When Emma Strickland learned she was pregnant with her second child, she started looking for an alternative to a hospital birth. She found it at the WNC Birth Center. The center is open during the COVID pandemic but has had to scale back on some of its related services. Ironically, that’s led to a shortage of income at a time when women like Strickland find themselves increasingly drawn to a birth center.
The Asheville-based nonprofit Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy’s work included both valuable wildlife habitats, such as the Wiles Creek and Little Rock Creek preserves, and prime farmland at risk of development. Sandy Hollar Farms in Buncombe County and Bowditch Bottoms in Yancey County were among the agricultural projects completed in 2020.
“We recognize that it’s not a perfect system and the demand is quite high,” said Stacie Saunders, Buncombe County’s public health director, at a Jan. 12 special meeting called to address local vaccination efforts. “We just want to reiterate that we will not have sufficient supply of vaccine for a very long time, so it is likely that we will still hear frustration and concerns about being able to get an appointment.”
Neal Harris — one of only 10 members of the N.C. Chess Hall of Fame — discusses the game’s recent rise in popularity and the challenges of teaching local chess players amid COVID-19.
Lee Isaac Chung’s ’80s-set drama wins four awards from the NCFCA, Jonathan Ammons releases a new album and more area arts news.
Since 1981, Oralene Simmons, founder and chair of The Martin Luther King Jr. Association of Asheville and Buncombe County, has watched the organization’s annual prayer breakfast grow from 50 or so attendees to several thousand. Now in its 40th year, the association is preparing for its latest gathering. But unlike in the past, the 2021 […]
Currently, the body reviews promotional criteria for Asheville police and fire staff and hears certain employee grievances. If adopted, the rules would outline a two-part test to determine if a dispute rises to the level of a CSB hearing.
Making tough choices and trying out a variety of business models allowed Mountain Food Products to keep its trucks rolling through the pandemic.
“I think our local mail carriers are really doing a great job in the face of awful problems.”
The new year brings new restaurants and fresh collaborations while other businesses take a temporary break and a North Asheville favorite closes permanently.
Xpress is now accepting submissions for the 2021 Kids Issue! The theme: “My Great Idea.” Deadline is Friday, Jan. 29.
“We should be giving tax incentives to local sustainable businesses, not to a multinational corporation that relies on fossil fuels and perpetuates a war industry that is the scourge of the world.”
“The whole procedure took about two hours and cost about $100 to save lives and structure.”
In this year’s Humor Issue, we return to Billy Borne’s cartoons. Though his work was published in The Asheville Citizen for over 20 years, our focus is on 1921. As his illustrations exhibit, the Roaring 20s did not actually kick off with a bang but rather an economic recession-turned-depression. By the end of 1921, however, […]
“Dating is hard in general. Dating during pandemic? Even harder. Dating during a pandemic in Asheville? Wut?”
