Despite a strong public showing against the proposed social district at Sylva’s town meeting on Thursday, commissioners voted 3-2 to approve the measure.

With budget season in full swing, Sylva commissioners have begun discussing their priorities for how to spend taxpayer dollars in the 2022-2023 fiscal year. 

After a bill allowing cities and counties to create their own social districts passed through the general assembly last September, towns across the state are exploring their options. Sylva is among the latest to do so in Western North Carolina. 

On May 25, 2020, the world watched as 46-year-old George Floyd died slowly beneath the knee of a Minnesota police officer — and it continued to watch as an aftermath erupted spanning the gamut from full-on riots to thoughtful discussions about how to make policing kinder and more effective. 

The statue of Harriet Tubman that has been standing at Bridge Park in downtown Sylva depicts a woman in motion. Tubman is actively pressing forward, leading a child behind her. She looks ahead, and slightly up, her face contorted in determination and concentration. 

The statue of Harriet Tubman that has been standing at Bridge Park in downtown Sylva depicts a woman in motion. Tubman is actively pressing forward, leading a child behind her. She looks ahead, and slightly up, her face contorted in determination and concentration. 

Lewis Easton Cantwell, a Sylva resident facing charges related to the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol Building, was expected to strike a plea deal during a virtual court hearing last week but instead announced a change in representation, along with a request to continue the case into 2022. 

Sylva is slated to receive a total of $880,000 in American Rescue Plan funds, but the town has not yet made any decision as to how it will spend the money. 

More than $3 million in the recently enacted state budget will help Sylva reopen Bryson Park, install long-discussed public bathrooms downtown and possibly assist with the expensive repairs the town faces on Allen Street. 

Beating out two incumbent board members, Natalie Newman took the top spot in last week’s Sylva Board of Commissioners election .