Neighbors plead their case to put the brakes on quarry expansion
Neighbors near a towering rock quarry in Waynesville have voiced concerns over a proposed expansion that could cause excavations to…
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Dental care on wheels draws masses to free clinic in Cullowhee
There was no shortage of work to be done when N.C. Missions of Mercy, a mobile dental camp, came rolling…
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Jackson County to build new emergency ops hub
Jackson County plans to build a $1.6 million state-of-the-art 911 call center and emergency headquarters along U.S. 441 south of…
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Beloved yet bedraggled, Franklin’s downtown gazebo to see major facelift
The Main Street gazebo in Franklin could soon see a facelift, or, even be replaced with an entirely different structure.
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Will Forest Hills residents chip in to buy old, overgrown golf course?
Presented with a tempting yet expensive offer, the Village of Forest Hills has to choose whether to buy an abandoned…
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Heinzelmannchen Brewery asks TWSA to tweak water and sewer fees
What goes in must come out: that’s the basic premise behind your water and sewer bill. Sewer fees simply mirror…
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Lake Junaluska merger bill off the table indefinitely
A state bill that would have merged Lake Junaluska with the town of Waynesville is dead for now.
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HCC won’t recoup construction overages from architect
Haywood Community College hoped to recoup $80,000 from the architect behind the new Creative Arts building due to design errors…
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Macon County airport runway expansion in the works once more
Macon County could once again find itself with a bigger airport runway — this time wider.
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Frog Level auction house hopping mad over Waynesville sign rules
A new fixture made an appearance on the sidewalks of Frog Level last week: a giant green frog waving and…
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Ghost Town gunslinger wounded during staged fight
State officials are investigating Ghost Town in the Sky amusement park after a piece of shrapnel maimed a longtime, well-known…
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Business news
New Bethel restaurant opens its doors A new restaurant called Breaking Bread Café has opened on Pigeon Road in the…
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Foundation awards $150,000 to childhood development projects
The Community Foundation gave two $75,000 grants to Region A Partnership for Children and Southwestern Child Development Commission. One of…
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Groups creates CD tour of Bethel
Bethel Rural Community Organization released its CD of the Cold Mountain Heritage Driving Tour. The CD provides a guided journey…
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Collecting data on Internet connections
N.C. Broadband — a part of the N.C. Department of Commerce — is collecting data on the number of Jackson…
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Who are we? Cherokee programs find innovative ways to keep the flame burning for future generations
Growing up on the Isleta Pueblo reservation in New Mexico, 26-year-old Cody Grant could name off the tribes he descended…
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Help shape pedestrian-friendly street plan
A citizen drop-in meeting to discuss the progress of Waynesville’s North Main Street Complete Streets Study will be held from…
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All clear declared in Richland Creek search
An all-night search Monday along Richland Creek in Waynesville for a possible missing child turned out to be a false…
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Town election time: Who’s in, who’s out, who’s still in the wings
Towns across the mountains will hold elections for their mayors and town board leaders this fall. The sign up period…
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Rags to riches: Unlocking the value of antiques rarely results in a jackpot
Lake Junaluska resident Hattie Polk finally inched her way to the front of the line and released her clutch on…
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Southern Appalachia goes squatchin’
Bigfoot is alive and well in Haywood County, at least through the pages of Eric S. Brown.
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Armadillos in the mountains? You betcha
It make have taken 50 million years, give or take, but the small, armored animal known as the armadillo is…
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Talks break off on railroad deal, but door not closed
The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad and Jackson County reached an impasse on an economic development agreement last week after two…
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Railroad, Jackson leaders at impasse on plan to bring train back to Dillsboro
The news of stalled talks between the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad and Jackson County was met with mixed feelings in…
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Passel of new patrol cars on Waynesville’s shopping list
The town of Waynesville plans to buy 15 new police cars in the coming year for $500,000, a move that…
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Haywood Schools shuffle the deck ahead of new year
Haywood County Schools has announced a handful of promotions among principals and assistant principals ahead of the upcoming school year.
