Not TDA’s job to hire downtown director
 

Not TDA’s job to hire downtown director

To the Editor: Given the recent suggestion in The Sylva Herald that the Jackson County Tourism Development Authority possibly fund…
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Harrah’s recognized for environmental policies
 

Harrah’s recognized for environmental policies

Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort earned recognition for reducing its environmental impact when Green Key Global bestowed it a 4-Key rating…
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Drought severity lessens in WNC
 

Drought severity lessens in WNC

Wet weather over the past week has put a dent in the severity of drought in Western North Carolina. 
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Bear baiting and more trapping policies among proposed wildlife rule changes
 

Bear baiting and more trapping policies among proposed wildlife rule changes

A public hearing seeking input on this year’s round of proposals from the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission will be held…
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Hikers rescued after three days in the woods
 

Hikers rescued after three days in the woods

A day hike in the Shining Rock Wilderness Area of the Pisgah National Forest turned into a days-long ordeal culminating…
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A growing mark: Outdoor school opens world’s largest wilderness medicine classroom in Cullowhee
 

A growing mark: Outdoor school opens world’s largest wilderness medicine classroom in Cullowhee

Just north of Cullowhee, at the curvy, gravel terminus of Cane Creek Road, sits the building containing the world’s largest…
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Books from different ends of the spectrum
 

Books from different ends of the spectrum

Opposites attract, so the old saying runs. We’ve all known friends, husbands and wives, and lovers who match this adage,…
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This must be the place: In the presence of the Founding Fathers
 

This must be the place: In the presence of the Founding Fathers

I decided to not wear the hardhat. Standing underneath the magnificent 215-foot high ancient rock arch at the Natural Bridge…
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Winds of Change: The Infamous Stringdusters hit WNC
 

Winds of Change: The Infamous Stringdusters hit WNC

They are the bridge. In the bluegrass world these days, it seems there are two camps of thought and performance…
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Another runway extension in the wings for Macon airport
 

Another runway extension in the wings for Macon airport

With the last Macon County Airport runway extension project barely in the rearview, the North Carolina Department of Transportation has…
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Dilapidated structures plaguing Franklin
 

Dilapidated structures plaguing Franklin

Overgrown brush, rotting floors, collapsing roofs, vermin and asbestos. Dealing with deteriorating structures isn’t a new issue for the town…
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Franklin facelift: Changes are coming to downtown Franklin
 

Franklin facelift: Changes are coming to downtown Franklin

Downtown Franklin will be undergoing plenty of changes in 2017 and for the next few years as the town works…
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Honor MLK with day of service
 

Honor MLK with day of service

Citizens recognizing Martin Luther King Jr. Day since it was established in 1986, are encouraged to volunteer on the third…
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Haywood Habitat accepting homeowner applications
 

Haywood Habitat accepting homeowner applications

Haywood Habitat for Humanity is seeking qualified homeowners for homes located in Haywood County.
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Volunteers, athletes sought for Special Olympics
 

Volunteers, athletes sought for Special Olympics

Haywood County Special Olympics officials are forming a Local Program Committee so that the program can reach more potential athletes…
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WCU professor gets award for archaeological excellence
 

WCU professor gets award for archaeological excellence

Western Carolina University’s Ben Steere, assistant professor of anthropology and co-director of Cherokee Studies Programs, is recipient of the Principal…
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Focus groups needed to discuss Swain ER changes
 

Focus groups needed to discuss Swain ER changes

Swain Community Hospital is looking for small groups of residents to be part of ongoing focus groups to discuss changes…
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To tax or not to tax? Waynesville considers adding another tax-exempt parcel
 

To tax or not to tax? Waynesville considers adding another tax-exempt parcel

It isn’t often that citizens avail themselves of the public comment session offered by local governments.
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Only opposition heard for Walnut Street widening
 

Only opposition heard for Walnut Street widening

Although work on the North Carolina Department of Transportation’s proposed improvements to Russ Avenue won’t begin until 2022, Waynesville residents…
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Canton dives in to pool project
 

Canton dives in to pool project

Town of Canton officials faced a “sink or swim” moment Jan. 3 when, in a special public hearing, they had…
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Neglected Canton dogs still need homes
 

Neglected Canton dogs still need homes

In a case that stunned Western North Carolina residents last November, 137 dogs were found being kept in varying states…
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Sequoyah Fund embezzler sentenced
 

Sequoyah Fund embezzler sentenced

Embezzling nearly $1 million from The Sequoyah Fund in Cherokee will land the organization’s former executive director in federal prison…
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Jackson commissioner drops lawsuit
 

Jackson commissioner drops lawsuit

Recently elected Jackson County Commissioner Mickey Luker has dropped a lawsuit he filed in June contesting a permit denial handed…
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Timeline for Mill Street lane reduction will depend on town budget
 

Timeline for Mill Street lane reduction will depend on town budget

Mill Street in Sylva will go from two lanes to one when a 2016 decision from the Sylva Board of…
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Downtown vacancies prompt concern
 

