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Give your vegetable garden a head start
 

Give your vegetable garden a head start

By Jim Janke The last frost date is many weeks away, but everyone is anxious to get vegetable seeds and…
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Climbers asked to relinquish cliffs for peregrine falcons
 

Climbers asked to relinquish cliffs for peregrine falcons

Wildlife biologists are asking rock climbers to avoid known nesting habitats of the peregrine falcon as breeding and nesting season…
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Conservatism with a small “c”
 

Conservatism with a small “c”

Ain’t My America: The Long, Noble History of Antiwar Conservatism and Middle-American Ant-Imperialism by Bill Kauffman. Metropolitan Books, 2008. 304…
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Popeyed pleasures
 

Popeyed pleasures

Many people who spend some time walking the woodland stream banks and other wet areas here in the Smokies region…
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Swain pushes Bryson fire department aside in turf war
 

Swain pushes Bryson fire department aside in turf war

Prominently displayed in the window of the Bryson City Fire Department last week were several signs with the same defiant…
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Physicians, HRMC may partner on surgery center
 

Physicians, HRMC may partner on surgery center

The prospect of an outpatient surgery center in Haywood County has drawn support from 14 doctors willing to pitch in…
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Press awards recognize ‘dogged commitment’
 

Press awards recognize ‘dogged commitment’

The Smoky Mountain News won four awards for its news coverage in the recent North Carolina Press Association News and…
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Churches pool to offer refuge for homeless in Sylva, Waynesville
 

Churches pool to offer refuge for homeless in Sylva, Waynesville

A homeless shelter has opened in Sylva to provide an escape from the frigid nights. The shelter, located at Lifeway…
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Flood Relief Funds: What really happened
 

Flood Relief Funds: What really happened

By Denise A. Mathis • Guest Column One of the most publicized criminal cases in Haywood County history centered around…
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Waynesville mourns passing of long-time alderman
 

Waynesville mourns passing of long-time alderman

Waynesville Alderman Kenneth Moore passed away Monday (March 2) after a heart attack. He was 74. Moore was the former…
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The Naturalist's Corner
 

The Naturalist's Corner

Peregrine pads protected Rock climbing trails across the Carolina mountains near known peregrine falcon nest sites have once again been…
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Tough year for HRMC teaches hard lessons
 

Tough year for HRMC teaches hard lessons

It’s a cultural tradition in nearly every society, the firm belief that people and institutions become stronger once they’ve been…
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Canton town manager search drags on
 

Canton town manager search drags on

There are just two candidates left in the bid to be Canton’s next town manager, but Mayor Pat Smathers said…
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Franklin man banned from bringing knife to church
 

Franklin man banned from bringing knife to church

A member of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Franklin is prohibited from bringing his hunting knife to church after another…
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Canton stuck in bidding quagmire
 

Canton stuck in bidding quagmire

A flawed bidding process for a demolition job that left a local company out of the loop is causing a…
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New park visitor center to showcase stored artifacts
 

New park visitor center to showcase stored artifacts

A design has been finalized for a new $3 million visitor center at the North Carolina entrance to the Great…
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The stories of everyday people: NPR’s StoryCorps coming to Asheville
 

The stories of everyday people: NPR’s StoryCorps coming to Asheville

By Christi Marsico • Staff Writer Capturing a grandmother’s story of survival, a fiancé’s sigh, or a best friend’s joke…
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Airport runway battle heats up in Macon: Cherokee fight to save artifacts from destruction
 

Airport runway battle heats up in Macon: Cherokee fight to save artifacts from destruction

Emotions are sizzling over a plan to extend the Macon County Airport runway over Cherokee burial grounds and artifacts. At…
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Smokies keeps status as most visited national park
 

Smokies keeps status as most visited national park

The economy and high gas prices last summer led to slightly fewer visitors in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park…
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New polling place to end Cherokee voters’ commute to Bryson
 

New polling place to end Cherokee voters’ commute to Bryson

People in Cherokee will no longer have to drive or hitch rides into Bryson City to cast ballots during early…
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Angry residents call nuisance ordinance ‘a bunch of garbage’
 

Angry residents call nuisance ordinance ‘a bunch of garbage’

A proposed Haywood County ordinance that prohibits various kinds of waste and junk was harshly criticized by speaker after speaker…
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HRMC: A timeline
 

HRMC: A timeline

Oct. 2006-Feb. 2008 — HRMC has several problems with federal inspectors, culminating in the threat to revoke its ability to…
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Purported mega-development disappears from radar
 

Purported mega-development disappears from radar

Cataloochee Wilderness Resort, a 4,500-acre proposed development in Haywood County’s Jonathan Creek community, appears to have fallen off the map.…
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Cowbirds a favorite to despise
 

Cowbirds a favorite to despise

Some folks can’t stand house sparrows (a native of north Africa and Eurasia) while others detest starlings (a native of…
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The new watchdogs: After crisis, hospital board renews emphasis on oversight
 

The new watchdogs: After crisis, hospital board renews emphasis on oversight

Today at HRMC, 10 sets of eyes peer over the shoulders of the hospital administration, ready and willing to question…
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Jackson library deserving of community support
 