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Taco Bell to find new home on South Main
Waynesville’s South Main Street continues to see slow but steady commercial growth, with a Taco Bell and Mattress Firm soon…
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After 65 years, pool is back on the table for bars in Franklin
Pool sharks rejoice. The town of Franklin has lifted an antiquated law that banned pool tables from being on the…
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Financial woes catch up with Tandi Haas
Amy Clifton Keely wasn’t asking for much. Being a wedding photographer, she knew how wedding days worked, and what pitfalls…
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Cat-Tran could be nixed for off-campus students
Western Carolina University’s off-campus Cat-Tran may soon go the way of the horse and buggy.
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Lake Junaluska merger temporarily stymied by Raleigh politics
The merger of Lake Junaluska with the town of Waynesville has yet to get the blessing of state legislators in…
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Haywood tourism leaders hope to get in the film game
The Haywood County Tourism Development Authority has unveiled several new strategies and initiatives this year in an effort to become…
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Southern Loop on hold
A decade-long tug-of-war over what to do about Sylva’s congested commercial strip of N.C. 107 took an unexpected turn last…
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Turning rust to gold: Lifelong collector saves everything … and sells it
One man’s junk is another man’s treasure. “Ever since I was kid, I would take home all kinds of stuff,…
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More bang, less buck: Jackson to convert public transit shuttles to propane
It’s not quite the Jetsons’ flying car, but Jackson County is moving toward its own fleet of new-age vehicles powered…
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Caught red-handed with recyclables and nowhere to pitch them? Fret no more, Sylva
Recycling receptacles are coming to downtown Sylva soon, at last giving shoppers and strollers a green option for pitching their…
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Room tax revenue up in Haywood, thanks in part to audit
Lodging tax revenue was up during the past year in Haywood County, and could see another boost in the new…
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Swain commissioners go back on pledge to fund school resource officers
Despite rallying around calls for more school resource officers earlier this year, Swain County commissioners will not chip in after…
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With merger in limbo, Waynesville budget sent back to the drawing board
The Waynesville Board of Aldermen rubberstamped a $31.8 million budget Monday, but it may just have to turn right around…
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Ballot referendum likely in Lake Junaluska merger with Waynesville
A compromise has been floated in Raleigh that could break the political impasse over the proposed merger of Lake Junaluska…
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Cashiers fights for bigger piece of funding pie
The debate over the Jackson County Tourism Development Authority budget was bumped up another notch last week when dozens of…
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WCU neighbors chagrinned by sprawling student apartments — and the cars they bring
Adam Cartwright walked a thin line on the way back to his home in Cullowhee. He hugged the side of…
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Paula Deen restaurant shut down at Cherokee casino
Cook and television personality Paula Deen has gotten into hot butter in recent weeks over allegations of racism, prompting Caesar’s…
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Help wanted: A better road map for WNC
An ambitious yearlong exercise to create a collective economic vision for the mountains will decide whether a long-awaited $800 million…
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Mission, Angel Medical formalize partnership
Angel Medical Center in Franklin officially came under the umbrella of Mission Hospital System this week, a move Angel leaders…
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How much policing is too much? Maggie leaders try to strike balance
It was Groundhog Day again for the Maggie Valley Police Department. Last year, Police Chief Scott Sutton defended his department…
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HCC, contractor negotiate final fees on Creative Arts project
Haywood Community College is negotiating with the architects and contractor who worked on the college’s new Creative Arts building to…
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Construction ramps up on skate park in hopes of August opening
Construction on an 8,000-square-foot Waynesville skate park is visibly progressing.
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Rare mountain tornado damages GSMNP
The National Weather Service has confirmed that a tornado formed during an afternoon of thunderstorms and high winds that ripped…
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Job incentive deal brewing in Haywood
Haywood County could be landing new jobs in the near future — but what type of jobs, how many and…
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