“Our community is fortunate to have so many impactful groups working on behalf of animals, as the need for help is large in Western North Carolina.”
Tag: COVID-19
Showing 43-63 of 528 results
Buncombe seeks staff expansion for affordable housing
On Tuesday, Dec. 7, the county Board of Commissioners will consider creating three new planning positions at a cost of roughly $164,000 per year. The staffers would help manage feasibility studies as Buncombe pursues affordable housing on county-owned land.
Letter: Help support Alzheimer’s care act
“As research suggests that COVID-19 may be associated with long-term cognitive dysfunction, care for those with dementia is more crucial than ever.”
Letter: Let’s get rid of this virus
“Don’t be AWOL; please get vaccinated.”
Low-barrier shelter not funded by Buncombe board
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners awarded over $11 million in federal COVID-19 recovery funding Nov. 16. Those grants did not include any money toward the city of Asheville’s controversial planned purchase of a Ramada Inn for a low-barrier homeless shelter.
County holds webinar on COVID-19 vaccines for children 5-11
Some attendees posed questions such as “How can we see a full list of the ingredients used in this vaccine?” Others offered comments such as “This is child genocide!” and “Time to get a red pill about what’s really going on before too many dead kids are on your karma.”
Letter: Masks or no masks?
“What good is a mandate if no one enforces it? Or do they?”
$14M in COVID funds up for Buncombe grants Nov. 16
No further details on the organizations that will get new funding or the amounts they could receive were linked to the Board of Commissioners agenda. Over 125 nonprofits, community groups and governmental entities have pitched to the board over the past several months.
Q&A with Joseph Jamison, United Way equity and network specialist
“One of the biggest challenges students face is a lack of voice in a lot of decision-making within our schools and the community at large,” Jamison explains. “For example, debates over masks or virtual over in-person learning. We’ve all heard a lot of loud adult voices at the table, but I think most people would be hard-pressed to recall a news clip or an article where they heard what students thought about those decisions.”
Local nonprofit workers discuss pandemic burnout
As the executive director of True Ridge, a Hendersonville-based nonprofit serving Western North Carolina’s Hispanic population, Lori Garcia-McCammon has never had an easy job. Her organization helps survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault and refers clients to bilingual mental health counselors. Recent years have been straining, as many of the Central American immigrants her […]
Asheville musicians prepare for cold-weather changes
Silas Durocher, Eleanor Underhill and Mike Martinez discuss their plans for what’s shaping up to be a productive musical season.
Letter: Thanks to local schools for alternatives in COVID-19 era
“So it was a great relief to hear that at least a few local schools are protecting children against what I firmly believe are the real dangers of our time.”
Letter: Don’t perpetuate vaccine dogma
“Excluding unvaccinated people perpetuates the false narrative that the only people contracting, transmitting and getting sick with coronavirus are the unvaccinated — and that is wildly untrue.”
What happens to short-term rentals in the long-term?
The amount of money brought in by these short-term rentals in Buncombe County during the first half of this year was up 131% compared with STR revenue for January through June 2019. Consumer preferences — and choices to be made by government officials locally and in Raleigh — will affect the size of that gravy train and who will benefit from it in the years to come.
Some local schools reject COVID advice from health officials
Xpress has identified at least seven local K-12 institutions that are not requiring all students to wear masks as recommended by the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services StrongSchoolsNC toolkit and county public health leaders. Some have rejected other coronavirus measures as well, including isolating individuals with COVID-19 and recommending vaccinations.
Letter: Don’t spend millions on low-barrier shelter
“Spending $1 million to $2 million to construct a site on city-owned property and using the rest for the rescue of existing organizations would seem to me a far better allocation of the rescue funds!”
Letter: Mandate vaccinations at Mission!
“Mission HCA needs to get its priorities straight and heed the recommendations of public health and medical experts.”
Buncombe to cover funding gap for Family Justice Center
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved nearly $97,000 in new spending from the county’s fund balance to cover nine months of services that had previously been supported by the Governor’s Crime Commission.
Wellness in brief: Pardee expands monoclonal antibody infusion clinic
From February through early August, the Emergency Department at Pardee administered 400 infusions of the Regeneron antibody therapy, says chief nursing officer Carol Stefaniak. But following the infusion clinic’s relocation to an outpatient facility in Hendersonville Aug. 11, another 350 infusions were administered, reflecting high demand for the drug.
Inhospitable climate
County considers $500K boost to One Buncombe Fund
While the initial round of One Buncombe money was split between emergency assistance for individuals and low-interest loans to small businesses, the new $500,000 would go entirely toward grants of up to $5,000 for business owners.