Cherokee casino hits earning milestone
Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Resort’s bottom line is improving steadily each year as the nation continues to recover from the…
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The long and short of it: Space crunch leads to cosmetology waiting lists
About 30 cosmetology students stand at their individual workstations cutting, coloring and chatting; they are elbow-to-elbow and back-to-back, cramped as…
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Macon commissioner duo wants to spend down savings to bring on tax cuts
Two tight-pocketed Macon County commissioners, who have voted consistently against all sorts of new government spending, have decided to go…
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Cashiers sewer plant at capacity, but only on paper
Sewage and what to do with it has posed a complicated set of problems for the community of Cashiers —…
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Upfront costs don’t deter plans for Cashiers ABC store
Jackson County leaders are moving ahead with plans to open a liquor store in Cashiers, despite up to $200,000 in…
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Macon School leaders ask county for bailout, or harmful cuts are imminent
Macon County Schools are facing a $2 million budget shortfall and are hoping the county will come to the rescue.…
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Walmart debate prompts Sylva to consider more flexible sign rules
Walmart in Sylva was asking for the town board to grant them an exemption for a larger storefront sign. But…
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HCC makes pitch for continued building plan
Haywood Community College has asked for more than $1.4 million from the county for building and renovations projects on campus…
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News notes from Cherokee
State of housing in Cherokee to be surveyed A federal study researching housing conditions on Indian reservations across the U.S.…
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Price tag inches up on Cherokee jail and justice center
Members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ Tribal Council took issue with a construction budget increase for the tribe’s…
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Walking the dog: The trials and tribulations of being homeless in Haywood
Standing next to Louis “Louie” Bing, you’d never know he was homeless. While waiting for a cup of coffee at City Bakery…
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Cops in schools offer more than peace of mind
At first blush, Officer Nan Tritt looks like any other cop. She wears a badge and a gun, and the…
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Haywood weighs cost-benefit of more school cops
The Haywood County Board of Commissioners have made it clear that without a property tax increase, funding is unlikely for…
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MedWest-Haywood board change averts potential for tie votes ahead of controversial decision
The 10-person Haywood Regional Medical Center board will now include an 11th member. The Haywood Board of Commissioners Monday approved…
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Bring on the tourists
This week is Travel and Tourism Week in Haywood County. The Haywood County Board of Commissioners Monday officially dubbed May…
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Bill would weaken newspapers as conduit for government oversight
Haywood County commissioners weighed the merits of saving money versus government transparency this week. State law requires counties and towns…
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New courthouse landscape to be less lush, more spartan
A new landscape plan for the Haywood County historic courthouse is mostly devoid of large shade trees, in stark contrast…
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Landslide kills railroad worker
A Waynesville man who works for Norfolk Southern Railway was buried and killed by a landslide in the middle of…
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Canton residents trapped after landslide blocks road
A landslide east of Canton took out a dirt road early Monday morning following two solid days of unceasing rains,…
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More hellos than goodbyes: Topography forces cell phone companies to weigh cost-benefit of erecting new towers
As long as Realtor Sammie Powell leans back in his chair in his home office, he can talk on his…
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Tuscola students aim to bring clean water to Uganda
When Sydney Bridges sets out to do something, she doesn’t give up. A 10th grader at Tuscola High School in…
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Flying club encounters turbulence in shared plane venture
Shortly after takeoff, the Smoky Mountain Flying Club is having to re-route its course. The flying club nearly lost an…
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New Sylva women’s center a dream come true for WNC doctor
Dr. Janine Keever still remembers that do-or-die moment in her undergrad chemistry class like it was yesterday. The grades just…
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Conservation funding on the rocks in state budget forecast
The state fund that helped conserve miles of riverfront, protect thousands of acres of undeveloped mountainsides and build countless sewer…
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State debates drug testing for aid recipients
A bill that recently passed the state Senate would take social assistance away from anyone using drugs by requiring state…
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Stamp out hunger with mail carrier food drive
