The Beat: HATCH-ing a plan?

HATCH took over downtown Asheville, April 14-17. The annual networking event aims to be a “creative-idea and business incubator,” energizing "creative professionals and thought leaders who are serious about transforming their ideas and talents into bold action, while inspiring others to do the same," according to the event’s website. This year's festivities encompassed four days […]

Crafty maneuvers

Asheville’s Folk Art Center faces an uncertain future due to a change in the Southern Highland Craft Guild’s operating agreement with the National Park Service. Located at milepost 382 on the Blue Ridge Parkway, the multipurpose facility includes galleries, a craft store, a library and more. The guild built the popular tourist destination in 1980 […]

Chad Nesbitt: Paul Van Heden “took over my identity on a Twitter account”

Former Buncombe County Republican chair Chad Nesbitt says his attorneys may soon contact Paul Van Heden; Nesbitt claims the Asheville resident ran a Twitter account, @chadnesbitt, that resulted in the U.S. Secret Service investigating possible threats against Pres. Bill Clinton last year.

(On the left is the real Chad Nesbitt. On the right is an image from the fake @chadnesbitt’s Twitter account.)

ASKville: Reaching out

Longtime party activist Henry Mitchell narrowly edged out Chris Eck to succeed Chad Nesbitt as Buncombe County GOP chair. The president of the Oakley Neighborhood Association, Mitchell’s been a substitute teacher at A.C. Reynolds High School for the last 10 years. He previously worked as a horticulturist, salesman and as resource development director for Quality […]

Moffitt, Gantt spar over district elections


Buncombe County Board Chair David Gantt and Statehouse Rep. Tim Moffitt exchanged sharp words over Moffitt’s recent proposal to expand the Board of Commissioners from five to seven members and mandate district representation in place of the current at-large elections. The two elected officials spoke at this morning’s April 1 meeting of the Council of Independent Business Owners at the Biltmore Square Mall. Photo by Margaret Williams

Changing outcomes

A closely divided Buncombe County Republican Party elected Henry Mitchell to succeed Chad Nesbitt as chairman. After hours of deliberations, the precinct delegates gathered at the Buncombe County Courthouse for the party’s March 26 convention favored Mitchell over challenger Chris Eck, 62-51. An Asheville native, Mitchell is a longtime party activist who recently ran an […]

It’s working, but …

Local agencies are making progress in implementing the 10-year Plan to End Homelessness, but they need more resources and support. That was the principal message that emerged from the 2011 Asheville-Buncombe Homeless Summit, held March 25 at the Masonic Temple in downtown Asheville. More than 50 representatives of agencies such as Homeward Bound and the […]