2002 saw typical highs, lows of mountain life

By Lynn Hotaling

A certain amount of change came courtesy of state and local elections. November brought the the election of a new sheriff, Jimmy Ashe, and the defeat of two-term state Sen. Dan Robinson. County government underwent a face lift as well, with Commissioner Stacy Buchanan moving to commissioners' chairman. Elected to serve with Buchanan were incumbent Roberta Crawford and newcomers Joe Cowan, Eddie Madden and Brian McMahan.

New faces joined the school board as Ken Henke was elected from the Scotts Creek district and Nathan Moss from the Blue Ridge district. They joined returning board members Ali Laird-Large, Mary Jane Dillard and James Roper.

One local school received new leadership, with Terry Clark named to replace retiring Tom Dowell as principal at Smokey Mountain Elementary.

Sylva's town board members made history in January when they hired Richard McHargue, then director of Sylva Partners in Renewal, to be the town's first-ever appointed manager. Until Sylva's board moved to change the town's form of government in 2001, the town clerk had overseen the day-to-day operations of city employees.

The Sylva Herald's 2002 front pages document more troubling news with regard to sex-related charges and a lawsuit related to such charges.

In the wake of a June 2001 sex scandal at Blue Ridge involving the school's athletic director and safety officer, the mother of one of the teens involved filed a lawsuit on her daughter's behalf.

Sybil Smith of Cashiers filed suit in January against the Jackson County Board of Education, Blue Ridge Principal Lib Balcerek, then-Sheriff Jim Cruzan, former Athletic Director Joe Brooks, former school resource officer Robbie Hess and former Blue Ridge basketball standout Jeremy Stewart, charging that officials' negligence caused emotional harm to her daughter.

The defendants filed motions asking the suit be dismissed, but Superior Court Judge Marlene Hyatt denied those motions in November, allowing the suit to proceed toward trial.

Former Smoky Mountain High science teacher Nathan Hopper, who was arrested in November 2001 on sex crimes involving his daughter, pleaded guilty in April and was sentenced to between nine and 12 years of jail time.

This December saw SMHS band director Mike Sanford arrested on sex-related charges based on alleged improprieties with a female band student.

November brought more news on one of 2001's biggest stories. Former Western Carolina University student Derek Anderson was extradited to Jackson County from Wisconsin to face charges that he murdered his father, Allen Krnak. Anderson, who changed his name from Andrew Krnak, was linked to the crime after his father's skeletal remains were found in the Roy Taylor National Forest in Caney Fork's Moses Creek area.

Zoning and land use issues were again in the forefront of local news. The Village of Forest Hills established a moratorium on building permits in the area covered by its extraterritorial jurisdiction. Qualla residents continued to protest a potential asphalt plant, which resulted in county commissioners' adoption of an ordinance to regulate polluting industries. Sylva officials passed an ordinance regulating adult entertainment establishments and enacted a moratorium on modular housing in the town's most exclusive residential districts.

Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority continued to struggle with an expansion at its wastewater treatment plant in Cashiers. After repeated difficulties related to permits and funding were resolved, TWSA officials again delayed the project to await results of efforts by a citizens' group to incorporate the southern Jackson County community.

An ongoing municipal lawsuit revolving around a dispute between a local developer and the town of Sylva over a road closing was resolved in July when Judge Hyatt ruled in favor of the town. At issue was whether Sylva acted legally when it closed Broad Street in April 2000. Wayne Smith contended that the town's action to close the street at First Charter Bank, before it reached his property, caused irreparable harm to his plans to build a trailer park there.

Construction proceeded as county leaders moved to meet the needs of schools and law enforcement. Work continued on a new county jail, and construction was begun on a new cafeteria and kitchen for Smoky Mountain High.

County residents were saddened this year by the loss of School Board Chairman Martha Queen, who died July 13 in Asheville from cancer complications. On a happier note, 2002 saw the much anticipated dedication of the Hooper House as headquarters of the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce, SPIR and the Jackson County Museum.

Attendance was good at downtown happenings like April's Greening Up the Mountains festival and the annual Fourth of July celebration. Residents also turned out for Dillsboro's Heritage Festival and Mountain Heritage Day.

A brand-new festival, Western's CulloWHEE! ArtsFest, packed in crowds eager to hear big-name jazz entertainers like the Manhattan Transfer.

2002 saw a surprising story as well when Judge Hyatt overruled county commissioners and decreed that portraits of county dignitaries would not be hung in either of the Justice Center's courtrooms.

Economic bad news that came with the October announcement that Ashley Co. would cease operations was tempered with the news that expansion at QC Apparel could provide jobs for Ashley's former workers.

