Chili's restaurant coming to WCU this fall
CULLOWHEE – Chili’s Grill and Bar, a popular national chain restaurant, will be open for business on the campus of…
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Balance sought in Howell Mill rezoning
As the $11.6 million Howell Mill Road project was winding down in late 2015, the Waynesville Planning Board began to…
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The Raleigh roundup: Budget battle brewing
The North Carolina General Assembly continues to haggle over specific provisions in the proposed 2016-17 state budget as they race…
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Jackson County picks a new manager
Jackson County commissioners last week unanimously named a new county manager with a long and successful local government track record…
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Fight not over for Fontana houseboats
Houseboat owners on Fontana Lake aren’t quite ready to give up their investments without a fight even after the Tennessee…
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Tourism groups prepare for rare eclipse in 2017
Nick Breedlove has been brushing up on his astronomy lately — studying maps and learning the science behind the total…
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Mountain Projects eyes new facility
For more than 50 years, Mountain Projects has been known for helping the most vulnerable in the community, but with…
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Downtown Waynesville wins planning award
Downtown Waynesville has racked up another accolade with the Great Places in North Carolina award — an honor that carries a…
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What’s all the buzz about Haywood County mosquitoes?
Citing recent news stories about mosquitoes transmitting the Zika virus, Haywood County Director of Health and Human Services Patrick H.…
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Haywood County taxes steady, but fees rise
Although the Haywood County Board of Commissioners passed a 2016-17 budget June 20 that was 3.1 percent higher than 2015-16,…
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Shelter advocates turn out in force
Easily identifiable in their teal T-shirts with the “#buildtheshelter” hashtag emblazoned on the back, an estimated 100-plus person crowd turned…
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Franklin property proposals focus on outdoors, gardening
The Franklin Board of Aldermen has yet to agree on what it should do with a 13-acre tract it owns…
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County increases operational funding to Macon schools
After further negotiations, Macon County Schools and the county commissioners will both have some skin in the game when it…
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Waynesville boosts fire protection
Waynesville’s 2016-17 budget includes funding for eight new full-time firefighters, effectively doubling staffing, shortening response times and increasing firefighter safety…
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Brown’s budgets warrant deeper look
After several public opportunities for comment resulted in sparse discussion, Waynesville’s 2016-17 budget passed June 14 with the largest tax…
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Gatekeeper to the Smokies: Longtime Western Carolina University Head of Special Collections retires
I was five minutes late. Trying to track down a parking spot outside the Hunter Library at Western Carolina University…
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Jackson hires new county manager
The Jackson County Board of County Commissioners has selected Don Adams to succeed Chuck Wooten as county manager.
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Rev. Barber preaches love at Sylva rally
Following the recent shooting in Orlando that left 50 dead and more injured, Dr. Rev. William Barber’s keynote address to…
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Rezoning request packs Maggie meeting
There wasn’t an empty seat in the house when the Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen met for its public budget…
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Shelter at bear attack site now open
Nearly a month after an Appalachian Trail thru-hiker found his night interrupted by an attacking bear, the backcountry shelter in…
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Haywood School Board restores funding for music, sports
Although the closing of Central Elementary School was met with cheers, jeers, and even a lawsuit, its recent closure is…
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Waynesville board works to plug budget hole
A sparsely-attended special meeting held June 7 at the Waynesville Town Hall was meant to serve as a public hearing…
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Business leaders honored at Chamber dinner
Each year the Haywood County Chamber of Commerce honors local businesses and leaders for their contributions to the community during…
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Defendants in pay raises case ask for dismissal
About 20 tribal members filled the audience benches in Cherokee Tribal Court last week, watching the first court hearing in…
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Taxes remain steady, highest in county, in proposed Canton budget
The Canton Board of Aldermen took another three hours June 9 to conduct a required public hearing on the 2016-17…
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Can bold proposals remake Canton?
The Canton Town Board is considering proposals that could boost Canton’s appeal to residents and tourists alike — especially those…
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Jackson County prepares offer for new manager
The finish line is in sight to choose a new county manager for Jackson County.
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Shelter advocacy group to hold awareness event
Friends of the Haywood County Animal Shelter will host a kickoff reception and informational session in support of the county’s…
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Largest indoor shooting range in WNC set to open soon
Work has begun on a controversial Haywood County indoor shooting range that had some residents at odds last winter.
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Sales tax to increase in Jackson
Nearly two-thirds of Jackson County voters who visited the polls last week said yes to a referendum question asking to…
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Moral Monday comes to the mountains
The Jackson County Branch of the NAACP will host more than a dozen like-minded Western North Carolina organizations in Sylva…
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After investigation, casino board member will keep her seat
A casino board member who came under fire for possible “conduct unbecoming” of a public official will keep her post,…
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GALLERY: Ghost Town property going on the market
After attempting to revamp the mountaintop amusement park for several years, Alaska Presley has decided to sell Ghost Town in…
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NAACP gains ground in WNC communities
Katherine Bartel has a long list of reasons why a NAACP branch started in Haywood County a couple of years…
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Local leader represents NAACP’s changing face
As an associate professor of physics at Western Carolina University who specializes in astronomy, Dr. Enrique Gomez may be used…
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Swain aims to avoid tax hike
As Swain County continues to struggle with a decrease in funding from several revenue sources, commissioners hope to pass a…
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Swain’s public pool needs expensive repairs to stay open
While it may not be an immediate need in the upcoming budget, the swimming pool at the Swain County Recreation…
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Cherokee council considers revoking part of former vice chief’s will
The widow of a former Vice Chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians may be out of a home…
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$30,000 to expanding businesses provided in Macon
Macon County commissioners have agreed to provide $30,000 toward an economic development project that promises to create 35 new jobs…
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Macon works toward middle ground on school funding
Macon County Schools Superintendent Chris Baldwin came before the county commissioners last week to plead his case for additional funding…
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Planning under way for new science building at WCU
With the N.C. Connect bond passed, Western Carolina University is moving forward with plans to bring a $110 million natural…
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Patience on Canton paving project ‘a virtue’
For the past few months, downtown Canton’s long-awaited repaving and streetscaping projects seemed to be cruising right along in the…
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Quixotic opposition to gun ordinance fails, sort of?
For 21 years, firearms have not been permitted on any county-owned property, except for law enforcement officers on duty. Almost…
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Shelter proposal moves forward
If you’re for the proposed new Haywood County Animal Services facility, it’s called an “animal shelter,” deadpanned Haywood County Commissioner…
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Harris Regional asks county to slash the hospital’s tax value
When Jackson County sent out bucketloads of mail this spring announcing new values for every property in its borders, Harris…
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Stakes high in tax dispute with Haywood hospital
A dispute over how much Haywood Regional Medical Center owes in county property taxes is headed for a showdown this…
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Will the row over hospitals’ property taxes go the distance?
Haywood and Jackson counties could have a long road ahead in their property tax disputes with Duke LifePoint, which owns…
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Skyrunner offers wireless solutions for rural communities
Melanie Williams was fed up. She could no longer run her web design business from her Crabtree home with the…
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Skyrunner helps rural neighborhoods get connected
It’s hard to believe there are still developed neighborhoods in Haywood County that can’t get internet access or even landline…
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