Duke has acquired majority ownership of REC Solar, an California-based company that sells and finances commercial-size solar arrays, according to an article in GuruFocus. REC Solar is projected to producing 82 million kilowatt hours yearly in North Carolina, approximately enough to power about 6,500 homes. According to the article: Duke plans to invest up to […]
Blue Ridge National Herigate Area Partnership just announced its latest round of grants to 22 WNC nonprofits totaling $170,000. Appalachian Barn Alliance: $7,000 to create a historical archive and a self-guided driving tour of old barns in Madison County Appalachian State University: $7,500 to work with local schools to develop multimedia lesson plans […]
Scott Rogers, executive director of the Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry, was among those appointed to the N.C. Governor’s Council on Homelessness earlier this month. Here’s a list of the appointments: Ilario Pantano (New Hanover County) – Pantano is the director of the State Division of Veterans Affairs. Bob Kucab (Wake County) – Kucab is […]
Asheville-based Innovative Solar Systems is ready to start construction on a large PV project that will generate enough power from the sun to serve 15,000-20,000 homes, according to an article on Solar Server. The company has gotten the necessary permits and approvals. The 75 megawatt solar farm will be built in Fayetteville. It will be […]
The Asheville Art Museum is hiring an exhibitions curator to help with its active schedule of exhibitions and public programs based on its Permanent Collection of 20th and 21st century American art. The Asheville Art Museum is seeking a talented and enthusiastic Exhibitions Curator to develop and coordinate dynamic and challenging on-site and traveling exhibitions […]
Asheville’s Montford Park Players hold forth every year in the Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre. If you’ve ever wondered how the troupe got started, you can get the story here. Here’s part of it: Our theatre company began in 1973, at the municipal park on Montford Avenue, with a rendition of Shakespeare’s ever-popular pastoral comedy As You […]
Yesterday, @ashevillehaikus tweeted: Please use the hashtag #avlvalentine or put in @ashevillehaikus so I can RT everything to compile this years list. #avl #asheville Not long after that, hearty, local-flavored yearnings began flowing. And they still are. To follow the stream, go here. For just a taste of the spirit, here are a few highlights: […]
Wednesday, February 11, 2015, is a code YELLOW air quality forecast day for the valleys of Asheville. This means that unusually sensitive people should consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion. For the ridge tops, it is a code GREEN air quality forecast day. No health impacts are expected when air quality is in this range. WNC […]
The Hendersonville Police Department has filed charges against Jonah Wesley VanDoren, 17, of Hendersonville for felony hit and run resulting in injury and Felony Passing a Stopped School Bus striking a person. The accident took place at 7:44 a.m. this morning. Here’s the release from the police department: The Hendersonville Police Department has made charges […]
Wild South announces: Wild South invites the public to submit nominations for its 7th Annual Roosevelt-Ashe Conservation Awards. On March 20, 2015, four individuals and one business will be honored for their outstanding contributions to environmental conservation in the South during the past year. The Awards will be presented at Wild South’s Green Gala in […]
Warren Wilson College physics Professor David Coffey, Ph.D., will discuss the development of next-generation solar cells in a talk titled, “Shining a Light on a New Generation of Solar Cells,” at a meeting of Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society. His talk will take place Tuesday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m., in Room 210 of Morse Hall […]
“The restoration of Nina Simone’s childhood home will finally be taking place this summer thanks to Dan Riedemann’s Nineteenth Century Restorations LLC,” according to a post on the Nina Simone Facebook page. Additionally, the restoration will be filmed and made available on HGTV. For more on Simone’s birthplace and the years-long effort to restore it, […]
The National Park Service is experimenting with a website that maps where the Blue Ridge Parkway is currently closed or has advisory notices posted. Here’s a snapshot of the map on Feb. 8, 2015 at 1 p.m.
Distilleries would be able to sell their spirits to visitors for consumption off-site, if the state legislature passes N.C. Senate Bill 24. The bill also expands the definition of where distillers may hold free tastings, to include trade shows, holiday festivals, balloon races and local fundraisers. The key provision for on-site sales is: Sell spirituous […]
The Laurel of Asheville website announces that its publisher, Jerry Johnson, has announced the launch of a new magazine “devoted to farm-to-table living in our mountains and foothills.” Called Plough to Pantry, this regional publication is something he’s been considering for a while. “People kept asking me to publish a locally-produced food magazine. The success […]
Wicked Weed made it into RateReer’s 2014 list of the world’s top 100 brewers. It is the only North Carolina brewer that made the list. Also listed are Oskar Blues, New Belgium and Sierra Nevada, although their home bases are not in North Carolina.
Mountain True (formerly WNC Alliance) has posted a set of six maps showing areas that the U.S. Forest Service proposes in its draft management plan to use for timber production. Presumably, more maps will be posted, since the draft management plan proposes timbering in additional areas not shown in the six maps.
The demand for wood-pellet fuel is expected to put increasing demands on forest in the South, according to a December 2014 report from the US Forest Service. The report concludes, “The combination of increased pellet feedstock demand, the age class distribution of inventory, and the inelastic supply response of landowners to a change in price […]
After a five-year run at Xpress that was filled with accomplishments and accolades, Jake Frankel will be leaving soon to accept a position as Executive Editor of The Prem Rawat Foundation, a nonprofit that works to improve lives around the world.
Capital at Play takes a look at the man behind WNC’s very own weather service, Ray’s Weather: When Ray Russell was a little baby Settin’ on his mama’s knee, He pointed his finger at an isobar, Said “A weatherman is what I want to be, Lord, Lord, “A weatherman is what I want to be.” […]
The Tribune Papers say the city of Asheville is hiding behind closed-meeting law to avoid disclosing documents requested by the Tribune Papers relating to the city’s takeover of Pack Place and the December sale of naming rights to a corner of Pack Place to the State Employees Credit Union. The Tribune made its requests in […]
