Smoky Mountain News

OldTown Bank

Sat05252013

     Subscribe  |  Contact  |  Advertise  |  RSS Feed  |  Other Publications

Subscribe to this RSS feed

Archived (9911)

Children categories

Archived News

View items...

Archived Opinion

View items...

Archived Arts & Entertainment

View items...

Archived Reading Room

View items...

Archived Outdoors

View items...

Archived Mountain Voices

View items...
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Community college building costs come under fire

Haywood Community College leaders say county commissioners are unfairly accusing them of overspending on a new $10.2 million complex where arts and crafts will be taught. Last week, Commissioner Kevin Ensley called it the most expensive building per square foot…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Planning board sends steep slope proposal to Macon commissioners

The Macon County Planning Board voted unanimously March 18 to forward the recommendations of its steep slope committee to the county commissioners. “What I would like to ask is that the planning board take this document before the commissioners and…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Carden wrestles with storyteller legacy

There are two voices inside Sylva storyteller and playwright Gary Carden. One belongs to the mountain man of letters whom author Lee Smith coined “the Appalachian Garrison Keillor.” The other belongs to an orphaned child who clung to a pink…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Friends of the Smokies to unveil new office space

Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park will host an open house from 4 to 6 p.m. on Thursday, March 25, at its office in Waynesville. The Friends office is still located beside Blue Ridge Osondu Books on Main Street,…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Slide sends powerful message to Macon planners

Over the past month a slow-moving landslide behind the Craftsmen Village development in Macon County has worsened, leaving one property owner facing life without a home. Michael Boggan’s house was condemned by the county last week, a decision arrived at…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

For the pregnant and poor, prenatal care can remain out of reach

A pivotal moment arrives every time a pregnancy test turns positive at public health departments across the state. The new mother could walk out the doors, overwhelmed and underprepared, never to return again. She could receive little or no prenatal…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Cashiers Historical Society receives family Bible from 1800s

William and Mary Alice Fryar presented the Cashiers Historical Society with the 19th century Zachary family bible earlier this month. The Bible belonged to one of Cashiers’ early pioneer families, that of Mordecai Zachary. From 1842 until 1852, Zachary constructed…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Engineers stumped on best way to shore up Maggie slide

With federal and state grants in hand, work will soon get underway to stabilize the remnants of a massive landslide still looming precariously over Maggie Valley. “You can see the cracking of the soil. It is obviously very unstable and…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Jackson candidates chose unconventional path to the November ballot

Every so often a dissatisfied electorate injects a third current into the country’s two-party dialogue. It’s happening this year with the Tea Party movement, and it’s also happening spontaneously in Jackson County. Four Jackson County residents who want to be…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

The Naturalist's Corner

Scientist-science Paige Barlow is a University of Georgia PhD candidate working out of the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory in Otto, outside of Franklin. Barlow is researching the effects of land use on different species of birds in Macon County. It’s no…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Cherokee leaders take stock of sustainability goals

Four years ago, Principal Chief Michell Hicks issued a proclamation intended to move the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians towards environmental sustainability. Last week, leaders from the tribe gathered to discuss the impact of Generations Qualla, a grant program created…
Wednesday, 24 March 2010 19:03

Baseball and soccer battle for space at new Haywood rec park

Haywood County residents have another chance to steer plans for a park in Jonathan Creek at a public meeting at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 25. The meeting will be held at the County Office building on Russ Avenue past K-Mart,…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Plans underway for second Waynesville ABC store

Buying alcohol will become a lot more convenient for residents in Haywood County. For the first time in 43 years, a new ABC store will be constructed in Waynesville. The second location will be situated behind Hardee’s on South Main…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Book lovers and our new bookplates

Several weeks ago, I devoted a column to the complicated science of book shelving. Not a few readers responded — often with descriptions of their systems, which they deemed infallible. Shelving by fiction and non-fiction and leaving it at that…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

‘Mountain Traditions’ concert to benefit Shindig on the Green

One of the region’s most beloved and authentic cultural traditions, Shindig on the Green, will present “A Celebration of Mountain Traditions” annual fundraiser with headliner Balsam Range plus Laura Boosinger and Bobby Hicks and the Cole Mountain Cloggers at 7…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Sewer dispute could help redefine TWASA’s mission

