If you come across men in bright orange vests directing traffic around crews handling a towering power pole into the ground, steer clear and drive slow.

Skateboarders from across Western North Carolina have streamed into Waynesville during the past week to try out the town’s newly opened $400,000 skate park.

A fiery inferno blasts through the sheet metal like a hot knife through butter. The screeching sound of a grinder echoes down into the valley surrounding Waynesville. Flipping up her face shield, metal sculptor Grace Cathey wipes her brow, smiles momentarily then shuts the mask back down. She’s in the midst of her creation and all focus is on the task at hand.

“I’ve been an artist in this area for over 32 years and I’ve had so much support from the community. It’s overwhelming and I feel so blessed,” she said. “I chose this community because I knew this would be a great place to live, and it has been.”

A new public art sculpture will be unveiled in downtown Waynesville this week by renowned Western North Carolina metal sculptor Grace Cathey.

When Rodney and Lorraine Conard took the keys to the shuttered Strand movie theater two years ago, the hulking shell was like a blank canvas full of promise — a tad dusty, worn and tattered, but it was loved once and surely could win Waynesville’s heart again.

The inaugural Waynesville Craft Beer Festival will be from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 31, at the American Legion baseball field in Waynesville.

Pending changes to Waynesville’s sign laws could pave the way for sidewalk sandwich boards downtown, but they aren’t legal yet.

Waynesville officials will hold a public hearing next week on an ordinance that would pave the way for street performers, known colloquially as “buskers,” to play in the town’s public spaces in hopes of making a buck or two from passersby. 

Lake Junaluska community leaders gave residents a first look at how its service fees will increase since its merger with Waynesville was thwarted, at least temporarily.

Following a nine-month undercover investigation, six people were charged with conducting illegal activities, including selling moonshine and gambling, at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post in Waynesville.