Swain student raises money to help those half a world away
By Michael Beadle Darfur may seem a world away from Bryson City, but a group of Swain County High School…
Read More
So long, McDonald’s sign
Anyone approaching Waynesville from Russ Avenue has likely appreciated the distant view of downtown, its quaint brick skyline marked by…
Read More
Daycare closing leaves 70 families in the lurch
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Approximately 70 families are in limbo as Jean’s Kids Palace, a daycare in Whittier,…
Read More
Chambers move closer to merger
Board members on the Haywood County Chamber of Commerce and the Maggie Valley Area Visitors Bureau voted unanimously to pursue…
Read More
Macon challenges building moratorium in Highlands ETJ
Macon County officials have contested the legality of a moratorium Highlands enacted on commercial building within the town’s extra-territorial jurisdictions…
Read More
Incubator board members admit to lax involvement
For nearly 20 years, Jerry Plemmons’ hour-long drive from Hot Springs to Waynesville every couple of months for a Smoky…
Read More
Highlands mayor takes on contentious planning issues
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer In his first month as the newly elected mayor of Highlands, Don Mullen has…
Read More
How can parents encourage their children to read?
• Read with your child everyday. Make it part of the daily routine.
Read More
Getting kids to read
By Michael Beadle Remember when Mom or Dad read you your favorite bedtime story? Maybe it was a book like…
Read More
At storytime, it’s llamas and pajamas
It’s 11 a.m. on Friday at the Haywood County Public Library in Waynesville, and that means Story Time, a regular…
Read More
Fairview takes personal approach
By Sarah Kucharski Students at Fairview Elementary School in Sylva have a unique opportunity to experience the benefits of reading…
Read More
Casino alcohol proposal galvanizes conservative Cherokees
A debate over whether to sell alcohol at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino has pitted conservative tribal members against the economic interests…
Read More
Incubator failed to help entrepreneurs
A small business incubator in Waynesville has failed in it mission to nurture entrepreneurs and start-up companies, and instead has…
Read More
Incubator snapshots
A snapshot of other incubators across the state offer models of how the incubator in Waynesville could be revamped.
Read More
Incubator episode may have long-term consequences
A business incubator building in Waynesville has become the epicenter for a political firestorm among Haywood County officials looking to…
Read More
Horton resigns-fired after taking heat for incubator vote
Haywood County Manager Jack Horton resigned today following a ?-hour closed door meeting with the Haywood County Commissioners on Tuesday…
Read More
Drive safely, arrive alive
By Michael Beadle Even with the holidays over, traffic safety is still a major priority for public safety agencies and…
Read More
Atlanta Ballet’s 14-year run in Haywood County is over
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Following a re-evaluation of Haywood County Arts Council programming, two of the organization’s mainstays…
Read More
They said it — 2005
Residents of Western North Carolina confronted many important issues in 2005, whether it was another chapter unfolding in an ongoing…
Read More
McGill’s reputation makes it tough on the little guys
McGill Associates, a large engineering firm in Asheville, gets the lion’s share of government water and sewer contracts in the…
Read More
MAIN seeks support for wireless network in downtown Waynesville
An effort to install wireless Internet service throughout Downtown Waynesville is making a year-end push for donations.
Read More
Damaged greenway section re-opens
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Repairs along a section of trail on the Little Tennessee Greenway in Macon County…
Read More
New Cherokee Chamber to give voice to business community
Cherokee business owners are forming a chamber of commerce that will give the business community a voice in shaping the…
Read More
Cashiers plant cuts 80 jobs; some go to Bryson, Canton
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Approximately 80 workers will be laid off from Cashier’s Consolidated Metco plastics plant beginning…
Read More
Waynesville’s Performing Arts Center suffers damage after pipe breakage
By Michael Beadle The Haywood Arts Regional Theatre will probably have to rebuild its box office and concession stand after…
Read More
Westmoreland says county’s cost for library not yet known
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer A recent statement that Cashiers area residents will be footing the majority of the…
Read More
Waynesville downtown now on Historic Register
The Waynesville Main Street Historic District has been accepted to be on the National Register of Historic Places.
Read More
Some question attempt to help only one business
Some Dillsboro merchants have questioned why town leaders based their entire application for flood revitalization money from the state on…
Read More
Macon Friends get $200,000 Janirve grant
The Friends of the Macon County Library have received a $200,000 pledge of support from The Janirve Foundation of Asheville.
Read More
Junkyard’s friends replace trees
A small contingent of friends and neighbors showed up on the doorstep of Denver Blaylock’s junkyard in Cruso Saturday (Dec.…
Read More
Jackson five earn Governor’s Award
Five Jackson County women were given the Governor’s Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service during a recent awards luncheon in Sylva.…
Read More
Economic impact of methane project uncertain
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Translating the economic impact of Jackson County’s landfill gas recovery project into dollars and…
Read More
Dillsboro misses out on lion’s share of flood relief
It appears Dillsboro is getting the short end of the stick in state grant money intended to revitalize business districts…
Read More
Recommended diversions
Cataloochee Our local ski mountain is just plain fun. My family enjoys nothing better than to make the trek through…
Read More
Macon waiting on Peeks Creek decision
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Streambank restoration along Peeks Creek in Macon County, where a massive landslide killed six…
Read More
Bill McLarney: Peeks Creek trout population wiped out
Local biologist and aquatic scientist Bill McLarney agreed with the Wildlife Commission’s revised recommendations to allow stream work, but for…
Read More
Long time coming
Denver Blaylock has been prodded by enforcers for seven years to meet Haywood County’s junkyard ordinance. The sprawling complex houses…
Read More
$6.9 million gift to WCU largest in its history
As industry experts warn of a worsening international shortage of construction professionals, Western Carolina University and one of the nation’s…
Read More
Jackson considers grant requests
Jackson County commissioners are weighing the merits of several municipal grant applications that will allocate a total of up to…
Read More
Charters want cut of lottery money
Advocates of charter schools have launched a statewide campaign to correct what they claim is an inequality in the way…
Read More
Blaylock tries to salvage business after Haywood court cracks down on junkyard ordinance
When Ricky Stokely pulled out of Denver Blaylock’s junkyard in Cruso last Friday afternoon towing a junk green Saturn, he…
Read More
Study says water, sewer needs rising
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer The state’s water, wastewater and stormwater systems are faced with $6.8 billion in capital…
Read More
School’s stormwater system will be state-of-the-art
A new elementary school under construction in Haywood County will serve as an environmental model for developers in the region.
Read More
Land too valuable to conserve, residents say
Nearly two years after Bryson City town leaders agreed to conserve 900 acres once used as the town’s drinking water…
Read More
Trial forces widower to relive mountainside tragedy
Almost two years ago, a retired couple from Florida was crushed in their home after the hillside behind their house…
Read More
New laws should help curtail meth plague
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Swain County Chief Deputy Jackie Fortner never thought he’d equate marijuana with more simple…
Read More
Latest Ghost Town suitor eyes May 2006 opening
The owner of the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad has teamed up with a venture capitalist and an amusement operator to…
Read More
Finishing well: Canton native dies in a war he didn’t support for the country he did
By Michael Beadle Michael Parrott wanted to be in Iraq. He told his wife Meg about it every Sunday morning…
Read More
Choosing replacement puts board, director at odds
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer There was a showdown at last Tuesday’s meeting of the Fontana Regional Library Board.…
Read More
The body count keeps rising
As of Nov. 20, the total number of U.S. troops killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom climbed to 2,083. Eleven more…
Read More
