Asheville City Council will pull a doubleheader on Tuesday, April 24, as it grapples with how to address a projected deficit of $2.2 million for the budget for fiscal year 2018-19, which begins on July 1. The Council begins at 3 p.m. with a budget work session in the First Floor North Conference Room of […]
Asheville students protest gun violence at downtown rally
Several hundred students from Asheville-area schools gathered in front of the Vance Monument before marching to Pack Square Park on Friday, April 20, in protest of gun violence and support of gun law reform. The rally, organized by student leaders from Odyssey High School, was part of a nationwide student walkout on the anniversary of […]
Making the grade: WNC’s college dining programs get high scores for sustainability
Increasingly, U.S. colleges and universities are working to make their institutions as environmentally sustainable as possible. These efforts cover a broad spectrum, from a recycling initiative at Stanford University that diverts 65 percent of the school’s solid waste away from landfills to Cornell’s plan to be carbon-neutral by 2035, as noted in The Princeton Review’s annual ranking […]
A show of farce
ASHEVILLE, NC
CTS contamination has poisoned more than drinking water
For nearly 30 years, the CTS of Asheville Superfund site has been a source of physical and social toxicity for the surrounding community. With remedial efforts to address the source of contamination finally underway, residents, activists and others reflect on the triumphs and tribulations of the decades-long battle for a clean-up and accountability.
A generous helping: Activism is the main course for some WNC cafes and breweries
Although many of the region’s community-minded food businesses and breweries are known for their support of charities and causes, some were designed from the very beginning with a higher calling in mind.
Asheville City Council, Buncombe Commissioners discuss racial equity, development in joint meeting
2018’s annual joint meeting of Asheville City Council and the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners highlighted issues of racial equity, police use-of-force and zoning conflicts affecting Buncombe residents.
Future transit efforts, concerns mirror Asheville’s past
Asheville as we know it today was built upon the back of its electric streetcar system, one of the largest networks of its time. As the city finds itself in a growth spurt once again, could its defunct trolley system provide some clues to Asheville’s transit future?
Small bites: Karen Washington uses food to connect the dots
The 2014 James Beard Leadership Award-winner Karen Washington will lead a workshop in anticipation of the Organic Growers School spring conference. Also, Food Connection hosts Chefs in Action; Curragh Chase pop-up dinner at Summit Coffee; White Labs Kitchen & Tap debuts fermentation series; Hickory Nut Gap Farm hosts whole hog butchery class; and James Beard Award semifinalists are announced.
Navigating WNC’s long-term care options
Few words have the ability to inspire more fear, frustration and trepidation among older Americans across the country than “nursing home.” But for those confronting the prospect of needing long-term care, a variety of care options and support services across Western North Carolina provides information to help residents find the best care available.
Small bites: REACH seeks to end homelessness with launch party at Funkatorium
Wicked Weed Brewing’s Funkatorium hosts the Real Estate Agents Combating Homelessness fund launch party. Also: The town of Fletcher hosts its 17th annual Chili Cook-Off; the Organic Growers School talks food sovereignty and agriculture in Cuba; Blue Spiral 1 hosts its first art dinner pairing; Your Vegan Mentor demonstrates homemade soups; and author Julia Turshen celebrates her latest cookbook at Nightbell.
Letter: What defines ethical slaughtering?
“Of all the forms of animal agriculture, those advocating ethical slaughter practices should probably be the first to truly have glass walls.”
Small bites: Black Star Line Brewing Co. celebrates MLK
In recognition of Martin Luther King Day, Black Star Line Brewing Co. will host a vegan breakfast plus a whole day of events honoring the civil rights leader. Also: a plant-based Bravo Breakfast at the Hendersonville Community Co-op, Punk Wok Pop-Up at Buxton Hall Barbecue, the GO Kitchen Ready Showcase Dinner and more.
The changing faces of faith
While Asheville thrives on a diverse spiritual life, shifting demographics and evolving notions of religion’s role in daily life have many historic congregations reconsidering the part they play in local culture — and how best to address a changing community’s concerns.
Letter: Has outrage addiction taken over animal rights issue?
“Once again, we see the tendency of the far left to attack the almost far left for not being pure or strident enough.”
UPDATED: Racial tensions mar WNC holiday events
Separate incidents in Canton and Buncombe County over the past week highlight the racial tensions that have dominated headlines throughout 2017 in WNC and across the country.
How local organizers shifted Asheville politics to the left
Movers and shakers on progressive issues have had increasing success in Buncombe County politics since the turn of the century. Activists and organizers on the left have carved out a stronghold in Asheville where they keep power by setting the agenda for conversation according to some. Meanwhile a rise in disaffiliation with the traditional two parties leaves openings for candidates that don’t fit traditional molds in Asheville politics.
CTS clean-up moves forward as community wrestles with torrid past
Cleanup efforts are finally beginning at the CTS of Asheville Superfund site on Mills Gap Road, but past controversies and a lack of trust in Environmental Protection Agency officials continued to dominate the discussion during a Nov. 30 public meeting to review the impending remedial projects and address residents’ concerns.
Front lines: Animal Liberation Front vs. Wild Abundance permaculture school
This fall, an international animal rights organization spearheaded a campaign to stop a small Western North Carolina permaculture school from hosting its annual home-butchering workshop.
Batterin’ ram
ASHEVILLE
Warren Wilson undergrads, inmates come together in the classroom
Warren Wilson College has partnered with the Swannanoa Correctional Center for Women to bring the innovative Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program to the correctional center. For inmate and undergrad alike, Inside-Out provides the chance to gain self-knowledge, grapple with the systemic issues of the penal system and learn from one another.