Even before BearWaters Brewing announced its intentions to leave Waynesville for nearby Canton, the town has touted itself as Haywood County’s most desirable place in which to locate a business. 

Canton officials may be starting to wonder if plans to replace the town’s aging public pool aren’t cursed.

To the naked eye, there appears to be a lot going right in Canton these days.

Last month, the town of Canton’s highly anticipated municipal pool project hit an unexpected snag when it was learned that a 40-year United States Department of Agriculture loan would not be available as part of the complex, 10-part financing package town leaders created to pay for the project.

The town of Canton has scored several small victories of late in its effort to diversify its economic base and improve services and amenities available to residents. 

Another of Canton’s highly anticipated capital improvements on the horizon is a new municipal pool to replace the leaky aging one that has served residents for more than 70 years. 

The longest running Labor Day festival in the South is meant to commemorate the contributions of the organized labor movement in the Unites States; appropriately, the Town of Canton’s popular weekend event wasn’t just spent guzzling sweet tea, pounding barbecue and listening to bluegrass.

The Canton Board of Aldermen was in high spirits Aug. 25 even before Town Manager Seth Hendler-Voss walked in to the meeting five minutes late.

Where to from here?

It’s the lingering question within bluegrass and string circles nowadays. Amid the traditional pickers and grinners, there is an urgency arising in recent years, one that wonders just what will happen to the beloved, deeply held music once the last of the elder statesmen vanish.

After operating in Waynesville for the past four years, BearWaters Brewing will be making a big move to downtown Canton.