Haywood leaders weigh in on fracking fray
 

Haywood leaders weigh in on fracking fray

Haywood County commissioners have joined the growing ranks of local elected leaders to take a stand on fracking.
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Jackson dodges fracking, sans resolution
 

Jackson dodges fracking, sans resolution

Jackson County officials were recently set to discuss the possibility of joining other local governments in the region and consider…
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Theft, vandalism spur Forest Service to build gate
 

Theft, vandalism spur Forest Service to build gate

The U.S. Forest Service is planning to install a gate on Wine Spring Road near Franklin after communications equipment housed…
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Haywood Schools to end cheap childcare incentives for teachers
 

Haywood Schools to end cheap childcare incentives for teachers

An innovative tool to help recruit the best and brightest teachers to Haywood County has become too costly for the…
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Sewage standoff lands offender in jail
 

Sewage standoff lands offender in jail

The owner of a rental trailer in the Cruso community of Haywood County will be locked up until he complies…
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New playground will round out Lake Junaluska’s family appeal
 

New playground will round out Lake Junaluska’s family appeal

A new park and playground under construction at Lake Junaluska carries a price tag of more than $200,000.
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Fretting the PILT jilt: WNC counties could lose out if formula is altered
 

Fretting the PILT jilt: WNC counties could lose out if formula is altered

It’s about that time. Time to worry about PILT money.   After seeing the federal payment in lieu of taxes…
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Fracking opponents question show of fracking support at hearing
 

Fracking opponents question show of fracking support at hearing

Attendees at Cullowhee’s hearing on the proposed oil and gas rules Sept. 12 were overwhelmingly anti-fracking, but a small contingent…
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Fracking opponents: What they said
 

Fracking opponents: What they said

“We want unannounced reviews and inspections by DENR. It’s like a drug test. You tell them they’re going to be…
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Fracking opponents sweep public hearing
 

Fracking opponents sweep public hearing

It didn’t take but a glance around the lawn of the Liston B. Ramsey Center at Western Carolina University to…
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Jackson’s cell tower ordinance revision softens up
 

Jackson’s cell tower ordinance revision softens up

Wireless communications companies could ultimately find Jackson County’s revised cell phone tower ordinance considerably more palatable than the stricter version…
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Mountain Senate race once more in the state political spotlight
 

Mountain Senate race once more in the state political spotlight

Two candidates battling for the state Senate seat representing the seven western counties are heading into the homestretch of what…
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More on the meeting of Kephart and Calhoun
 

More on the meeting of Kephart and Calhoun

The story of the initial meeting between Horace Kephart and Granville Calhoun has as many twists and turns as a…
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The red wolf saga continues
 

The red wolf saga continues

The next step for the endangered red wolf in Eastern North Carolina is an evaluation commissioned by U.S. Fish and…
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Used outdoor gear sought to fund clinic in rural Kenya
 

Used outdoor gear sought to fund clinic in rural Kenya

MedicForce, a nonprofit that provides medical care and clinics in remote, third-world areas, is looking for donations of used outdoor…
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Ginseng poacher caught for fourth time, and behind bars again
 

Ginseng poacher caught for fourth time, and behind bars again

A Bryson City man will serve five months and 15 days in jail for illegally harvesting 83 American ginseng roots…
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Farm tour features gardens, ranches, orchards, and homesteads
 

Farm tour features gardens, ranches, orchards, and homesteads

A self-guided tour of 37 farms in a several-county region of the mountains will be held Sept. 20-21, giving locavores…
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Party with PARI
 

Party with PARI

The Friends of Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute’s will unveil a new outdoor amphitheater planetarium with an adjoining nature center on…
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Cherokee help sicklefin redhorse make a comeback
 

Cherokee help sicklefin redhorse make a comeback

A new fisheries program on the Cherokee Reservation aims to restore the imperiled sicklefin redhorse fish to its native habitat…
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Hemlock Initiative looks for solution to adelgid tragedy
 

Hemlock Initiative looks for solution to adelgid tragedy

A trio of projects will launch renewed efforts to save the eastern hemlock following awards of $75,000 under the Hemlock…
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Sunburst’s trout jerky, caviar gets boost
 

Sunburst’s trout jerky, caviar gets boost

Sunburst Trout Farms in Haywood County has received a $150,000 matching fund USDA Value Added Producers Grant.
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On the way to Trout City: Bryson City trout waters to get some cred
 

On the way to Trout City: Bryson City trout waters to get some cred

Bryson City will soon have another feather in the cap proving its worth as an outdoors Mecca. If all goes…
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Time to clear the desk of books waiting for review
 

Time to clear the desk of books waiting for review

For many reasons, this summer in particular afforded many opportunities for reading. During a 60-hour stay at Figure Eight Island,…
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Galaxy of Stars back in the saddle with Riders in the Sky
 

Galaxy of Stars back in the saddle with Riders in the Sky

With a mix of Western song classics and zany send-ups, Riders in the Sky will return to the Western Carolina…
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RailFest rolls into Bryson City
 

