Jose Sandoval

Municipalities throughout western North Carolina will hold events the weekend of June 19 to commemorate Juneteenth, the date in 1865 when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas learned they were free.

Taylor Montgomery, co-founder and executive chef of Montgomery Sky Farm in Leicester, was named Best Chef: Southeast on Monday. Montgomery operates a 50-acre farm that offers a unique experience to its guests.

A text from a Jackson County GOP leader accuses the NCGOP and state auditor’s office of pressuring county election officials to vote along party lines. At a June 2 county board of elections meeting, the two GOP members of the board alleged that they were receiving pressure from state officials over an early voting site at Western Carolina University.

North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Reid Wilson announced Wednesday the start of this year's WNC recreational water quality monitoring program. The program tests water quality at popular rivers across the region.

Buncombe County is planning to purchase the former JCPenney site at the Asheville Mall for $5 million, turning it into the county’s first standalone emergency operation center. County officials outline the importance of the new center after Hurricane Helene.

Gov. Josh Stein and Lake Lure Mayor Carol Pritchett joined local, state and federal officials to announce the long-awaited reopening of the lake, 20 months after Hurricane Helene struck Western North Carolina.

In a statement Friday, the Republican congressman said he is “confident the investigation will expose the facts, not politically motivated fiction."

Kyrylo Gencho was at home in Kharkiv when Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. He arrived in Asheville in November 2022 seeking a stable, peaceful life. Now, changes in U.S. immigration policies are bringing new uncertainty to Ukrainians living in western North Carolina.

Western North Carolina Congressman Chuck Edwards, who represents the 11th Congressional District, is reportedly under investigation by the U.S. House Ethics Committee over unspecified allegations.

A new report from Mountain BizWorks sheds light on the WNC Strong: Helene Business Recovery Fund. It was created days after Hurricane Helene to provide rapid recovery loans to small businesses suffering economic losses due to the impacts of the storm.