Downtown vacancies prompt concern

An unusual number of “for rent” signs have been cropping up in downtown Sylva lately, and the vacancies have town…
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Lost hikers rescued from Shining Rock Wilderness Area
 

Lost hikers rescued from Shining Rock Wilderness Area

Two hikers lost in the Shining Rock Wilderness area in Haywood County were rescued Saturday evening thanks to the efforts…
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It’s 2017, let’s talk about something else
 

It’s 2017, let’s talk about something else

Now that it’s 2017, I can’t bear the thought of continuing to fixate on politics and its atmosphere of pomposity…
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A heavy but hopeful heart for the new year
 

A heavy but hopeful heart for the new year

Throughout my entire life, I’ve awoken on New Year’s Day energized to be more, do more, see more. This year…
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Another side of the Cuban revolution
 

Another side of the Cuban revolution

To the Editor: I very much appreciated your comments about Castro and Cuba, particularly your childhood experience at Guantanamo. I…
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Cattle working equipment available for community use
 

Cattle working equipment available for community use

New cattle working equipment will soon be available for community use in Swain and Jackson counties.
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Red wolf killed in wildlife refuge
 

Red wolf killed in wildlife refuge

A reward of $5,000 is being offered in the case of a red wolf that was shot and killed around…
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Three dead in Smokies plane crash
 

Three dead in Smokies plane crash

Three people have died in a plane crash that occurred Monday, Dec. 26, in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.…
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Trout restoration project coming to Cataloochee
 

Trout restoration project coming to Cataloochee

A Smokies biologist will give a glimpse of plans for a brook trout restoration project in the Great Smoky Mountains…
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Resolve to be active in 2017: WNC runs and rides offer ample options for fitness goals
 

Resolve to be active in 2017: WNC runs and rides offer ample options for fitness goals

January is universally recognized as the time to make a fresh start, throw away last year’s used-up calendar and dream…
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Book about artist is itself a work of art
 

Book about artist is itself a work of art

In mid-October I attended the second lecture of three at my local library on the Italian artist Caravaggio (1571-1610). A…
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One more for the good times: The Dirty Soul Revival to rock Sylva
 

One more for the good times: The Dirty Soul Revival to rock Sylva

It ain’t dead. Rock-n-roll. In an era when sugar-coated pop stars and polished country acts are atop the charts, one…
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This must be the place: Sydney to Seattle to the South
 

This must be the place: Sydney to Seattle to the South

Through the strewn lights I could see the Empire State Building.
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Quilting group donates to sheriff’s office
 

Quilting group donates to sheriff’s office

Members of the Blue Ridge Mountain Quilt Guild in Canton stopped by the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office recently to drop…
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Bryson City Bicycles receives small business grant
 

Bryson City Bicycles receives small business grant

Bryson City Bicycles will use a $20,000 grant to expand its online presence and to provide a fleet of bicycles…
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Interim director of Lake Junaluska Singers hired
 

Interim director of Lake Junaluska Singers hired

Lake Junaluska has announced new leadership of the Lake Junaluska Singers, a choral group that has been part of Lake…
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WCU to form school for primary grades
 

WCU to form school for primary grades

Western Carolina University will soon be opening a school serving primary grades — likely in Jackson County — after a state mandate…
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Sylva appoints public art committee
 

Sylva appoints public art committee

Sylva’s town leaders were so excited to see the number of applications they received from prospective members of a public…
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Community Health Center to open in Sylva
 

Community Health Center to open in Sylva

Health services emanating from the Good Samaritan building in Sylva are set to expand this year as Good Sam moves…
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TWSA reviews water shortage plan following drought
 

TWSA reviews water shortage plan following drought

As the drought of 2016 progressed, flows of streams and rivers dwindled region-wide — and the Tuckasegee River, water source for…
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By the numbers
 
Haywood water systems join forces to aid each other in times of need
 

Haywood water systems join forces to aid each other in times of need

From the control room of Canton’s water plant, a steady barrage of numbers flash across the computer monitors.
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In the wake of the drought, Haywood towns besieged by water shortage search for answers
 

In the wake of the drought, Haywood towns besieged by water shortage search for answers

As days slid by without rain last fall, and the days stacked into weeks, Neil Carpenter watched the water gauge…
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Showdown looms over Russ Avenue project
 

Showdown looms over Russ Avenue project

News of a historic portion of Walnut Street’s inclusion in the North Carolina Department of Transportation’s plan for the widening…
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Mountain legislator to be sworn in
 

Mountain legislator to be sworn in

It took Bryson City Republican Mike Clampitt three tries over six years to finally become a member of the North…
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Worth it at every turn: WNC native joins N.C. Court of Appeals
 

Worth it at every turn: WNC native joins N.C. Court of Appeals

As voters cast their ballots each Election Day, judicial races are often overlooked — they’re the least publicized, least funded…
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