Haywood Republican Rep. Mark Pless is closer than ever to getting partisan local elections in his district — part of a growing trend by North Carolina conservatives hoping to “out” Democrats at the polls this coming November, or sooner.

Continuing to make bold steps in addressing Haywood County’s affordable housing crisis, the Town of Waynesville Board of Aldermen voted March 26 to increase the amount of incentives it will provide for an 84-unit development off Howell Mill Road.

Every seat on Waynesville’s Board of Aldermen will be up for election this year, but if the town’s plan for pursuing the staggered terms comes to pass, the order in which candidates finish will be important. The top two finishers will be awarded four-year terms, and the next two finishers will be awarded two-year terms.

Sharon Franks, the embattled chair of Waynesville’s Cemetery Committee who sent a scathing email to a committee member for reporting a parking situation at Green Hill Cemetery, has resigned without fulfilling a public records request in accordance with state law.

A story published in today’s edition of the Waynesville Mountaineer contained inaccurate information about Pactiv Evergreen’s facility in Waynesville, a county official with knowledge of the situation told The Smoky Mountain News this morning.

The initial shock of Pactiv Evergreen’s announcement that its Canton paper mill would soon cease operations hasn’t quite worn off for some, but the various parties affected by the closing have begun to take actions to mitigate the impact that has only just begun.

The Town of Waynesville’s municipal governing board has taken steps to modernize its operations by proposing amendments to its charter — changing both the terms it uses to refer to elected representatives, and how those representatives are elected to their terms.

Despite strong opposition last year, Rep. Mark Pless (R-Haywood) has again filed a bill that if passed would bring partisanship into some of Western North Carolina’s municipal governments.

All the world’s a stage, Shakespeare wrote, and all the men and women merely players. But with the recent uptick in bad actors consistently providing misinformation to Waynesville’s Board of Aldermen, a proposal to increase transparency by broadcasting meetings got bogged down over concerns that the videos would simply end up as food for trolls.

When is an alderman not an alderman? When that alderman happens to be a woman.