Republican candidate files for Jackson commissioner
The race for county commissioner in District 3 of Jackson County will no longer be an uncontested one following Ron…
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Mercury testing expands at Lake Glenville
After testing last year found Lake Glenville’s walleye fish to have some of the highest mercury concentrations in North Carolina,…
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County considers financing EMS headquarters
Haywood County commissioners will hold a public hearing Dec. 21 regarding the construction of a new EMS headquarters beside the…
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Ghost Town rolls out new plan for 2016 season
Alaska Presley has had plenty of good intentions and ideas for Ghost Town in the Sky since she bought the…
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Finding a new fairway for disc golf course
Plans are underway to relocate Waynesville’s disc golf course from the sprawling recreation park along Richland Creek to a more…
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Bringing back the bustle: New businesses move into downtown Sylva
Ask any Sylva long-timer, and they’ll tell you that Main Street today looks a lot different than it did ten,…
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Town deems temporary Fry Street closure a failure
While November is usually still a busy time for downtown Bryson City merchants, Paige Christie said her sales are down…
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Cherokee council vows to crack down on drug dealers
Drug addiction is perhaps the biggest crisis on the Qualla Boundary, and it’s time that tribal government got serious about…
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Cherokee chief vetoes marijuana study; council upholds veto
Just over a month after voting unanimously to study the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana on the Qualla Boundary,…
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In search of a forever home: Number of children in foster care on the rise
In a perfect world, every child would have a loving family and a safe home to return to at the…
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Cell tower companies eye Jackson
An application to build a new cell tower in Cashiers is back on the table, after the company, Crown Castle,…
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LEARN program established at WCU
Western Carolina University, in collaboration with the University of Central Florida and Florida Atlantic University, received $1.8 million from the…
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Fulghum named Innovator of the Year
Cheryl Fulghum, Haywood Community College’s distance learning coordinator, was recently named Innovator of the Year, Western Region by the NC…
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Jackson leaders plan for growing court needs
The start of business Thursday, Dec. 10, will mean the coming-to-order of five different court sessions in Jackson County, a…
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Jackson rec board pushes for indoor pool
It’s been more than two years since Jackson County finished a recreation master plan declaring an indoor pool a top…
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Company looks to revive Cashiers development
In the nearly eight years the Cashiers-area Chinquapin development has been around, just 30 of the planned 200 lots have…
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Schools sue state for diverting education funding to inmates
School systems across the mountains are signing on to a lawsuit against the state to recoup hundreds of thousands of…
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Broyhill upbringing brought peace to Brunck
Roberta Brunk could have easily become a victim of circumstance. Growing up in an abusive home and being moved around…
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Broyhill provides family setting for foster kids
Linda Morgan, executive director at Broyhill Children’s Home in Clyde, said she’s seen the pendulum swing many times during her…
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Couple opens their home, heart for foster children
As Caroline Kernahan talked about why she wanted to be a foster parent, her 4-year-old daughter Claire climbed into her…
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Foster home shortage a challenge for WNC counties
Donna Lupton, director of social work in Haywood County, admits that fostering a child or teen isn’t for everyone.
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Sign ups are underway for commissioner seats
As candidate sign-ups get underway, Swain County commissioner incumbents plan to seek another term.
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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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Planning director search hits a roadblock
Jackson County had been without a planning director for half a year when commissioners sent out a job offer this…
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Brasstown Possum Drop gets bad news in court
Brasstown might be facing another possumless Possum Drop this year after a Wake County judge shot down the state’s motion…
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Council pledges support for extending language immersion program
With the school year nearing its midpoint, sixth-graders at New Kituwah Academy in Cherokee are starting to ask an increasingly…
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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
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
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
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
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 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
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
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
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
Waynesville is stepping up to the plate to solve a parking bottleneck in Hazelwood Village, with plans to double the…
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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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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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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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
A smoking ban in public places took effect in Waynesville last week, making it illegal to light up a cigarette…
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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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