SMN staff
Incumbent Alderman Dann Jesse will return to the Town of Clyde Board of Aldermen, along with a new face, Amy Russell.
Work will start soon to add an acceleration lane from Interstate 40 East to U.S. 74A for $1.3 million.
Environmental groups working to improve water quality in Haywood, Buncombe and Madison counties recently received 10 grants totaling $285,190 from The Pigeon River Fund of The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina.
The Sandy Mush Game Lands in Buncombe and Madison counties are now 67 acres larger after the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy helped the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission acquire the property.
After closing it four years ago, the U.S. Forest Service has decided to decommission and remove the Overmountain Shelter, located on the Appalachian Trail near Roan Mountain.
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is looking for volunteers to expand its Elk Volunteer-in-Park Program in 2024.
A recently completed study on microplastics in Western North Carolina has revealed that even remote headwater streams are impacted, as a large percentage of microplastics in waters tested came from atmospheric deposition.
A newly released book from the Great Smoky Mountains Association compiles written accounts from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s archives spanning more than 230 years.
The Maggie Valley Sanitary District again earned top marks for water quality from the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, one of 15 facilities to be recognized with the “Gold Star” honor for systems that have received an award for exceeding drinking water standards for 10 or more consecutive years.
Dubbed ‘Asheville’s brightest holiday tradition,’ Winter Lights opens Friday, Nov. 17, with the brilliant display open daily 6-10 p.m. through Sunday, Dec. 31, at the N.C. Arboretum.
The growing season is winding down, but Haywood County Master Gardeners are still available to answer questions about all manner of plant-related issues.
Earn your place as a cornhole champion during a tournament at 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 18, at the Cullowhee Recreation Center in Cullowhee.
Haywood County is home to a slew of state medalists in this year’s North Carolina Senior Games.
A Haywood County jury found a former jailer-turned-security guard guilty of strangling, raping and assaulting his then-wife.
A bartender has been criminally charged following a single-vehicle collision in Macon County.
The campground at Gorges State Park in Transylvania County is closed through Nov. 16 after a bear attacked an RV last week.
Prescribed burns on about 1,200 acres of fields in Cades Cove are taking place this fall.
A burn ban has been issued for 14 Western North Carolina counties in the face of expanding drought following the state’s 10th-driest October since records began in 1895.
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is moving ahead with significant changes to the Laurel Falls Trail intended to improve visitor experience at the popular site, with an 18-month closure to start next year.
Mainspring Conservation Trust has received $175,000 to clean up and restore a brownfield site near Nikwasi Mound in Franklin. The money will help Mainspring remediate petroleum-contaminated soils on a vacant gravel lot in downtown Franklin.
Residents in the furthest west counties may see smoke over the coming months as the Cherokee National Forest carries out prescribed burns on an estimated 18,500 acres in Monroe and Polk counties, Tennessee, which abut Graham and Cherokee counties in North Carolina.
A former Haywood Country resident who now lives in Virginia was arrested after she allegedly kidnapped three of her children on the afternoon of Thursday, Oct. 6.
Haywood County’s three Rotary Clubs collected non-perishable food on Sept. 30 at the Canton and Waynesville Ingles locations.
The Governor’s Highway Safety Program identified the seven western counties as a pilot region to test new strategies to curb drunk driving.
The Highlands Cashiers Health Foundation has awarded 14 grants totaling over $1.4 million in the 2023 grant cycle.
Vaya Health unveiled the latest addition to its “Pathways to Permanency” program.
Through Nov. 18, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is accepting comments on a proposal to add 9 new miles to the Foothills Parkway, extending it from Wears Valley to the spur near Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.
Crews are now working to reconstruct the viewing platform atop Mount Pisgah in the Pisgah National Forest, a project that is expected to take about two weeks to finish.
A 4-mile hike exploring the Waynesville Watershed will embark at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 7.
The Panther Top Tower in the Nantahala National Forest near Murphy will be open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 28-29 and Nov. 4-5, offering spectacular views of fall colors in the surrounding mountains.
Spend November exploring some of the region’s most beautiful hikes with a slate of excursions offered through Haywood County Recreation and Parks.
Experience the hemlock trees growing at the historic Cradle of Forestry in America during a hike starting at 10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 4.
Help shape a strategic action plan for the Blue Ridge Parkway corridor during the Blue Ridge Rising Two-State Summit Dec. 5-6 at Meadowbrook Inn in Blowing Rock.
Learn about the historic threats facing the French Broad River and an ongoing effort to secure the designation of Wild and Scenic River for the North Fork during the next meeting of the WNC Sierra Club at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1, at the University of North Carolina Asheville’s Reuter Center.
The Town of Franklin has contracted with Buckeye Bridge, LLC to replace approximately 3,630 linear feet of waterline on Clyde Street. This project will begin at 7 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 23. Work will begin at the town water tank on Clyde Street and move down Watauga Street to Lakeside Drive. This is a project that will last for several months with work being done between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Members of the Western Carolina University family will come together to recognize three prominent alumni for their career accomplishments and to honor a longtime proponent of economic development across Western North Carolina as part of the university’s celebration of Homecoming 2023.
Join Haywood Regional Medical Center for a Lunch and Learn this Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
A contractor for the N.C. Department of Transportation began a project to repair the left lane of I-40 West between the I-26/I-240 interchange and Smoky Park Highway (Exit 44) with a full-time lane closure now in effect.
The Board of Directors of the Great Smokies Health Foundation has awarded $539,235 to 24 organizations for a variety of health, wellness and prevention initiatives across Graham, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties.
The first snow of the season has fallen in the Southern Appalachians.
About 185 people attended a Sept. 26 public input session to chart the future of Pisgah View State Park, and an online survey remains open through Oct. 20.
Drought is strengthening in southwestern North Carolina, with 14 counties now in moderate drought and an additional 58 labeled abnormally dry.
The seventh annual North Carolina Native Plants Week is underway, running Oct. 16-22, and Audubon North Carolina is encouraging people to celebrate by planting native species in their own yards or gardens. Plants require less water this time of year, but they also still have enough time to establish before colder winter weather.
Friends of Panthertown will celebrate the grand opening of its first ever official headquarters and office space during a drop-in event noon to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 25, at 116 Central St. in Sylva.
Funding is available to help homeowners fix failing septic systems, preventing both financial and environmental hardship.
Macon County residents will not have to travel far to attend Pisgah Legal Services’ 13th Annual Justice Forum. A special Watch Party for the Oct. 17 event will be held at Macon County Public Library.
The Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina has named Waynesville resident Kathleen “Merritt” Tongen of L.N. Davis Insurance Agency in Waynesville as its 2023 Young Agent of the Year for the state of North Carolina.
More than half a million low-income, uninured North Carolinians will gain access to comprehensive health coverage when Medicaid expansion launches on Dec. 1, 2023.
A new invasive species has been found in North Carolina.
Drought has re-entered the western region, with the most recent drought conditions map labeling Transylvania and Henderson counties as experiencing moderate drought.