RailFest rolls into Bryson City

The 13th annual RailFest will be held Sept. 12-14 at the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad depot in Bryson City. 
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Youth Arts Festival coming to Dillsboro
 

Youth Arts Festival coming to Dillsboro

The 6th annual Youth Arts Festival will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20, at the Jackson…
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Phillips, Craig and Dean to play Franklin
 

Phillips, Craig and Dean to play Franklin

Christian music group Phillips, Craig and Dean will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 19, at the Smoky Mountain Center…
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This must be the place
 

This must be the place

How do you do it? I get asked this question quite often. Folks, whether friends, family or strangers, approach me and…
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Never giving up Hope
 

Never giving up Hope

Tracy O’Neil has a lot less weight on his shoulders these days. “We never accepted that we could lose the…
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Tillis out of step on birth control issue
 

Tillis out of step on birth control issue

To the Editor: Thom Tillis is one slick fellow. During his debate with Sen. Kay Hagan last Wednesday, he slithered…
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Evergreen paper and the fracking debate
 

Evergreen paper and the fracking debate

By Avram Friedman Last year Becky Johnson of The Smoky Mountain News interviewed me about Evergreen Packaging’s plans to convert…
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Beer town bragging rights go west of Asheville
 

Beer town bragging rights go west of Asheville

I heard about this story from the Facebook crowd, so I imagine some of you have already read it. There…
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Pisgah Inn contract renewed
 

Pisgah Inn contract renewed

Bruce O’Connell was pretty surprised to see Blue Ridge Parkway Superintendent Mark Woods appear at his door Sept. 8. The…
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Interim CEO of Haywood Regional Medical Center shares take-away impression after first few weeks
 

Interim CEO of Haywood Regional Medical Center shares take-away impression after first few weeks

It hasn’t take long for the interim CEO of Haywood Regional Medical Center to pick up on the hospital’s biggest…
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Cash mobs Sylva
 

Cash mobs Sylva

More than 100 shoppers flocked to downtown Sylva on Sept. 5, dollars in hand, to flood the fire-damaged district with…
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Haywood candidates take sides on emergency management ordinance
 

Haywood candidates take sides on emergency management ordinance

Six candidates are vying for three seats in the Haywood County commissioners race. They fall in two tidy camps when…
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Sylva extends reach, approves ETJ expansion
 

Sylva extends reach, approves ETJ expansion

In an effort to assure aesthetic uniformity beyond town borders, Sylva’s commissioners have begun expanding the town’s extraterritorial jurisdiction. The…
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Clash of the titans: The race for Jackson’s big chair
 

Clash of the titans: The race for Jackson’s big chair

This year’s race for Jackson County commissioner chairman is a rematch between two familiar figures. Each have claimed the title…
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New HCC complex to offer a gamut of response training
 

New HCC complex to offer a gamut of response training

A $4 million public safety facility will be constructed at Haywood Community College over the next two years, providing police,…
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Fracking opponents prepare for battle
 

Fracking opponents prepare for battle

It was back to school for a group of staunch fracking opponents on Friday, Sept. 5. The corner conference room…
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Fracking panel draws crowd in Franklin
 

Fracking panel draws crowd in Franklin

A walk through the parking lot was all that was necessary to see that a diverse crowd had gathered to…
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WNC shale gas study cancelled
 

WNC shale gas study cancelled

Western North Carolina is no longer on State Geologist Ken Taylor’s schedule for this fall’s tour de hydrocarbons in North…
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Peeling back the layers: A closer look at proposed fracking regulations
 

Peeling back the layers: A closer look at proposed fracking regulations

Anyone who’s read a newspaper, turned on a TV or listened to chitchat in a grocery store sometime over the…
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U.S. House candidates square off at WCU
 

U.S. House candidates square off at WCU

Rep. Mark Meadows, R-Cashiers, went head-to-head with Tom Hill, D-Zirconia, his challenger for the 11th District Congressional seat, in a…
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Cherokee wants Franklin leaders to turn over historic site
 

Cherokee wants Franklin leaders to turn over historic site

Cherokee leaders have formally asked the town of Franklin to turn over Nikwasi Mound, the latest turn of events in…
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Sylva ETJ public hearing tomorrow
 

Sylva ETJ public hearing tomorrow

Sylva commissioners will hold a public hearing tomorrow, Sept. 4, on expanding its extraterritorial jurisdiction, or ETJ. An expanded ETJ…
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And then there were none
 

And then there were none

“As I traveled on, the air was literally filled with pigeons. The light of noon-day was obscured as by an…
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Reliving the Plott Hound legacy
 

Reliving the Plott Hound legacy

A program titled “Touching the Face of History: The Story of the Plott Hound” will be held at 6:30 p.m.…
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Cashiers adventure race kicks off second year
 

Cashiers adventure race kicks off second year

Runners looking for a wilderness challenge will get their chance with the Second Annual Cashiers Trail Mix Mountain Run Experience…
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Bryson City Bicycles snags national honor
 

Bryson City Bicycles snags national honor

Bryson City Bicycles has been named one of America’s Best Bike Shops of 2014. Awarded by the National Bike Dealers…
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