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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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Mountain Momma
Count my daughter among the millions of kids whose first word was “doggy.” For a several-week stretch, “doggy” was also…
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Dog show trots into Waynesville
Western Carolina Dog Fanciers Association, an area AKC Kennel Club, will host an American Kennel Club all breed dog show…
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New discoveries in Kephart presentation
A panel discussion will present recent discoveries and observations relating to legendary Western North Carolina figure Horace Kephart at 7…
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Beer and barbecue in Bryson
A BBQ & Brews Dinner Train will depart at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 22, at the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad…
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Pow Wow festival in Cherokee
The 38th annual Cherokee Pow Wow Festival is June 14-16 at the Acqouni Expo Center (Old Cherokee High School).
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Alt-country, Americana and bluegrass in Balsam
Kim Richey, Irene Kelley and Thomm Jutz will bring an adventurous musical spirit to the Songwriters in the Round series…
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Bluegrass royalty to converge at Cherokee campground
The Cherokee Bluegrass Festival will run from June 13-15 at the Happy Holiday RV Village in Cherokee.
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Appalachian storyteller to play Haywood library
Storyteller/singer-songwriter Dusk Weaver performs at 3 p.m. Sunday, June 16, at the Waynesville Public Library. Weaver is an upbeat entertainer…
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Stecoah arts center receives grant
The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Partnership has announced an award of $10,000 to the Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center…
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This must be the place
I had never seen the color green like that before. Touching down at the Shannon Airport in southwest Ireland, the…
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Finding your roots in Appalachia
Ronan MacGregor didn’t know where he came from. He knew he was of Scottish decent, but that was about it.…
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Smoky Mountain Living magazine seeks reader photos
Smoky Mountain Living prominently features images from across the southern Appalachians in each edition. Photo essays adhere to the issue’s…
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Wi-Fi part of regional wireless initiative
A new 8.5-mile fiber optic cable linking government buildings in Waynesville has recently been installed.
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Now what will the wagging tongues talk about?
Jack Cox and Kayden Zollinger (soon to be Cox, pending paperwork) are proud — and relieved — to announce the…
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Moratorium will preserve building industry, not destroy it
The Jackson County commissioners should move forward with their temporary subdivision moratorium, notwithstanding all the concerns that have been raised…
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The day Uncle Curtis’ rabbits did the town
By Carl Iobst Well if this don’t beat all. Over in eastern Germany where lederhosen, apple strudel, and skinheads are…
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N.C. side of Smokies goes biodiesel
About two dozen diesel vehicles used by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on the North Carolina side of the…
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LTLT preserves 850 acres in Cherokee County
A cattle farm in Cherokee County known as Ridgefield Farm has been preserved for future generations thanks to a conservation…
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Allons au Bayou Noire
I guess the real Bayou Noire would be in Houma or Sulphur or somewhere else across Acadiana, where the slow…
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One acre at a time: Paul Carlson helps set the standard among WNC land trusts
By Michael Beadle Paul Carlson has plenty of maps to show you. There are maps with stars. Color-coded maps of…
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Smokies National Park conducts 530-acre prescribed burn
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park conducted a prescribed burn on a 530-acre tract of forest in the Cataloochee Valley…
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Dial-A-Story: Marianna Black library revives popular kids’ program
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer Christine Tyndall’s voice hits a high note as she reads from the Maurice Sendak…
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The Broken West nails vintage pop — in all the right ways
It’s the tambourine that gives it away. Those insistent eighth notes from the piano during the chorus, the sparkly harmonies…
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Recommended diversions
Nature Deficit Disorder Sometimes, you read an interview and it hits home, hard. Last month’s issue of The Sun, a…
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Thankfully, some books are short
Ludie’s Life by Cynthia Rylant. Harcourt Children's Books, 2006. 128 pages. Sometimes bad things come in small packages.
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River group considers car removal from Tuck
A fledgling effort now under way could lead to the cleanup of junked cars lining the banks of the Tuckasegee…
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Easley urges legislature to fix Medicaid woes
For years, county leaders have been lobbying law makers in Raleigh to stop packing off a portion of Medicaid costs…
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Emotions build in run-up to moratorium hearing
Frenzy surrounding a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson County reached a fever pitch in the run-up to a…
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Project will track growing number of lots
As Western North Carolina wrestles with growth issues, a project is under way to track where and how large mountain…
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This time, neighbors want Wal-Mart’s drawing power
With Wal-Mart’s future in Franklin in limbo, business owners near the existing big-box store continue to worry they’ll lose the…
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Downtown Waynesville wi-fi to go live by April
Since Suzanne Gernandt opened Textures in downtown Waynesville three years ago, she’s noticed one question in particular has been on…
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WCU launches ambitious $40 million campaign
Western Carolina University Chancellor John W. Bardo has officially launched the first comprehensive fundraising campaign in the university’s 118-year history,…
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Chapin channels something powerful in The Calling
In 1992 Mary Chapin Carpenter released Come On, Come On, and though it’s a little hazy as to how I…
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Recommended diversions
Battlestar Galactica Okay, I’ll admit it. I’m a Battlestar fanatic. A few weekends ago, my wife and I glued ourselves…
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Y’all come back
By Michael Beadle The annual foot-stompin’, hand-clappin’, kick-up-your-heels music-and-dance show known as the Summit Country and Western Show at Tuscola…
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A debut reminiscent of other stirring westerns
Back in the 15th century, when Europe underwent a remarkable surge in creativity, the word “Renaissance” (meaning “rebirth”) was frequently…
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Plan to buy building with room tax hike meets opposition
A push to move the Swain County Chamber of Commerce into a vacant bank building is meeting resistance from some…
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Crowded, contentious hearing remains civil
More than 1,300 people crowded into the public hearing last week over a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson…
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Fontana library system has deep roots
The six libraries in Macon, Jackson and Swain counties are part of the Fontana Regional Library system, headquartered at Marianna…
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Moratorium debate reveals deep rift in Jackson
The debate over a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson County is divided into two main camps: those who…
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