Asheville City Council member Carl Mumpower has tossed his hat into the 11th Congressional District ring.
Author: Cecil Bothwell
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Eating local
Whether driven by health consciousness, energy awareness, parochialism, fear of tainted Chinese imports or all of the above, Western North Carolina residents are showing increased interest in locally produced food. That, at least, is the conclusion of a five-year assessment conducted by the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project. No middlewoman: Local growers forge a direct connection […]
Garden Journal
Womyn work wonders: The Womyn’s Community Garden can always use some extra help. Participants work in the garden on the third Saturday of every month from 1 to 6 p.m. and every Tuesday afternoon from 5:30 to 8 p.m. The garden is located at 46 Dortch Ave., across from the UNCA woods. For more info […]
Mud in your eye: Local business shaped from clay
Back in 1979, Brian and Gail McCarthy drove their pickup into Asheville with two toddlers, a tent and a dream. They wanted to formulate and sell clay.
The PARI of the South
The Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute is a former high-tech spy base and NASA tracking station that has morphed into an educational and research facility. PARI is now open for public tours each Wednesday at 2 p.m.
A friend in deed
George Willis Pack (1831-1906) was a great benefactor of Asheville and Buncombe County. He and his father had made a fortune logging in Michigan, and when Pack moved to Asheville in 1885, he was determined to repay his perceived obligation to the society in which he had prospered. He would do it with public works. […]
Lex make a deal
A handful of families control most of the property on downtown Asheville’s North Lexington Avenue, but the Lantzius name is pre-eminent. Vancouver resident John Lantzius and his kin own the lion’s share of properties on both sides of the road between College Street and the Interstate 240 overpass, along with several properties on the adjacent […]
Hands across the water
Since 1993, the Building Bridges program has challenged participants to reach across racial barriers throughout Western North Carolina. To date, more than 1,200 attendees have completed the nine-week series at venues including churches, schools and community centers. Speaking for the cause: Oralene Graves Simmons, founder of Asheville’s MLK Prayer Breakfast and former director of the […]
An apple for your I
Stories that depend on magic can all too easily become fairy tales—childish and cute, often far-fetched and always divorced from the real world of grownup love and tragedy. They frequently come off as self-referential and self-centered as a spoiled 7-year-old. Asheville-based novelist Sarah Addison Allen’s Garden Spells (Bantam, 2007) is a wonderful world away from […]
Up on the roof
The tallest vegetation in downtown Asheville is almost certainly to be found in the roof garden at the Battery Park Apartments. Residents of the downtown landmark tend herbs, flowers and vegetables as part of a project intiated by the Council On Aging and the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project. Basil, catnip, chives, chocolate mint, dill, lemon […]
Garden Journal
Take a hike: Asheville Parks and Recreation will offer a wide range of outdoor adventures this fall. The department’s first Senior Trek of the season will be held Friday, Sept. 14, on the UNCA Perimeter Trail—a 2.4-mile loop—followed by a visit to the Botanical Gardens. The low-impact trekking club offers leisurely paced hikes designed with […]
Fixin’ up the French Broad
RiverLink was recently the recipient of two grants for restoration and improvement of the water quality and habitat in several area streams.
Asheville wants to pick your brain
Asheville City Council has invited residents to a public information open house on Thursday, Sept. 6, from 5 to 7 p.m., at the City Public Works Building. On the agenda: a chance to provide input about the sites listed in the city-owned property initiative, including desired outcomes for each site.
Massachusetts marriages make it to Malaprop’s
Almost 10,000 same-sex couples have wed in Massachusetts since 2003, when that state’s Supreme Court made such unions legal in the state. The authors of Courting Equality, which documents the civil-rights struggle waged by LGBT activists in Massachusetts, will appear at Malaprop’s this Wednesday (Sept. 5).
Buncombe County Commissioners
In an otherwise routine meeting on Aug. 21, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners heard from two descendants of local benefactor George Willis Pack. During public comment, both Barbara Pack Holcombe of Shallote, N.C., and Louise Pack Metcalf of Asheville raised questions about the county’s sale of public land to developer Stuart Coleman last November. […]
No change
It’s been a year since professor David Owens of the School of Government at UNC-Chapel Hill formally presented the Asheville City Council with the results of his detailed review of three controversial development projects (see “Asheville City Council,” Aug. 30, 2006 Xpress). Council members had asked Owens to assess the situation after the Coalition of […]
Garden Journal
Queen (or king) bee needed: The Asheville City Market, in connection with Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, is looking for a manager for its new producer-only destination farmers’ market in downtown Asheville. The half-time position will start this fall. Organizers say they want a diplomatic communicator who is organized, detail-oriented and an innovative thinker, with experience […]
Call him Mister President
Buncombe County Commissioner David Young was elected president of the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners during the organization’s 100th Annual Conference in Cumberland County last weekend.
Schooling fish buyers
Greenlife Grocery has introduced an educational labeling and sourcing program called FishWise that helps consumers make informed choices about seafood. The FishWise buyers’ guide indicates how “sustainable” each seafood item is, and where and how it was caught.
A whiter shade of pale
Greg Merritt of Cree Inc. was the featured speaker when Progress Energy hosted a “Lunch and Learn” session on Aug. 15. Cree, a North Carolina-based high-tech manufacturer, is an industry leader in development of LED lighting and a co-creator of the LED City program. The company only sells to other manufacturers who produce lighting products, […]
Garden Journal
In the pink (or blue): The Blue Ridge Hydrangea Society will offer a class titled Companion Plants for Hydrangeas at the N.C. Arboretum on Saturday, Aug. 25, from 1 to 4 p.m. Master Gardener Linda Cobb will lead the discussion of how to blend other plants with hydrangeas and address trends in cottage gardening. She […]