Buncombe County has taken another step toward handing a local nonprofit the job of providing primary health care to indigent and uninsured children and adults. The county announced Nov. 17 that it had reached a formal agreement with Western North Carolina Community Health Services to provide basic access to health care for about 10,000 patients […]
Author: Jason Sandford
Showing 64-84 of 688 results
Carl LaBove: ‘Outlaw’ comedian reflects on comedy’s resurgence
One can slay a thousand, but two can slay 10,000. It’s an old biblical reference that comedian Carl LaBove says he and his buddy Sam Kinison used as a guide after they befriended one another more than 20 years ago.
Pack Memorial Library gets makeover
The $3.1 million renovation to the beating heart of Buncombe County's library system — Pack Memorial Library — is speeding along ahead of schedule. On a recent tour of the work underway at 67 Haywood Street in downtown Asheville, Ed Sheary, director of the Buncombe County Public Libraries system, says that once it's complete, the […]
Veteran’s memorial
In a rain-drenched, somber ceremony, a group of about 300 people gathered at Pack Square Park on Veterans Day to dedicate the new Western North Carolina Veterans' Memorial. Darlene and George Houghton of Candler participated in a wreath-laying at the memorial, which honored their son, Capt. George Bryan Houghton, a 22-year-old pilot who died in […]
Developer prevails in lawsuit over public land in downtown Asheville
Buncombe County officials were within their rights to sell a piece of public land to a developer, the N.C. Court of Appeals ruled on Nov. 3. The decision reversed a lower court ruling and leaves the land in the hands of Stewart Coleman. The decision also leaves open the chance that one day the property […]
Mission Hospital to begin search for new CEO
The president and CEO of Mission Hospital and Mission Health System, Western North Carolina's key health center and the region's largest employer, resigned recently amid tensions between hospital administrators and some staff members and physicians. Joe Damore notified the hospital's Board of Directors on Oct. 27 that he would resign effective Jan. 31, 2010. The […]
Asheville 350
Photo by Jason Sandford Strength in numbers: More than 200 people stood together to form the number 350 on Oct. 24 at Pack Square Park in downtown Asheville to take part in the International Day of Climate Change. Thousands of people around the world participated by doing the same thing — talking up the importance […]
Rock slide hits area at peak of fall tourist season
When tons of dirt and rock came sliding down a Haywood County mountainside, it closed off 20 miles of a vital regional highway, opened a flood of concern for Western North Carolina's tourism industry and sent politicians scrambling for cleanup money. Rockslide repercussions: The Oct. 25 rock slide in Haywood County that triggered the closure […]
Asheville Transit System proposed changes
In April 2009, the city of Asheville presented the results of a consultant’s study of the Asheville Transit System. Click here to download a PDF of a document showing the proposed changes to the city’s transit system. Click here to download a PDF of the executive summary of the consultant’s study. Click here to download […]
Botany Buddy: Plant info for your iPhone
The technology may be cool, but it's the dirt that's the common denominator. So says Riceville resident Charlie Hopper, who recently launched the Botany Buddy Tree and Shrub Finder interactive database for mobile devices such as the Apple iphone. It's a love of dirt and the green that grows from it that brought Hopper and […]
Pack Square park gets finishing touches with fountain, pergola
Two more key pieces have been added to Pack Square Park, the new $20 million park still under construction in the heart of downtown Asheville. Asheville artist Hoss Haley began the installation of a stainless-steel pergola over the park's main stage last week. The structure, designed to echo the outlines of mountains on the horizon, […]
Asheville Planning and Zoning recommendation on stream buffers
The Asheville Planning and Zoning Commission recently voted to recommend that Asheville City Council approve the state minimum of a 30-foot stream buffer for all developments that disturb more than an acre of land. Click here to download a PDF of the N.C. Buffer Table. Click here to download a graph showing the relationship between […]
State commission sanctions Mission Hospitals over workers’ compensation claims
An official for a state commission that oversees the handling of workers' compensation claims has referred a recent case involving a former registered nurse at Mission Hospitals to the N.C. Attorney General's office for further investigation. It's an unusual move spurred by what the official, in his Sept. 22 decision on the case, said was […]
New Life Journal ends production
New Life Journal, a monthly Asheville publication that focuses on green living and natural healing, recently alerted advertisers that it was closing due to the economy. "It is with great sadness and difficulty that I write … to inform you that due to current economic circumstances I must discontinue the publication and distribution of New […]
It’s Splasheville, and we’re not talking about the rain
Crews working on the new Pack Square Park have been testing Asheville’s newest water fountain, an interactive water feature in the heart of the $20 million downtown park.
Video captures spirit of Asheville
Katie Brugger and Arthur Hancock set out to capture Asheville on video, and a funny thing happened along the way. Getting in the spirit: Highlands filmmakers Katie Brugger and Arthur Hancock fell in love with Asheville during the making of The Spirit of Asheville and plan to move the city in the next few months. […]
With trees down and gate gone, Lexington Avenue courtyard opens up
A plan to convert a former Lexington Avenue clothing shop into a café caught some people's attention last week when the property's landlord had two 30-year-old trees cut down to open up an adjacent courtyard. Café on the courtyard: The owner of Mela restaurant plans to open a café in a former dress shop on […]
Construction on Urban Outfitters store moves ahead
Construction on the new Urban Outfitters store in downtown Asheville is moving ahead on schedule, with the retailer planning on being open for the holiday shopping season. Urban news: Construction crews are still working on the demolition phase of the new Urban Outfitters planned for downtown Asheville. The retailer plans to be open for this […]
Parkside condo project timeline
Here’s a look at some of the key dates in the history of the Parkside condo project. Critics have decried Parkside’s proximity to City Hall and the new Pack Square Park, as well as Buncombe County’s low-profile sale of public parkland to Parkside’s developer. The documents are culled from hundreds of pages of documents obtained […]
Blogwire: Our invitation to your news
The Mountain Xpress is spotlighting a new feature over the next couple of days. It’s called Blogwire, and it’s our invitation to you to collaborate with us on gathering local news and information.
Coming out party
There's more to a gay-pride event than drag queens and disco. That's what a local group of Asheville residents decided after last year's Asheville Pridefest, which by all accounts was a poorly attended affair held in the parking lot of Scandal's, the gay night club on Grove Street. Without criticizing past events, they began building […]