“Good Neighbors: Good Stewards” continues at the Rickman Store
The second session of “Good Neighbors, Good Stewards: Community and Environmental Change in Macon County” will take place at 11…
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Cashiers Chamber calls on members to support hike in visitor center funding
Leaders of the Cashiers Area Chamber of Commerce are pushing for more funding from the Jackson County Tourism Development Authority…
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New Waynesville ABC store to open
Come September, a brand new $1.3 million South Main Street liquor store will open in Waynesville.
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Face of Sylva board may change come November
Sylva Mayor Maurice Moody has announced he will retire from town government and not seek reelection in the upcoming election.…
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Franklin mayor set to retire
Franklin will soon be saying goodbye to its sitting mayor and longtime town politician Joe Collins. The Franklin native has…
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Town leadership seats up for grabs
Towns across the mountains will hold elections for their mayors and town board leaders this fall. The mandatory sign-up period…
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Multi-agency busts net 60 arrests
Law enforcement agencies in Western North Carolina are cracking down on drug use in the region.
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Democrats organize Waynesville protest against General Assembly’s actions
More than 150 protestors marched in downtown Waynesville Monday to oppose what they characterize as egregious policies by Republican state…
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WNC residents travel to Raleigh for moral Monday rally
When moral Monday protestors gathered this week in front of the legislature in Raleigh to decrying the policies of conservative…
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1882 Cowee Tunnel disaster comes into 21st century spotlight
Charged with stealing, 15-year-old Charles Eason was sentenced to work on a prison chain gang. It was 1882, and the…
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With backs against the wall, Swain hikes taxes
Swain County commissioners last week tentatively agreed to increase the property tax rate by 3 cents to cover a budget…
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Highlands soccer complex gets a green light
Macon County has it sights set on building a new soccer field in Highlands, one of the few mountain communities…
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From more inmates to more foster kids, drug abuse hits Haywood in the wallet
Illegal drug abuse and its repercussions are costing Haywood County taxpayers. An increase in drug use has led to more…
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Cherokee hopes to make inmates pay their own way
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians could make the inmates housed in its future jail pay — literally.
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Inspectors’ job is to determine which bridges are holding up
Delvin Adams stood at the top a ladder leaning against the underbelly of a bridge near Harmon Den in Haywood…
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Waynesville pays homage to historic character with new guidelines
Building owners in Waynesville’s historic districts may have to jump through extra hoops before undertaking renovations or alterations to their…
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Sandwich boards: if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em
Judge not lest ye be judged. The Waynesville Planning Board is delving into the town’s sign ordinance to create more…
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Painting the town orange
A slap-happy spray paint job by a utility contractor has tarnished the quaint brick sidewalks in downtown Waynesville with obtrusive…
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WCU retirees organize to renew old bonds
While many professors and staff members enjoyed their careers teaching, assisting students and helping to keep the ever-growing Western Carolina…
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Feeding ban worked: Fewer ducks and geese now populate Lake Junaluska
There’s been a noticeable decline in the number of ducks and geese at Lake Junaluska since a feeding ban went…
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Cullowhee gets endorsement for land-use planning
Cullowhee community activists have finally made headway in a push to create a community land-use plan to regulate growth and…
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Public forum shows loss of community confidence in HRMC leadership
By Becky Johnson • Staff Writer Community outrage with Haywood Regional Medical Center continues to escalate over a move by…
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Swain change lets the sun shine in
Swain County commissioners have adopted a new policy designed to keep the public more informed and give them a bigger…
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Franklin passes plan to help guide growth
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Franklin’s proposed Principles of Growth flew past town aldermen Monday night in a mere…
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Haywood County prepares for slope ordinance by hiring engineer
Slope development regulations will go into effect in Haywood County on March 1.
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Haywood soda company aims to change palettes
Haywood County just got a little sweeter. Specializing in “handcrafted, locally produced, artisan beverages,” Waynesville Soda Jerks is a new…
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From the backyard to your table
The “Buy Haywood” initiative is a work-in-progress example of how local businesses benefit by connecting with each other.
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NASA helps geologists try to understand WNC landslides
Mitigating the deadly and damaging effects of mountain landslides might be as simple as understanding them.
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Long time street cleaner replaced by work crew
Foot traffic undeniably brings dollars to Waynesville’s downtown businesses. But what the passerby also brings is trash.
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Landslide forces family into unsettled lifestyle
For more than a month, 25-year-old Slyenia Rhein and her three children lived in a single hotel room with her…
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County leaders to kick start discussions on Cullowhee planning district
The effort to introduce zoning laws in Cullowhee is being taken up by Jackson County Commissioners at an upcoming workshop…
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Balsam Lake high and dry as tourist season hits full stride
Repairs to the dam at Balsam Lake in the Nantahala National Forest have been delayed because of high creek levels,…
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Weaker planning regulations discussed June 17
Jackson County commissioners will discuss two sets of proposed planning regulations at an upcoming workshop at 2 p.m. on June…
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Sylva dips into reserves to avoid tax hike
Sylva town leaders have chosen not to raise taxes next year and instead delay town expenditures, save money where they…
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Swain revaluation bumps values up 16.5 percent
Four years after Swain County leaders trashed a skewed property reassessment, the county has completed a new revaluation.
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Some downtown Sylva leaders oppose church move
A church is looking to bring a little more religion to downtown Sylva, but some local business owners, as well…
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Police targeted by sweepstakes industry suits
For law enforcement, video gambling is like a bad case of poison ivy that keeps cropping back up all over…
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A good year to work for Macon: New pay plan includes salary hikes for everyone
Nearly two months after a majority of Macon County commissioners approved a slew of salary raises for all county employees,…
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Waynesville proposes to hold line on taxes, hike water rates and licensing fees
Waynesville officials are looking under a different couch cushion for additional revenue after losing income from sweepstakes operations and its…
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Adding it up
A traffic study was conducted to assess the traffic impacts of a new Super Wal-Mart and Home Depot complex coming…
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Lawsuit seeks lifting of subdivision moratorium
A group of Realtors and developers filed a lawsuit against Jackson County this week over a subdivision moratorium imposed by…
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Ghost Town opening delayed again: Park hammering out ride inspection glitches
After two false starts, Ghost Town in the Sky theme park in Maggie Valley remains closed this week.
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Site chosen for Cashiers liquor store
A new Jackson County liquor store will soon be under construction in Cashiers, with plans to open for business by…
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Jackson library supporters make last-ditch budget pitch
Jackson County commissioners were implored by library advocates this week to give the Sylva and Cashiers libraries a sizeable bump…
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State teaching center in Cullowhee could be shuttered by budget cuts
The North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching in Jackson County had its funding slashed in half in 2011,…
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Cullowhee hitches its college-town dreams to the Tuckasegee River
Lackluster at best and run-down at worst, it’s no question the has-been commercial district on Western Carolina University’s doorstep needs…
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State grant bridges the gap for Jackson greenway
Jackson County will begin building the first leg of a long-awaited greenway along the Tuckasegee River this summer.
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Finding your element
David Burress wants to live forever. Not necessarily in the immortal sense though. Burress is an accomplished blacksmith. And for…
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Downtown Waynesville celebrates Appalachian heritage
An Appalachian Lifestyle Celebration will showcase mountain culture, heritage, music, dance, storytelling, arts and crafts and demonstrations from 10 a.m.…
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Novice Jackson tourism board flounders over budget
The Cashiers Chamber of Commerce leaders claim they have been slighted their fair share of visitor center funding from the…
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