After three successful years, Artisanal has relocated to Diamond Creek Golf Club and are opening tonight. This was the restaurant Bill Greene always dreamed of. Specializing in day boat fish from Hawaii to Maine, the menu focuses on seasonality and creativity. Chef Bill’s main focus is for the guest to have a great experience from start to finish and make the evening a memorable one.
Here’s a story about Greene in the 2005 Mountain Times
And here’s their website and menu
AIRE Executive Director Steve Owen stands on the roof of The Greenhouse, next to the newly installed solar panels. Photo by Owen GrayInstallation of Boone’s First Community Owned Solar Project Complete
Story by Owen Gray
AIRE Executive Director Steve Owen stands on the roof of The Greenhouse, next to the newly installed solar panels. Photo by Owen Gray
The Appalachian Institute for Renewable Energy (AIRE) has taken a step towards independence from coal-produced energy. This week the group completed installation of a 2.5-kilowatt photovoltaic solar electric system on the roof of their home office, The Greenhouse in Boone.
Graduate students from the ASU Department of Appropriate Technologies completed the installation of the system, also known as the Boone Community Solar Project.
Click here for the article in the High Country Press
The building industry is starting to pick up steam, but residential building permits are still lagging behind last year’s totals.In March, the Watauga County Planning & Inspections Department issued 55 permits with an estimated building cost of $3.94 million. That included new construction and renovations.
Click here to read the story from the Mountain Times
About 150 people signed an attendance sheet at a Citizens Informational Workshop for the proposed U.S. Highway 221 widening project. The project will widen the 16.1-mile section of road from two lanes to four lanes from the intersection with U.S. 421 south of Boone to the U.S. 221 Business/N.C. Highway 88 in Jefferson.
Current total cost estimates for the project, including right-of-way acquisition and construction, are about $98 million. Read more …
Environmentalists are still celebrating a decision by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last week to suspend and review permits for two new mountaintop removal coal mining operations in West Virginia and Kentucky. The EPA said it also intends to review other requests for mining permits, putting between 150 to 200 coal mine permit applications on hold.
Read more …
By Scott Nicholson
Grandfather Mountain is officially a state park now, with Friday’s passage of a legislative bill, one of the last steps of a year-long process that secures the long-term future of the biological treasure.
It joins 33 other state parks, including Elk Knob State Park in the Meat Camp community in Watauga County. The Morton family, heirs of the attraction’s founder Hugh Morton, reached the deal while continuing operation of a portion of the park that has been a popular travel destination.
The state purchased 2,456 acres of the mountain last year, and a bill to name it a state park was introduced by N.C. Rep. Cullie Tarleton (D-93) and Sen. Steve Goss (D-45), among other regional sponsors. The bill now goes to Gov. Beverly Perdue for her signature.
An agreement for the state to purchase the undeveloped, backcountry portion of Grandfather Mountain was announced by former Gov. Mike Easley in September. Funding for the $12 million acquisition came from the N.C. Parks and Recreation and Natural Heritage trust funds, with no additional appropriations needed in a tight budget year.
State park officials have been meeting with the Morton family to finalize a management plan for the property and its 12 miles of trails. The 749-acre travel destination and theme park will remain in operation by the Mortons, though a conservation easement on the property ensures it will remain much as it is and prevent residential development. The theme park features a nature center, wildlife habitats and the famous “Mile High Swinging Bridge.”
It was developed as an attraction by Hugh Morton in the 1950s and lies in Watauga, Avery and Catawba counties. It reaches nearly 6,000 feet in altitude.
By Scott Nicholson
Though soil preparation is a year-round task, it’s not too late to improve on Mother Nature’s humble offering of dirt.
Soil amendments are best made gradually, beginning with a soil test to determine the acidity and level of organic matter in the soil.
However, if you are breaking in a new patch of ground or filling up some front-porch containers, a few simple steps can increase the yield, whether growing vegetables or flowers.
If breaking new ground, remove the top layer of grass and vegetation with a shovel.
This layer can be set aside, composted, or placed at the bottom of a trench and covered over with six to eight inches of dirt, giving earthworms some decaying vegetation to convert to nitrogen-rich soil.
If you want to plan ahead, you can cover an area of grass or weeds with layers of newspaper, with several inches of mulch piled on top.
