Forging a new economy: public input sought in roadmap for WNC
The creation of a monolithic blueprint that will lead the seven western counties into a new economy is under way,…
Read More
Haywood acts to secure Mauney Cove trash site
Haywood County has secured the first right of refusal on the 1.4-acre tract where the Mauney Cove trash and recycling…
Read More
Construction climate warming up again in Haywood
Building permits are trending upwards in Haywood County thanks to an increase in single-family home construction. The majority of new…
Read More
Swain County fights for its just due
Swain County Manager Kevin King made another trip up to Washington, D.C. last week, though this time the visit was…
Read More
Haywood Schools assess benevolent policy toward club sports
A proposal to charge youth sports clubs and outside groups rental fees to use school property is being studied by…
Read More
Opponents of Maggie mayor try but fail to remove him from office
As the Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen called its monthly meeting to order, it was the last item on the…
Read More
Tourism tax increase at root of complaints lobbed against Maggie mayor
Two Maggie Valley aldermen recently indicated that they have a laundry list of grievances against the town’s mayor, but there…
Read More
Exhibit aimed a piquing interest in Cherokee history
A new traveling exhibit is using technology to teach people about traditional Cherokee culture.
Read More
Forest Hills doesn’t have the green to buy abandoned golf course
Forest Hills residents and town leaders overwhelmingly opposed purchasing a 60-acre abandoned golf course in the middle of their community…
Read More
Skaters find their groove at Waynesville’s new concrete playground
Skateboarders from across Western North Carolina have streamed into Waynesville during the past week to try out the town’s newly…
Read More
Sewer credits: a commodity market in Cashiers
To relieve sewer gridlock in the Cashiers area, the Tuckasegee Water and Sewer Authority may change its rules to let…
Read More
Changes on table for TDA grant funding
People seeking funds from the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority spend hours filling out grant applications, and all the tourism…
Read More
Rural Center will survive, but as a shadow of its former self
Despite fears that the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center would meet its maker after losing its state funding, the…
Read More
Getting a handle on cutlery
Kristi Culpepper knows knives. Browsing the wide selection of specialized hunting, hobby and kitchen cutlery at Old School Knife Works…
Read More
Highlands-Cashiers Hospital soon to forge partnership with Mission
Highlands-Cashiers Hospital is expected to come under the umbrella of Mission Health in coming months. The Highlands-Cashiers Hospital is current…
Read More
Tribal council gets a few new faces following election
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians held tribal council elections last Thursday (Sept. 5). All 12 seats on tribal council…
Read More
New restrooms in store for Waynesville playground
The town of Waynesville will soon put in temporary restrooms next to the popular children’s playground on Marshall Street. They…
Read More
Waynesville to invest in tennis courts
Waynesville plans to repair the six cracked and aging tennis courts in its recreation park, as long as the local…
Read More
Clyde police chief suspended, but keeps job
Clyde Police Chief Gerard Ball won’t return to work until Oct. 5 after the Clyde Board of Aldermen decided to…
Read More
Razing the sweepstakes: Police handcuffed in latest standoff with successor of video gambling
Sweepstakes-style video gambling is making bold forays into the rural communities of Western North Carolina, back for yet another skirmish…
Read More
Herzog earns accolades for decades of studying human-animal interactions
Passion, love, hate and violence — are all very human. But the best way of understanding these and other human…
Read More
Sylva crowd marks King’s march, vows to continue fight
In honor of the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s march on Washington, D.C., political activists in Western North…
Read More
Clyde police chief suspended for unknown reasons
Clyde Police Chief Gerard Ball was suspended last Friday for five days without pay until the town board was able…
Read More
In the shadow of Duke dams, heavy rains can trigger downstream flooding
With September’s tropical storm season gearing up, residents living downstream of large Duke Energy dams in Western North Carolina may…
Read More
Waynesville theater closes suddenly
Smoky Mountain Cinemas in Waynesville shut its doors last week, leaving Haywood County residents with no full-sized movie theater playing…
Read More
Busking becomes Waynesville
Waynesville leaders as expected lifted a de facto ban on street performers last week, opening the door for musicians to…
Read More
Pipe bomb suspect claims he was being a good Samaritan
Waynesville police discovered a homemade pipe bomb in the bed of a pickup truck in the early hours of the…
Read More
WCU record enrollment, open house
Western Carolina University announced an enrollment milestone this week — enrollment for the fall semester topped the 10,000 mark for…
Read More
A wild, fast motorcycle pursuit to nab a low-level criminal: is it worth the risk?
