Paradise and parking lots

Heinz Kossler — the good-natured, forthright and oft-irreverent ceramics artist who has inhabited 115 Roberts St. in The Wedge Building for more than 15 years — is leaving town. This…

A tattoo festival in Asheville? Could there be any doubt? The city that Rolling Stone calls the new freak capital of America is more than a natural fit for the…

The relationship between the indie music world and rap is a contentious one, rife with racial tension and gross misunderstandings. It doesn't really matter if the opinions are generally positive…

In 2009, Dr. Dog bassist and founding member Toby Leaman told Xpress, "The way we've always been as a band is the recorded thing and the live thing can't be…

Character(s): Van Ghost: Michael Harrison Berg, Jennifer Hartswick, Grant Tye, Greg Marsh and Klem Hayes Setting/Time: Pisgah Brewing, Saturday, March 17 at 9 p.m. The Beginning: Vocalist Harrison Berg leaves…

Phil Moore is enjoying his last hours at the secluded cabin he and his girlfriend Beth Tacular built from the ground up. In two days, their band Bowerbirds will head…

Need an advance St. Patty's day fix? Here's just the thing: Premier (and locally based) Celtic violinist Jamie Laval performs a St. Patrick's concert with his Large Band (EJ Jones…

Local hip-hop artist Chachillie (aka Chach, aka Charles Stewart) gave us a taste of his talent on last year's Secret B-Sides release (Chach raps on "On to You"). This year…

Asheville Earth Day and Xpress have teamed up on a photo contest leading up to this year’s Saturday, April 21 festival. Photo entries are to be uploaded to the official…

Learn how to support friends and loved ones in their darkest hour when Ginny Callaway reads from her book A Friend in Grief: Simple Ways to Help at Malaprop's Bookstore…

In 1903, Auguste Escoffier, the oft-called "chef of kings and king of chefs," released Le Guide Culinaire, considered by some to be the French culinary Bible. To the average modern…

Two neighboring businesses on Charlotte Street are back in business after a hiatus. For the Chop Shop Butchery, the break was not planned — a few pipes burst on the…

The WNC Chefs Challenge competitions are set to heat up Tuesday nights at The Century Room at Pack's Tavern on 20 S. Spruce St. in downtown Asheville. The weekly competitions…

Looking for more ways to live without gluten? The Gluten Free Expo and Information Fair, sponsored by Ingles Markets, takes place on on Saturday, March 24 from 10 a.m. until…

Remember when you thought Wonder Bread was the best thing since, well, sliced bread? When sweet and squishy white-as-snow sandwiches spread with peanut butter were your jam? Thankfully (hopefully) you’ve…

If you and your school want to create an educational garden, there’s a grant for that: The Extension Master Gardener Volunteers of Buncombe County offers small grants for Learning Gardens.…

Looming cuts in food-assistance funding could spell big trouble for Western North Carolina residents: Funds for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, may be cut by…

An Asheville icon said to have the largest free-standing elliptical dome in North America, the Basilica of St. Lawrence made the news in December when the Diocese of Charlotte offered…

After facing off at a March 3 forum at A-B Tech sponsored by the Buncombe County Republican Party, incumbent Rep. Patrick McHenry bested challenger Ken Fortenberry in a straw poll,…

South Asheville’s Robinson Creek has been a PLAY SPACE for generations of kids in the once-rural Mills Gap Road community. But these days, residents warn their kids to stay AWAY…

[Editor’s note: Cecil Bothwell submitted the following commentary unsolicited, not knowing that we were planning a special feature on the basilica in this issue. This piece represents Bothwell’s opinion; it…

Contrary to your Asheville letter writer last week concerning big government, I am a county resident and delighted to see our democratic rights finally exercised with two representatives from each…

Asheville is currently rolling out the new recycling program, Zero Waste Asheville. Look for your new "Big Blue" recycling bin. Asheville residents have had about an 80 percent participation rate…

Do you enjoy our beautiful mountains, clean air and water and wonderful wild places? Me too, so I was shocked to find out that some of our legislators want to…

How do voters in Rep. Tim Moffit's district feel about the representative they have sent to Raleigh? He has been very busy on their behalf. Moffitt is on the N.C.…

Right now, Asheville city officials have on the table two bids to purchase the city-owned property on Haywood Street across from the Basilica of St. Lawrence. One bid is from…