Breaking skin: What’s in store for Asheville’s tattoo industry?

Asheville area artists credit television and social media with driving the industry’s growth, saying the ubiquity of body ink in today’s popular culture has made the practice more socially and professionally acceptable. But while this shift has been a boon for local shop owners, some now wonder whether the market here can really sustain them all.

MSD upgrades its infrastruc­ture with capital improvemen­t projects

To fulfill its critical mission and increase its capacity to deal with a growing service area and customer base, MSD is in the midst of a $266 million capital improvement project, which will help ensure that the community’s waste is properly handled and safely disposed of.

Communitie­s along Upper French Broad work to restore water quality

In this two-part series, Xpress invites you on a guided a trip down the river as we examine the work of various communities to write the next chapter in the French Broad’s history, beginning with Transylvania and Henderson counties.