HART’s traveling backdrops wow theaters far and wide

Haywood Arts Regional Theatre is known for is top-rate shows and high-caliber acting not typical of community theaters.

But HART has a well-kept secret that pulls its stage action together, a secret that’s hidden in plain sight of audiences, always noticed but rarely noted: its stunning backdrops.

Sylva shoe duo upholds the last of a dying trade

Mike Fitzgerald rarely skipped a beat as he darted spryly between his cobbler’s bench and the vintage, grime-coated machines anchoring his narrow shoe repair shop.

It’s hard to fathom, but Fitzgerald knows every nook and cranny of the controlled chaos. Floor-to-ceiling shelves brim with a disheveled array of tack boxes, heaps of leather scraps, and a small army of polish and dye cans.

Downtown vacancies prompt concern

An unusual number of “for rent” signs have been cropping up in downtown Sylva lately, and the vacancies have town leaders and business owners wondering what this forebodes in the year ahead.

Bryson City Bicycles receives small business grant

Bryson City Bicycles will use a $20,000 grant to expand its online presence and to provide a fleet of bicycles for Swain County High School.

First indoor gun range to open in Haywood

When local businessman Jule Morrow proposed a gun shop and indoor firing range in the pastoral Francis Farm community last winter, not everyone was excited about it.

Maggie Chamber restructures membership options

Maggie Valley Area Chamber of Commerce is responding to criticism in the community by restructuring its membership options for businesses.

Revamped Hazelwood parking lot may revitalize downtown

Hard-luck Hazelwood may be creating a more lucrative future not by building, but by tearing down.

Stepping out on faith at Sylva’s Sassy Frass

Originally from Jackson, Tennessee. Tammy Fuller moved to Sylva seven years ago. Four years after that she opened Sassy Frass Consignment on West Main Street, which will celebrate its third anniversary on Halloween.

Wrecker service denied location in Sylva

A vacant lot along the gateway to Sylva from Dillsboro will stay empty for a while longer following the town board’s decision to deny a request from Whittier-based C&D Towing and Wrecker Service to use the property for an impound lot.

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.

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