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Henderson County News

Jailer who saved inmate, tackled shoplifter is honored

Detention officer Joey Garren, who helped save a choking an inmate back in June and tackled a belligerent shoplifter earlier in the year, has been named Detention Officer of the Year Award by the North Carolina Jail Administrators Association.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

Ask Matt ... where SECU is moving

Q. I heard that the old First Union Bank Building at the corner of Asheville Highway and Haywood Road has been sold. Who bought it? Another bank, of course. The building was more recently home to SunTrust Bank but has been vacant for years since SunTrust built a new bank building on Main Street in downtown Hendersonville. The new owner is the State Employees Credit Union. The credit union will relocate its now outgrown main office on Washington Street and Third Avenue next to the County Library. The old SunTrust bank — if you can call it old — will be demolished (except for the vault) and a larger 8,500-square-foot building will be erected on the pie-shaped lot that once also contained the Mountain Aire vacation cottages. Construction is scheduled to begin by the end of the year. Q. What’s going on at the Opportunity House? I see fewer cars parked in front and the site is up for sale. Are they closing? Neither their website nor Facebook page has been updated since May. Jackie Roberts is the organization’s development director and the only paid person at the facility. She has the daunting task of keeping the doors open – figuratively and literally. “Over the past years, revenues have declined and the present model is not sustainable,” says Roberts. Ken Rhoads, president of the Opportunity House Board, has not returned my calls.The building and land is “available” for sale or lease. If sold, the asking price is $2.2 million. In either case, the operation would relocate to a smaller facility. Roberts says that if that happens, the nonprofit will still adhere to four key elements of their stated mission: cultural, social, educational and recreational endeavors. I heard from another source that a possible new direction for the organization would be to build and operate a business development center, perhaps similar to Biz 611, at 611 N. Church St. Roberts said that the Opportunity House was once more of a craft center but over time became a senior center. Even so, no one plays cards there anymore because players won’t pay the higher room rates needed to keep the facility operating. The Music Academy is the biggest revenue producer in the building. The loss of clients renting space has delayed needed maintenance work.The Opportunity House was born 60 years ago in a local church as a place where folks could learn and share new hobbies and crafts. In the 1980s, it moved to a former A&P Grocery store at 1411 Asheville Highway. In its heyday, the Opportunity House offered classes in stained glass, crocheting, dancing, painting, and ceramics, just to name a few. They even had a singles group that met there. The center supported itself by renting rooms to bridge players, potters, woodcarvers and other craftspeople. Weekend birthday parties were not uncommon.I am of the opinion that the decline in use is partly due to competition from private craft businesses and perhaps even the County’s Athletics and Activity Center which rents rooms to local groups. The Opportunity House will have to reinvent itself or fold its tent. Roberts said that if the right client came in tomorrow with a long-term commitment, the sign in front may be pulled. I suspect that it will take a lot more than the return of bridge and pinochle players to make that happen. Q. We used to have separate bins for metal, paper, plastic, etc. at the Henderson County Convenience Center. Now it’s all mixed together. Why the switch? The new system, called “single stream,” went into effect in July. So why the change? “Efficiency,” says Rachel Kipar, the County’s Environmental Programs Coordinator. “Now we can move gondola trailers full of recycles whenever they are full and not have to wait for individual trailers.” Kipar also said that when new compactors are installed at the landfill later this year, there will be monetary savings due to fewer trailer hauls to the recycling facility in Asheville. The County received $45,500 in state grants to ease the change to single stream.What’s changed at the Stoney Mountain Road Convenience Center is that all those separate bins (mixed paper, plastic, cardboard, and metal) have been reduced to just two – one for glass and one for everything else. Glass is hauled to Georgia. Sadly, in the recycling market, glass brings little revenue and its highest value comes if it’s separated from other recyclables. Hendersonville’s curbside collection will still take glass, but if you really, really want to help the solid waste system, save your glass for a trip to the Convenience Center. * * *Send questions to askmattm@gmail.com.     Read Story »

