There was a brief article in a recent Xpress with a title promoting a small happening in Pritchard Park on Saturday, Aug. 9, which effectively prompted me to attend the event with my family for what your paper touted as “family-friendly” [Take That, Rockin’ Robin: All-ages Arts Show Takes Over Pritchard Park,” Aug. 6]. Admittedly, […]

I heard recently on the radio that next year, the city of Asheville is considering establishing a “free speech zone” at Bele Chere. This is in response to some people’s complaints about protestors and/or preachers during the event. Apparently, some people were affronted or even felt uncomfortable when in the vicinity of a protestor and/or […]

I am a mom; many Asheville residents are moms too. Your readers [still] have a mother and/or know someone who is or has a mother. It is a connection we all have. It is safe to say that for every injury or death there is a mother somewhere profoundly affected by the event. Please think […]

Thank you, Mountain Xpress and Hunter Pope, for the recent acknowledgement of the greening efforts at Downtown After Five [“Green Is the New Downtown After Five,” Aug. 13]. We truly appreciate you taking the time to highlight our ongoing mission to preserve our local environment. The biggest obstacle we faced in getting this program off […]

In response to a recent e-mail floating around entitled “Fly the Flag” and designed as a memorial for all those who lost their lives on 9/11/01: I’m all about flying our flag, but the flag is certainly not the “fabric of our country,” as the e-mail claims. The real, important fabric of our country is […]

What goes around comes around. Rick Davis, Sen. McCain’s campaign manager, was irate when Andrea Mitchell on Meet the Press mentioned that the senator had not been in the “cone of silence” before his interview with Pastor Rick Warren. He asked for a meeting with NBC’s president and in a letter said the “network is […]

I can understand the concern of Dave Ogren and the Concerned Citizens for a Clean and Safe Asheville [“Study Finds No Cancer Clusters near CTS Site,” Aug. 13]. When you see lots of friends and neighbors diagnosed with cancer, you do begin to wonder about what caused it. Living near an industrial site increases the […]

Writing in plain bureaucratese, I understand that a very limited CTS cancer study, looking in the wrong places [and] not finding enough health problems they weren’t looking for, is a sham used to generate a false-negative headline [“Study Finds No Cancer Clusters near CTS Site: Small Data Sample Limits Validity,” Aug. 13]. So, what is […]

We were pleased to see your coverage of regional emergency preparedness [“Weathering the Storm,” Aug. 13]. We at the American Red Cross here in WNC are also working with our community partners to develop a system for region-wide disaster response. The Asheville Mountain Area Chapter of the American Red Cross is now the regional headquarters […]

Since the transfer of the property upon which the magnolia tree stands was a violation of the Pack family will/wishes, how can it be a valid contract? Who are the attorneys that supposedly did their “due diligence” that resulted in what seems to be something less than a clear title? David Gantt said: “We screwed […]

Regarding this entire Parkside fiasco, I realize people make mistakes. However, it’s difficult to believe no county commissioner, nor the developer, had any clue whatsoever that this City/County Plaza land was unavailable for sale, as the history of its being gifted in perpetuity for public use is largely common knowledge among locals. Perhaps worse, there […]

I’m writing because of a recent John Boyle column in the Asheville Citizen-Times regarding Stewart Coleman and the Parkside condos. It seems that money can’t be made without progress, which is sometimes seen in the form of tax dollars resulting from construction of things like high-rise condos such as those proposed by Stewart Coleman. And […]

On Aug. 12, there was a raid conducted by ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] on a plant in Weaverville. Fifty-seven people were arrested for being undocumented workers. [Twenty-eight] folks are in jail in Charlotte or Atlanta, likely to be deported. Twenty-nine were released because they have kids or health issues, but they too will most […]

Regarding the recent [Weaverville] raid, I see that targeting honest people, affecting families and leaving the true criminals free on our streets is unacceptable, particularly in this phase of the election year. I see that politicians want to give the impression that the law is been enforced—while what they are really after are the votes […]

On a Friday night this summer at Diana Wortham Theatre when Terpsicorps took the stage, I remembered why I moved to Asheville! Asheville is blessed to have a great venue and a visionary such as Heather Malloy at the helm of Terpsicorps—a dance series that brings emerging and key dance talent to the area (during […]

About four years ago, I—along with my rottweiler—was involved in a severe car accident on the Blue Ridge Parkway. This mishap resulted in staggering medical bills for the both of us. Through generous programs such as Vocational Rehabilitation and Project Access, I was able to receive surgeries that would have otherwise been impossible to obtain. […]