Talk of cutting the historic courthouse maples in Waynesville has come and gone during the years.

Reasons varied. It was hard to get grass to grow underneath. The trees masked the grandness of the historic courthouse. Heavy equipment parked under the trees during courthouse renovations damaged the root systems.

Main Street merchants are used to answering tourists’ questions: how do you get to the parkway, what’s the best place for dinner, and where are the public restrooms? But lately, Waynesville’s downtown store keepers have also become purveyors of news.

A parade of Haywood County department leaders went before county commissioners during a budget work session Monday, each pleading their case for why their department needs an additional employee or two next fiscal year.

The lone evergreen tree left standing on the lawn of the historic courthouse in downtown Waynesville will soon be coming down.

Maggie Valley leaders on opposing sides of the tourist tax hike both claim to have the majority in their corner.

Maggie Mayor Ron DeSimone presented a stack of letters of support from hotel owners to state legislators during a trip to Raleigh last week, urging them to shepherd the room tax increase to passage. DeSimone spent several days visiting lodging businesses in Maggie to see where they stood.

Joyce Porter had just finished cleaning her house in Jonathan Creek and was planning to hop in the shower, but when she turned on the faucet, no water came out.

Haywood Community College trustees cited leadership, community rapport and deep local roots as key factors when naming Dr. Barbara Sue Parker the next college president last week.

The numbers are unforgiving.

One in three unexpected deaths in Haywood County are likely prescription drug overdoses. This year alone, there have been eight drug-related deaths — out of 25 unexpected deaths in all. And that doesn’t include two deaths last week that the county medical examiner suspects are overdoses as well. 

U.S. Congressman Mark Meadows told Haywood County business leaders this week that the federal government should borrow a page  — or perhaps a whole chapter or two — from the private sector playbook when it comes to financial problem solving.

After years of stops and starts, construction is now imminent on a long-awaited skateboard park in Waynesville.