Applicants wanted for Maggie board vacancy
 

Applicants wanted for Maggie board vacancy

Despite the recent election, the Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen still has an empty seat to fill.
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Hawthorn Heights opens new Bryson City shelter
 

Hawthorn Heights opens new Bryson City shelter

While the former Hawthorn Heights teen shelter presented a number of challenges, the only challenge for teens moving into the…
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SBI investigates former SCC employees
 

SBI investigates former SCC employees

A State Bureau of Investigations probe is looking into possible wrongdoing on the part of a pair of former Southwestern…
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SCC gears up to get rid of lead contamination near shooting range
 

SCC gears up to get rid of lead contamination near shooting range

After measuring lead levels of more than 200 times the state limit for safety near its shooting range, Southwestern Community…
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Jackson tourism board considers Webster mayor for director job
 

Jackson tourism board considers Webster mayor for director job

If the selection panel’s pick gets the backing of the full board, Jackson County’s likely to have a new tourism…
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Macon commissioner to seek state office
 

Macon commissioner to seek state office

Macon County Commission Chairman Kevin Corbin announced his plans Monday night to run next year for the North Carolina House…
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Take a stroll, read a book: Franklin nonprofit to install StoryWalks around town
 

Take a stroll, read a book: Franklin nonprofit to install StoryWalks around town

Franklin will soon be joining other communities around the world who are incorporating a love for reading with a love…
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Meet John Burgin, the wizard of Hazelwood
 

Meet John Burgin, the wizard of Hazelwood

From the outside, John Burgin looks like a lucky guy, a guy in the right place at the right time…
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Plans under way for Plott hound art piece in Hazelwood
 

Plans under way for Plott hound art piece in Hazelwood

Hazelwood will soon be home to a sculpture of a Plott hound, the fabled bear-hunting breed steeped in local lore…
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Maxed out: parking crunch in Hazelwood will soon be fixed
 

Maxed out: parking crunch in Hazelwood will soon be fixed

Waynesville is stepping up to the plate to solve a parking bottleneck in Hazelwood Village, with plans to double the…
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Back in the saddle: Once given up for dead, Hazelwood is beating the odds one small business at a time
 

Back in the saddle: Once given up for dead, Hazelwood is beating the odds one small business at a time

It was barely 11 a.m. and Hazelwood was hopping. The scent of freshly roasted coffee beans spilled out of Smoky Mountain…
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Support small businesses Saturday
 

Support small businesses Saturday

What would Western North Carolina’s small towns be like without a strong base of small businesses?
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Democrats scramble to recruit candidates for Haywood commissioner contest
 

Democrats scramble to recruit candidates for Haywood commissioner contest

The ballot for Haywood County commissioner could be a sparse one based on rumblings of who’s running — and more…
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Chinquapin among our most interesting, graceful plants
 

Chinquapin among our most interesting, graceful plants

In 1900 about 35 percent of the deciduous forest in the Southern Appalachians was comprised of American chestnut (Castanea dentata).
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Thanksgiving events planned at Fontana
 

Thanksgiving events planned at Fontana

A week of fall fun will celebrate Thanksgiving at Fontana Village, with a schedule of events including hiking, hunting and…
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Franklin wants help with bike and pedestrian planning
 

Franklin wants help with bike and pedestrian planning

A survey to find out what can be done to make walking and biking in Franklin easier and safer is…
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Trout Unlimited donation will help Smokies trout
 

Trout Unlimited donation will help Smokies trout

Fish habitat and the brook trout populations in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park got a $19,000 boost thanks to…
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License plate grants open for A.T. projects
 

License plate grants open for A.T. projects

A total $30,000 in grants for Appalachian Trail related projects in North Carolina is up for grabs thanks to proceeds…
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Federal bill could change funding for outdoor rec projects
 

Federal bill could change funding for outdoor rec projects

If a bill recently introduced to Congress passes, a federal fund used to support parks and open spaces across the…
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Former Congressman Taylor recognized for forestry career
 

Former Congressman Taylor recognized for forestry career

Former Congressman and Brevard resident Charles H. Taylor was recently named 2015 North Carolina Tree Farmer of the Year by…
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Ski season starts at Cataloochee
 

Ski season starts at Cataloochee

Cataloochee Ski Area opened for the winter last weekend, kicking off the first run of the season at 8:30 a.m.…
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Rare salamander found in new area
 

Rare salamander found in new area

The rare green salamander had never been documented in the Highlands area before, but a September excursion to the Overflow…
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Hitting the ground running: SCC the first to host expanded training for future NPS officers
 

Hitting the ground running: SCC the first to host expanded training for future NPS officers

“I just don’t want to take any chances,” the hard-hatted contractor tells the officers as they get out of their…
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Rash’s poetic prose infuses new novel
 

Rash’s poetic prose infuses new novel

“How near at hand it was If they had eyes to see it.” —G.M. Hopkins
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Stecoah ‘Drive About Tour’
 

Stecoah ‘Drive About Tour’

The 14th annual “Stecoah Arts & Crafts Drive About Tour” will be from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 27-28…
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Tuscola brings Broadway to Haywood
 

