In addition to the devastating loss of life and tremendous damage to private property, Tropical Storm Fred caused millions in damage to facilities owned and maintained by the Town of Canton. During a Jan. 27 all-day budget retreat, town staff and elected officials began to make some decisions on what, how and when to rebuild.

With President Joe Biden’s disapproval ratings through the roof and a recent spate of setbacks in the Senate, Republicans appear poised to capitalize in the 2022 General Election — if a twice-impeached former president who isn’t even on the ballot doesn’t first tear their party apart.

Four years after the Town of Canton made an unsuccessful push to impose a vehicle tax to fund much-needed road repairs, town officials are contemplating another attempt.

Every so often — about 20 times a year — Western North Carolina’s social media networks flare up with impassioned pleas from friends and family members of a missing person, begging for any information that could help bring their loved one home. But the reasons for the disappearances, and the results of the investigations, are often as unique as the missing persons themselves.

Today, almost nothing remains of Waynesville’s majestic old Victorian-era hotel — except for some faded photographs and sepia-toned memories that linger in the minds of the region’s oldest inhabitants — but recent action by the town’s aldermen could go a long way in preserving what’s left of a natural spring that was responsible for producing much, much more than cold, stinky water.

Work to remediate a leaky, gassy mound just northeast of Waynesville that has been nothing but an expensive headache for generations of Haywood County elected officials has finally reached substantial completion. 

Unaffordable housing, a lack of broadband infrastructure, a staggeringly low unemployment rate and a relatively high number of job openings have changed the economic development landscape in Haywood County to the point that its chief economic development arm, the Haywood Economic Development Council, must also change.

Western North Carolina is growing, there’s no doubt about it. And as it does, there are bound to be growing pains.

There’s been no more pressing issue in Waynesville during the past two administrations than the replacement of the town’s aging sewer plant, but after skillfully guiding the project through multiple obstacles over the past five years, aldermen must now find a way to clean up another big mess — project bids almost 50 percent higher than expected. 

As Canton focuses on rebuilding town facilities damaged by the flood, elected leaders there aren’t just looking to put things back the way they were — they’re hoping to make some major improvements. 

A piece of legislation passed last year has given rise to a novel idea that could liven up outdoor festivals and events not only in downtown Waynesville, Frog Level and Hazelwood, but also in any other county or municipality interested in giving it a shot — social districts. 

The effort to bring more workforce housing to Haywood County will receive a significant boost thanks to an anonymous donor’s generous offer of a substantial piece of land worth nearly $2 million.

Details are scarce, but a Jan. 4 letter from the Haywood Chamber of Commerce is clear: the Haywood Economic Development Council is about to undergo massive change. 

As one of Waynesville’s three “urban” cores, Frog Level holds an identity as distinct as any other. Of late, that identity has not been all that good. 

If you’re looking for some quick, easy money — and who isn’t? — you could buy a lottery ticket or visit a casino, but the odds are much greater that by checking the state’s unclaimed property database, you’ll come away a real winner.

Congressional maps are still hung up in court and candidate filing still hasn’t resumed, but that didn’t stop the five Democrats running for the open NC-14 seat from holding a forum on Jan. 8. And although the crop of candidates is largely the same as it has been for almost a year, it was their first forum without the specter of Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-Henderson, hanging over it. 

Some homeowners who received limited insurance or FEMA assistance to help repair damage associated with Tropical Storm Fred may now be eligible for state funds.

By the summer of 2021 things seemed to be on the up-and-up in North Carolina, and in Haywood County’s microcosm of it, Canton. 

Signed by President Joe Biden on March 17, 2021, the American Rescue Plan will provide $1.88 trillion in federal funds in an effort to defeat the COVID-19 virus and provide workers and families with resources to survive the pandemic. 

After much speculation, three-term Henderson County incumbent Sen. Chuck Edwards made his 14th Congressional District candidacy official with an announcement at the old Hendersonville courthouse on Nov. 30.

Libertarian David Coatney entered the race for North Carolina’s 14th Congressional District long before Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-Henderson) announced his intention to run in the newly-penned 13th District on Nov. 11. A lot has changed since then, but not Coatney’s desire to give voters a third option — outside of the typical American two-party dynamic. 

Saying that he feels he can “offer more to the citizens of Western North Carolina as a senator than as a freshman congressman,” Franklin Republican Kevin Corbin has removed himself from the milieu of Republicans supposedly seeking the 14th Congressional District seat. 

Western North Carolina Congressman Madison Cawthorn has become known for saying some surprising things to further his political agenda, but Cawthorn’s most recent statement is by far his most surprising. 

Rep. Madison Cawthorn’s decision to leave his 14th Congressional District seat open has already produced a “ripple effect” of electoral implications across the region, but now that the big splash is over, there’s at least one Western North Carolina Republican thinking about dipping his toes into the water. 