Mail carriers in Haywood County will collected non-perishable food items for the National Letter Carriers’ “Stamp Out Hunger” Food Drive…
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Firefighter safety versus right to build steep driveways
The Jackson County Planning Board debated where to draw the line between safety and individual rights last month in its…
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Bill could move legal notices from newspapers to the Internet
In several counties in Western North Carolina, a showdown between the printed word and the digital age could soon take…
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Gone, but not forgotten: Confederate Flag issue in Haywood could re-emerge soon
Haywood County commissioners may soon revisit the unsettled issue of whether Confederate Flags can be flown on the lawn of…
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HCC moves forward with law enforcement, emergency responder training site
The Haywood Community College Board of Trustees has given preliminary approval for the construction of a training facility for law…
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The fine print of ‘paid for by’ line debated by tourism funding arm
If the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority is footing the bill for a magazine ad, brochure, sign — you name…
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Window is closing for stalled room tax increase in Haywood
A state bill that would raise Haywood County’s lodging tax is still sitting idly in committee in Raleigh with no…
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Sweepstakes industry chalks up tiny victory with uncertain bearing
A convenience store owner in Macon County was let off the hook by a judge for four misdemeanor charges of…
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Cherokee bear zoos get reprieve from tribe for now
After months of debate and protest, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ Tribal Council voted to let the bear zoos…
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Waynesville, Lake Junaluska hammer out details of merger
The town of Waynesville has a large checklist to tackle in the coming months before Lake Junaluska is officially added…
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Sylva Walmart sign decision pending
Sylva town leaders once again have a public hearing on the docket to decide the fate of oversized Walmart signs,…
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Franklin a host site for Chick-fil-A Leadercast
The Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts in Franklin is hosting a one-day leadership event from 8 a.m. to…
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New high-tech training center to be a feather in Franklin’s cap
A state-of-the-art training facility built by Drake Software is the latest addition to Macon County’s economic landscape.
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Libraries brace for hit: Libraries play offense over state budget cuts
For years, state funding for libraries has been on the decline. But librarians in Western North Carolina are not taking…
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Flourishing in a fading art form
It’s Monday morning, and Mary Lou Rinehart is taking a moment to relax. Owner of Clyde Ray’s Flower Shop in…
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National Guard send off one of many seen in WNC during decade-long conflict
As Lieutenant James Rossi took the stage in his fatigues, a toddler’s voice cut across the auditorium, breaking the otherwise…
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Horse trading comes full circle in Jackson school budget
Jackson County Schools brokered a sweet deal with county commissioners last year, or so it seemed at the time. School…
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Folkmoot back in the tourism grant fold
The Haywood County Tourism Development Authority will restore annual grant funding for Folkmoot USA, reversing a move last year to…
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Cemeteries ensconced by park remain a source of consternation
It is a day Lawrence Hyatt looks forward to all year — venturing into the Smokies backcountry to pay homage…
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Lake Junaluska’s bold new plan to reclaim its future
Lake Junaluska Conference and Retreat Center has unveiled a $40 million, 10-year campus master plan in hopes of bolstering convention…
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‘We’ll go back’: Sylva doctor who helped at Boston bombing vows not to let terrorists win
As the manhunt ends, the nation begins to cope and the primary suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing either lay…
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DOT to pave the way for new casino coming to Murphy
The construction of a bridge and entrance road to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ second casino in Murphy has…
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WCU’s Chris Cooper named among UNC system’s top professors
Chris Cooper, associate professor and head of the Department of Political Science and Public Affairs at Western Carolina University, has…
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WCU names Drake to board
The University of North Carolina Board of Governors elected Phil Drake, chief executive officer of Drake Enterprises, and Kenny Messer,…
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Scholarships available for high school seniors
The Fines Creek Community Association is offering $500 scholarships to graduating high school seniors living within the Fines Creek, Panther…
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