Arboreal Rights
Posted August 27th, 2008 at 8:25 PM by Leslee Kulba

While High Priest of Coven Oldenwilde Steve Rasmussen had been camping out uninvited under Stewart Coleman’s now historic magnolia tree, he happened to notice there was a “large and dramatic silver maple that is quite a performance of its own” situated so as to obstruct construction on land reserved for a performing arts center. Meanwhile, [...]

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Education Report
Posted August 27th, 2008 at 7:27 PM by Leslee Kulba

Here’s a story problem. Somebody miscalculated the SAT scores. You have only one set of results, but you don’t know if they are the correct or incorrect ones or by how much the two sets of scores vary. What does this have to do with the percent of students tested? Click here for more questions.

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I Love Government, I Can’t Leave Government, I Won’t Live without Government
Posted August 26th, 2008 at 2:37 PM by Leslee Kulba

One hundred volunteers are needed for Project Connect, according to Asheville’s Homelessness Initiative Coordinator, Amy Sawyer. Persons who can take time off work from 8:00am to 2:00pm Friday, September 12, are welcome to volunteer at First Baptist Church downtown. Services to be provided for the homeless and near-homeless include “haircuts, pet care, mental health services, [...]

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• Transit system impact
  Asheville's transit system has the smallest impact on regional travel, according to a report by Dr. David Hartgen of UNCC.
• Asheville congestion
  Future road congestion could threaten North Carolina’s economy, but Asheville is better prepared for congestion than most other N.C. cities.
• Shuler and amnesty
  U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., and several Republican members of Congress try get Senate to resist attempts to grant amnesty to illegal immigrants.
• See More Hits

Homeless get aid in taking jobs vacated after raids
ASHEVILLE — A group of homeless people will fill jobs left vacant at a Weaverville plant after an immigration raid and will use $500 in city money to get to work. Beginning Friday, the money for city bus passes will get the group of at least 15 people from an Asheville homeless shelter to Arvato, formerly Sonopress. Seventy-five workers walked out of the compact-disc making facility after word spread that immigration agents arrested 57 people at another plant, Mills Manufacturing in Woodfin, on Aug. 12.

Heavy rain from Fay can’t punch out WNC drought
ASHEVILLE — This week’s heavy rains raised stream levels and left water standing in spots across Western North Carolina, but failed to drench the drought. Rain courtesy of the remnants of Tropical Storm Fay made a significant dent in the drought that has gripped the region for months, but the precipitation fell far short of ending it, said Ryan Boyles, director of the State Climate Office.

Asheville votes to hold land for arts site
ASHEVILLE — Arts supporters and a condominum developer are angling for prime chunks of downtown near the city’s planned centerpiece park, and the projects could permanently alter the center city landscape. Promoters of a new city peforming arts center appeared to get their wish Tuesday when elected officials voted to hold 2.3 acres of city-owned property south of City Hall for a center site.

Businesses feel drought’s pinch
LAKE LOGAN — Just above Sunburst Trout Co., a sun-scorched and cracked basin is all that’s left of Lake Logan. Some water still flows from a culvert into the fish farm’s raceways, but it’s too warm to use. The lake has dropped 15 feet this summer. “It’s disastrous,” says Sunburst owner Sally Eason, whose business ships gourmet trout products nationwide. And she’s not alone.

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Un-Affordable Housing: Cities keep low- and middle-income families from home ownership
Many North Carolina cities use affordable-housing policies to provide housing to low-income citizens. No doubt started with the best intentions, those policies ignore fundamental economic realities and produce the opposite effect than was intended.

Does Wilkes need a sales tax increase?
The Wilkes County commissioners are asking voters to approve a sales-tax increase on May 6. This report identifies over $16.7 million in revenue and savings the county could use to meet its needs — more than 11 times the amount that the proposed tax increase would produce.

Does Ashe need a land-transfer tax increase?
The Ashe County commissioners are asking county residents to triple the land-transfer tax rate on May 6 (from 0.2 to 0.6 percent). This report identifies $9.4 million in revenue and savings the county could use to meet its needs — nearly 10 times the amount that the proposed tax increase would produce.