Page 7 - Gem Mining News Today

Drug sting wraps up in Macon County District Attorney Ashley Hornsby Welch said a Macon County woman who was arrested as part of a multiple-person drug sting will serve at least 120 months in prison.  Pamela Nicole “Nikki” Wykle, 44, of Franklin, pleaded guilty Feb. 2 to two counts sell/deliver methamphetamine and trafficking methamphetamine. In addition to active prison time, Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Bill Coward ordered her to pay a $50,000 fine. Wykle’s plea marks...

More land conserved in Hickory Nut Gap The property includes a heritage apple orchard. SAHC photo A recently completed conservation project in Hickory Nut Gap connects to an existing 1,500 acres of conserved land in southwestern Buncombe County.  The Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy project protects a heritage apple orchard, open pasture and forested hillsides around Sherrill’s Inn, a designated Historic American Building. While the easement area will not be open to th...

To the Editor: America has failed to punish Trump, the ex-president who has done so much harm to our country. There would have been no insurrection wi...

CLYDE – A late-night operation at the interchange of U.S. 74 West and U.S. 19 South in Haywood County requires drivers to a detour from 9 p.m. through...

Changes, upgrades coming to Maggie festival grounds The Town of Maggie Valley recently decided on several upgrades and changes to the Maggie Valley Festival Grounds this month. The town purchased property that will be used for additional parking, purchased a gate to be installed along the western side of the grounds and changed the amplified music noise ordinance.  At a special called meeting Feb. 15, the Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen voted unanimously to purchase the 1.05-acre par...

Uncertainty about university schedules, childcare and other variables prevented some prospective students from enrolling in college classes this sprin...

The ninth annual Plunge Benefit-t-t-ting Kids in the Creek and Environmental Education will be held in Canton on Saturday, Feb. 27, giving participant...

Jail spending doesn’t solve problems To the Editor: Budgets, it has been said, are moral documents. This is because how a community chooses to spend and invest its money demonstrates the priorities of that community and, ultimately, our values. More than just a dry process of bureaucracy, budgets shape our future and impact who we, together, will become. Building a $16.5 million dollar jail in Haywood County is a moral failure, as well as a strategic one. During the worst economic c...

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, the past year’s likely been topsy-turvy in all kinds of unexpected ways. With the anniversary of the COVID-19...

Weather prompts changes for Lake Junaluska cleanup Due to the forecast for windy, cold weather, the Annual Lake Cleanup at Lake Junaluska, originally scheduled to take place on four days, will not hold a cleanup event on Friday, Feb. 19, and will move the time for the clean-up on Saturday, Feb. 20, to noon to 4 p.m.  Volunteers currently registered to assist on Friday, Feb 19, will automatically be moved to Saturday, Feb. 20. If unable to assist on Saturday, volunteers are asked to c...