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Dillsboro looks ahead, plans link to Sylva
Dillsboro town board members came together Monday night and took action that will have far-reaching and unifying effects well beyond the town's limits.
After months of debating whether the town can afford it, Dillsboro officials signed an application for a 10-year $112,000 loan to purchase the 16 acres behind Harold's Supermarket known as the Monteith property.
Dillsboro leaders plan to use their new property to house a performing arts center, an amphitheater, a picnic shelter with horseshoe pits, a playground, sand volleyball court and parking lots.
Dillsboro's vision will benefit the entire county, and we applaud town officials for taking this progressive step.
Not only will the area become a cultural and recreational center, it will also serve as a conduit for the county's Greenway project. As such, it could link Sylva and Dillsboro, creating a more vibrant and diverse tourist destination. With an easy way to walk between the two towns, visitors are likely to stay longer and provide an extra boost to our local economy.
Linking the two towns together geographically would likely create a closer working relationship and lead to collaborative efforts in the future.
Dillsboro town board members have demonstrated their forward thinking by purchasing the Monteith property. With parking a problem common to both downtown Dillsboro and Sylva, the large parking lots planned for the site, along with proposed shuttle service, should help alleviate parking problems before they intensify.
As Dillsboro strives to maintain its image as a heritage town, the performing arts center will showcase local musicians, artists, actors and craftsmen as they keep alive the mountain traditions.
The facility will also provide a new entrance into Dillsboro that will promote and typify mountain heritage and give the tiny town that relies on tourism a new economic and cultural boost.
Hats off to Dillsboro's board members and the initiative they showed Monday night in shaping their town's future.
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