We’ve had more than a week of picture-perfect fall days, usually a part of the recipe for a busy, successful tourist season. But there’s an unshakeable uneasiness among the business community since Helene, and especially in Haywood County. I hope elected leaders take note. 

Tourism remains a critically important component of Western North Carolina’s economy. To ensure it remains strong well into the future, the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority is fine-tuning a forthcoming destination master plan that focuses on underutilized assets and what visitors seem to really want — authenticity. 

Have your say in the future of the county’s tourism industry by attending a community input session for the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority’s forthcoming destination master plan.

EBCI Tribal Council has reversed its decision to ban “hemp shops” not “wholly owned by the tribe … or one of its wholly owned subsidiaries.”

The Haywood County Tourism Development Authority announced last week that it had awarded just over $250,000 in grants to 18 organizations for more than two dozen community projects all across the county. 

Cherokee is moving one step closer to full adult recreational cannabis use.

The newest advance will come July 4 when the Great Smoky Cannabis Company will be allowed to legally sell marijuana to adults over the age of 21 who are enrolled members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians or any other federally recognized tribe. 

It’s a sunny afternoon in downtown Bryson City. The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad is pulling into town with numerous locals and visitors alike spilling off the train. A stone’s throw from the tracks is Bryson City Brewing, its co-owner Stan Temple gazing happily at the scene unfolding before him. 

Adults may soon be able to purchase marijuana for recreational use from Cherokee’s new dispensary. 

At a work session last week, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indian’s Tribal Council discussed several questions they had regarding a potential ordinance that would legalize sales of cannabis to any adult with a valid ID.

The Town of Sylva will not see a tax increase for the coming budget cycle, but with work looming on N.C. 107, staff are preparing for falling revenues over the next two to four years. 

At the corner of Depot and Haywood streets in downtown Waynesville sits an old building. Originally a gas station, it was also a longtime mechanic’s shop and later a car wash for a period. But, in recent months, the charming, somewhat dormant 147 Depot St. location has had new life breathed into it.