If the creek don’t rise: Flooding, money and politics in the River Arts District

City plans to improve infrastructure, expand public space, increase access and encourage private development in the River Arts District have triggered considerable controversy. Xpress reached out to the city, RAD business and property owners, and organizations involved in the now flourishing area’s revitalization to try to answer some key questions.

Get your shamrock on: St. Patrick’s Day events in and around Asheville

Unless you’re looking to get pinched, St. Patrick’s Day is the day for wearing green. Green shirts, green shoes, green pants — even green hair.

So put on your fake green mustache, break out your Flogging Molly tee and indulge in St. Patrick’s Day events around the area, celebrating Appalachia’s Scots-Irish heritage — and the slightly offensive stereotype of booze-loving, beer-slamming bar-goers stomping the beat for a fiddle-fronted band.

Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office warns of new scam affecting the area

“There is absolutely no validity to this whatsoever,” the sheriff states. “If somebody calls you and tries to collect money, [saying they’re] from any government entity at the threat of arrest — [know] that [neither] the IRS nor the Sheriff’s Office call and give you an opportunity to pay … any kind of fee or fine that would result in you being arrested.”

City of Asheville CIO wins Impact award for cloud computing

Whereas cloud computing is more commonly used to back up data for companies or individuals, Next City, a nonprofit and quarterly magazine based in Philadelphia, credits Asheville as being one of the first cities to use a cloud-based data recovery system — and this kind of forward-thinking is winning our city (and our CIO) awards for its use of this innovation.

This year’s Puppy Bowl features puppies from Asheville Humane

For those not familiar with the annual Puppy Bowl, it’s a 2-hour program every Super Bowl Sunday featuring tiny puppies running around a small, indoor “stadium,” wrestling over a football squeak-toy and stopping to take spontaneous naps on the green.

Basically, it’s the cutest thing ever — and this year, the Puppy Bowl will feature three puppies from Asheville Humane Society.

Is Asheville no longer a ‘weirdo’ city?

In a piece originally titled “Remembering Max and Rosie’s,” Katie Herzog, social editor at Grist, takes a look back at Asheville’s changing cultural landscape over the last 10-ish years. The commentary, originally written for Charlotte’s NPR station in October, shows both Herzog’s nostalgia of Asheville’s “weirdo” population from a different time and her sadness that it has evolved […]

Higher elevations expect light dusting of snow, ice overnight

According to the National Weather Service, the higher elevations of Western North Carolina (especially near the Tennessee border) should expect an inch or two of snow accumulation overnight and into the morning. Residents in the valley areas may see some snow Wednesday morning, but are mainly advised to watch for slick, icy roads. “The combination […]