Hendersonville News

HHS to induct six into Hall of Fame

Two popular longtime teachers, a second-generation city car dealer, a Realtor and National Guard commander, an international peace negotiator and the voice of the national football champion Clemson Tigers are going into Hendersonville High School's Hall of Fame.   Read Story »

Hendersonville News

Officers raced into burning building to save lives

A predawn fire engulfed an eight-unit apartment building on Sixth Avenue early Sunday, endangering residents who were inside sleeping when the blaze swept through. Thanks to the quick response of Hendersonville police officers and firefighters from four departments, everyone got out and no one was hurt. Firefighters were able to rescue a dog and a cat as well.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

'Impossible? That's cool,' Donaldson says of run for Congress

Scott Donaldson, a happy warrior who announced last week that he is running for Congress, laughs a lot and grins a lot.   Read Story »

Mills River News

Combat veteran looks forward to Honor Flight

After he graduated from high school in Bronxville, N.Y., Frank Spehr tried a semester of college. He didn’t care for it. College was neither his lineage nor his destiny.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

NHHS lockdown lifted after search finds no weapon

Law officers lifted a lockdown at North Henderson High School and Apple Valley Middle School after a report of a weapon on campus proved to be unfounded.The sheriff's office issued a precautionary “code yellow” lockdown at approximately 2 p.m. Friday, the sheriff's office said. Deputies with the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office responded to the campus, and as part of law enforcement's security sweep the lockdown was escalated to a “code red” to ensure the safety of all students and staff. The sweep confirmed there was no weapon on campus, and the lockdown was lifted at both schools at approximately 3 p.m. All students remained safe, and were dismissed on the regular schedule at 3:15 p.m.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

Lionel Richie, Diana Ross tribute opens downtown

Summer may be drawing to a close, but fall is heating up at Flat Rock Playhouse with a brand new Music on the Rock paying tribute to five-time Grammy winner Lionel Richie and the lead singer of Motown’s most successful act, Diana Ross.The show opened Thursday. Richie and Ross, singers, songwriters, actors and record producers in their own right, remain two of the most celebrated and best-selling artists of all time in their group and solo careers. Richie, originally a member of popular soul group The Commodores, went on to have an unmatched solo career that earned him five Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a Lifetime Achievement award and the Songwriters Hall of Fame’s highest honor, the Johnny Mercer Award. Ross, who gained international popularity as the lead singer of the world’s best-selling girl groups of all time, The Supremes, led a career equally unrivaled. Having released countless record-setting titles with the Supremes, Ross went on to  an award-winning solo career and won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, a Golden Globe, a Kennedy Center Honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, “Female Entertainer of the Century” by Billboard magazine and “The Most Successful Female Music Artist in History” by the Guinness Book of World Records. Featuring classics by these two phenomenal artists such as “Say You, Say Me”, “Endless Love”, “Stuck on You”, “Love Hangover”, “Truly”, and “Three Times a Lady”, the tribute stars Donny Sykes and Ebony Blake, backed by the band made up of made up of music director Will Moss on keyboards, Casey Cramer on guitar, Trevor Stoia on bass and Phill Bronson on drums. Executive Producer for The Music of Lionel Richie & Diana Ross is United Way of Henderson County, along with Downtown Series Sponsor, Rug & Home. Special thanks to Opening Night Sponsor BMW of Asheville and Official Transportation Sponsor, Hunter Automotive Group! The Music of Lionel Richie & Diana Ross runs through Oct. 8 at the Flat Rock Playhouse Downtown, 125 South Main St. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $15-30 and can be purchased by calling the Playhouse Box Office at 828-693-0731, toll-free at 866-732-8008 or online at www.flatrockplayhouse.org.     Read Story »

Henderson County News

Disc Golf Club pitches course at Berkeley Park

Fans of disc golf want the city's permission to install a course at Berkeley Mills Park.   Read Story »

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