9-1-1 texting soon available in Haywood
The Haywood County Sheriff’s Office will soon have full 9-1-1 text message capabilities.
Read More
Town manager hopes to bring Waynesville to new heights
Waynesville’s new town manager won’t take the helm until Aug. 22, but The Smoky Mountain News was recently able to…
Read More
The ‘man’ behind the ‘manager’
When hiring a new employee in any profession, the focus is first and foremost on professional qualifications, as it obviously…
Read More
Fly fishing museum moves to Bryson City
Just one year after setting up shop in Cherokee, the Fly Fishing Museum of the Southern Appalachians will be moving…
Read More
Board brings early end to MSD exodus
Sharon and James Earley had sought unsuccessfully for almost two years to have their property removed from Waynesville’s downtown taxing…
Read More
TVA meets with Alarka houseboat owners
Following a May 5 decision by the Tennessee Valley Authority Board of Directors to ban all houseboats on Fontana Lake…
Read More
Maggie Valley landmark more than just a restaurant
The year was 1966; “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” was on the big screen, “Bonanza” was on the…
Read More
Canton welcomes first brewery
After operating in Waynesville for the past four years, BearWaters Brewing will be making a big move to downtown Canton.
Read More
The Book of Joe
Brenda O’Keefe has dozens, if not hundreds, of stories about the people who have passed through her life at Joey’s…
Read More
Maggie to begin charging trash fee
Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen adopted a budget in June that includes a new $5 solid waste fee for all…
Read More
Greenway use rising in Jackson County
The greenway in Jackson County has now been fully open for a month, and use is skyrocketing on the one-mile…
Read More
New manager arrives in Jackson
Jackson County’s new county manager is now on the job, and commissioners are looking forward to start working with him…
Read More
Campolo urges churches to get involved and change lives
For Tony Campolo, spending last week amid a gathering of senior citizens from across the Southeast was just about the…
Read More
Maggie to establish penalties for code violations
The town of Maggie Valley has been working on cleaning up the U.S. 19 corridor for more than a year,…
Read More
Model airplanes take to the sky for charity
The Macon Aero Modelers Club members are looking forward to showing off their flying skills to the public this weekend…
Read More
Franklin gets answers on new Ingles project
Many rumors were put to rest Monday night as Ingles Market representatives laid out the plan for its newest grocery…
Read More
Council approves independence for Employee Rights Office
A second decision made during last week’s Cherokee Tribal Council meeting could affect how council’s decision to order a third-party…
Read More
Cherokee council asks for investigation into hire-fire decisions
Some members of the Cherokee Tribal Council are saying that something’s amiss in how hire-fire decisions are being made in…
Read More
Central Elementary declared ‘surplus’ for ‘disposal’
Haywood County’s Central Elementary School has been declared “surplus” school board property and will be disposed of according to proper…
Read More
Drug testing in Haywood County schools: do results justify cost?
Some surprising statistics regarding drug testing in Haywood County schools have raised questions about the policy’s cost and effectiveness.
Read More
New landlines no longer available in Swain County
Even though Londa Bohl had the summer off from teaching in Swain County, she spent most of her vacation learning…
Read More
Putting the pieces together: Archeologists continue to uncover mysteries of Cowee Mound
While most people come to Macon County in the summer for a relaxing mountain vacation, Kathryn Sampeck makes the trip…
Read More
Waynesville hires new town manager
After a seven-month search that included more than 40 candidates, the Waynesville Board of Aldermen selected former Pittsboro, Southport and…
Read More
Protecting the past: Mounds hold key to understanding Cherokee history
Following the Little Tennessee River miles away from modern civilization in Franklin — past the pavement and subdivisions and through the…
Read More
WCU donates equipment to Haywood mission trip
When Western Carolina University alumnus Greg Boothroyd of Haywood County issued a call for donations of soccer equipment for a…
Read More
Swain trash site changes go into effect Sept. 1
Beginning Sept. 1, Swain County residents will notice some big changes when they go to drop off their trash and…
Read More
Key personnel change at Waynesville City Hall
After almost three years with the town of Waynesville, Amie Owens is out as administrative services director.
Read More
Swain left off SCC priority funding list
Southwestern Community College is receiving $7.17 million from the Connect N.C. bond to make major infrastructure improvements to its three…
Read More
Council shortens term of casino board member
Tribal Council narrowly passed a resolution last month that would shorten the term of embattled Tribal Casino Gaming Enterprise board…
Read More
Former Sequoyah Fund director pleads guilty to embezzlement
The former director of an organization charged with spurring community development on the Qualla Boundary has pled guilty to embezzling…
Read More
Silence-filled service puts a unique frame on spirituality
Evening is suspended over Lake Junaluska as doors open for the 8 p.m. Taizé service, its coming fall foretold by…
Read More
Animal advocates get a boost in Jackson County
A newly purchased cargo van has animal advocates in Jackson County applauding — and rolling up their sleeves to load dogs…
Read More
Animal control plan presented to Swain commissioners
It’s been more than a year since the Swain County commissioners charged a newly formed ad hoc committee with tackling…
Read More
Sylva mulls public art program
There’s something missing from the streets of Sylva, the town’s board has been noticing, and lately they’ve been talking about…
Read More
Renewed steam engine service excites Bryson, Dillsboro business owners
Spirits were high in Dillsboro last week as Steam Engine No. 1702 chugged noisily to a stop on the Great…
Read More
Voter ID law struck down in N.C.
Ruling that North Carolina’s 2013 voter identification law purposely targets African-Americans with “almost surgical precision,” the U. S. Court of…
Read More
Tale of the tape
If you find yourself charged with a crime and can’t afford an attorney, one will be provided to you; if…
Read More
Downtown Waynesville Association gets five-year deal
A new state law calling for more competition and transparency in how Municipal Service Districts are managed sent shudders down…
Read More
Waynesville property owner sees bumps in the road to MSD exit
The same 2015 law that robs local governments of control over how and for how long they can contract with…
Read More
Folkmoot moments
Peru: We travel to different countries. It’s our fifth festival this year, already two in France. We like a lot…
Read More
Folkmoot dance party at Asheville’s Orange Peel gives a peek below the cultural waterline
After talking with staff, volunteers and last year’s groups, Folkmoot Executive Director Angie Schwab decided that this year, she wanted…
Read More
Sam Love Queen and the values of Folkmoot
In May, the auditorium in the Folkmoot Friendship Center was dedicated to a man instrumental in establishing Waynesville and its…
Read More
Faith alone: Ugandan group changes lives through performance
Just prior to the 2016 Folkmoot Wanderlust Gala, Folkmoot staff, sound technicians, photographers and performers scurried about behind the stage.
Read More
Meet ‘Mr. Folkmoot’: Rolf Kaufman has played a large part in festival’s success
Rolf Kaufman has been a fixture on the Folkmoot scene since before it even began, bringing people from foreign lands…
Read More
New music director takes over at Folkmoot
Dillon Ingle will only be the third music director in Folkmoot’s 33-year history.
Read More
Below the waterline: Folkmoot 2016 looks at more than just the tip of the iceberg
Everyone in Western North Carolina knows that once the Smokies shed their winterwear and the trees begin to bud, summer’s…
Read More
GALLERY: Folkmoot “Wanderlust” Gala
The annual Folkmoot USA The "Official" North Carolina International Folk Festival once again has touched down in Western North Carolina.
Read More
WNC artist visits Cuba in search of its political and cultural meaning in the 21st century
It’s about 855 miles between the quiet mountain town of Waynesville, North Carolina and the urban hustle and bustle of…
Read More
