Landlords show spotty compliance with new carbon monoxide law
 

Landlords show spotty compliance with new carbon monoxide law

A little known law went into effect this year requiring landlords to install carbon monoxide detectors in any rental property…
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Canton paper mill faces opposition over Pigeon River pollution
 

Canton paper mill faces opposition over Pigeon River pollution

Advocates for a cleaner Pigeon River have filed a formal challenge against a state water pollution permit for the Canton…
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Property rights crowd objects to trash rule
 

Property rights crowd objects to trash rule

On Monday morning, Haywood County commissioners listened as one citizen after another came up and blasted a change to a…
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Haywood hospice center to become a reality
 

Haywood hospice center to become a reality

The first inpatient hospice west of Asheville had its groundbreaking in Clyde last week — complete with Jimmy Jack the…
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Shuler carries torch in money race
 

Shuler carries torch in money race

Congressman Heath Shuler has a sizeable financial advantage against his opponent heading into the fall election season. Shuler, D-Waynesville, had…
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Duke backs down from controversial substation site
 

Duke backs down from controversial substation site

After nearly eight months of wrangling with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Swain County leaders and a vocal citizens…
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North Shore residents interviews unveiled
 

North Shore residents interviews unveiled

The public is invited to watch 15 hours of raw video that will take viewers back 20 years to experience…
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Haywood hops farmer sets the bar high
 

Haywood hops farmer sets the bar high

Haywood County hops farmer Scott Grahl is a dreamer with his feet planted firmly on the ground. “One day a…
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Lawmakers close loophole in video poker ban
 

Lawmakers close loophole in video poker ban

Owners of video sweepstakes parlors in North Carolina are out of luck for now. Governor Bev Perdue is expected to…
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Ongoing issues foil Ghost Town reopening plans
 

Ongoing issues foil Ghost Town reopening plans

Ghost Town in the Sky amusement park in Maggie Valley will not open this summer, contrary to previous assertions by…
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Parents urge commissioners to build skateboard park in Jackson
 

Parents urge commissioners to build skateboard park in Jackson

On Tuesday evening, 11-year-old Ronnie Patterson said goodbye to his home away from home. Patterson is a skateboarder, and for…
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WNC schools hooked up with fiber
 

WNC schools hooked up with fiber

By the end of this year, nearly every student in the six westernmost counties will have unprecedented access to technology…
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Marker to be installed honoring George Plott
 

Marker to be installed honoring George Plott

A ceremony marking the installation of a marker honoring Capt. George Ellis Plott, who was killed in action on Dec.…
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Mountain Projects offers free fans for seniors
 

Mountain Projects offers free fans for seniors

Mountain Projects, Inc. through a collaborative effort with the Area Agency on Aging and Progress Energy is sponsoring Operation Fan-Heat…
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SCC launches Plus 50 program for Cashiers and Highlands
 

SCC launches Plus 50 program for Cashiers and Highlands

As the director of Southwestern Community College’s new Plus 50 program, Michael Rich is rapidly working in the community to…
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Haywood historical presents Cold Mountain heritage tour
 

Haywood historical presents Cold Mountain heritage tour

The Haywood County Historical and Genealogical Society will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 27 at the Shook House in…
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Haywood Habitat holds open enrollment
 

Haywood Habitat holds open enrollment

Haywood Habitat for Humanity is holding an open enrollment through July for perspective new-home partner families. Applicants must be residents…
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Quarry must improve  sediment control measures
 

Quarry must improve sediment control measures

A large rock quarry in Waynesville has been cited with a water quality violation for sending mud into nearby Allens…
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Opponents win concessions in first round of quarry permit fight
 

Opponents win concessions in first round of quarry permit fight

Neighbors concerned about the expansion of a rock quarry in Waynesville have won a partial victory in a early stage…
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Surge in meth labs traced  to new small-batch production
 

Surge in meth labs traced to new small-batch production

Four years ago, new laws regulating the sale of pseudoephedrine in pharmacies slowed the illegal production of methamphetamine. The chemical…
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Elder abuse training available to public
 

Elder abuse training available to public

The 30th Judicial District Domestic Violence-Sexual Assault Alliance is working to end elder abuse by offering training sessions across the…
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Volunteers invaluable at Folkmoot
 

Volunteers invaluable at Folkmoot

Last year, Folkmoot USA relied on about 4,000 hours of community service to pull off the festival. Volunteers hosted BBQs,…
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Luggage logistics
 

Luggage logistics

At the Folkmoot Friendship Center in Waynesville, performers’ costumes erupt from the sleeping quarters to fill spare rooms, hallways, and…
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Two towns at a crossroads
 

Two towns at a crossroads

For decades Maggie Valley and Dillsboro were two of the mountain’s most iconic tourist towns. Sadly, both relied heavily —…
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With the train gone, Dillsboro searches for new ways to attract tourists
 

With the train gone, Dillsboro searches for new ways to attract tourists

The town of Dillsboro, once a thriving retail market for tourists, has taken a beating in the past two years.…
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No longer resigned to handouts from Ghost Town, Maggie searches for its own identity
 