Natural gas arrived in Jackson County, courtesy of the 1998 state bond, despite a June right of way dispute between Willets Road residents and PSNC Energy.

Weather did not play a major role in local news during 2002. The winter saw no significant snowfall, and last month's ice storm that paralyzed North Carolina's Piedmont did not strike here.

All in all, 2002 was another eventful year in the mountains. A monthly summary follows:

January

Sylva officials made history by tapping the director of Sylva Partners in Renewal to be the town's first-ever professional manager. Richard McHargue, who had served as SPIR director for about 15 months, began his new duties Jan. 14.

Word came that the Dillsboro billboard that prompted county leaders to enact off-premises sign rules would likely be dismantled in February. The controversial billboard, erected without proper permits in August 1999, was ordered removed by the N.C. Court of Appeals.

Village of Forest Hills officials placed a six-month moratorium on building permits in its extraterritorial jurisdiction. Property owner James Hooper, who had planned a 13-acre development within the Forest Hills ETJ, spoke against the temporary ban during a public hearing that preceded the vote, calling it "another step to make it difficult for property owners to go on about their business."

Former Smoky Mountain High teacher Nathan Hopper was indicted on 32 counts of child sexual abuse. Arrested in November 2001, Hopper was not indicted by a December Grand Jury. The charges stemmed from allegations that Hopper molested a female family member from 1997 through 1999 when the alleged victim was between 13 and 15 years old.

The mother of a teen involved in the June 2001 sex scandal that rocked Blue Ridge School filed a civil suit on her daughter's behalf, claiming emotional harm to her child caused by negligence on the part of local school and law enforcement officials. Named as defendants are the Jackson County Board of Education, Blue Ridge Principal Lib Balcerek, then-Jackson County Sheriff Jim Cruzan, former school Athletic Director Joe Brooks, former school resource officer Robbie Hess and former Blue Ridge basketball standout Jeremy Stewart.

February

Nathan Hopper, the former SMHS biology teacher charged with child sexual abuse, was released on a $65,000 bond after being jailed for more than two months after Judge Dennis Winner reduced Hopper's bail from $1.5 million to $65,000.

Speakers at a public hearing in Cherokee overwhelmingly supported a proposed land swap that would give the Eastern Band of Cherokee control of 168 acres known as Ravensford. The tribe would like to construct new schools on the acreage.

Jackson County commissioners continued to hear complaints about perceived community nuisances, including a Parris Branch junkyard and a noisy sight-seeing helicopter business in Qualla community.

Local school officials gave the go-ahead to a new cafeteria and kitchen at SMHS. Estimates placed the cost of the project at about $2.1 million. The new cafeteria is expected to be ready in August.

March

Opposition to a mural planned in Sylva's Bicentennial Park stalled efforts of Catch the Spirit of Appalachia to win county approval for the project, forcing the non-profit group withdrew their request. Initial plans called for the first in a series of large murals to be located at the downtown park.

Qualla residents, concerned that a moratorium preventing the construction of an asphalt plant in the county might expire without further action by commissioners, pleaded with county officials to enact an ordinance that would place strict controls on such plants.

Quick action on the part of Sylva firefighters prevented a catastrophic downtown fire during the early morning hours of March 21. A blaze in one unit of the Main Street Apartments was quickly contained, preventing damage to other apartments and nearby buildings.

Sol Schulman, Main Street's oldest merchant, turned 90 March 15 and celebrated by working in the store he opened in 1933.

Elimination of the Dillsboro Dam and power plant was proposed as part of Duke Power's efforts to satisfy the interests of those who live or work along Jackson County's river and lakes. The projected dam removal is part of a larger proposal the power company presented to a team of stakeholders called together as part of a federal relicensing process.

The N.C. Board of Elections delayed the state's planned May 7 primary as a result of a lawsuit filed by state Republicans that claimed the General Assembly's redistricting plan is unconstitutional.

April

A potential "turf battle" between Qualla firefighters and Jackson County Rescue Squad Unit I was settled when both squads agreed to respond to calls in the Qualla area. The conflict surfaced after Qualla requested a revision in its contract with the county that would allow the department to perform all types of rescues. A spokesman for Unit I indicated his department did not favor surrendering rescue responsibilities in Qualla.

Opposition to the proposed elimination of the Dillsboro Dam was voiced during a meeting of the Dillsboro Town Board. Town leaders appointed Bill Parris to represent the town's interest on the Tuckaseigee River Cooperative Stakeholders Team, a group seeking a consensus agreement as part of Duke Power's federal relicensing process.

