At a recent event in Chimney Rock hosted by the Hill to Crag climbing initiative, veterans of the armed forces explored how climbing can serve as a way to recapture the excitement and camaraderie of deployment without the anxiety of working in a combat zone.
“There’s real fear among nonprofit organizations that not supporting the current iteration of the board could mean retaliation in the form of being cut from the $1.5 billion that DHT will control once the sale is final,” wrote Asheville-Buncombe NAACP President Carmen Ramos-Kennedy. “In order to truly build trust, citizens and organizations must feel free to speak their hearts and minds without fear.”
From reusing glass jars, to bulk shopping to bringing your own container for restaurant takeout and leftovers, locals are finding strategies for cutting down on food packaging.
Many area growers rely on holiday sales of their food products and handicrafts to help carry their businesses through the winter season.
Give Amazon.com a rest — Western North Carolina is full of small, independent retailers, where the only thing cookie-cutter is the display of, well, cookie cutters.
As an independent pet retailer, “Business is good,” says Jenna Wilson, who owns Patton Avenue Pet Co.’s three outlets. Other locally owned pet suppliers agree: WNC pet owners want the best for their family members, and they often shop local for high quality pet food, treats, supplies and toys.
Grigg Sheffield, owner of L.O.T.U.S Urban Farm and Garden Supply, opened his shop 6 years ago and says that the biggest trend he sees is that the consumer base is more educated, curious and knowledgeable. “There’s a big move towards understanding what’s in your food and how it’s grown,” he says.
Are CBD businesses — which are exploding across WNC and elsewhere — laying down the tracks, preparing for an expansion into legal marijuana? The answer depends on whom you ask. Many local CBD entrepreneurs say they’ll continue their focus on the health benefits of CBD, regardless of whether medical or recreational marijuana are legalized in the state.
The impending snowpacolypse — and the promise that hardcore weather prognosticator Jim Cantore will be the in Asheville area this weekend — has locals in a tizzy about the weather.
Open enrollment for 2019 Affordable Care Act health insurance plans is underway through Saturday, Dec. 15.
According to the project website for the planned Interstate 26 Connector project in Asheville, the N.C. Department of Transportation has been meeting with community groups about the roadway since 1989. On Tuesday, Dec. 4, NCDOT will again convene local stakeholders. Also: a major public land acquisition in the Cherokee National Forest, and a new community service option for veterans involved with the criminal justice system.
“Poor dental care leads to poor health and poor dental care is also a social poverty stigma that makes it hard for people to get jobs,” says Dr. Jeff Heck, Mountain Area Health Education Center’s CEO. In line with MAHEC’s mission of increasing access to primary and preventive health care services to people in rural areas, the organization will partner with St. Luke’s Hospital and Isothermal Community College to open a new dental and primary care center in Columbus next spring.
A $940,000 award, to be administered primarily by Asheville-based nonprofit Mountain BizWorks, will fund the newly created Growing Outdoors Partnership, which aims to boost sustainable job growth in the local outdoor gear and recreation industries.
As demand for solar energy increases, members of the N.C. Sustainable Energy Association worry that negative word-of-mouth about experiences with renewables could undermine trust in established installers. In August, the trade group developed a “Solar Business Code” establishing fundamental professional standards.
Deepening our awareness of what’s going well in our lives is a simple practice that’s also profound, say a variety of local wellness practitioners and helping organizations. Benefits can include an improved mood and sense of well-being and possibly even better physical health.
With amounts ranging from $3,000 to $6,000, the grants may seem small but can have a huge impact on growing farming operations.
Since the inception of a new adaptive exercise program for athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities in October, a core group of about six athletes with a variety of abilities and challenges have made “incredible” progress, reports Karla Furnari of Buncombe County Recreation Services. The program meets on Wednesdays at 3 p.m. at South Slope CrossFit and is free to attend.
A Vegas-based developer wants to build a resort in the mountains outside Asheville. To do so, he would need commissioners to amend Buncombe County’s zoning ordinance. Staff in the county planning department have recommended that commissioners reject the changes.
The Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority announced its 2018 tourism product development funding grant awards, to the tune of nearly $10 million. Trained staff are standing by to assist with Affordable Care Act enrollment through Saturday, Dec. 15, and residents can learn more about plans to widen Sweeten Creek Road in South Asheville at a meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 13.
As a sacred fire burns, two holy leaders from Canada will share insights gleaned from their lives as resilient survivors and indigenous leaders at the Voices of Wisdom gathering near Weaverville Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 17-18.
The new facility’s planned retirement is in 2059 — 17 years after Buncombe County government’s 2042 goal of transitioning all homes and businesses to completely renewable energy. Jason Walls, Duke Energy district manager, said his company is committed to helping local governments achieve their goals but that the new plant’s construction is based on forecasts of growing energy needs.