EPA begins soil removal in Barber’s Orchard
Six years after the Environmental Protection Agency said it would cart away the arsenic-tainted topsoil from Haywood County’s Barber’s Orchard…
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Tribe gets future say in state prioritizations of road projects
Recognizing that Cherokee has roads, too, a transportation-planning group for the state’s six westernmost counties opted to give the Eastern…
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Public absent in meetings where road projects decided
The way road projects get selected and prioritized in the state’s six westernmost counties might shift slightly following meetings this…
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Second public hearing set in Macon County for Needmore Road
Another public hearing on what, if anything, to do with Needmore Road has been scheduled for February, this time in…
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Shuler didn’t fumble this time — Pelosi challenge sets the table for political prominence
U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler took a calculated loss when he challenged Rep. Nancy Pelosi for the position of House minority…
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Baking classes set for next month
Southwestern Community College is offering two holiday baking project classes in early December at its Jackson Campus. Learn to make…
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Public to hear about proposed changes to Waynesville land-use ordinance
A proposed update of Waynesville’s progressive land-use ordinance that has been several years in the making is close to becoming…
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Workshop offers college tuition tips
Learn what you need to know now about paying for college during a free workshop scheduled 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec.…
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Angelou to speak at women’s expo May 21
Area women will have a chance to learn more about health issues, while growing in mind, body and spirit during…
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Holiday roundup
It’s that time of year. Now that Thanksgiving has arrived, so have holiday events — lots of them. If you…
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County to sell old hospital for $1.2 million
Haywood County’s old hospital is set to get a new life after commissioners agreed last week to sell the building…
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Going hungry: Many in region, particularly children, are doing without for Thanksgiving
It’s Thursday afternoon, and Amy Grimes has her head in a freezer digging around for a few things to add…
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Downtown merchants anticipate homecoming for county workforce
Downtown merchants in Waynesville hope to get a boost in customers when the Haywood County Historic Courthouse throws open its…
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Tourism office takes tech strides
In her nearly six-month tenure as executive director, Lynn Collins has been helping Haywood County’s Tourism Development Authority make strides…
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Cherokee needs new superintendent after personnel upheaval
The Cherokee School Board is on the verge of appointing a new superintendent following the termination of Rosemary Townsend after…
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Jackson eyes options for current library site
In the game of musical chairs stemming from the library moving out of its current digs on Sylva’s Main Street,…
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Stimulus funds boost WNC mass transit
Mass transit is set to get a boost in Western North Carolina thanks to some economic stimulus money targeted for…
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PETA targets bear zoos in national campaign
Recently, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians found itself the whipping boy of an unlikely opponent. Much to the tribe’s…
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Vice mayor aspirant to challenge incumbent for mayor
Two-term Franklin Alderman Bob Scott has wanted a turn as vice mayor going back a while — an honor that…
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441 corridor plan poised for passage
The Jackson County Board of Commissioners held a final public hearing on the proposed U.S. 441 “Gateway” Corridor ordinance Monday…
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Family, social worker had to push to get embezzlement, elder exploitation case moving
By May 2008, members of Earla Mae Cowan’s family had begun to suspect a trusted nephew was stealing from her.…
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‘Rainbow people’ — fewer this time — grace area forest
A much smaller contingent of Rainbow Family members than North Carolina’s Nantahala National Forest has sometimes experienced descended on Buck…
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Macon to create broad plan — again
At a forum on Macon County’s move to begin working on a comprehensive plan to address future growth, the presenter…
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NC residents state concerns at hearing on Rabun sewage permit
Macon County residents fearful that a proposed sewage treatment plant in Georgia will harm the Little Tennessee River turned out…
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Change of signage overdue, according to brand’s owner
A regular guest at the Dillsboro Holiday Inn Express upset by phone and Internet outages at the hotel discovered it…
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Veterans touch down in Washington for memorial visit
Two groups of Jackson County’s World War II veterans visited Washington, D.C.’s war memorial this year thanks to a project…
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Region to get assisted living campus
A groundbreaking was held last Thursday (July 16) at the site of a new assisted living complex being built in…
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Clean energy future may be blowing in the wind
Will wind-generated power save the environment or sacrifice it? The answer depends on who you ask and it could have…
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Barker visits WNC in campaign to help bears
Members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians didn’t have to duke it out with other contestants or so much…
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Another landslide jeopardizes Maggie Valley home
A Maggie Valley man alerted Haywood County officials this week of a landslide posing a risk to his home in…
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Past pursuit of building projects proved less than organized
Commissioner Tom Massie wants to see the county formalize how it funds capital projects. Under the current method entities simply…
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Bardo pledges to defer to deans
Western Carolina University Chancellor John Bardo in an interview with The Smoky Mountain News last week said that he is…
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Suttles gets nod for Haywood sheriff
The Haywood County Democratic Party has tapped Chief Deputy Bobby Suttles to replace outgoing Sheriff Tom Alexander. Suttles is a…
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WCU in ‘flux’ as it braces for state budget cuts
Proposed budget cuts at Western Carolina University are beginning to affect students like Will Furse, who says he won’t graduate…
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Community lobbies DOT to save a piece of history
Citizens in the Oak Grove community of Macon County hope to save a bridge from demolition by the Department of…
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Feeling slighted, TDA yanks grant
Farmer Skipper Russell thought he was helping drive tourism with his famous corn “maize,” an agricultural attraction he operates each…
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Franklin wants process for releasing closed session minutes
The Franklin aldermen on Monday night (Feb. 2) unanimously voted to formalize a process for releasing the minutes from previously…
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Park-and-ride in Haywood gains traction
A shuttle to transport commuters between Haywood and Buncombe counties is gaining momentum following the state’s recent offer to donate…
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Landowners held accountable in wake of landslide
Property owners at the site of last month’s landslide in Maggie Valley are being tasked by county officials with the…
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Prone to landslides, Haywood seeks priority in slope hazard mapping
The landslide last month that destroyed a home in Maggie Valley has spurred the Haywood County commissioners to ask the…
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Dreams for Swain’s old courthouse hinge on big money
Swain County would need more than $4 million to renovate its historic courthouse, putting plans for a cultural museum to…
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Swain leaders indifferent to lack of building regulations
Attempts to pass Swain County’s first-ever planning regulations are showing signs of movement, but not in the direction that planning…
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Task force seeks answers to water shortages
As a task force continues to probe solutions to the drought-induced water shortage in Jackson County, one idea on the…
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Swain backs down from hardline stance with Bryson City Fire Department
Swain County will continue contracting with the Bryson City Fire Department to provide county fire service, despite threatening to cut…
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WCU braces for housing crunch in face of growth, construction delays
Come the start of fall semester, some Western Carolina University freshmen could find themselves residing in unusual living quarters. A…
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Swain budget cuts target Sheriff’s office
Swain County commissioners have opted to target one department rather than spreading out county budget cuts among all county employees.…
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More than 1,000 purebreds vie for top honors at inaugural dog show
Haywood County became the Westminster of Western North Carolina this past weekend as more than 1,000 dogs and their owners…
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They’re here, with beer
The beer business has exploded on the scene in Western North Carolina in the past several years, with Asheville alone…
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Swain given option to rescind property reval
Swain County will be able to rescind its latest property revaluation — which caused property values to increase by an…
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Macon budget avoids tax increase, layoffs
If you’re a county commissioner in Western North Carolina, it’s hard not to feel envious of Macon County’s budget. While…
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