Legislators respond to mental health shortfalls
As The Smoky Mountain News wraps up an ongoing series on the state of mental health in North Carolina, state…
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Welch seeks second term as 30th Judicial DA
Ashley Welch, the first female District Attorney for the 30th Judicial District, is seeking a second term — and is…
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Globe-trotting evangelist Billy Graham dies at 99
By Dale Neal • Special to The Smoky Mountain News Evangelist Billy Graham — a spiritual guide to generations of American…
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Arrest made in SunTrust Bank robbery
Waynesville Police Officers responded to the SunTrust Bank in downtown on Feb. 13 when it was reported a robbery had…
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Haywood GOP officer sues over mocking memes
Sticks and stones may break some bones, but according to a lawsuit filed by one local politico, the memes can…
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A life in coaching: WCU’s Hunter earns career 700th win
By Todd Vinyard • Special to The Smoky Mountain News Western Carolina University head basketball coach Larry Hunter’s team had beaten…
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Ballot tampering alleged in Cherokee
An audit investigating Birdtown’s disputed 2017 Tribal Council race has concluded that ballot tampering is the likely culprit, with alleged…
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Haywood School Board corrects Open Meetings Law violation
A week’s worth of wintry weather in mid-January resulted in the cancellation of meetings by both the Haywood County School…
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Medicaid reform is coming
Major changes are coming to North Carolina’s Medicaid program, and the regional organizations that manage those dollars for behavioral health…
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Nonprofits to utilize Charity Tracker
Charitable giving for nonprofits and churches in Haywood County is about to become much more efficient thanks to the implementation…
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Mission looking for new location for MAMA
After rumblings and rumors around town, Mission Health confirmed it is actively looking for a new location for MAMA II,…
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WCU community voices priorities for chancellor search
An enthusiastic friend of students. A die-hard fan of all things Catamount. An efficient administrator, effective political advocate, willing traveler…
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Visioning Cashiers’ future: Planning process kicks off for mountain community
An effort to envision the future of Cashiers is now underway as work begins to create a small area plan…
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Calendar flexibility eludes WNC schools
North Carolina is a huge state with tremendous climactic, economic and geographic diversity, but after a wicked bout of weird…
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Candidates sign up to run for office
With the sign-up period now underway, candidate are throwing their names in the hat to run for various local and…
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Video gaming parlor nudged out of Waynesville digs
A controversial video gaming parlor that opened on Dellwood City Road last summer will cease operations and remove all signage…
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Amanda Swimmer named Beloved Woman
A lifelong potter, storyteller and keeper of Cherokee traditions, 97-year-old Amanda Sequoyah Swimmer was given the Eastern Band of Cherokee…
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Tribe will hold alcohol vote
What began as an effort to get rid of alcohol permits granted in conjunction with a 2015 state law ended…
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Sylva selects muralist
A muralist has been chosen to create the painting that will soon decorate a blank white wall on Mill Street’s…
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Glenville no wake zone request will go to Raleigh
An effort to get a no wake zone instituted on Lake Glenville will move forward following a split vote of…
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Sneed survives suspension attempt
An attempt to have Principal Chief Richard Sneed suspended during an investigation into the legality of settlement payouts he approved…
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A Bridge to Frog Level: Cathey family to breathe new life into Walker Service
For generations, the people of Waynesville looked to the auto repair shop at the intersection of Branner Avenue and Depot…
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Best uses offered for Franklin’s Whitmire property
The results of a $14,000 study that assessed the best uses of the town-owned Whitmire property revealed to the Franklin…
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Franklin businesses wary of proposed river district
Franklin Town Council seemed poised to approve a new zoning designation — the River Overlay District — until a packed…
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A look ahead: Candidates to file for partisan offices
Election season is right around the corner, as candidates begin filing paperwork to run for a variety of partisan offices…
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Unseating Mark Meadows
Asheville Republican Congressman Mark Meadows’ extreme partisanship, attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act and hypocritical fiscal responsibility make him…
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Pathways Center receives grant
Haywood Pathways Center in Waynesville is the recipient of The John William Pope Foundation’s 2018 Joy W. Pope Memorial Grant…
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Elliott named Jackson schools superintendent
The Jackson County Board of Education has chosen Kimberly Elliott, Ph.D., to serve as the new Superintendent of Schools.
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Haywood school board admits to open meeting violation
Haywood County Schools’ administration recently admitted it may have violated North Carolina’s Open Meeting laws by not properly noticing a…
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Public forums held for WCU chancellor search
Members of the public will have several opportunities to share their opinions on the characteristics they would like to see…
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Zoning fight, criminal indictments loom for Nudge City
Local business owner Tami Nicholson was indicted Jan. 8 for illegally operating video gaming machines after police raided her Waynesville…
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Pool vote delayed in Jackson, again
For the second time in two months, a proposal to kick off the process toward a November referendum vote on…
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Clampitt town hall goes to pot
To the traditional topics of a legislative town hall meeting — economic development, fake news and even the morality of…
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Macon County grading license being reviewed
Residents are accusing the Macon County government of impeding their private property rights by proposing new requirements for landowners and…
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Canton sets bold agenda
Officials in the town of Canton have been throwing around the term “Canton Comeback” for a few years now, noting…
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Jackson will combine health and social services departments
In a party-line vote that came after a lengthy and impassioned public hearing, the Jackson County Commissioners voted Jan. 29…
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Cat museum needs donations to stay open
The American Museum of the House Cat needs donations to continue operating.
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Duke customers: ‘Pay for your own mistakes’
Western North Carolina residents recently made it clear they do not support Duke Energy Progress’s request for a 15 percent…
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Smaller increases slated for Waynesville electric customers
Duke Energy isn’t the only utility company raising its electric rates this year amidst rising energy costs, but some local…
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Duke proposes $62 million solar rebate program
Duke Energy is proposing a $62 million solar rebate program designed to help its North Carolina customers with the upfront…
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Selling Haywood County: Economic development partnership revs up
On the west side of Jonathan Creek Road in Haywood County sits a parcel of land where crops and cows…
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Shining Rock again violates open meetings laws
A North Carolina Open Meetings Law expert says Shining Rock Classical Academy’s School Board once again violated state laws regarding…
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Charter school selects new school director
After months of searching for someone to replace founding School Director Ben Butler, Waynesville public charter school Shining Rock Classical…
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Tribe hires first-ever TABCC director
The Tribal Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission gained its first-ever director with the hire of Terri Henry, who began work on…
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Chancellor search begins: Community forums to be held; search will be confidential
The 21-member committee charged with finding the next chancellor of Western Carolina University kicked off the search process with an…
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Funding lines up for new Cashiers sewer plant
Development in Cashiers will soon reach the end of a longstanding stalemate following the Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority Board’s…
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'We will never go away': The 2017 Women’s March on Washington, revisited
The day after I stood before the West Front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., and watched Missouri Senator…
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Reclaiming the past: Cherokee land acquisition bill moves forward
A recent hearing on a congressional bill that would transfer 76 acres in Tennessee to the Eastern Band of Cherokee…
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Health, DSS consolidation moves forward in Jackson
An ongoing push to see Jackson County consolidate its health and social services departments will come to a head during…
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Community conversation focuses on homelessness in Haywood County
There’s a road in Waynesville called the homeless highway. It runs from Frog Level to Hazelwood and during any given…
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