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Five signed up to run for Macon commission
Five candidates are running for two commissioner seats in Macon County and there are still five days left to sign…
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Canton finally claims Camp Hope — for good
It has cost Canton half a million dollars to keep ownership of a piece of property it already owns.
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Christmas tree farm experience
People can buy a real Christmas tree just about anywhere these days — from the big box stores to the…
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The art of picking the perfect Christmas tree
Some like them tall and thin. Others like them shorter and thick.
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A real tree takes real work
The Christmas tree business is not a get-rich-quick kind of industry. Once a seedling is planted, it takes about eight…
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Christmas tree industry growing strong
With more than 25 million real Christmas trees sold in the United States every year, growing Christmas trees is a…
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WCU chancellor pledges transparency, faculty involvement to vet controversial Koch money
Western Carolina University Chancellor David Belcher announced to faculty this week that he would engage their input and oversight in…
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Suspects sought in Clyde stabbing incident
Two Haywood County men and a woman are being sought in the stabbing of a 33-year-old Clyde man Sunday.
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Wilderness — we don’t need no stinkin wilderness
Flying around Facebook pages (after all this is the age of information) is, apparently, a poll or online survey declaring…
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WCU shoreline study program lands grant
A $483,000 National Park Service grant will allow Western Carolina University to map shoreline storm vulnerability in 12 costal parks…
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Possible timber thinning project takes comment
The U.S. Forest Service is considering a timber project on 117 acres of the Nantahala Ranger District of the Nantahala…
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Fire ant quarantine expands to Macon and Graham counties
A state quarantine to prevent the spread of the imported fire ant has expanded to include Macon and Graham counties,…
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Restrictions in place for Staire Creek Trail
Equestrians and bikers who enjoy the Staire Creek Trail in the Big Ivy Area of the Pisgah National Forest will…
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DOT looking for N.C.’s best trails
A new map to feature North Carolina’s most loved trails is now in the development stage, and the N.C. Department…
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Haywood stream cleanup logs big numbers
Nearly two tons of trash were removed from Haywood County waterways this year thanks to Haywood Waterways Association’s Adopt-A-Stream Program.
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Great Smoky Mountains Association names new director
The Great Smoky Mountains Association, a nonprofit that provides millions for visitor programs, conservation and special projects in the Great…
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Solar farm comes to Bethel
The agricultural community of Bethel now has a new type of farm in its midst — solar. Visible from U.S.…
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King is spot on with new short story collection
Being a lifelong Stephen King fan, I have always been pleased to note that King is always keenly aware of…
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Christmas at Lake J
“Appalachian Christmas” at the Lake Junaluska Conference and Retreat Center will deliver the nostalgic charm of mountain hospitality to visitors…
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This must be the place
America, I’m tired. I’m tired of the violence, the bloodshed, the yelling, the anger, the hate, the misinformation, the way we…
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Haywood Habitat looks to 2016
With the holidays currently underway, there’s plenty for all of us to be grateful for living here in Western North…
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The house that music built: Warren Haynes’ ‘Christmas Jam’ rolls on
Twenty-seven years is a long time for anything. “It amazing to me that it’s still going on,” Warren Haynes said.…
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Diverse coalition coalesces to support forest plan
By Brent Martin • Guest Columnist In recent months I have watched a tense and difficult relationship play out nationally…
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Thanks for helping feed the hungry
To the Editor: Thanks to many, many individuals and businesses, the 2015 Turkey Drive sponsored by the Maggie Valley Area…
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Social injustice and our universities
To the Editor: In last week’s letter to the editor (www.smokymountainnews.com/opinion/item/16807), Mr. Jones commented on the politicizing of WCU. Let…
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Economic injustice needs to be addressed
To the Editor: It is time to wake up and take a big whiff of reality. The shape of our…
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Forest Service needs capacity to manage
To the Editor: As the U.S. Forest Service proceeds through the plan revision for the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests,…
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We can find a better cell tower location
To the Editor: I hope to be understood that my family is as pro-wireless communication as anyone in Cashiers. Verizon…
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Candidates would strip us of rights
To the Editor: Below are several of the solutions proposed by many of the candidates running for president to end…
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Let’s play pretend politician: what issues would you own?
I’m not running for office and never will, but as a citizen of Haywood County and Western North Carolina and…
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Two more sign on to run for Macon commissioner
With the sign-up period for the 2016 election underway, two more candidates have tossed their hats in the ring to…
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Franklin to hire fulltime fire chief
As the demand for services continues to grow, Franklin will begin its search for a full-time fire chief to run…
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Republican candidate files for Jackson commissioner
The race for county commissioner in District 3 of Jackson County will no longer be an uncontested one following Ron…
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Mercury testing expands at Lake Glenville
After testing last year found Lake Glenville’s walleye fish to have some of the highest mercury concentrations in North Carolina,…
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County considers financing EMS headquarters
Haywood County commissioners will hold a public hearing Dec. 21 regarding the construction of a new EMS headquarters beside the…
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Ghost Town rolls out new plan for 2016 season
Alaska Presley has had plenty of good intentions and ideas for Ghost Town in the Sky since she bought the…
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Finding a new fairway for disc golf course
Plans are underway to relocate Waynesville’s disc golf course from the sprawling recreation park along Richland Creek to a more…
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Bringing back the bustle: New businesses move into downtown Sylva
Ask any Sylva long-timer, and they’ll tell you that Main Street today looks a lot different than it did ten,…
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Local steelworkers have to redo election
Following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor, the United Steelworkers Local 9-507 in Canton has to redo its…
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Town deems temporary Fry Street closure a failure
While November is usually still a busy time for downtown Bryson City merchants, Paige Christie said her sales are down…
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WCU leaders, faculty at odds over Koch-funded free enterprise center
Western Carolina University leaders bucked concerns of faculty when they voted last week to create a free enterprise center funded…
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WCU community grapples with academic pursuits in the face of politically-charged outside funding
A firestorm over the outside private funding of academia and its potential to undermine intellectual freedom has erupted in recent…
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Cherokee council vows to crack down on drug dealers
Drug addiction is perhaps the biggest crisis on the Qualla Boundary, and it’s time that tribal government got serious about…
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Cherokee chief vetoes marijuana study; council upholds veto
Just over a month after voting unanimously to study the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana on the Qualla Boundary,…
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Horseshoe Rock phenomenon attracts writers’ attention
“As for the Horseshoe Rock, it is one of those curving balds of solid rock. The depressions found on the…
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NC leaders balk at federal carbon control plan
North Carolina has issued a draft plan to comply with federal carbon-control rules, but the plan falls short of federal…
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Naturalist to give sneak peak at upcoming book
Naturalist and historian George Ellison will preview his upcoming collection of essays, Literary Excursions, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 9,…
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Lawsuit claims Wildlife Service not doing enough for wolves
A lawsuit alleging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is falling down on its job to protect the world’s only…
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Rockslide temporarily closes 14 miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway
A rockslide has kept the 14-mile section of the Blue Ridge Parkway between Maggie Valley and Cherokee closed for a…
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Meteors, stars and planets, oh my!
Crisp wintry weather makes for perfect sky-watching weather, and the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute in Rosman is planning a pair…
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