After closing its paper mill in Canton early last month, Pactiv Evergreen is reportedly now engaged in discussions with potential purchasers or developers about the future of the site.

The paper mill has been closed for years now, but the cleanup is ongoing.

As questions continue to swirl over what Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-Henderson) did to prevent the loss of around 1,000 jobs at Pactiv Evergreen’s paper mill, Edwards is now coming under fire for politicizing a town hall held June 1 at Canton’s Pisgah High School, for rejecting help from Buncombe County legislators and for ridiculing them in the process.

It took all of about 25 minutes for the Haywood County Board of Equalization and Review to reject Pactiv Evergreen’s request to reduce the assessed value of its $19.8 million parcel in Canton.

That the American health care coverage system is broken shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone, even proponents of the 2010 Affordable Care Act who thought Obamacare would make coverage affordable for everyone. But as long as workers with employer-subsidized health care are forced to rely on the generosity of capitalists for their health and well-being, there will continue to be crises like the one currently unfolding with soon-to-be unemployed workers at Pactiv-Evergreen’s Haywood County facilities.

Pactiv Evergreen’s announcement that it would shutter its century-old paper mill was devastating enough for the tiny mountain town of Canton, but now the company is demanding a $14 million reduction in the assessed value of its real property — in essence, a tax break.

Last week, Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers hosted Gov. Roy Cooper and a panel of elected Democrat and Republican leaders along with economic development officials, workforce analysts and environmental policy officials, all trying to prepare for the inevitable closing of the venerable old mill at the center of town.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper will return to Canton on April 6 to discuss the forthcoming closure of Pactiv Evergreen’s Canton paper mill, resources for impacted workers and how the state will hold the company accountable.

Administrators from the Town of Canton’s various departments met with Mayor Zeb Smathers and members of the town board March 23 to begin to prepare for the financial impact of the closing of Pactiv Evergreen’s paper mill, estimated by Town Manager Nick Scheuer at roughly $3 million.

A March 21 letter from the general manager of Pactiv Evergreen’s Canton and Waynesville operations, John McCarthy, says the company will start mailing out mandated WARN notices to workers beginning on Thursday, March 23.