Archived

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Blue Ridge workers hopeful after buyout

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer In the end, the acquisition of Blue Ridge Paper Products by the New Zealand-based Rank Group for $338 million last week may have been the result of the purchase of a single factory in…

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Chief’s race pits incumbent against gaming official

A tight race could be in store for the two candidates vying for principal chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians between now and the final election in September.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Dam Break: Scale of disaster leaves community reeling

A dam broke on an irrigation pond at Balsam Mountain Preserve in Jackson County two weeks ago unleashing hundreds of tons of mud downstream.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Franklin studies upgrades to 1950s zoning laws

Unlike most town and county governments in Western North Carolina, Franklin’s elected leaders had the foresight more than five decades ago to pass zoning regulations.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Gauging the fallout: Opinions vary on effect of Jackson’s proposed development rules

As Chuck Bennett rang up a sale at his electrical supply store in Cashiers, he showed no fear of the business slowdown some predict as fallout from a slate of development regulations coming down the pipe in Jackson County.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Ghost Town’s economic ripple has hopes high

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer It appears that the re-opening of Ghost Town in the Sky on Memorial Day weekend has made the town of Maggie Valley anything but.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

A great look, but too expensive

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Architects last week unveiled plans for a new three-level building that will house the Waynesville Police Department and town planning offices.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Parking downtown: Tickets cause controversy in Waynesville

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Parking for free Public parking for as long as you want in downtown Waynesville:

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Rash of private dams altering WNC landscape

The damming of creeks and streams by private developments is on the rise in Western North Carolina — so much so that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has voiced concern over the cumulative impacts.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Beware the leaves of three

If you like native Appalachian plants that are variable and adaptive, have interesting natural histories with abundant associations in both Cherokee and early white settler folklore, add immeasurably to the fall landscape with vivid colors, and provide nutritious fare for…

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Some gifts are always keepers

Kayden is doing her very best not to tell me about the preparations she and mom and Jack have made for Father’s Day, but she is 6 years old, and at this age especially, secrets are like little, wet bars…

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Shuler shows that he will vote his conscience

Those who supported Heath Shuler’s bid to represent this region in Congress probably did not believe the detractors who spent most of the last election harping about how he would become Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s lapdog once he arrived in Washington.…

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Donors honored for conservation easements

The Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust honored those that donated land and conservation agreements in 2006 at a recent celebration.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Electric vehicles

Most people tend to think of electric (EVs) and hybrid (HEVs) vehicles in the same sphere, but the two are quite different with their own sets of pros and cons. Electric cars are powered solely by batteries that must be…

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

How ‘bout the trout?

By Michael Beadle Fishing for something fun to do this weekend? Head downstream to the Maggie Valley Fairgrounds for the 18th Annual Smoky Mountain Trout Festival on Saturday, June 23.

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

The rhythm method weekend

By Chris Cooper It’s been a year at least since I did a live show review, and it’s likely that that last review involved Sylva’s one bright hope for a live music venue, Guadalupe Café. I’m also pretty certain that…

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Recommended diversions

Traveling Wilburys Re-release On June 12 the Traveling Wilburys re-released the supergroup’s two albums along with (depending on whether you buy the deluxe or standard edition) bonus DVD content and 40-page collectible book with photos, original liner notes, new liner…

Wednesday, 20 June 2007 00:00

Literature deprived

Certain genres of literature fare better when critically judged by the standards of that particular genre rather than by any general literary criteria. Christian fiction, for example, while entertaining and appealing to a certain audience, would be buried — with…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Women to watch

By Chris Cooper In the mid 90’s it would’ve been nearly impossible to write about “new to the scene” female artists without mentioning Paula Cole. You know, “Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?” and all that.

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Recommended diversions

A Man, A Can, A Plan My youngest son and I have gotten a kick out of using this cookbook this summer. Subtitled “50 Great Guy Meals Even You Can Make,” this durable, stain-resistant cookbook should be in every guy’s…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

A clean miss

Gun Show Nation: Gun Culture and American Democracy by Joan Burbick. New Press, 2007. 288 pages. While teaching Latin at Tuscola High School in the late 1990s, I occasionally used some old copies of Jenney’s Latin I for extra exercises…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Bryson City touted as third best ‘Outdoor Town’ in America

Bryson City’s tourism leaders have long touted this Swain County town as the Outdoor Adventure Capital of the Great Smoky Mountains, and a book now available in stores nationwide helps undergird their claim.

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Unrealized dreams: Much heralded 1999 agreement fails to deliver for workers

When Howard Taylor heard what workers at Blue Ridge Paper Products were being offered as part of a pending buyout of the mill in April, he realized his work was cut out for him.

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Rise in dog bites sparks concerns

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Walking his dog in a Waynesville neighborhood one summer evening several weeks ago, fear was the farthest thing from Dan Elliott’s mind. So when a pit bull came charging after Elliott and his 80-pound…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

The mysterious art of dowsing

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Searching for the term “dowsing” on the Internet will bring up all kinds of Web sites related to the paranormal. But to many who practice the craft, including Alvin Fradey, dowsing is simply an…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

New life for an old Sylva graveyard

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer After decades of neglect, an overgrown hill in Jackson County holding the remains of residents of the old Jackson County Home was nearly forgotten. Thanks to the determination of one man, however, the old…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Whittier golf course to re-open

Following months of course reconstruction, Smoky Mountain Country Club in Whittier will re-open 9 holes of golf this weekend.