Read More from the Watauga Democrat
Although the economy remains in a recession, many local business owners are starting to notice upward trends that may indicate a thaw on the regional monetary freeze. One example includes developer Mark Harrill, president of Foscoe Companies and its key development, Echota, who had a good year in 2008 by staying “positive” — his philosophy of doing business. Foscoe Companies operates a series of gated communities. In 2008, despite a national economic downturn, there were 91 sales at Echota and Echota on the Ridge. These facts, as well as more positive news about our regional economy, are included in a special section inside titled “Economic Facts” being included in the Mountain Times publications .We’ve had a veritable blizzard of negative economic news lately and, while we don’t want to minimize the damaging effect of the recession, there’s also a place for some good news for a change. We hope you enjoy “Economic Facts.” Photo by Mark Mitchell
From the Watauga Democrat
By Frank Ruggiero
The Boone Town Council hit the trail by approving a greenway connector near the new Watauga High School.
The town will commit $96,000 toward the trail, which follows a sewer easement unfit for development toward the Perkinsville area of town.
The funding will likely be drawn from an obesity prevention grant, and the decision follows suit with that made by the Watauga County commissioners, who disagreed with the county school board’s recommendation for an alternative path that veered further from the high school site.
Click here for the article in the Watauga Democrat
So, you’re thinking about grabbing a few acres of dirt, and building a simple cabin. Well take a look at this article about mail order green homes I came across: http://fabprefab.com/fabfiles/home.htm
How Can I Get A Prefab Home?
The easiest way to get a prefab home is to call a design firm that specializes in prefab such as one of the ones mentioned above. Here are some of the other options in green prefab design:
- pieceHomes (Los Angeles, CA)
- Blu Homes (Boston, MA)
- Eco-Infill (Denver, CO)
- kitHAUS (CA)
- Hive Modular (Minneapolis, MN)
- h-haus (Santa Fe, NM)
Many people I talk to in Boone are interested in Off-the-Grid life. Many homes in the area are already basically free because they use a well or spring for water and a septic tank for waste. However, they are all powered by Blue Ridge Electric or New River Electric. I came across a pretty great site for purchasing Solar/Wind/Generator kits, take a look: http://firemountainsolar.com
One of Watauga County’s largest real-estate developments in recent years has been sold after the developer’s affiliates filed for bankruptcy last week.
The 6,000-acre Laurelmor golf resort has been sold to new owners after Florida-based Ginn Company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy to liquidate two Florida projects, as well as agreeing to allow lenders to have partial control of a Bahamas-based development.
BR Development Group LLC and Blowing Rock Resort Venture LLC will now own the Laurelmor resort, which straddles Watauga and Wilkes counties, according to county deed filings. The property is listed at a value of $32 million. Both companies were formed in Georgia in early December and are tied in with Atlanta-based Reynolds Capital Group.
The sale is part of a restructuring agreement with lenders, led by Credit Suisse, after Ginn was unable to refinance a $675 million debt it defaulted on earlier this year.
“It’s important to note that all other Ginn interests are unaffected,” company spokesman Ryan Julison said in a prepared statement.
Click here for more from The Watauga Democrat
BY WILLIAM SHERMAN
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Daily News reporter William Sherman in front of the Empire State Building.
In one of the biggest heists in American history, the Daily News “stole” the $2 billion Empire State Building.
And it wasn’t that hard.
The News swiped the 102-story Art Deco skyscraper by drawing up a batch of bogus documents, making a fake notary stamp and filing paperwork with the city to transfer the deed to the property.
Some of the information was laughable: Original “King Kong” star Fay Wray is listed as a witness and the notary shared a name with bank robber Willie Sutton.
The massive ripoff illustrates a gaping loophole in the city’s system for recording deeds, mortgages and other transactions.
The loophole: The system - run by the office of the city register - doesn’t require clerks to verify the information.
Click here for more from the Daily News
by Tara Darby
Is the “bigger is better” mentality fading in terms of real estate? Are the days of McMansions coming to an end? Well, it seems for some homeowners it is. There’s a new movement out there that’s creating quite a buzz among environmentalist and folks seeking a simpler life. It’s called the Small House Movement and it might just be the next small thing.