County school officials and then-Sheriff Jim Cruzan asked for dismissal of the January lawsuit brought against them by the mother of a teen involved in a June 2001 sex scandal at Blue Ridge School. At the same time, the plaintiff amended her suit to allege Cruzan knew that Robbie Hess, the deputy assigned to serve as resource officer at Blue Ridge, had allegedly assaulted a minor prior to the time Cruzan stationed Hess at the school.

Nathan Hopper, the former teacher indicted in January for sex-related crimes, pleaded guilty to 19 counts of taking indecent liberties with his minor daughter. He remained free on bail pending his July 8 sentencing date.

PSNC Energy began construction on an 18-mile pipeline to deliver natural gas to Jackson County. Gas service to WCU was expected to be operational by August. Partial funding for the project is from the N.C. Utilities Commission and from the $200 million bond referendum approved by state voters in 1998.

Tuckaseigee Baptist Association's credentials committee criticized the county's oldest Baptist congregation, Cullowhee Baptist, for calling a woman, Tonya Vickery, as co-pastor and recommended Cullowhee's delegates not be seated at the association's annual meeting.

After years of planning and renovations, Main Street's Hooper House was dedicated as the home of the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce, Sylva Partners in Renewal, Jackson County Travel and Tourism and the Jackson County Museum.

May

Twelve months after county commissioners enacted a yearlong moratorium on asphalt plants, officials adopted a long-debated industrial development ordinance. In the wake of that decision, Mark Fortner of Bryson City, who had planned to construct an asphalt plant, threatened legal action. The ordinance is a result of a public outcry against Fortner's plan to build an asphalt plant in Qualla's Gateway community.

Defendants named in a civil lawsuit filed by the mother of student involved in the June 2001 sex scandal at Blue Ridge blamed each other and the plaintiff in court documents filed in response to the suit.

A May 17 explosion leveled the Cashiers home of Marian Costello and injured to men working at the house.

Sylva leaders approved an ordinance that regulates adult entertainment establishments within the town by imposing restrictions on where such businesses may locate.

A 4-year-old boy drowned after he fell in the Tuckaseigee River while fishing with his mother. Jordan Monteith's mother managed to pull him from the water, but the child did not respond to CPR and was pronounced dead at Harris Regional Hospital.

Cherokee tribal officials opened Harrah's Cherokee Hotel, a 15-story building with 244 rooms, eight luxury suites, two restaurants, a ballroom, an indoor pool and waterfall and sky bridge connecting it to adjacent Harrah's Cherokee Casino.

Terry Clark was named principal at Smokey Mountain Elementary School. Clark, who began her duties in July, replaced retiring Principal Tom Dowell.

Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority received a permit to expand its wastewater treatment plant in Cashiers. The permit authorizes the facility to process an additional 100,000 gallons per day.

June Four people were admitted to area hospitals following three automobile accidents described by N.C. Highway Patrol Sgt. Matt Wike as part of an "alarming trend" of accidents increasing in Jackson County.

Jackson County commissioners requested that a portion of N.C. 107 be named after the late H.F. "Cotton" Robinson, a longtime WCU chancellor credited with "having the greatest impact on the region of any administrator since the school began in 1889."

Jeremy Shane Littrell, 28, of Waynesville drowned in Bear Lake while trying to swim ashore. Littrell's death occurred after he and another Haywood County many allegedly stole a boat.

Some 2,200 attended a performance of the internationally-acclaimed Manhattan Transfer during WCU's inaugural CulloWHEE! ArtsFest.

Proposed longevity pay for elected officials caused tempers to flare during a budget meeting of the Jackson County Board of Commissioners. By a split decision, commissioners included elected officials in the group of county employees who would be eligible for such bonuses.

A Willets Road right of way dispute halted construction on a section of the pipeline intended to bring natural gas to Jackson County. Complaints from a group of Willets property owners prompted the N.C. Utilities Commission to issue an oral temporary restraining order against PSNC Energy.

Jackson County prevailed in a case involving back taxes owed by 11th District Congressman Charles Taylor (R-Transylvania). The N.C. Property Tax Commission ruled Jackson County tax assessor Cecil Dills correctly removed six parcels belonging to Taylor from tax-deferred status after the congressman twice failed to provide a forest management plan.

Traffic was stalled for hours June 27 after a tractor-trailer jackknifed near the Comfort Inn.

Two SMHS seniors brought home awards from the national Health Students of America competition in Anaheim, Calif. Michael Ayers of Cullowhee took a gold medal in sports medicine and Becky Jo Patterson of Sylva placed 10th in medical math.