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

The elusive hellbender

Have you ever noticed that once you start thinking about something or someone you haven’t seen in awhile, it’s not long before he, she, or it pops up? This can be disconcerting when it’s a he, she, or it you…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Bar fight in the Blue Ridge – the battle for the 11th District

By John Armour You’d think that what happens in Western North Carolina, in the 11th Congressional District, isn’t very important to the powers-that-be in Washington. That’s usually so. But not now. And two extraordinary events that have occurred a year…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Waynesville building fits well with downtown

A government building for a mountain town that looks like it belongs in the mountains? Funny how that is going to work out for the town of Waynesville but never could come to fruition for Haywood County and the justice…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Bush goes south of the border for popularity

By Kirkwood Callahan • Guest Columnist Concerned Americans await the concluding acts of the political drama the president and his allies call “comprehensive immigration reform.” Many questions remain unanswered. The most salient is: Why are the president and Republican leaders…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

We can’t stop the changes

Some have charged that the true, underlying sentiment among those who support stringent development regulations in Jackson County — and elsewhere in Western North Carolina — is a desire to stop all growth and keep newcomers away. Build a wall,…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Life too often revolves around the minutiae

By Stephanie Wampler Stuff. Life is all about the stuff, isn’t it? We have stuff to amuse us, educate us, make our work easier, and do our work for us. We work hard so that we can buy more stuff.…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Working triple time in Jackson County

By Nancy Geiger • Guest Columnist My daughter, Brittany, is staying at Western Caroina Univesity this summer. The hotel she has been working at wanted her year-round, and since her sorority house stays open and charges for her room all…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

Chattooga at the crossroads

A recurring debate between camps in the Chattooga River controversy is how many paddlers would actually come to the river. The paddling community claims it won’t be very many, nor very often. They say they need at least two days…

Wednesday, 27 June 2007 00:00

The hype on hybrids

Editor’s note: Naturalist Don Hendershot is writing a series of columns exploring the use of alternative energy and fuels. Hybrids are supposed to offer the best of both worlds, quiet electrical propulsion for stop-and-go driving and the power of…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:49

The hardest tree in North America

I wrote a tribute to the black locust tree some time back. It’s time to take another look. This time around we’ll incorporate the perspectives of a French arborist who visited America during the mid-nineteenth century. Locust is a winter…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:47

Hiking club rolls out two new trail challenges

To celebrate its 90th anniversary, the Carolina Mountain Club Challenge committee has added two new hiking challenges this year to its lineup.

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:46

Sign-up for behind-the-scenes look at the Smokies

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is beginning a new program that allows nearby residents, business people, teachers and community members to see the everyday workings of the national park.

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:44

News for gardeners

Beginning farmers in Swain and Jackson counties can get an agricultural microloan of up to $35,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency.

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:39

Conservancy adds on to protected Roan Mountain lands

A 601-acre tract in Avery County near Roan Mountain has been purchased and conserved by the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy. The tract is adjacent to the Pisgah National Forest and near the Appalachian Trail in the Highlands of Roan. The…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:37

Arrrggghh – a wintry mix

Limeade, tequila and cointreau is not a wintry mix — that is a margarita; something you may resort to when a wintry mix turns your driveway into a sheet of ice. The ingredients for a wintry mix are a combination…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:35

National A.T. gathering making the trek to Cullowhee this summer

A large Appalachian Trail gathering is coming to Western Carolina University this summer, and local trail clubs hosting the week-long conference are recruiting volunteers to help during the event The Appalachian Trail Conservancy will hold is biennial meeting in Cullowhee…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:33

150 and counting: WCU grad student research helps get a handle on impacts of mounting numbers of elk

By Jill Ingram • Guest writer, WCU public affairs office Covering long distances in and around Cataloochee Valley, a Western Carolina University student is researching the growing, and sometimes problematic, elk population in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:28

Kerouac still matters, though the perspective has shifted

Of all the Beat writers of the 1940s and 1950s — Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, John Clellon Holmes, Gary Snyder, and others — it is Jack Kerouac who most fascinates post-millennial readers. His works remain in print; he has inspired…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:12

We need to keep track of all firearms

To the Editor: I miss Martin Luther King. His enlightened reason and fervent advocating for equal rights is sorely missed. Unfortunate that a man with a gun chose to end his life. Make no mistake about it, there have always…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:11

Timber harvest at Devil’s Courthouse a good idea

To the Editor: Nature abhors a vacuum. Mother Nature assures change. Organisms are constantly adapting, changing, improving, evolving. Understand-ing life cycles in nature assists man in many ways. We can collect water, grow vegetables, clear land, harvest timber, fish for…

Wednesday, 30 January 2013 14:10

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