This year’s Bele Chere will be the last — at least, the last run by the city, as Asheville City Council members agreed during a March 12 budget session to end their financial involvement. As part of an overhaul in the way government deals with arts and festivals, city staff are also studying a proposal that sets up a “creative economies” chief, instead of a traditional arts administration staff. Photo by Max Cooper.
Is Asheville in a state of cultural and economic prosperity or capitalist malaise? In his March 6 Opinion piece, “Long Live Asheville: A City Dying to Be Reborn,” Martin Ramsey took aim at the city's utopian self-image, especially as relates to tourism and the “invisible class” of locals “who make this city possible” with their … Read more
Get Ethiopian eats while you still can: Desoto Lounge will discontinue its Tuesday Ethiopian special at the end of March. Asheville diners crave the spicy stews and fermented flatbreads of this East African cuisine: It’s been voted No. 1 in the “restaurant Asheville needs” category in the Best of WNC poll for the past five … Read more
To say I am disappointed in Brent Brown’s March 6 cartoon hardly covers my sentiment. I think it is extremely disturbing that the KKK is referenced in a comic strip as though that organization's history is in any way amusing. I am disturbed that the comic artist felt the strip was funny, and I am … Read more
“Local” is not just a buzzword in Asheville. It’s a way of life — a sometimes radical way of life. Like, if we think big, maybe we can establish our own local stock exchange. But hold on. Don’t overlook one of the simplest and most effective ways to support the local economy: Move some of … Read more
