WCU makes big strides in freshmen retention rate
They made it a top priority, but Western Carolina University administrators were still a bit surprised when they learned they…
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New sewer line could unbottle commercial growth in Canton
The commercial corridor of the Canton exit off Interstate 40 has been in a vice grip for several years due…
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Use it or lose it: Canton acts quick to spend outstanding grant money from Rural Center
The clock is ticking for Canton to spend $25,000 in remaining grant money from the N.C. Rural Center.
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Swain deputies rack up 13 wrecks in three years
A Swain County deputy totaled his patrol car earlier this month after hitting a parked car while going more than…
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Business calendar
• Western Carolina University will host information sessions on a new part-time MBA program starting in January and held in…
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District elections could be a partisan game changer in Jackson
In what he characterized as simply starting the discussion, Jackson County Commission Chairman Jack Debnam broached the idea of changing…
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Deserted factory to morph into agriculture venture
An abandoned, county-owned furniture factory in Whittier could transform into a center for agritourism in Jackson County, or it could…
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National Guard Unit from Haywood to deploy to Afghanistan
The National Guard’s 211th Military Police Company based in Haywood County is deploying to Afghanistan.
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Model plane club allows members to take the pilot seat
The Macon Aero Modelers Club members are not afraid to fly much of anything. Large, wooden aircraft churning through the…
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Macon County ponies up for airport upgrades, again
The Macon County Commission last week narrowly approved funding for upgrades and an expansion of the runway at the county…
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Maggie bites off more than it can chew in Stillwell concert
Maggie Valley residents and leaders are questioning how and why town taxpayers ended up footing the bill for a Country…
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Experts educate residents on cumbersome healthcare reform
Thousands of uninsured Western North Carolina residents will soon benefit from the Affordable Care Act, despite most people still being…
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Appointment signals Meadow’s rising clout in Washington
U.S. Congressman Mark Meadows was appointed as one of the country’ two representatives to the United Nation’s General Assembly last…
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A moving target: Small-towns’ eternal chase for doctors
Five full-time doctors practicing at Swain County Medical Center have left during the past year. The departures account for half…
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Bryson City: just what the doctor ordered
As Dr. Randall Castor stared down the final weeks of his residency, it was clear those long, grueling years of…
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How a tiny bracelet saved the life of a man with dementia
During rehearsal for her church’s band one Monday night, Paula McElroy called home to check on her 82-year-old husband who…
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Canton factory revs up production of big-rig cab parts
A manufacturing plant that makes parts for big-rig cab interiors has broken ground on a $5.9 million expansion in Canton…
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Forging a new economy: public input sought in roadmap for WNC
The creation of a monolithic blueprint that will lead the seven western counties into a new economy is under way,…
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Haywood acts to secure Mauney Cove trash site
Haywood County has secured the first right of refusal on the 1.4-acre tract where the Mauney Cove trash and recycling…
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Construction climate warming up again in Haywood
Building permits are trending upwards in Haywood County thanks to an increase in single-family home construction. The majority of new…
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Swain County fights for its just due
Swain County Manager Kevin King made another trip up to Washington, D.C. last week, though this time the visit was…
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Haywood Schools assess benevolent policy toward club sports
A proposal to charge youth sports clubs and outside groups rental fees to use school property is being studied by…
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Opponents of Maggie mayor try but fail to remove him from office
As the Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen called its monthly meeting to order, it was the last item on the…
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Tourism tax increase at root of complaints lobbed against Maggie mayor
Two Maggie Valley aldermen recently indicated that they have a laundry list of grievances against the town’s mayor, but there…
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Exhibit aimed a piquing interest in Cherokee history
A new traveling exhibit is using technology to teach people about traditional Cherokee culture.
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Forest Hills doesn’t have the green to buy abandoned golf course
Forest Hills residents and town leaders overwhelmingly opposed purchasing a 60-acre abandoned golf course in the middle of their community…
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Skaters find their groove at Waynesville’s new concrete playground
Skateboarders from across Western North Carolina have streamed into Waynesville during the past week to try out the town’s newly…
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Sewer credits: a commodity market in Cashiers
To relieve sewer gridlock in the Cashiers area, the Tuckasegee Water and Sewer Authority may change its rules to let…
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Changes on table for TDA grant funding
People seeking funds from the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority spend hours filling out grant applications, and all the tourism…
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Rural Center will survive, but as a shadow of its former self
Despite fears that the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center would meet its maker after losing its state funding, the…
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Getting a handle on cutlery
Kristi Culpepper knows knives. Browsing the wide selection of specialized hunting, hobby and kitchen cutlery at Old School Knife Works…
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Highlands-Cashiers Hospital soon to forge partnership with Mission
Highlands-Cashiers Hospital is expected to come under the umbrella of Mission Health in coming months. The Highlands-Cashiers Hospital is current…
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Tribal council gets a few new faces following election
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians held tribal council elections last Thursday (Sept. 5). All 12 seats on tribal council…
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New restrooms in store for Waynesville playground
The town of Waynesville will soon put in temporary restrooms next to the popular children’s playground on Marshall Street. They…
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Waynesville to invest in tennis courts
Waynesville plans to repair the six cracked and aging tennis courts in its recreation park, as long as the local…
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Clyde police chief suspended, but keeps job
Clyde Police Chief Gerard Ball won’t return to work until Oct. 5 after the Clyde Board of Aldermen decided to…
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Razing the sweepstakes: Police handcuffed in latest standoff with successor of video gambling
Sweepstakes-style video gambling is making bold forays into the rural communities of Western North Carolina, back for yet another skirmish…
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Herzog earns accolades for decades of studying human-animal interactions
Passion, love, hate and violence — are all very human. But the best way of understanding these and other human…
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Sylva crowd marks King’s march, vows to continue fight
In honor of the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s march on Washington, D.C., political activists in Western North…
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Clyde police chief suspended for unknown reasons
Clyde Police Chief Gerard Ball was suspended last Friday for five days without pay until the town board was able…
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In the shadow of Duke dams, heavy rains can trigger downstream flooding
With September’s tropical storm season gearing up, residents living downstream of large Duke Energy dams in Western North Carolina may…
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Waynesville theater closes suddenly
Smoky Mountain Cinemas in Waynesville shut its doors last week, leaving Haywood County residents with no full-sized movie theater playing…
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Busking becomes Waynesville
Waynesville leaders as expected lifted a de facto ban on street performers last week, opening the door for musicians to…
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Pipe bomb suspect claims he was being a good Samaritan
Waynesville police discovered a homemade pipe bomb in the bed of a pickup truck in the early hours of the…
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WCU record enrollment, open house
Western Carolina University announced an enrollment milestone this week — enrollment for the fall semester topped the 10,000 mark for…
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A wild, fast motorcycle pursuit to nab a low-level criminal: is it worth the risk?
When it comes to a high-speed chase, law enforcement must constantly ask the question: is it worth it? A 23-year-old…
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Public cites physician quality at hearing on possible sale of hospital
Maintaining high-quality doctors in Haywood County emerged as a common theme in a public hearing last week on the future…
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Curtain call: Waynesville welcomes revival of the Strand theater
When Rodney and Lorraine Conard took the keys to the shuttered Strand movie theater two years ago, the hulking shell…
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Appalachian Women’s Museum finally gets Monteith House
The Appalachian Women’s Museum finally has a home to call its own. Dillsboro town council members agreed Monday to lease…
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Sweepstakes: never say die
Despite a statewide ban on video sweepstakes machines, the video gambling industry is taking advantage of yet another apparent loophole…
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