Green Park Inn auction up to $1.2 million

Update: Green Park Inn sold in courthouse sale
Thursday evening’s auction of the historic Green Park Inn in Blowing Rock didn’t go the way its owner, Ronnie Wrenn, and the auctioneers hoped it would.
Auctioneer Mark Rogers started the bidding at $5 million for the century-old resort hotel and the 3.8 acres that it sits on. Looks like bidding is up to $1.2 Million
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New Appraisal Rules are Causing Problems
by Bob Hunt - Tue, Aug 18, 2009—Like politics, all real estate is local. This is drummed into us time and time again. You hardly ever see a report about state or national real estate trends without the cautionary caveat that “local markets are all different.” So how, then, does it make any sense for real estate appraisals to be conducted by out-of-the-area appraisers who lack (and don’t have time to get) specific local-market knowledge?
Well, it doesn’t, of course; but the practice has become commonplace thanks to the recent adoption of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC). The HVCC is not a result of legislation. Rather, it is the result of an agreement, a settlement, entered into by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the office of the New York State Attorney General. The agreement went into effect May 1, 2009. Its aim was to put an end to corrupt practices in the business of appraising residential properties. Perhaps, to some degree, it has achieved its aim; but what we know for sure is that it has caused a lot of problems so far.
Click here for the article on Yahoo.com
Click here for a good local Appraiser
Local Farmers Recognized
The 54th annual Farm City Celebration, held on Saturday, recognized some of the key contributors to local agriculture, part of an afternoon focusing on local crops, produce, livestock, and the people who share them with the community.
Dick Hearn, who served on the organizing committee, read from a proclamation adopted by local governments.
“Cooperative networks strengthen our community and quality of life,” Hearn said, noting that Aug. 8 through Aug. 15 had been designated “Farm City Week.”
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Reclamation center complete
Watauga County Habitat for Humanity announces the completion of a new reclamation center building, located at the entrance to the Watauga County Landfill.
This newly constructed building was built with the Habitat ReStore philosophy of using recycled materials that would have otherwise been landfilled, said a spokesperson for Habitat. More than 50 percent of the building materials used include recycled windows, doors, roofing and siding.
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Hayes Center Suspending Operations
The Board of Trustees for the Mariam and Robert Hayes Performing Arts Center announced Tuesday that it would be suspending all operations at the center immediately after the closing of the Blowing Rock Stage Company Production of the musical biography Hank Williams: Lost Highway. That production is scheduled to end Sept. 6 but could possibly have an extended run after that date.
Click here for the article from Jeff Eason
Mission: Make Watauga County Top Recreation Destination in East
Eric Woolridge, AICP, was hired in the middle of March this year as the senior outdoor recreation planner for Watauga County Tourism Development Authority (WCTDA), and he has already begun the groundwork for increasing outdoor recreation opportunities in the Boone area.
“Our goal is to be one of the top recreation destinations in the East, at least,” Woolridge said.
Click here to read the complete article from the High Country Press