Soul searching time for the GOP
When N.C. GOP Director Todd Poole emailed a list of state job openings — some 300 vacant positions in all…
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Input sought on Cullowhee’s future
The Jackson County Planning Department will host a meeting at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 5 at Cullowhee Valley School to gather…
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Swain targets education, infrastructure and high tech with $2 million grant
Swain County residents have finally learned where exactly its $2 million in grants from the Golden LEAF Foundation will go…
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Waynesville sweetens pot for affordable housing project
The Waynesville Board of Aldermen has waived more than $140,000 in water and sewer fees in the hopes that a…
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Canton aldermen to step down en masse following election
Canton will witness a mysterious mass exodus of its elected town board members following the town election this fall.
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Pendulum bound to swing in Maggie election, for better or worse
While political candidates are usually quick to point out their differences, this election season Maggie Valley residents are calling on…
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Family, feuds and football
Heather Brookshire is behind enemy lines. “Everybody has been giving me a hard time all day,” she chuckled. Taking orders…
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Haywood County Manager Marty Stamey to step down
After navigating Haywood County through some of its toughest budget times, County Manager Marty Stamey will leave his position Jan.…
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Jackson commissioners: Coming soon to a screen near you
Jackson County commissioners may start broadcasting their meetings, bringing to the masses the nitty gritty of local government — tax…
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Jackson planners cut student apartment project slack in slope engineering rules
Developers of a large college student housing complex in Cullowhee got an OK from the Jackson County Planning Board to…
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Court system in Jackson angling for more space
An expansion of Jackson County’s court facilities could be in the cards, pending a $30,000 analysis of what some in…
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Additional staff needed in Jackson as construction jumps
An uptick in building permits in Jackson County has prompted the county to hire an additional office clerk to keep…
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Franklin mayoral candidates offer contrasting styles
Franklin’s mayoral candidates are offering voters distinctly different visions of leadership as they square off for the town’s top political…
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Sylva candidates support helping downtown
The town of Sylva has struggled this year with balancing its budget and keeping businesses filling its downtown storefronts. Going…
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WCU Health and Human Sciences building wins awards
Western Carolina University’s state-of-the-art Health and Human Sciences Building, which opened in fall 2012, has won two awards for its…
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WCU’s head of special collections wins service award
George Frizzell, head of special collections at Western Carolina University’s Hunter Library, is the 2013 recipient of the Thornton W.…
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Haywood couple stands against N.C. gay marriage ban
Amy Leonhart and Louise Jones met 17 years ago at church. “The best match for me was going to be…
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Waynesville employee takes position in Henderson County
Assistant Town Manager Alison Melnikova is leaving Waynesville for a new job, meaning the town is on the search for…
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The face of the shutdown: Local childcare centers teetering as shutdown interrupts funding
All Nicole Smith could do last week was try to keep the doors open. Either the shutdown of the federal…
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Raising the bar: Tougher curriculum + tougher testing = lower scores ahead
Schools are bracing for a precipitous drop in student test scores coming down the pike next month — the result…
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Looser sign rules could let Waynesville business owners sing it from the rooftops
Giant blow-up gorillas, bouquets of balloons, plastic banners strung from awnings or poles and billowing fabric figures piped full of…
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Cherokee-led firm gets going on new casino
After just a year in business, a Cherokee-based construction management company has landed the biggest trout in town — the…
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Candidates all want more business in Canton
While infrastructure and economic development tops each candidate’s agenda, a far more consequential matter could await those who fill the…
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Breaking Bread Café opens in Haywood
A new artisan café and restaurant has opened to fanfare in Bethel, only a short drive from downtown Waynesville and…
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Haywood Early College Graduate heading to medical school
Tyler McKinnish, a Haywood County student on his way to being a doctor, credits Haywood Early College with giving him…
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SCC kicks off scholarship fundraiser
Southwestern Community College Foundation has launched a “Student Success Campaign” that aims to raise more than $1 million for scholarships…
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Radiography program a family affair for Maneys
When Brittany Maney was 14, her fall from a Hayesville Middle School cheerleading pyramid caused a lot of pain, fear…
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Opt-In meetings gather public input on future needs
How would you spend $800 million? Residents and opinion leaders from the seven westernmost counties and the Qualla Boundary have…
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Child rescued from Whittier hotel dies
A four-year-old child found injured and abused in Qualla Motel in Whittier last week has died. Deputies arrived at the…
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Pedestrian fatality involves Cherokee officer
A Cherokee Indian Police Department officer hit two pedestrians, killing one, while on patrol Wednesday night. The incident occurred on…
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Swain County marching band heading to D.C.
Swain High School’s Marching Maroon Devils have officially been accepted to march in the National Independence Day Parade on July…
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State refuses to give North Shore interest money to Swain
The N.C. Department of Revenue is holding money belonging to Swain County captive, according to county officials.
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King leads group saying revaluation was off the mark
The Haywood County Republican Party, siding with a two-time county commission candidate, has submitted a resolution to the county saying…
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Case against alleged cross burner dismissed
The case against a Haywood County teenager charged with felony cross burning was dismissed two weeks ago.
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Bryson wants to get rid of unsightly signs
For years Bryson City has battled gaudy signs, decrepit signs and too many signs, particularly along U.S. 19 coming into…
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Jackson trades fines for new program to get kids in car seats
Where heavy-handed fines fail, the Jackson County Health Department is pushing a program to urge negligent drivers to put their…
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Haywood will pay to upgrade jail rather than use more deputies
Haywood County will pay more than it anticipated on state-mandated renovations to its jail annex. The county will pay $91,314…
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Room tax revenues rise, though not necessarily number of travelers
Haywood, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties all reported an increase in lodging tax revenue last fiscal year, compared to the…
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Maggie boasts crowded field for town elections
Finances and the future of the festival grounds were front and center at a Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen candidate…
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Maggie town manager, festival director both lose jobs over concert deal
After a week of paid suspension, Maggie Valley’s town manager and festival director are gone.
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Guardian Ad Litems try to be a voice for children
Talking to kids is hard enough when life is going fine, but when their parents are going through a divorce…
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Turned Away: Visitors, residents barred from national park
When Joe and Dolly Parker approached the entrance of the Deep Creek campground Tuesday morning, the sign read “Office Closed.”…
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Green Energy Park at a crossroads: Jackson commissioners ponder future of venture
The future of Jackson County’s Green Energy Park may depend on county commissioners doubling down.
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Cherokee Bear Zoo in legal crosshairs
Two enrolled members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians plan to sue the owners of the Cherokee Bear Zoo…
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At long last, skate park vision now a concrete reality
Waynesville Alderman Gary Caldwell was the man of the hour, or perhaps the man of the decade, during the official…
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Swain school officials take swift action against football player for racial insults on Facebook
A Swain County High School junior varsity football player was suspended from school for 10 days and kicked off the…
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Maggie town manager, festival director suspended over concert debacle
The Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen voted unanimously last week to suspend Town Manager Tim Barth and Festival Director Audrey…
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Meet the candidates for Bryson town board
Candidates have lined up to run for the town board in Bryson City this November after two current aldermen have…
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A dozen candidates gunning for just four seats in Franklin town election
This year’s election in Franklin is shaping up to be one of the most interesting — and crowded — the…
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Smokies and Parkway open to windshield tourists only
The impasse at the federal level will touch all areas of operation at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and…
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