No longer resigned to handouts from Ghost Town, Maggie searches for its own identity

No one is more intimate with the highs and lows of amusement park Ghost Town in the Sky than the…
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Facing cuts of its own, regional economic arm axes tourism from its portfolio
 

Facing cuts of its own, regional economic arm axes tourism from its portfolio

With ever shrinking pockets, the regional economic development arm AdvantageWest is scaling back its investment in tourism for the time…
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Invigorating Cullowhee could hinge on Forest Hills
 

Invigorating Cullowhee could hinge on Forest Hills

An unusual proposition has landed on the doorstep of Forest Hills, a tiny speck of a town at the edge…
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Main Street Mile race to debut in Waynesville
 

Main Street Mile race to debut in Waynesville

A one-mile race down Main Street in Waynesville on Friday evening, Aug. 13, will raise money for the Shriners Children…
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Police survival seminar offered at WCU
 

Police survival seminar offered at WCU

Western Carolina University’s Police Department will host a free law enforcement seminar on police officer survival skills from 10 a.m.…
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Women show off the ‘Power of the Purse’
 

Women show off the ‘Power of the Purse’

The women’s giving circle, Women for Women, was able to award $235,000 in new grants this year. To date, the…
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Groundbreaking to be held for hospice facility
 

Groundbreaking to be held for hospice facility

An “old-fashioned” groundbreaking will be held July 30 for the new Homestead hospice inpatient facility, complete with a working mule…
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Drowned student had 0.38 BAC
 

Drowned student had 0.38 BAC

A college student who drowned in the Tuckasegee River last month was highly intoxicated, according to toxicology reports that have…
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Tribe hopes to fund Cherokee as foreign language class in public schools
 

Tribe hopes to fund Cherokee as foreign language class in public schools

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is urging the state to formally license Cherokee language teachers, enabling Cherokee courses taught…
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DNA testing for crime suspects sparks ethics debate
 

DNA testing for crime suspects sparks ethics debate

Starting next February, all law enforcement officers will be required to collect DNA from people arrested for certain crimes. Anyone…
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Donations dropped at thrift store doorsteps being swiped by thieves
 

Donations dropped at thrift store doorsteps being swiped by thieves

For community nonprofits facing a daily test of survival, thefts from the thrift stores they rely on are like a…
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Escaravage honored for service to Folkmoot
 

Escaravage honored for service to Folkmoot

Longtime Folkmoot volunteer and supporter George Escaravage was given the Alan Brown award for service to the international dance festival…
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Thanks to local efforts, Folkmoot food is fresher than ever
 

Thanks to local efforts, Folkmoot food is fresher than ever

An unseen cultural exchange takes place every day in the cafeteria where Folkmoot performers take their meals. Before, during and…
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Visa issues  a growing challenge for Folkmoot
 

Visa issues a growing challenge for Folkmoot

For those who think getting a travel visa is a headache, try steering hundreds of Folkmoot dancers from a dozen…
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Skyships over Cashiers? Local women track extraterrestrial activity
 

Skyships over Cashiers? Local women track extraterrestrial activity

Eight-year-old Devon Heenan stood with her arm extended in the parking lot of the Ingles in Cashiers. With her cell…
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With cash settlement rolling in, ideas fly on how to spend it
 

With cash settlement rolling in, ideas fly on how to spend it

After decades of bitter division among Swain County residents concerning the North Shore Road controversy, people on both sides have…
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Maggie Valley first in region to pursue food and beverage tax
 

Maggie Valley first in region to pursue food and beverage tax

Restaurant and bar patrons in Maggie Valley may see an extra tax on their bills to support tourism promotion and…
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Senate clamps down on sweepstakes
 

Senate clamps down on sweepstakes

If Rep. Ray Rapp has his way, the state House will crush video sweepstakes as fervently as the state Senate…
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Replacement to Sylva town board sets stage for new voting majority
 

Replacement to Sylva town board sets stage for new voting majority

The make-up of Sylva’s town board shifted this week when board members voted 3-1 to replace outgoing board member Sarah…
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County, HCC still at loggerheads over craft building price
 

County, HCC still at loggerheads over craft building price

An ongoing debate over the cost of a new building on the Haywood Community College campus lacks a clear resolution,…
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Sylva to impose employee parking ban downtown
 

Sylva to impose employee parking ban downtown

The Sylva town board voted unanimously to adopt a new parking ordinance that will fine downtown employees and business owners…
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Information offered to small businesses
 

Information offered to small businesses

Two informational sessions will be available for Western North Carolina’s small businesses. “Ask the Experts: What’s new for small businesses…
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Shuler announces WNC job fairs
 

Shuler announces WNC job fairs

Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., has announced a series of job fairs throughout the summer month. Workforce training and employer training…
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County health rankings yield mixed results
 

County health rankings yield mixed results

Measuring the overall health of a population at the local level is an elusive and cumbersome task. As a result,…
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Yates named Kimmel Professor of Construction Management
 

Yates named Kimmel Professor of Construction Management

The only woman to head a college or university construction management department in the United States has joined the faculty…
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