Tuscola brings Broadway to Haywood

The performance of “Tuscola Loves Broadway, 50 Years of Celebration!” will be held at 7 p.m. Nov. 21 and 2:30…
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Baker, Boggs bring country, TV premier to Waynesville
 

Baker, Boggs bring country, TV premier to Waynesville

Country singers Kaitlyn Baker and Reagan Boggs will host a viewing party for the Baker/Boggs episode of “Song of the…
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This must be the place
 

This must be the place

Catch him if you can. For the better part of the last 25 years, Scott Weiland has been a moving target…
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The Sounds of Appalachia: Giddens, Holt, Balsam Range to play WCU
 

The Sounds of Appalachia: Giddens, Holt, Balsam Range to play WCU

“David Holt’s State of Music — Live” will take to the stage from 3 to 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 22,…
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When a part of you goes missing
 

When a part of you goes missing

Mike and I were not exactly a match made in heaven. In fact, I didn’t think we were much of…
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If it’s good vs. evil, only one outcome is tenable
 

If it’s good vs. evil, only one outcome is tenable

When terrorism strikes like it did this weekend in Paris, the first reaction to the horror is shock from the…
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Macon County Health warns against bird flu
 

Macon County Health warns against bird flu

Highly pathogenic avian influenza has been detected in commercial and backyard poultry flocks, wild birds, or captive wild birds in…
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Lake Junaluska, Waynesville tire of uphill merger battle
 

Lake Junaluska, Waynesville tire of uphill merger battle

Leaders of Lake Junaluska and the town of Waynesville are weighing whether to try once again to push a merger…
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New property tax values coming to Jackson
 

New property tax values coming to Jackson

The yardstick Jackson County will use to calculate property values next year is up for discussion at a public hearing…
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Swain County to get first FM radio station
 

Swain County to get first FM radio station

Station manager Robert Lowe hopes to have Swain County’s first FM radio station up and running by next week.
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Incinerator moratorium sought; Recycling center opponents are unlikely land-use planning allies
 

Incinerator moratorium sought; Recycling center opponents are unlikely land-use planning allies

A proposed recycling clearinghouse in the Haywood County industrial park outside Canton has been nixed, but a handful of residents…
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Remembering the fallen
 

Remembering the fallen

When William Guffey’s name was first etched on the stone face of the monument outside the old Webster School —…
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Whittier farmers likely to set up shop in Drexel building
 

Whittier farmers likely to set up shop in Drexel building

A group of Whittier farmers hoping to turn the vacant Drexel factory into an agricultural resource got a nod of…
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New EMS base to create centralized public safety campus in Haywood
 

New EMS base to create centralized public safety campus in Haywood

A comprehensive public safety campus is coming into shape in Haywood County with the construction of a new EMS and…
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Franklin elects fresh faces to town board
 

Franklin elects fresh faces to town board

Everyone was a bit surprised on Nov. 3 when the election results came out in Franklin — even the candidates…
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Younger generation changing the face of Franklin
 

Younger generation changing the face of Franklin

Young people growing up in a small town usually have one main goal — to get out.
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Waynesville bans smoking on public sidewalks, subtly and with a smile
 

Waynesville bans smoking on public sidewalks, subtly and with a smile

A smoking ban in public places took effect in Waynesville last week, making it illegal to light up a cigarette…
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Trash or treasure? Jackson leaders discuss future  of the Green Energy Park
 

Trash or treasure? Jackson leaders discuss future of the Green Energy Park

Get off the U.S. 74 exit for Dillsboro, descend the steep hill to the light, turn right for a 1-mile…
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Ghost Town rebranded; Theme park to become Appalachian Village
 

Ghost Town rebranded; Theme park to become Appalachian Village

Ghost Town in the Sky will no longer be a western-themed amusement park come next summer, according to a recent…
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Distillery approved for Maggie Valley
 

Distillery approved for Maggie Valley

Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen welcomed Dave Angel to town Monday night after approving his request for a special exception…
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An even Dirty Dozen: After 120-plus miles in the wilderness, hikers reflect on Wilderness Society challenge
 

An even Dirty Dozen: After 120-plus miles in the wilderness, hikers reflect on Wilderness Society challenge

Olga Pader will always remember the Naked Ground Trail in the Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness as “the hike from hell.”  It…
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Fight the good fight
 

Fight the good fight

"It’s like déjà vu all over again." —Yogi Berra (RIP) Maybe some of you who, like me, are getting longer in…
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Duke pulls the plug on 45-mile transmission line, but will still replace coal plant with natural gas
 

Duke pulls the plug on 45-mile transmission line, but will still replace coal plant with natural gas

In response to public opposition to its proposed 45-mile Foothills Transmission Line, Duke Energy has settled on a revised plan…
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Outdoor camp celebrates its friends
 

Outdoor camp celebrates its friends

A celebration for friends of Outdoor Mission Camp, based in Maggie Valley, will be held 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12,…
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N.C. Arboretum lights up for the holidays
 

N.C. Arboretum lights up for the holidays

More than 200,000 LED lights will illuminate the gardens of the N.C. Arboretum starting Nov. 20 for the second annual…
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