A Sylva sewer line that overflowed on a residential property last month has sparked a difference of opinion between the sewer authority and the town that may have larger implications for Jackson County. According to Sylva officials, the owner of…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Library friends reveal interior design plans

The construction of the new Jackson County Main Library has been a community-driven project all along, and last week the community got its first glimpse of what the interior will look like. Friends of the Jackson County Main Library held…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Iconoclast hiker conquers Mountains to Sea Trail

Scot Ward isn’t a missionary, but he does have a burning message. An experienced thru-hiker who carries a copy of Peter Jenkins Walk Across America in the retrofitted box-truck he calls home, Ward wants people to hike the Mountains to…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Maggie may get on board with county erosion control

The Town of Maggie Valley recently transferred the responsibility for building inspections to Haywood County. Now, Maggie is considering handing over soil and erosion control, too. “We could really become a one-stop shop,” said Maggie planning director Nathan Clark. Town…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

From searing to sautéing, the competition is hot at Mélange of the Mountains

Foodies can have it all at the sixth annual Mélange of the Mountains culinary gala in Haywood County. Many of the region’s best chefs will assemble at The Gateway Club in Waynesville to show off their finest fare and engage…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Swain passes moratorium on utility projects

The setting may have been humble –– a nondescript meeting room in a county administration building –– but the Swain County commissioners’ vote to pass a moratorium on communications and utility projects may prove monumental. The vote could force utility…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Recurring money problems pit HCC, county against each other

Haywood Community College leaders are at odds with county commissioners over funding for the college. The county slashed capital contributions to the community college by two-thirds due to the recession. The college counted on the annual funding for repairs and…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Smoky Mountain Center to offload psychiatric services

Smoky Mountain Center has begun the process of transferring its mental health services to private companies in a move that signals the advent of the latest overhaul to the state’s mental health provider network. Last week, Smoky Mountain Center closed…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Restaurant ‘ghost’ plays tricks on owners

Cindy Robertson never for a minute believed in ghosts — that is, until she moved into her new restaurant outside Cherokee. And she’s not alone. A mysterious presence has made converts of every restaurant owner who’s moved into the building…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

The ‘loser’ case may not be all that it appears

By Chris Cox I did not expect to, but I feel sorry for Enka Middle School teacher Rex Roland, who made national news last week when WLOS aired a story that he had written the words, “-20 percent for being…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Franklin becomes an Appalachian Trail Community

The town of Franklin has been officially designated an Appalachian Trail Community. A new program of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy will highlight the value of towns along the trail. Towns are more than waypoints along the trail for hikers to…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

The Naturalist's Corner

Invited for tea I opened the door around 7 a.m. last Saturday and spring hit me square in the face. Actually a cold misty breeze hit me square in the face but I got an earful of spring. “Drink your…
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 18:34

Maggie eases proposed design standards

The Maggie Valley Planning Board has eased requirements on a proposed set of design standards that would shape the town’s appearance in the long-term. The board hopes to replace the haphazard look of the town with more earthy colors, natural…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Learning to treat injuries in the wild

What can you do with a foam pad, rain pants, sleeping bag and an old T-shirt? A whole lot apparently, according to students who have been through wilderness medical training with Landmark Learning. Broken leg? No problem. Dislocated shoulder? Gotcha…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

SBA spreads the wealth wide and far in I-40 rockslide loans

The U.S. Small Business Administration plans to hand over more than $1.4 million in disaster relief loans to a host of unlikely recipients in the region. The low-interest loans are meant to aid businesses distressed by a rockslide that shut…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Dixie dog transport saves lives

With the euthanasia rate at area shelters fluctuating between 50 and 70 percent, animal rescue advocates are literally going the extra mile to save pets that haven’t been adopted. Each month, local volunteers load crates of cats and dogs into…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Waynesville on target with sidewalk construction

Waynesville is a leader when it comes walkable communities, according to a consultant hired to develop a long-range pedestrian plan for the town. “I would like to say this is a unique situation,” Terry Snow with Wilbur Smith Associates told…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Maggie Valley to compel Ghost Town to stabilize lingering slide threat