July

Cherokee Supreme Court Chief Justice Harry Martin was awarded the Parker Award, the highest honor bestowed by the N.C. Bar Association. Martin, a former appeals court and state Supreme Court judge, came out of retirement to create a court system and judicial branch of government for the Eastern Band.

Former SMHS biology teacher Nathan Hopper received an active jail sentence of nine to 12 years. Judge Marlene Hyatt sentenced Hopper to seven consecutive prison terms of at least 16 but not more than 20 months. Hopper pleaded guilty in April to charges he took indecent liberties with his daughter while she was between the ages of 13 and 15.

Tuckaseigee Baptist Association's executive committee voted to affirm the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message, a platform that includes wording that limits the office of pastor to men. The committee also recommended the associations "break faith" with both Cullowhee Baptist, which has a woman co-pastor, and Sylva First Baptist, which passed a resolution in support of Cullowhee's right to call a woman pastor.

Jackson County Board of Education Chairman Martha Queen, 53, died July 13 at Asheville's Mission-St. Joseph's Hospital from cancer complications. A Jackson County native, Queen was first elected to the school board in 1994 and was seeking a third term at the time of her death.

WestCare Health System announced expansion plans that will add 24,000 square feet to Harris Regional Hospital and necessitate the relocation of a portion of Hospital Road.

Dr. John R. Brinkley, who once owned the most powerful radio station in the world and gained fame and fortune through his controversial goat gland transplant surgeries, was in the news as the result of the publication of "The Bizarre Careers of John R. Brinkley," which chronicles his life and exploits. Born in Beta, Brinkley left Jackson County as a teenager and gained national prominence as aging men flocked to his hospital or his "virility rejuvenation cure."

August

PSNC Energy and a group of Willets residents settled their right of way dispute, allowing construction to proceed on the pipeline designed to bring natural gas to Jackson County.

Cullowhee Baptist Church, the county's oldest Baptist congregation, withdrew from the Tuckaseigee Baptist Association in what its pastors termed an effort to stop the conflict within the association.

Family members of former Jackson County dignitaries requested that county commissioners hang portraits that once hung in the county courthouse in the Justice Center.

A smaller billboard that meets the specifications of Jackson County's off-premise sign ordinance was erected in Dillsboro in the same spot where an out-of-compliance billboard was dismantled in February.

Great Smoky Mountains Railroad announced plans to expand in Bryson City but reassured Dillsboro officials that the train will not scale back its Jackson County operations.

A lawsuit filed against the town of Sylva by local developer Wayne Smith ended abruptly when Judge Hyatt ruled in the town's favor. Hyatt ruled that town officials acted properly in April 2000 when they voted to close a portion of Broad Street that was platted but never constructed.

It was announced that North Carolina's primary election, on hold since May, would be held Tuesday, Sept. 10.

September

Democrats chose challenger Jimmy Ashe over incumbent Sheriff Jim Cruzan in the Sept. 10 Democrat primary. Retired educator Ken Henke edged out the Rev. John Reid in a tight race that determined who would fill the school board seat of the late Martha Queen, who died in July. Commissioner Stacy Buchanan gained the Democrat nomination for county commissioners' chairman, and Brian McMahan defeated former school Superintendent Frank Burrell and Sylva board member Maurice Moody to gain the District 2 nomination.

Local health department officials confirmed the presence of West Nile virus here. A dead blue jay tested positive for the disease.

Sylva First, Tuckasegee, East Sylva, Black Mountain and Deitz Memorial Baptist churches followed Cullowhee's lead and withdrew from the Tuckaseigee Baptist Association in the wake of the association's controversial decision to adopt the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message.

County commissioners voted to hang portraits of Marcellus Buchanan, Glenn Hughes, David Hall, E.P. Stillwell and Dan Allison in a Justice Center courtroom. The portraits once hung in the Jackson County Courthouse and were placed in storage when county offices moved to the Justice Center.

Jerry King, director of Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority since its 1992 organization, announced plans to retire at year's end.

County commissioners discussed several options ­ including holding grading contractors responsible for damages ­ to address soil runoff problems that persist despite a local law designed to prevent erosion.

October

Ashley Co. employees learned their jobs would disappear before the year was out when company officials announced the plant would close after 20 years of doing business in Sylva.

County planning board Chairman Jack Debnam avoided penalties despite being found out of compliance with a local ordinance aimed at regulating soil runoff. Adjacent property owners accused Debnam, a real estate agent and developer, of soil-disturbing activity that damaged their property and polluted their spring. Judge Hyatt overruled county commissioners and decreed that photos of Jackson County dignitaries that once hung in the old courthouse could not be hung in either Justice Center courtroom.

