Waynesville’s North Main Street has been an important economic engine for the town and the county for decades, and the town’s municipal service district has played a significant role in that success.

The Downtown Waynesville Commission has had two years to get on its feet since its predecessor organization imploded.

Updated at 10 a.m. Sept. 15: The Waynesville Board of Alderman voted unanimously at Tuesday night's meeting for the town to take over management of the Municipal Service District due to the resignation of Downtown Waynesville Association executive board members. 

What should have been a simple contract renewal process has turned into an all-out fiasco for the Downtown Waynesville Association, as the group continues to struggle with transparency and professionalism while submitting a contract renewal proposal riddled with errors, oversights and outdated information. 

It’s been almost five years since the Downtown Waynesville Association landed a multi-year contract to manage the town’s municipal service district, but with the expiration of that contract imminent, an April 27 public hearing will gather input from residents on whether the group has met expectations or if another organization should be given the chance.

Waynesville’s popular Main Street shopping district has seen some changes over the years, and as time goes by, everyone from retailers to restaurateurs have moved in, moved out and moved about the strip.

Sharon and James Earley had sought unsuccessfully for almost two years to have their property removed from Waynesville’s downtown taxing district, until a recently passed law gave them new hope that their wish would finally be granted. 

A new state law calling for more competition and transparency in how Municipal Service Districts are managed sent shudders down the collective spines of some on the Waynesville Town Board when they learned that the contracts to manage such districts would now have to go up for bid.

The same 2015 law that robs local governments of control over how and for how long they can contract with the organizations that manage their Municipal Service Districts also dictates that local governments now formally address requests from property owners who wish to be removed from an MSD.