On Veterans Day, we commemorate the service of members of the armed forces of the United States, past and present. But for some of those veterans, the call to serve persists long after they take off their uniforms for the last time and return to civilian life. 

It’s said that the pun is the lowest form of humor — unless it’s yours. 

Exactly 123 years to the day after a Black man was dragged from his cell in Franklin and hung from a bridge at the edge of town, a group of activists took the first step in attempting to reckon with Macon County’s most infamous lynching. 

The North Carolina General Assembly passed new House, Senate and congressional maps last week, but if the lawsuits — some existing, some perhaps forthcoming — can’t stop them, Western North Carolina’s voters will be on the receiving end of something old, something new, something borrowed and nothing blue. 

During his brief political career, Western North Carolina Congressman Madison Cawthorn has become known for saying some surprising things to further his political agenda, but Cawthorn’s most recent statement is by far the most surprising.

A series of suspected arsons in Buncombe County has drawn the attention of multiple law enforcement agencies, and due to their proximity to Haywood County, Sheriff Greg Christopher is urging residents – especially in rural areas – to remain watchful.

It’s not the first thing people usually think of when they try to recount the relative prosperity of a community over generations. 

After more than a dozen public hearings and substantial study by the North Carolina General Assembly, the decennial redistricting process in North Carolina is more or less complete. 

The mountain mill town known for its downtown rejuvenation as well as its “ grit and grace ” in the face of tragedy may still be recovering from the raging floodwaters of the Pigeon River, but on Nov. 2, voters night kept the town government on solid ground. 

Plans are underway for a Nov. 6 event in Franklin to commemorate the lynching of a Black man more than 120 years ago, but if organizers are successful, the Mozeley Memorial Walk will also initiate debate over how, if at all, Mitch Mozeley should be publicly acknowledged. 

An Oct. 26 report in Rolling Stone  based on the claims of two anonymous sources places Western North Carolina freshman Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-Henderson) at the center of the planning of the Jan. 6 insurrection. 

Western North Carolina Republican Rep. Mike Clampitt is an Oath Keeper. 

Since his election last November, President Joe Biden has spent a lot of time — and untold political capital — pursuing a sweeping domestic agenda.

Developers associated with the rejuvenation of Maggie Valley’s Ghost Town in the Sky are moving forward with plans to resurrect the iconic mountaintop attraction and have enlisted some high-level talent to help redesign and prepare the park for reopening. 

It was Friday night football on a perfect fall evening under the lights in front of a capacity crowd at C.E. Weatherby Stadium in Waynesville, and as per usual, the rivalry game between the Mountaineers of Tuscola and the Pisgah Black Bears — the county clash, the “Mill versus the Hill,” whatever you want to call it — lived up to the hype. 

Raised in humble circumstances in Woodfin, Rod Honeycutt could have ended up on a very different path were it not for the United States Army. 

Municipal elections in Western North Carolina will be held in some jurisdictions on Tuesday, Nov. 2, but in-person early voting is now available. 

The Town of Waynesville’s years-long attempt to address homelessness within its borders has been filled with raw emotion, whimsical theatrics and at times even elements of pure fiction, but the story’s far from over. 

North Carolina’s known as a purple state where fierce partisan divide is the norm, but after two high-profile politicians — one a former NC-11 candidate and the other the current lieutenant governor — prompted outrage with recent vulgarities, their respective parties are stuck in a tough spot and facing difficult decisions over how to respond. 

After emerging from the early stages of the Coronavirus Pandemic virtually unscathed, Haywood County’s lodging industry rebounded with a year that exceeded all expectations. 

Waynesville’s historic Green Hill Cemetery has long been a centerpiece of the community, but of late it’s been at the center of controversy. After a botched cleanup prompted a closer look at management of town-owned cemeteries, restrictions on tours were implemented due to complaints of disrespectful behavior.

Municipal elections in Western North Carolina will be held in some jurisdictions on Tuesday, Nov. 2, but in-person early voting will take place beginning Thursday, Oct. 14. 

Another incident involving Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-Hendersonville, possessing a weapon where it’s prohibited drew renewed outrage from many on the left, but the failure of the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office to charge Cawthorn for the offense hasn’t stopped one group from seeking alternative means by which to discipline him. 

A scant three months ago, when candidates filed for the upcoming municipal elections, the Haywood County town of Canton was facing the usual set of local issues not much different from any other small-town Western North Carolina government. 

As the filing period for the 2022 midterm elections draws near, moves are being made on the Republican side of the field that could impact how much competition incumbent Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-Hendersonville, will ultimately face. 

Shawn Gaddis, chief of the Canton Police Department since March, 2018, announced his retirement today according to an email sent to The Smoky Mountain News by Canton Town Manager Nick Scheuer.