“Hospitality and culinary professionals are being mandated and regulated out of business for the sake of optics and at the senseless sacrifice of hardworking people and their families.”
New Stories
Letter: Cawthorn has already disqualified himself from Congress
“By Jan. 6, he was busy denouncing the constitutional election process, advocating the overthrow of the presidential election and helping to incite a deadly attack on the U.S. Congress.”
Commission considers $150K in small business relief Jan. 26
While county relief has heretofore been available only in the form of low-interest loans, businesses will now be able to seek grants of $5,000 to hire or rehire employees at a living wage. Staff had previously believed such a grant program to be illegal but had since received updated guidance from the UNC School of Government.
Total individual donations grow 65% in annual campaign for good
Mountain Xpress’ 2020 Give!Local campaign to raise funds and awareness for 44 community nonprofits wrapped up on Dec. 31 as the most successful to date. The sixth annual effort saw 570 individual donors give a total of $233,564, a 65% increase over the previous year’s total of $141,207 from 400 donors. 2020’s impact was boosted […]
Controversial choices: Debating the Pratt & Whitney project
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners and other supporters say jobs at the aerospace manufacturing plant will provide opportunities for workers to improve their standards of living. Critics say those wages are not worth the moral cost: Bolstering a military-industrial complex that causes deaths half a world away and eats up government funds better spent on other needs.
SNAP incentives boost market sales for local farmers
Market managers and vendors at the markets participating in the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project’s Double SNAP initiative, which matches Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits dollar-for-dollar on edible items, saw SNAP transactions nearly triple from 2019 to 2020, and 80% of responding vendors said they’d experienced sales growth due to the program.
North Carolina’s COVID-19 metrics, vaccine rollout gradually improving
As of Jan. 21, more than half a million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine had been distributed throughout the state, although supplies remain far lower than demand.
Wellness in brief: Dogwood Health Trust shifts board makeup
Retired Rear Adm. Richard Houck of Transylvania County, attorney Fred Jones of Macon County and Bishop José McLoughlin of Henderson County will join the board of Western North Carolina’s largest nonprofit as Buncombe County’s Dr. John Ball departs. The change fulfills requirements stipulated in N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein’s approval of Mission Health’s sale to HCA Healthcare.
Local arts leaders spotlight creators to watch in 2021
Local arts leaders in various mediums identify up-and-coming or underseen peers that readers should be on the lookout for in 2021.
Letter: NC should catch up with Michigan on death penalty
“North Carolina’s capital punishment has not done a better job deterring murder than Michigan’s life-in-prison rule: Homicide rates for the two states are virtually the same.”
Buncombe preps new systems for vaccine rollout
COVID-19 vaccination initiatives announced by the county include a drive-thru site for second doses at A. C. Reynolds High School and a waitlist for first-dose vaccination appointments. The waitlist will replace a system that requires residents to schedule appointments directly as vaccines became available.
From CPP: New project opens mountain biking possibilities in Western North Carolina
The Mortimer Trails project expands access for mountain bikers and hikers to meet increased demand despite limited federal funding for recreation in National Forests.
Mask rage, other challenges create stress for hospitality workers
In a beleaguered industry, workers and business owners deal with a host of challenges from unstable finances to rude and unreasonable customers.
Asheville Fringe Arts Festival embraces digital format
The festival’s 19th edition features shows designed for online presentation, plus a few socially distanced outdoor events.
Asheville Restaurant Week returns
With an emphasis on takeout specials, the ninth annual event runs Jan. 19-25.