Grandfather Mountain sets new wind speed record
LINVILLE, N.C. — On Grandfather Mountain, breaking records is a breeze. Around 4 a.m. on Feb. 13, the nonprofit nature park’s…
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Déjà vu: N.C. 107 planners struggle to find solutions to road dilemma
After taking input from the more than 100 people who attended a Jan. 14 public forum and carefully combing their…
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Haywood schools again ask for calendar flexibility
North Carolina’s rigid school calendar law has been in place since 2004, but over the past few weeks, a pair…
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Cherokee artifacts at Plott Creek? Maybe so, maybe not
During the protracted approval process of a proposed development that would bring around 200 new apartments to a 41-acre parcel…
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HCC president announces her retirement
Haywood Community College President Dr. Barbara Parker announced her intent to retire, effective Dec. 31, 2019, at the college board…
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Budget talks get underway in Macon
It’s likely to be another tough budget year as Macon County commissioners are faced with a growing list of capital…
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Tribe votes for Plott Balsam conservation
An effort to conserve 912 acres along the Plott Balsam ridge in Jackson County cleared the final hurdle of a…
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Records shed light on Jackson jail death
While unanswered questions remain in the recent death of 49-year-old Franklin resident Melissa Middleton Rice, which occurred on Jan. 18…
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Sylva man arrested following stabbing
A Sylva man has been charged with assault after Jackson County deputies responded to a Feb. 7 call and found…
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Threat prompts Canton Middle evacuation
Haywood County Schools officials at Canton Middle School learned that a threatening message (bomb threat) was written on a restroom…
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‘Effort like they’ve never had to give’: Farmers get older and fewer, but hope remains for ag’s future
Zac Guy grew up on the back of a tractor. His father worked in sales and his mother was a…
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HCC president announces her retirement
Haywood Community College President Dr. Barbara Parker announced her intent to retire, effective Dec. 31, 2019, at the college board…
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Domestic violence organization forming in Jackson
Seven years have passed since REACH of Jackson County suddenly shut down operations due to financial issues, leaving the county…
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Face to face: Local homeless remain elusive
Huddled together in the dark near an old wood stove beneath an elaborate rigging of tarps and tents on a…
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Dogwood Health Trust now in operation
With the completion of Mission Health System’s sale of assets to HCA Healthcare, Dogwood Health Trust is now officially operating…
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Fresh eyes, fresh ideas: Haywood budget process begins
It’s not Haywood County Manager Bryant Morehead’s first budget, but it is his first budget in Haywood County.
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Cherokee approves early gaming disbursements for housing
Young Cherokee tribal members could soon be able to use their gaming allocations to pay for housing following a unanimous…
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Major new Haywood schools facility proposed
It’s $13 million now, or $40 million later, according to a presentation by Haywood Superintendent of Schools Dr. Bill Nolte…
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Meth, not bear attack, caused death in park, autopsy says
An autopsy recently completed on a man who died in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park last September determined that…
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Macon leaders attend legislative goals conference
Macon County Commissioners Jim Tate and Ronnie Beale and County Manager Derek Roland recently joined voting delegates from counties throughout…
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HCA completes purchase of Mission Health
HCA Healthcare, a leading healthcare provider with 185 hospitals and approximately 1,800 sites of care in 21 states and the…
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Women’s March embarks on third year; Organizers strive for inclusivity for all women
This year marked the third annual Women’s March on Asheville — part of a national movement to rally for equal rights…
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Halfway home: pink hat marchers soldier on
A little over two years ago, I woke up in Alexandria, Virginia, less than 24 hours after the inauguration of…
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Habitual felons convicted in Haywood
According to the District Attorney's Office, it’s gotten quieter in the Dutch Cove community near Canton since Matthew Dillon Smathers,…
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Run, Forest, run: Lt. Dan declares for governor
An architect by training, North Carolina Lt. Gov. Dan Forest became only the second Republican in the last 120 years…
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Ice rink in Maggie Valley opens next week
It’s a perplexing dichotomy. Maggie Valley has been portrayed as a town that rolls up the sidewalks once the leaf-lookers…
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Tuscola sports classification not all fun and games
Grumblings about Tuscola High School’s athletic reclassification from 2A to 3A seem to have fallen on deaf ears, but administrators…
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EBT funds for March still up in the air
The federal shutdown didn’t have as much of an effect on Haywood County’s social services as one might think, but…
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Jackson will not buy Pepsi property
Following a series of closed session discussions, Jackson County has opted to cancel its $500,000 contract to buy a 5.61-acre…
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Downtown Waynesville Association sets ambitious plan
The organization charged with maintaining and revitalizing Waynesville’s downtown core is setting an ambitious plan of work for 2019, to…
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Author with Bryson City roots publishes RBG biography
Born of the same generation but in different parts of the country, Jane Sherron De Hart and Ruth Bader Ginsburg…
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SBI investigating Jackson jail death
The recent death of a Jackson County Detention Center inmate has spurred a probe from the N.C. State Bureau of…
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Plan presented for Green Energy Park makeover
Jackson County got its first glimpse at what a reinvigorated Green Energy Park campus might look like when a preliminary…
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HRMC to host emergency drill
Haywood Regional Medical Center will host a public service training and emergency response simulation with local law enforcement and emergency…
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Habitual felons convicted in Haywood
According to the District Attorny's Office, it’s gotten quieter in the Dutch Cove community near Canton since Matthew Dillon Smathers,…
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WCU's MLK speaker promotes inclusion through effort
Diversity and inclusivity are easy goals for a university to set, inclusion educator Aminata Cairo said during her keynote address…
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Untreated sewage discharged in Clyde
The Junaluska Sanitary District experienced a discharge of untreated sewage from a blockage in a manhole due to mop heads,…
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N.C. 107 meeting postponed
A meeting to discuss possible solutions to the N.C. 107 issue in Sylva scheduled for today was postponed due to…
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Smokies closed for winter weather
Normal operations at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park resumed for the first time since Dec. 22 on Saturday, Jan.…
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When, not if: The case for and against cannabis in NC
With the recent actions of Michigan and Vermont, 72 million people in 10 U.S. states — 23 percent of the…
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Jackson will not buy Pepsi property
Following a series of closed session discussions, Jackson County has opted to cancel its $500,000 contract to purchase a 5.61-acre…
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Local officials weigh in on legal marijuana
On Jan. 15, The Smoky Mountain News contacted almost every elected official in Haywood County for whom an email address…
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Cannabis legalization under study in Cherokee
As states across the nation loosen restrictions on cannabis products, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is launching a study…
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From the ground up: Appalachian Growers digging into hemp industry
It may look like marijuana and it may smell like marijuana, but it’s not marijuana. Without the THC component, the…
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WCU chancellor search narrowed
The committee leading the national search for the next chancellor of Western Carolina University has narrowed the pool of candidates…
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Federal Shut-Down Food Drive
The Federal Shut-Down is, or soon will be, affecting federal workers, federal and local food assistance deliveries, food-insecure citizens, and…
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Jackson to re-examine health, DSS organization
With the one-year anniversary of Jackson County’s decision to consolidate its health and social services departments looming, commissioners are now…
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Entegra Bank merges with SmartFinancial
Entegra Bank, which has locations throughout Western North Carolina, will soon merge with SmartFinancial, Inc., the parent company of SmartBank…
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Qualla Housing ordinance tabled
An ordinance that would have codified a laboriously passed December resolution abolishing the Qualla Housing Authority was tabled during the…
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HRMC limits visitation due to flu cases
Haywood Regional Medical Center has begun limited visitation at the hospital due to the increased number of positive flu cases…
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