When a strange man approached an 11-year-old girl in Waynesville’s Walmart more than a week ago and asked her to take off her clothes, police say the young girl did the right thing — she refused.

Ryan Scot Davis, 48, was charged with taking indecent liberties with a child following an incident at the Waynesville Walmart on Saturday, Nov. 24.

It’s a dreaded intersection for anyone who frequents downtown Waynesville behind the wheel. You slowly edge the nose of your car forward, inching past the stop sign and bit-by-bit into the oncoming lanes, straining forward in your seat in hopes of getting a clearer view — until finally, biting the bullet you bolt across.

Waynesville seafood restaurant Maggie’s Galley will soon be forced to move from its longtime location at the intersection of Howell Mill Road and Russ Avenue to make way for a road-widening project.

Wells Funeral Home and Cremation Services in Waynesville has purchased a large building downtown that once housed The Mountaineer Publishing Company’s printing press.

The old press building is located on Wall Street directly behind The Mountaineer’s newspaper office and adjacent to the funeral home.

The two businesses negotiated for a couple of months before the funeral home eventually bought the land and building three weeks ago for $365,000.

The Mountaineer Publishing Company no longer operates its own printing press and instead outsources the printing of its newspapers to a large commercial press in the region, a growing trend within the newspaper industry.

“We just don’t need it,” Jonathan Key, publisher of The Mountaineer, said of the decision to sell off the building. The building had not been used for more than a year.

The funeral home has no concrete plans for the vacant building as of now.

“Our plans are not carved in stone at this time,” said Wells Greeley, owner of the funeral home and a Waynesville alderman.

But, Greeley said that it could be used for an expansion at some point in the future.

“We are weighing our options,” Greeley said, calling the lot a “good piece of property.”

The purchase will also ensure that Greeley controls what goes into that space, preventing the possibility of non-compatible business moving in next door.

Covering everything from bugs’ butts and food for animals to animal tongues and eyes, EarlyLight Books has found a special section of the book world to occupy — science books for toddlers.

At first glance toward her work, you think Sara Alexander is a great photographer.

At second glance, you realize that’s not a picture, but a painting. The detailed, vibrant canvas is straight from the talented hands of a rising star in the Western North Carolina art scene.

Alexander lived in Florida until her family moved to Western North Carolina when she was 11. She knew from a very young age that she not only could create art, but also that she wanted to pursue something within the field.

A committee of Waynesville residents is putting the community in the term “community policing.”

People rent hotel rooms because they need a place to shower and lay their weary heads. But, people check into bed and breakfasts because they want a place that feels like home.

The building that once housed the downtown anchor O’Malley’s On Main Pub and Grill in Waynesville has a new owner.