Ghost Town is far from off the hook for repairing the latest landslide in Maggie Valley. The Rich Cove slide originated from Ghost Town in the Sky amusement park more than a month ago. About 16,000 tons of material remain…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

‘Robinson Kephart,’ editor of adventure books

My weekly deadline is looming. I’m not sure how this is going to turn out. But I’ve been thinking about it, and I’m fairly sure it’s going to be a rambling essay about Horace Kephart, author of Our Southern Highlanders,…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Sylva board blesses Community Table move

Community Table, Sylva’s nonprofit community kitchen, has outgrown its existing facility and is targeting a move to the town’s now-vacant senior center. The county built a new senior center, freeing up space in the old one, which is owned by…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Double your money and land on the Wall of Fame

In today’s economy, people want to stretch their dollars to the max. What if you could actually double your money? Many in Jackson County are doing just that by contributing to the new Jackson County Public Library building fund at…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Tract with road side views of Cowee Mound conserved

The Land Trust for the Little Tennessee has saved a key tract from development along the Little Tennessee River near Cowee Mound. The Land Trust bought three acres that were being marketed for an RV park. The low-lying land, which…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Fighting hunger, one bowl at a time

Fill a bowl, feed a soul, and help fight hunger with a warm heart and a full stomach. The second annual Empty Bowls Dinner is set for Friday, March 12, at Tartan Hall in Franklin. The fundraising event is a…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

The Naturalist's Corner

White Nose Syndrome just miles from WNC The Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency (TWRA) announced in mid-February that two bats from Worley’s cave had tested positive for White Nose Syndrome (WNS). The cave, officially designated Morrell Cave by the U.S. Board…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Sylva pedestrian plan takes shape

The Town of Sylva finalized an agreement with the N.C. Department of Transportation last week that clears the way for a continuous sidewalk to Dillsboro. The town will pitch in $83,000 to build the missing link and maintain the sidewalk,…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

No relief for crowded schools

Despite using every nook and cranny available, Swain County schools are still struggling to track down classroom space for its exploding student population. The number of students at Swain County High School has shot up so dramatically that the school…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Volunteers fight to save animals from euthanasia

Thousands of animals end up in the shelters of Western North Carolina each year, and a small group of volunteers, mostly retired, tries to save them. The absence of strict enforcement of spay/neuter laws is the root of the problem.…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Sylva woman shares experience of Chile earthquake

Sylva resident Susannah Patty thought her trip to Chile would be an adventure, but she didn’t count on living through the fifth biggest earthquake of the century. In her late 20s now and no stranger to travel, Patty says she…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Haywood health board gets more than it bargains for

A proposed health board rule in Haywood County has reignited a debate about how far officials can go when it comes to private property. Public outcry crushed a nuisance ordinance considered by the county last spring. Now, it’s made a…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Cullowhee school grows beyond expectations

Landmark Learning based in Jackson County offers 80 courses a year providing wilderness medical training to 2,000 people across all sectors of the outdoor and medical industry. Many of the courses are held at their campus in Cullowhee and around…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Cherokee hospital uses art to build community

When the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians took over the Cherokee Indian Hospital from the Indian Health Service in 2002, the hospital’s administrators faced a challenge. They wanted the hospital to feel like it belonged to the community, but they…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

A requiem for Cataloochee

Requiem by Fire by Wayne Caldwell. Random House, 2009. 335 pages Dear readers, if you have some slight respect for my opinions about Appalachian literature, I hope you will believe me when I say that Wayne Caldwell has written a…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Elder abuse case shines light on larger issue

If you believe people usually get what they deserve, then the recent conviction of a Jackson County man on elder abuse charges was welcome news. Best of all, it could open the door for similar charges against others taking advantage…
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 16:12

Ghost Town faces June deadline to stave off foreclosure

Ghost Town in the Sky amusement park could be foreclosed on as early as June unless investors step forward with a cash infusion between now and then, according to Ghost Town’s bankruptcy attorney. The theme park in Maggie Valley has…
Wednesday, 03 March 2010 16:12

A guidebook for raising boys

Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys by Stephen James and David Thomas. Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2009. 368 pages. In Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys (13-978-1-4143-2227-8, $14.99), Stephen James and David Thomas make clever use of Maurice…
Page 161 of 199