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Tight times force tough choices for Swain schools
The Swain County School District has terminated a popular program that emphasized science and math education, offered students smaller classes…
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Mandated cutbacks mean tough decisions
The first Friday in February came with some bad news for the Swain County School District and systems around the…
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Closed session minutes an opportunity for openness
What a great way to earn public trust: a public body decides that minutes from closed sessions no longer need…
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Forsythia heralds the spring season
The recent warm spell has the birds singing and various plants budding. One of these is forsythia. My wife, Elizabeth,…
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For Terry, the world was too much
“Unique” is a word much abused as a descriptor for human beings. I have heard many, many people described as…
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Environmentalists come in many forms at fair
Standing next to a display that showed pictures of West Virginia mountains scarred by mountaintop removal coal mining, Austin Hall…
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Jackson undeterred by price tags or economy in pursuit of library
Despite tough economic times, Jackson County commissioners decided last week to move forward with three multi-million dollar projects. In a…
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Four-legged crisis brewing in Swain
Swain County’s complete lack of services to handle the growing stray animal population is putting a heavy burden on a…
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Food cooked with love can fend off February’s chill and soothe a wounded heart
By Karen Dill • Guest Writer The weather in February can be as fickle as new love. In the mountains…
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Building better, conserving energy
Western Carolina University is leading the way in a state mandate to cut energy production on college campuses. WCU has…
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Psych unit improving mental health system, officials say
At a time when the state’s fractured mental health care system seems beyond repair, local mental health officials have hit…
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With proposals in, work starts on partnership
One of three hospitals courting Haywood Regional Medical Center and WestCare for a partnership has dropped out of the running.…
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A stockyard lost: Cattle farmers round up support for new auction
How far would you drive for $100? That’s the dilemma Haywood County cattle farmer Neal Stamey faces each time he…
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Tales of survival from the American frontier
Fine Just the Way It Is by Annie Proulx. Simon & Schuster, 2008. 240 pages. When critics attempt to define…
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Recipes, 2/11/09
Lentil Soup • 1 onion, chopped • 1/4 cup olive oil • 2 carrots, diced • 2 stalks celery, chopped…
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Dillsboro dam is simply worth preserving
By Anna Fariello • Guest Columnist OK, so I have to admit that part of the appeal of the Dillsboro/Duke…
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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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The Naturalist's Corner: Birder bucks
The mountain section of the North Carolina Birding Trail (NCBT) is complete and the Mountain Region Trail Guide, describing, with…
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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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WCU Cherokee studies professor wins Oklahoma book award
Robert Conley, the Sequoyah Distinguished Professor of Cherokee Studies at Western Carolina University, is winner of the 2009 Arrell Gibson…
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Gardeners get a bargain
By Jane Young Haywood County Master Gardeners had you in mind when they wrote The Gardener’s Guide to Growing in…
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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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Savage salvation
The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb. HarperCollins, 2008. 752 pages. Wally Lamb’s newest novel, The Hour I First…
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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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Another piece of farmland saved
Hickory Nut Gap Farm, a historic and scenic farm in Buncombe County, has been permanently protected through a conservation agreement…
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The Naturalist's Corner: When not to feed the birds
Last week I wrote about the spiraling cost of birdseed and about experimenting with different seed and protocol for those…
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TVA ruling could signal beginning of a new era
A recent court victory by the state of North Carolina will require the Tennessee Valley Authority to reduce emissions at…
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How to decide?
A new rule could make it easier to open up trails in national parks to mountain biking. Mountain biking isn’t…
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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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Electing sheriffs leaves too much to chance
By Bob Scott • Guest Columnist A municipality would never think of electing a chief of police. But in North…
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Owls remain mysterious, alluring
Of late, I have been hearing the owls sounding off on the slopes and ridge lines behind our home. Some…
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Haywood gets serious about tapping landfill methane
Haywood County officials want to tap the pent up methane in the county’s landfill to help the environment and hopefully…
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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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Can mountain bikes find a home in the Smokies?
Mountain bikers face a long, steep climb in their fight to see more trails opened to tires in the Great…
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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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Software CEO doing well in bad times
Drake Software CEO Phil Drake is taking the tough economic times with ease. He believes he can get through the…
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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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A duty to protect Swain’s citizens
By Curtis Cochran • Guest Columnist As sheriff of Swain County, I would like to take this opportunity to respond…
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Sawmill manager: World going to hell
T&S Hardwoods General Manager Jack Swanner sat in his office with an ashtray full of cigarette butts next to him…
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Across the mountains, companies scrape to avoid layoffs
Jackson Paper employee Tim Coggins Jr. has something a lot of people don’t have these days — job security. Jackson…
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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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The ultimate rock ’n’ roller
By Christi Marsico • Staff Writer Feb. 3 marked the 50th anniversary of the death of music legend Buddy Holly,…
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The Naturalist's Corner: To feed or not to feed?
Anyone who reads this column regularly knows I am a fan of backyard bird feeding. The constant feathered activity just…
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Haywood sheriff candidates
Q: Haywood County has a growing Hispanic population. How will you address language barriers in serving that population? Hollifield: Would…
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New job yanked from resigned mental health director
Tom McDevitt, the former director of the Smoky Mountain Center for Mental Health who resigned amid scrutiny last fall, was…
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Wildlife could be affected by hunting laws
It’s not too late to weigh in on a few controversial changes to the state’s hunting laws under study by…
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