Jackson library deserving of community support

Deduction would tell us that in the information age libraries would be accorded great respect, but somehow that isn’t universally…
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In tough times, local company looks to expand
 

In tough times, local company looks to expand

In yet another piece of positive economic news, Waynesville-based Haywood Vocational Opportunities announced a proposed expansion that would create at…
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Child still in critical condition after dog mauling in Sylva
 

Child still in critical condition after dog mauling in Sylva

A 7-year-old Jackson County boy is fighting for his life after being mauled by a dog last week, according to…
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Shuler said he’ll fight for stimulus funds
 

Shuler said he’ll fight for stimulus funds

U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-Waynesville, spoke to a crowd of about 200 town and county government officials from Western North…
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Pop Music Icon Chubby checker swings through Cherokee Feb. 28
 

Pop Music Icon Chubby checker swings through Cherokee Feb. 28

By Christi Marsico • Staff Writer Chubby Checker clears his throat and states with pomp, “I plan on tearing the…
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Haywood extends token to Canton solar farm
 

Haywood extends token to Canton solar farm

FLS Solar Energy wants a tax break from Haywood County in exchange for an $8 million solar farm the company…
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For young illegals, a coming-of-age quandary
 

For young illegals, a coming-of-age quandary

Irene is not just a good student. She is one of the very best at her school, near the top…
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The Naturalist's Corner: Black oil sunflower seed is king
 

The Naturalist's Corner: Black oil sunflower seed is king

One thing became clear during my little bird feeding experiment. If you’re looking for one birdseed that will attract just…
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Brooding obsessions
 

Brooding obsessions

Dying Light by Donald Hays. MacAdam/Cage, 2006. 261 pages In recent years, I’m sure that the average reader feels intimidated…
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Poore a ‘breath of fresh air’: CEO’s congenial personality and industry knowledge impress community
 

Poore a ‘breath of fresh air’: CEO’s congenial personality and industry knowledge impress community

As Mike Poore waited for an elevator between floors at Haywood Regional Medical Center Monday morning, he gazed out the…
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Back from the brink: A year later, turn around for HRMC is on the horizon
 

Back from the brink: A year later, turn around for HRMC is on the horizon

Last February, a crisis landed on the doorstep of Haywood Regional Medical Center. After failing federal inspections, the hospital lost…
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Sylva board rift heats up
 

Sylva board rift heats up

Split votes are becoming increasingly common on the Sylva town board, throwing into question whether the board can meet its…
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Free clinic plugs mental health holes
 

Free clinic plugs mental health holes

By Marth Teater • Guest Columnist The Good Samaritan Clinic of Haywood County has served the medical needs of our…
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Could hops be one of WNC’s new cash crops?
 

Could hops be one of WNC’s new cash crops?

Tobacco is no longer the cash crop it once was in North Carolina, but its partner in crime — hops…
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Carden’s insights and answers to Appalachian 101
 

Carden’s insights and answers to Appalachian 101

What would surprise someone the most about the Appalachian culture? Well, assuming that they are not Appalachian, it would probably…
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The Naturalist's Corner: 4TH Annual Hendershot Birdapalooza
 

The Naturalist's Corner: 4TH Annual Hendershot Birdapalooza

The results are in and the fourth annual Hendershot Birdapalooza at Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Monroe, Louisiana…
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Loss of Hazelwood prison likely just a matter of time
 

Loss of Hazelwood prison likely just a matter of time

Local legislators are preparing to fight yet another attempt by the state to close the only minimum security prison west…
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Spare me some spears
 

Spare me some spears

By Sandi Simons-Crawford Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) is one of very few perennial vegetables. A properly managed bed will produce for…
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A ray of hope in the mental health crisis
 

A ray of hope in the mental health crisis

When it comes to caring for the mentally ill in North Carolina, there’s been very little good news over the…
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Aldermen deny exploiting ‘Slategate’
 

Aldermen deny exploiting ‘Slategate’

Two Franklin aldermen said they didn’t whip up controversy regarding slate to get back at Mayor Joe Collins but because…
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A call to action for the Southern Appalachians
 

A call to action for the Southern Appalachians

By Brent Martin • Guest Columnist In an article in Blue Ridge Country magazine, author and professor Steve Nash provided…
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The age of acting and the rapture of writing
 

The age of acting and the rapture of writing

The Age of Dreaming by Nina Revoyr. Akashic Books, 2008. 320 pages Every once in a while a novel comes…
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Hair Wars: May the gel be with you
 

Hair Wars: May the gel be with you

By Christi Marsico • Staff Writer Movie stars are coming to Cullowhee. With a snip here and a dye job…
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A long and winding road
 

A long and winding road

Sylva’s current library opened in 1970 and is 6,400 square feet. The debate over where to locate a new library…
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Paver design chosen for Waynesville police station
 

Paver design chosen for Waynesville police station

Courtney Boessel’s “Patchwork Community” was chosen as the winning entry for Waynesville’s new police station paver design as part of…
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