When it comes to a high-speed chase, law enforcement must constantly ask the question: is it worth it? A 23-year-old…
Read More
Public cites physician quality at hearing on possible sale of hospital
Maintaining high-quality doctors in Haywood County emerged as a common theme in a public hearing last week on the future…
Read More
Curtain call: Waynesville welcomes revival of the Strand theater
When Rodney and Lorraine Conard took the keys to the shuttered Strand movie theater two years ago, the hulking shell…
Read More
Appalachian Women’s Museum finally gets Monteith House
The Appalachian Women’s Museum finally has a home to call its own. Dillsboro town council members agreed Monday to lease…
Read More
Sweepstakes: never say die
Despite a statewide ban on video sweepstakes machines, the video gambling industry is taking advantage of yet another apparent loophole…
Read More
Better signals may mean uglier views
The Jackson County Planning Board is delving into a review of cell tower regulations and discussing changes that could ultimately…
Read More
Trail official worries new cell tower will mar views
A communications tower in Macon County is expected to bring better wireless phone coverage to a remote region but has…
Read More
Greenway starts taking shape in Jackson
Construction could start in September on a paved 1.2-mile section of greenway along the Tucksegee River in Cullowhee.
Read More
Disability discrimination alleged in hiring of county veteran’s officer
A group of veterans in Haywood County lodged a formal complaint claiming that the hiring process of the county’s veterans…
Read More
Loan for high-speed Internet company denied in Jackson
Jackson County commissioners turned down a start-up Internet provider asking for a $1 million economic development loan to bring high-speed…
Read More
Donation centers open for Coats for Kids
The Coats for Kids clothing drive in Jackson County is accepting donations of clothing and shoes starting Sept. 1. Drop-off…
Read More
Jackson to name new economic development director soon
Jackson County has extended the application deadline for a new economic development director after the first round failed to attract…
Read More
Meadows listens to constituents at town hall meetings
U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows, sporting an Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians button, hosted a town hall meeting last Thursday in…
Read More
Can commissioners turn their albatross into apartments for 20-somethings?
There’s only one feasible option for what to do with the abandon Haywood Department of Social Services building: turn it into…
Read More
Groundbreaking on the horizon for new hospital in Cherokee
Preliminary sitework on a new Cherokee Indian Hospital could start as early as December. The hospital has entered contract negotiations…
Read More
Southwestern excels in performance report
Southwestern Community College exceeded the North Carolina Community College System’s mean in seven of the eight measures used to gauge…
Read More
Drake Software to add 50 jobs, build call center
Drake Software, a national leader in professional tax preparation software headquartered in Franklin, is expanding their call center in Hayesville…
Read More
HCC strengthens ties and employment training for industry
Haywood Community College is strengthening ties to the community through industry training with the arrival of a new Industry Training…
Read More
Volunteer puts passion for dolls toward fund-raising efforts
Ellen Walker has a passion for giving dolls new life and sending them on to their next home. For the…
Read More
All lanes of I-40 reopened after slide
All lanes of Interstate 40 West in Haywood County have reopened following a rockslide that occurred Monday evening, Aug. 19.…
Read More
Stand up for N.C. educators
A “Stand Up for Education” rally will be held from 6-7:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 26, on the front lawn of…
Read More
Stay-at-home mom finds time to start her own business
Raising children is rewarding, but stay-at-home moms and dads need something for themselves.
Read More
