The Project CARA program housed at MAHEC Ob/Gyn Specialists came into being to decrease barriers and the stigma that prevents pregnant women with substance-use disorders from getting quality obstetrical care as well as access to substance-use treatment. Last year, Project CARA supported 230 women with substance-use disorders and their families from 16 WNC counties.
Citing concerns about cost, commissioners decided Oct. 16 to stop using the services of a local attorney who had been advising the board on matters involving the federal criminal investigation into Wanda Greene and other former Buncombe County employees.
Commissioners voted Oct. 16 to put a 40-hour cap on the number of hours employees can sell back to the county, a decision that could save the county about $370,000 per year.
The African Americans in Western North Carolina and Southern Appalachia Conference will take place Oct. 18-20 in Asheville. The theme this year is “Making the invisible visible.”
Woman-owned businesses are the norm in Weaverville’s downtown district, a bustling hamlet that puts the lie to the notion of small towns as sleepy places where nothing much ever happens.
To help prison inmates along the path of personal change, a local woman-owned business supplies meditation mats to create a space for contemplation and rest inside the prison walls. Carolina Morning Designs, located in the Toe River Valley south of Burnsville, has modified its products to meet correctional facility requirements.
Book lover? The Friends of the Polk County Public Library will hold its fall book sale Thursday, Oct. 11, 9 a.m.-7 p.m.; Friday, Oct. 12, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; and Saturday, Oct. 13, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., with a $5 bag sale running 9 a.m.-noon that day.
Canadian Haakon Industries announced plans to locate a manufacturing facility to build air handling units at Enka Commerce Park. The company says it will employ up to 160 workers within the first five years of operation in Enka. For the fourth time, Montreat College will host a cybersecurity conference.
Partner organizations are moving forward to implement a multi-year plan aimed at preventing violence against women and maltreatment of children. The effort is funded by an unprecedented $450,000 grant from the Women for Women Giving Circle of the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina.
Duke Energy has installed smart meters for a significant number of customers in North Carolina, but the rollout has experienced some pushback from consumers who have expressed concerns about the impact of RF emissions on the human body.
During a debate organized by the Council of Independent Business Owners on Oct. 5, candidates vying for seats on the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners talked school safety, affordable housing and how the county should respond to the fallout from the Wanda Greene investigation.
In a Sept. 25 open letter, ten local organizations called on the Dogwood Health Trust, which would come into existence to receive the proceeds of the proposed sale of Mission Health to for-profit Healthcare Corporation of America, to ensure proportional representation of women and nonwhites on its board. The signatories also called for all geographic areas served by the trust to be represented.
Commissioners quibbled over extra money for early voting sites in Buncombe County during their meeting on Oct. 2. They also delayed a decision on cuts to certain employee benefits.
Hotelier John McKibbon predicts the massive 18-story project, which is filling the empty shell of the former BB&T building on Pack Square, will be complete by the end of March next year.
Earlier this summer, Kenilworth residents followed up on a complaint first sent to the city of Asheville in September 2017. They allege that changes Mission has made to address their noise concerns haven’t eliminated the problem — and that the health system wasn’t acting in good faith when it entered into discussions with the community.
In this week’s news in brief, read about the Sunday, Sept. 30, event that promises to help you get more engaged in shaping city government. Learn which Buncombe County teachers won top honors, and check out the initial results of Warren Wilson College’s initiative to offer all eligible incoming North Carolina students four years of tuition-free education.
The ninth annual Rooted in the Mountains Symposium will integrate many different disciplines as well as native and Western approaches in its exploration of women’s health and heart health Thursday, Sept. 27, and Friday, Sept. 28, at Western Carolina University.
Firestorm Books & Coffee and The Steady Collective announced that they had formally appealed their notices of violation on Sept. 17. The appeals will likely be considered at the next meeting of the city’s Board of Adjustment, which takes place on Monday, Oct. 22. If the board rejects the appeals, the groups face civil penalties of $100 for every day they remain out of zoning compliance.
A handful of former Buncombe County employees had a message for commissioners during their regular meeting on Sept. 18: “Please consider the retirees.”
Enjoy a glimpse of life on the open road at the Asheville Van Life Rally Friday, Sept. 21-Sunday, Sept. 23, or take in one of the many campaign forums showcasing local candidates for local, state and national offices in this year’s general election.
Interim County Manager George Wood said in a Sept. 11 memo to commissioners that, taking into account increases in automatic employee raises, a projected bump in health insurance claims and the potential for larger funding requests from local school systems, the county could see an approximately $1.7 million deficit in FY 2020.
