New Zealand group eyes Blue Ridge Paper
Blue Ridge Paper Products might have found a buyer — a New Zealand-based paper company called The Rank Group that…
Read More
Hospital board appointments could be litmus test
Many in the community will be watching closely in April when the Haywood County Board of Commissioners appoint three members…
Read More
Federal agencies long ignored needed repairs
The federal government has long been aware of run down buildings at the Oconaluftee Job Corps Center but failed to…
Read More
Closing campus: Job Corps site slated to close
Local leaders and employees of the Oconaluftee Job Corp Center are questioning the motives behind a sudden shutdown of the…
Read More
Life in the blogosphere
Go to scoopscott.squarespace.com on the Internet and you enter the world of Macon County resident Bob Scott.
Read More
Cashiers librarian takes Sylva post
A new director has been hired for the Jackson County library system — Dottie Brunette, currently the head librarian at…
Read More
Planners nearly done with subdivision ordinance: Steep slope draft expected to take longer
The moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson County might be over before the five-month time period originally estimated if the…
Read More
Out of the frying pan, into the fire: Commissioners send meal deal to DA for investigation
The Swain County Board of Commissioners has formally asked the district attorney to investigate spending practices by former sheriff Bob…
Read More
Massie: Library site still to be decided
The best location for a new library in Jackson County appears to be up for discussion once more — with…
Read More
Haywood looking for best way to recycle glass
Haywood County’s new solid waste director intends for the county to dump the dubious distinction of being the only one…
Read More
Franklin may move administrative offices to other end of Main Street
Franklin’s elected leaders will review how much it would cost to replace the siding on a town-owned building in downtown…
Read More
Consultant will lead public planning process for library
What would you like to see in your new library?
Read More
Two studies, two takes on moratorium’s effects
When County Commissioner Will Shelton gave up time on his farm and with his four young children to run for…
Read More
Swain tourism leaders want to kill tax hike request
Tourism leaders in Swain County want county commissioners to withdraw state legislation requesting a 1 percent increase in the room…
Read More
Planning office, advisory board to decide who keeps working
Jackson County planner Linda Cable has more than 60 applications on her desk from developers who hope the moratorium won’t…
Read More
Haywood likely to hike room tax, change tourism board make-up
A proposed 1-cent increase in Haywood County’s tax on overnight lodging and a completely new make-up of its tourism board…
Read More
Ghost Town begins selling tickets on-line
Ghost Town amusement park in Maggie Valley — slated to re-open on May 25 after five years — began selling…
Read More
Countdown to killer bees
With the Africanized honeybee now established in Florida, experts say it is only a matter of time before the so-called…
Read More
Compromise eases moratorium’s chill
Jackson County commissioners approved a five-month moratorium on new subdivisions in a 4 to 1 vote last week, but not…
Read More
What commissioners said
Chairman Brian McMahan, lone “no” vote “I’ve thought long and hard about this process. I thought about what will the…
Read More
Keeping of the bees: The changing face of apiculture
Hugh Gibby knows a little something about honeybees. He’s kept them for 63 of his 78 years, following in the…
Read More
So you want to be a beekeeper?
If you want to keep bees, the best thing you can do is join a local beekeeping club. Here you’ll…
Read More
Improving the science of development
When Bob Brannon saw a newspaper announcement last spring seeking developers to participate in a pilot mapping project, he already…
Read More
New Macon library to become Fontana system’s showcase
It’s no small task moving a library.
Read More
Moratorium debate reveals deep rift in Jackson
The debate over a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson County is divided into two main camps: those who…
Read More
Fontana library system has deep roots
The six libraries in Macon, Jackson and Swain counties are part of the Fontana Regional Library system, headquartered at Marianna…
Read More
Crowded, contentious hearing remains civil
More than 1,300 people crowded into the public hearing last week over a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson…
Read More
Plan to buy building with room tax hike meets opposition
A push to move the Swain County Chamber of Commerce into a vacant bank building is meeting resistance from some…
Read More
WCU launches ambitious $40 million campaign
Western Carolina University Chancellor John W. Bardo has officially launched the first comprehensive fundraising campaign in the university’s 118-year history,…
Read More
Downtown Waynesville wi-fi to go live by April
Since Suzanne Gernandt opened Textures in downtown Waynesville three years ago, she’s noticed one question in particular has been on…
Read More
This time, neighbors want Wal-Mart’s drawing power
With Wal-Mart’s future in Franklin in limbo, business owners near the existing big-box store continue to worry they’ll lose the…
Read More
Project will track growing number of lots
As Western North Carolina wrestles with growth issues, a project is under way to track where and how large mountain…
Read More
Emotions build in run-up to moratorium hearing
Frenzy surrounding a proposed moratorium on new subdivisions in Jackson County reached a fever pitch in the run-up to a…
Read More
Easley urges legislature to fix Medicaid woes
For years, county leaders have been lobbying law makers in Raleigh to stop packing off a portion of Medicaid costs…
Read More
River group considers car removal from Tuck
A fledgling effort now under way could lead to the cleanup of junked cars lining the banks of the Tuckasegee…
Read More
Wi-Fi part of regional wireless initiative
A new 8.5-mile fiber optic cable linking government buildings in Waynesville has recently been installed.
Read More
Swain seats new planning board
One Swain County resident expressed concern last week that developers and speculators will rush to break ground on mountainside subdivisions…
Read More
Plug pulled on downtown Sylva taxing district
The Downtown Sylva Association has dropped the idea of a special downtown property tax due to a lack of support…
Read More
Opponents lining up to challenge Chief Hicks
Even before filing opens March 1, four candidates have emerged to challenge Principal Chief Michell Hicks for the top leadership…
Read More
Haywood leaders say tax hike a possibility to meet needs
Haywood County commissioners suggested they could be amenable to a slight property tax increase this year if there is something…
Read More
Ghost Town deal with state should expedite May opening
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer The owner of Ghost Town in the Sky and the North Carolina Department of…
Read More
Election controversy plagues Swain
When Commissioner Glenn Jones pulled into the Stillhouse Branch trailer park in one of the poorest neighborhoods of Swain County…
Read More
New golf course owner promises major upgrades
Following several years of decline and neglect, Smoky Mountain Golf Course in Whittier has been wrested away from its out-of-state…
Read More
Haywood organizations honored for their environmental efforts
The Commission for a Clean County has announced the first place and honorable mention winners of its 2006 Haywood County…
Read More
Development industry opposes subdivision moratorium
By Sarah Kucharski • Staff Writer A group of about 20 angry Realtors and developers showed up uninvited at a…
Read More
Twenty questions
Jackson County commissioners have called for a public hearing on a proposed moratorium on new subdivision development while the planning…
Read More
DSA drops special tax proposal
The Downtown Sylva Association has dropped the idea of a special downtown property tax due to a lack of support…
Read More
Greenwood’s slow exit gives Macon leaders rare chance
When Macon County Manager Sam Greenwood retires at the end of this year, he’ll take with him more than three…
Read More
Sylva leaders to discuss proposed downtown tax
Controversy among downtown Sylva merchants and property owners could either escalate or come to a close this week, depending on…
Read More
Swain makes appointments to first planning board
Swain County leaders took the first step toward regulating unchecked growth and development this week by appointing the county’s first-ever…
Read More
