After threats, Waynesville revises public comment policy
The Town of Waynesville will no longer require speakers at its public comment sessions to reveal their addresses, after a raucous July 25 meeting where some speakers voiced concern over identifying their residences due to violent threats made against the LGBTQ+ community that resulted from a man’s unfounded allegations of indecent behavior at the Waynesville Recreation Center on July 12.
Waynesville establishes environmental sustainability board
Long a leader among Western North Carolina’s local governments in the field of environmental sustainability, the Town of Waynesville has taken recent steps to ensure it becomes carbon neutral before 2050 by establishing an oversight board to research, adopt and implement responsible management strategies.
Softball starting in Waynesville
Get ready for softball season with an organizational meeting for an adult co-ed league at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 21, at the Vance Street Park pavilion in Waynesville.
Candidate withdraws from Waynesville Council race
The field got just a little bit smaller in the race for Waynesville Town Council last week, as one of the nine candidates seeking four available seats withdrew.
There is room at the table for all
To the Editor:
Congratulations to the Smoky Mountain News and Cory Vaillancourt!
Wish Haywood Waterways a happy 25th birthday
Help Haywood Waterways Association celebrate its 25th birthday with trivia and reminiscing 2-5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 19, at BearWaters in Waynesville.
HART presents ‘Every Brilliant Thing’
A one-hour, one-person show, a production of “Every Brilliant Thing” by Duncan MacMillan will be held at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 4-5, 11-12, 17-19 and 2 p.m. Aug. 6, 13 and 20 on the Fangmeyer Stage at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.
Community makes things less scary
To the Editor:
After attending the meeting on Tuesday evening at the Waynesville Town Hall, one of the speeches that stuck with me the most wasn’t one I would have expected — it was the dad who said he was afraid for his daughters, and that while he felt for people who believed they were stuck in the wrong bodies, he shouldn’t have to worry every time they went into a bathroom.
Waynesville forms Environmental Sustainability Board
The Town of Waynesville is looking for members to serve on its new Environmental Sustainability Board.
Waynesville unites against hate and bigotry after false trans allegations
Claims of indecent behavior involving a transgender person at the Waynesville Recreation Center roiled this tight-knight rural community last week, even after a town investigation found no evidence that any crimes were committed and that one of the allegations was completely unsubstantiated.
But if those allegations were meant to divide, deride or dishearten the people of Haywood County, they’ve proven to be a spectacular failure after a recent meeting of the Waynesville Town Council that will be remembered as a watershed moment for LGBTQ+ rights in a small Appalachian town nestled right in the heart of MAGA country.