These homes bring a whole new meaning to up close and personal since most are less than 1000 square feet, some are even less than 100 square feet.
Click here to read more from Realty Times
Story by Kathleen McFadden
Earlier this month, Boone voters overwhelmingly approved a $25 million bond referendum for a new water intake facility on the South Fork of the New River in the Brownwood area near Todd. Town staff has now turned the focus to an environmental assessment currently underway.
According to Town Manager Greg Young, engineering firm WK Dickson mailed a “scoping” letter to the 18 agencies and departments who will review the assessment, including U.S. Fish & Wildlife, in mid-October. The document outlines the scope of the project—hence the term “scoping” letter—and provides a number of specific project parameters. Read More from High Country Press »
Say goodbye to the folks, pack as many Thanksgiving leftovers as possible into your car and get back to Boone this Saturday—you’ve got a football game to watch. No. 2-seeded ASU will host the South Carolina State Bulldogs at 12:00 p.m. Saturday in a first-round playoff game at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Read More »
Tree Story by Anna Oakes
With literally thousands to choose from, you and your family can find the perfect Christmas tree this year. Families from across the state and Southeast travel hundreds of miles to our mountains for their tannenbaums, but High Country residents enjoy the privilege of living right in the center of North Carolina’s Choose and Cut Capital.
If you’ve never experienced the joy of selecting your own real Christmas tree, make this the year you start a new tradition. Chopping down your own tree is an excuse to spend a little time with your family, roommates or friends, a reason to bundle up and feel the cool air sweep against your cheeks, and a chance to set foot on something other than asphalt and concrete. Plus, you’ll meet hardworking farmers and put money into the local economy at a time when it’s sorely needed.
Click here to read more
Ski story by Sam Calhoun
Not once, but twice before Thanksgiving the High Country has woken up to a blanket of fresh snow on the ground, including this week when Sugar Mountain Resort took the cue from Old Man Winter and opened for the season on Monday, November 17. For all the people who are in denial about the start of winter, there’s no weather report left to dispute—it’s cold, it has been snowing, and if the opening of all four of the High Country’s ski slopes tells us anything, winter is definitely here.
Click here to read more
Story by Kathleen McFadden
Two rezoning cases were on the agenda for Boone’s Quarterly Public Hearing on November 13. ASU requested a change in the zoning of the rock building on the corner of Rivers and Depot streets from B-1, Central Business District, to U-1, University District. Boone Five, LLC requested rezoning a tract on Highway 105 from a split B-3, General Business, and R-1, Single-Family Residential, to CDB-3, Conditional District General Business.
Click here for the complete story
By Ronald Grover Ronald Grover
To the 1 million viewers of Bravo’s reality show Flipping Out, Jeff Lewis is the acerbic, demanding, and sometimes petulant face of real estate speculation. In the program’s first two seasons (already in reruns), Lewis turned a hefty profit buying and updating homes to sell in Los Angeles’ toniest neighborhoods. At the start of the year he sold a 1,900-square-foot house to Lost star Dominic Monaghan for $1.6 million.
But as the cameras stopped shooting seven months ago, the housing market went from slowed to stalled, leaving the 38-year-old speculator, as he says, “paralyzed.” Lewis has been mired for months in a dispute over the boundaries of a $2.5 million property. A deal to buy a house fell apart when Countrywide Financial (CFC.) foreclosed on the seller. Until recently, Lewis lived in a 700-square-foot home, tight quarters for an entourage that includes two cats, three dogs, and, during working hours, a housekeeper and two assistants. “These are not great times, and people are suffering,” says Lewis, a self-professed “working millionaire” who has flipped more than 40 homes.
Click here to read more
By Frank Ruggiero
Appalachian State University is hoping to hit the airwaves with a new broadcasting center, though it will need a green light from the Boone Town Council.
University officials appeared before the council and Boone Area Planning Commission Thursday, Nov. 13, at the town’s quarterly public hearing, requesting a zoning change for property in the central business district.
The university requested to change the zoning classification of the former Alliance Bible Fellowship building, located at the corner of Depot and Rivers streets, from B-1 (central business) to U-1 (university) to establish the George G. Beasley Broadcasting Complex.
Click here to read more
