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Grymes joins United Way as development director

Henderson County News

Homeowner charged in shooting death of toddler

CRAB CREEK — Henderson County sheriff's investigators have charged the homeowner with involuntary manslaughter in the accidental shooting that killed a 2-year-old girl Monday.   Read Story »

Hendersonville News

Ask Matt ... about Saluda Grade, gateway art

Q. What is the current status of the rail line that goes through Saluda? Will it ever be used for train traffic again? The rail line that bisects Saluda, commonly known as the Saluda Grade, once held claim to being the steepest standard-gauge rail line in the U.S. The 11-mile line begins its ascent at the foot of Melrose Mountain just outside Tryon and in the last 2.6 miles the track rises 606 feet until it reaches Saluda. The line continues nine more miles to East Flat Rock up a more moderate grade. Norfolk Southern still owns the rail line but it has been 14 years since a train last made the Saluda Grade.Today much of the track is unserviceable due to washouts and dense vegetation growing in the railway corridor. Norfolk Southern, you may remember, sold 92 miles of its Western North Carolina system in 2014. Watco, under the new name of Blue Ridge Southern Railroad, owns the track up to milepost W-26 which is near the Zirconia Road crossing. Norfolk Southern still owns the remainder of the line which crosses Lake Summit, extends southward through Saluda, Tryon, Landrum, S.C. (the end of the inactive line) and on to Spartanburg.Although the Saluda City website boasts of "future passenger excursions up the Grade," it ain't happening. When I asked Saluda Town Administrator John Cannon about the line he said he knew of nothing new. Across the state line, the Spartanburg County economic development folks see no movement either. They believe that Norfolk Southern is holding on to the line in case they need to move West Virginia coal. A Norfolk Southern spokesperson related to me that they are "reserving this line for future use should business conditions justify reactivation." Well of course.Now if you want to see a cool display of the Saluda Grade plus the link to Hendersonville, chug on over to the Historic Courthouse and step into the Heritage Museum. It's free. Q. What's going to go on the grassy hill at the south entrance to Hendersonville next to AutoZone? I thought they were going to put an apple sculpture in that park. Maybe a fountain? According to city officials there are no plans to put a sculpture or anything else on the grassy knoll. I suspect the city fathers might be reluctant to opt for another fountain but as they say, hope springs eternal.     Read Story »

Henderson County News

Duke to acquire Piedmont Natural Gas

Duke Energy will acquire Piedmont Natural Gas for approximately $4.9 billion in cash and $1.8 billion in debt, the Charlotte-based companies announced Monday.   Read Story »

Laurel Park News

LIGHTNING PHOTOS: Volunteers attack weeds in Laurel Park

LAUREL PARK — Good weeds and bad weeds was the theme of the day as volunteers and AmeriCorps workers deployed to two town parks and a sod field on Sunday.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

Festival organizers push back on county regs

Efforts to tighten permitting of outdoor festivals drew opposition last week from landowners who objected to what they described as burdensome site plans, unreasonable restrictions on noise and police intrusion on private events.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

Neurosurgeon not linked to fraud case, attorney says

Dr. Michael J. Rosner, who faces 31 medical malpractice lawsuits over surgeries he performed at Park Ridge Health, has no connection to the fraud that led the hospital’s corporate owner to settle a whistleblower lawsuit for $118 million, an attorney for Park Ridge said in court last week.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

FernLeaf Charter School to locate in Fletcher

FLETCHER — FernLeaf Community Charter School will locate its school on 26 acres of land on Cane Creek across the road from Fletcher Community Park, the school announced Thursday.   Read Story »

Hendersonville News

City water system not like Asheville situation, McGrady says

FLETCHER — Although Hendersonville still owns its water system, the prospect that the city utility could be forced into a regional authority surfaced when the state Legislature acted to take Asheville’s water system without compensation.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

County improves score in outdoor beauty

Henderson County received a score of “4 Blooms” from the America in Bloom national program for 2015, an increase of  9 percent from last year’s score of “3 Blooms."   Read Story »

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