Officials' approval of a $300,000 loan to QC Apparel was expected to put 118 people to work by 2003. QC's expansion should allow owner Clemmy Queen to call back his own laid-off employees, as well as offer jobs to those without work in the wake of Ashley Co.'s closing, said Jackson County Economic Development Commission Chairman Tom McClure.

County planners, on advice from then-county attorney Raymond Large, asked commissioners to remove a criminal penalty from a local noise ordinance, but no action was taken.

Sylva officials approved a midnight curfew for youth under age 16. The new law allows officers to cite unaccompanied minors and their parents if children are found in public areas between midnight and 5 a.m.

New school board members Ken Henke and Nathan Moss were sworn in to finish the terms of Martha Queen and Ray Trine, respectively. Both Henke and Moss were elected in September and slated to take office in December. School board members voted to seat the two early to fill vacancies created by Queen's death and Trine's resignation. Longtime board member James Roper was elected board chairman.

November

A new sheriff and three new county commissioners were elected by Jackson County voters. Former Chief Deputy Jimmy Ashe won approval as sheriff, and Brian McMahan, Eddie Madden and Joe Cowan were elected to the board of commissioners. On the state level, incumbent Rep. Phil Haire of Sylva was re-elected, but two-term Sen. Dan Robinson of Cullowhee lost his bid for a third term.

Sylva officials enacted a 120-day moratorium on modular housing in the town's most restrictive residential districts in order to give town planners time to revisit the question of how such housing is defined.

After 70 years, former Sylva town board member Sol Schulman closed his Main Street clothing store. Ill health forced Schulman, 90, from the business he began during the Great Depression.

Construction began on a 1.8 mile sidewalk to connect Sylva's downtown with Webster Road. The $213,914-project was funded jointly by the town of Sylva and N.C. Department of Transportation.

After Judge Hyatt's ruling that portraits of local dignitaries would not be hung in Justice Center courtrooms, county officials resolved the matter by offering the portraits to current office-holders for display within individual departments.

Tuckaseigee Baptist Association officials passed rules that prevented the association's Women's Missionary Union from meeting at the group's headquarters building because the WMU co-leaders were members of churches that had withdrawn from the TBA.

Derek Anderson, a former WCU student charged with murdering his father more than four years ago, was returned to Jackson County. Anderson, who changed his name from Andrew Krnak, was linked to the crime after his father's skeletal remains were found in Caney Fork's Moses Creek area. Anderson was arrested in Wisconsin and held by authorities there until extradition details were settled.

The civil lawsuit brought by the mother of a teen involved in the June 2001 Blue Ridge sex scandal will proceed to trial after Judge Hyatt denied several defendants' motions to dismiss the suit.

County attorney Raymond Large resigned and longtime clerk to the board Darlene Fox was told she would be removed from that position during the Nov. 21 commissioners' meeting.

Harrah's Cherokee Casino celebrated its fifth anniversary.

December

Tuckaseigee Baptist Association leaders reversed a controversial decision that barred the association's Women's Missionary Union from meeting at TBA headquarters. In other Baptist news, Scotts Creek Baptist Church, the largest congregation remaining in the TBA, suspended its ties to the association and discontinued financial support of the TBA.

Judge Hyatt administered oaths of office to Sheriff Jimmy Ashe and commissioners Stacy Buchanan (chairman), Roberta Crawford, Brian McMahan, Eddie Madden and Joe Cowan.

For the third time in two years a Jackson County high school teacher was arrested in connection with sex-related charges. SMHS band director Mike Sanford was released after posting a $2,000 bond after being charged with taking indecent liberties with a student. He resigned his position at the school.

Expansion of Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority's wastewater treatment plant in Cashiers was put on hold pending the outcome of an effort to incorporate the southern Jackson County community.

Commissioners disbanded the county planning board at the recommendation of Chairman Buchanan, who favored the creation of smaller task forces to study specific issues.

Reports indicate that a second tower will be built at Harrah's Cherokee Casino Hotel. Cherokee Tribal Council members have approved construction of a second tower, though no official announcement was made.

It was announced that Martin Cook of Cullowhee, who founded the nationally-acclaimed Inspirations quartet some 38 years ago, was honored in Louisville, Ky., with Southern gospel music's most prestigious award. Cook, the Inspirations' emcee, manager and pianist, received the 2002 Marvin Norcross Award at the Singing News Fan Awards.

Click here to view the 2002 Year In Pictures

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