After more than a year of consideration, the Downtown Waynesville Commission has voted unanimously to recommend the establishment of a social district along and adjacent to the Main Street corridor.

When the Town of Sylva instituted its social district earlier this year, it planned to revisit the ordinance six months later to determine how things were going. That six-month mark came up last week and the town board decided not only to keep the ordinance in place, but also extend the social district’s operating hours.

The Sylva social district opened for business, just in time for last weekend’s Greening Up the Mountains festival.

The Sylva Social District test period is one step closer to launch following input from a community task force.

After Alderman Anthony Sutton floated the idea near the end of a Jan. 11 meeting, the Town of Waynesville will now take a methodical, deliberate approach to the question of whether or not – and where – social districts could end up being established .

Despite a strong public showing against the proposed social district at Sylva’s town meeting on Thursday, commissioners voted 3-2 to approve the measure.

After a bill allowing cities and counties to create their own social districts passed through the general assembly last September, towns across the state are exploring their options. Sylva is among the latest to do so in Western North Carolina. 

A piece of legislation passed last year has given rise to a novel idea that could liven up outdoor festivals and events not only in downtown Waynesville, Frog Level and Hazelwood, but also in any other county or municipality interested in giving it a shot — social districts.