The Town of Hayesville could face legal action by preventing a zoning exemption requested by the New Life Women’s Center.
The town council received letters from law offices in Chicago and Washington, D.C. after Hayesville’s planning and zoning board unanimously recommended that no zoning exception be made for the proposed homeless shelter.
The shelter would accommodate women [...]

A farmland preservation plan is being developed by the Clay County Farmland Preservation Committee, chairman Lynn Waldroup told commissioners last Thursday.
The plan, which aims to help landowners stay in agricultural production, will also benefit generational ownership transitions.
Clay County lost 47 farms between 1987 and 2007, according to the 2007 Agriculture Census.
“Agriculture in Clay County is [...]

A new board may be appointed to oversee retail operations in Clay County’s historic courthouse.
Clay County Communities Revitalization Association members Rob Tiger and John Bayne approached commissioners Thursday at the request of commissioner Harry Jarrett.
Numerous comments and surveys suggested choosing a nonprofit organization to lease the old courthouse to, Jarrett said.
Tiger said that forming a [...]

There are screens, projectors and cameras. Stages, lights and sound systems.
Churches that seem to double as concert halls. It’s an increasingly common sight.
In an age of technological enhancement, St Nicholas Orthodox Church may seem a bit untraditional, but only because it’s so deeply rooted in… tradition.
Incense. Saints. More candles than seats. And chanting… verses and [...]

The school board approved moving Hayesville High School’s graduation date from June 4 to June 11 on Monday night.
“I think the snow’s over, so we set a graduation date,” Superintendent Scott Penland said. “I think we’re safe.”
June 11 is one day past the mandatory last day of school according to North Carolina state law, but [...]

As the state budget gets tighter, Clay County Schools is considering reevaluating energy savings to reduce future costs.
The school board unanimously approved a project development agreement with Johnson Controls, which will spend the next 60-90 days evaluating the campus to determine how to make the schools more energy efficient.
The deal, which would entail a 12-year [...]

On average, about 30 percent of the nation’s solid waste is recycled. In stark contrast, barely five percent of Clay County’s solid waste is recycled.
Steve Kaagan and Bryan Hedden emphasized such statistics Monday in an effort to step up recycling efforts at Clay County Schools.
Partners for more than four years now, Hedden and Kaagan transformed [...]

Listen to the community council presentation.
The Georgia Mountain Research and Education Center wants to reach across state lines to help Clay County citizens become more aware of the environment.
The center’s community council met with local business leaders last week to discuss a series of programs and express the necessity of the center.
“Even though we’re neighbors [...]

Listen to the planning and zoning board meeting.
Hayesville may not be getting a new homeless shelter for women if the town council takes the advice of the local planning and zoning board.
The council voted unanimously not to recommend a zoning ordinance exception to allow the women’s center in the central business district downtown.
New Life Women’s [...]

Mark Linkous wasn’t born to be a coal miner.
Determined to keep out of the Virginia mines that consumed his family in the 1960s, he turned to music.
He became a rock star, moved to North Carolina, and on March 6, took his own life.
CNN. The New York Times. Rolling Stone. The Washington Post. The news of [...]