up
Wildfires torment residents, tourism
Dangerous smoke hazard persists throughout WNC

Wildfires torment residents, tourism

Our backyard is on fire.

From Knoxville to Asheville, a large cloud of smoke is currently hovering over this corner of Southern Appalachia. In a seemingly “whack-a-mole” scenario, wildfires keep popping up or are combining at an alarming rate. And though officials are saying these blazes will soon be under control, one question lingers — when will they be extinguished?

Jackson unveils new ad campaign, celebrates upward tourism trend

After months of talking, planning and producing, Jackson County is set to unleash a new ad campaign and website showcasing the county’s best to a deep bench of potential visitors, and tourism director Nick Breedlove is enthusiastic about the results. 

Choose Booze? Haywood County appears poised to end dry spell

This November, voters will have another choice to make at the polls — whether to allow beer and or wine sales in areas of Haywood County that currently don’t offer such conveniences.

Tourism economic impact growing in WNC counties

Allen Alsbrooks serves on the Maggie Valley Zoning Board, and used to serve on the town’s planning board; he’s also been the owner of the Hearth and Home Inn on Soco Road in Maggie Valley since 2007, so it’s safe to say he’s got his finger pretty close to the pulse of Haywood County’s tourism-based economy. 

SEE ALSO:
Jackson plans for angling increase
• Hikers happy with Franklin’s hospitality

“It’s the best year I’ve ever had,” Alsbrooks said. 

Anticipated Trout Capital designation likely to spur fly fishing tourism

If all goes according to plan, by this time next year Jackson County will have been declared the trout capital of North Carolina, and county commissioners are already starting to talk about how to plan for the resulting increase they anticipate in angling tourism. 

Great outdoors rakes in tourism dough for Macon

As outdoor recreation tourism continues to climb upward in Macon County, community stakeholders are trying to do a better job of tracking their visitor feedback and providing better services. 

Maggie Valley to regulate outdoor sales

Although the closure of Ghost Town in the Sky several years back has left many Maggie Valley businesses struggling just to keep their doors open, others like the half-century-old Joey’s Pancake House and the 15-year-old Wheels Through Time motorcycle museum have continued to succeed despite slowly climbing tourism numbers amidst the lingering aftertaste of the worst recession in living memory.

Tourism entities have same goal, different focus

coverIf a rising tide lifts all boats, it only makes sense for organizations with common goals to work together, but cooperation hasn’t always come so easy for the Maggie Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority.  

SEE ALSO:
• Three seats open on Maggie Chamber board
• The value of a Maggie chamber membership

Though both entities work toward the ultimate goal of promoting local tourism, arguments have surfaced throughout the years over funding and duplicating services. 

Opportunity for change: Three seats open on Maggie Chamber board

fr chamber officeAs three members of the Maggie Valley Area Chamber of Commerce board of directors rotate off the board next month, the business community has another opportunity to vote in new leadership.

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