Hendersonville News and Current Events

12.21.11
UPM Raflatac To Expand Henderson County Operations

UPM Raflatac announced plans today to expand its Henderson County operations through an $11.5 million investment that will result in the creation of more than 50 new jobs. The Finland-based manufacturer of pressure-sensitive label stock, which commercial printers and label companies use to create labels, cited new technology and product development opportunities that will lead to the addition of at least 51 manufacturing and manufacturing support jobs. The average salary of at least $34,653 plus benefits exceeds the county’s average wage, the company stated. Andrew Tate, president of the Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development, said the county has been courting UPM Raflatac to keep its expansion here since July 2010. “We’re very happy, very pleased, as you might expect,” Tate said this morning. ”I think they have a history here of continued investment and expansion, and they have a comfort level with our business climate that certainly works in our favor.” UPM Raflatac, which began operations in the county in 1985 and currently has plants in Fletcher and Mills River, also evaluated sites and buildings in South Carolina, Ohio and Illinois as well as multiple opportunities within the Western North Carolina region.

12.20.11
Sierra Nevada Has Crafted Its Community Role

Last week Henderson County and the Town of Mills River each gave the green light to incentive packages for a major manufacturing company — widely believed to be California-based Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. — to expand here. But if Sierra Nevada, which has narrowed its search to a handful of Eastern locations, does choose Western North Carolina, the proposed facility will have a lot more cooking than just beer production. Sierra Nevada is based in Chico, Calif. — 90 miles north of Sacramento and about a three-hour drive from San Francisco — where company owner and CEO Ken Grossman began the operation more than 30 years ago. The current facility, Sierra Nevada's home since 1989, features not only a brewery that this year will have cranked out more than 27 million gallons of beer, but also an upscale restaurant, pub-style tasting room, gift shop, beer museum and a 350-seat music venue that hosts world-renowned acts. “In terms of just visiting the brewery, it's an experience in and of itself,” said Alice Patterson, marketing manager for the Chico Chamber of Commerce. “It's a place where residents and visitors alike love to go, and it's really a unique experience from the tours that they offer to their tasting room — just something you're not really going to find in many communities across the country.” Sierra Nevada officials have said that, while perhaps not quite on scale with the mother ship in Chico, a similar-type setup is planned for its East Coast sister, wherever that ends up being. “We initially eliminated the concept of just building a production facility,” Grossman told the Times-News while in WNC this past week. “We really wanted a place to have a real consumer experience as well.” As a pioneer and arguably the most influential U.S. craft brewery in modern times, a huge component of Sierra Nevada's consumer experience is education. The company offers nearly three dozen free tours of the brewing process throughout the week, each lasting 75 minutes and ending with samples in the tasting room. There are eight house beers available on the tour, while the restaurant offers a choice of 17 year-round, seasonal and specialty draft brews. The museum area, meanwhile, displays old brewing equipment, “just to kind of show people the history of brewing,” said Terence Sullivan, Sierra Nevada's assistant brewmaster and field educator.

12.13.11
The Henderson County School District Getting High Marks For Energy Efficiency

The Henderson County school district is getting high marks in energy efficiency this semester. Thirteen buildings from have earned ENERGY STAR labels this fall, after a thorough review from Morrisville-based Southern Energy Management (SEM). Included in the project are a dozen elementary, middle and high schools, along with the district’s Information Technology Center. “This is an intentional move for our school district,” said Bill Parker, assistant superintendent for Administrative Services. “Maintaining energy efficient facilities is part of our school district’s Strategic Plan. We have two LEED-certified schools and saw the opportunity to pursue the ENERGY STAR label with our other facilities as a natural next step.” According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Henderson County Public Schools was one of only seven North Carolina school districts that had buildings earn ENERGY STAR labels in 2011. School district Energy Manager Dave Lyons helped prepare the buildings for the ENERGY STAR process, performing internal audits that led to lighting retrofits prior to SEM’s review. He also helped get individuals principals involved in reducing their school’s energy usage. The verification process from SEM involved a review of buildings’ energy usage, after which the results were put through the EPA's Portfolio Manager, producing a Statement of Energy Performance. One of SEM’s Professional Engineers gave each building a final inspection to make sure it conformed to the EPA’s strict guidelines.

12.13.11
The Fletcher Town Council Approves Incentives For Two Businesses

The Fletcher Town Council agreed Monday night to pay a total of $24,000 in incentives over five years to two businesses planning to expand in the town. One incentives package — $23,561 over five years — is for Putsch and Company Inc. Putsch representatives have said they plan on doing $2.3 million in real property improvements and $450,000 in machine and equipment improvements, and will add four new positions. Putsch and Company has been in business for more than 135 years and has had a Fletcher plant for many years, according to Mayor Bill Moore. The company works in the sugar, filtration and separation, vegetable processing and glass industries, according to the company's website. The website also states that since 1975, the Western North Carolina location has served as Putsch's North American technical, manufacturing and service center. The second expansion, Cane Creek Cycling Components, will receive $1,200 over five years, or $300 a year. The company is looking to expand its production of suspension products in Fletcher and cease sending that work overseas. With the incentive money, the company hopes to produce more in-house. Cane Creek's mission is to support the sport of cycling, including racing, charitable activities and cycling advocacy, according to the company's website. Cane Creek is among the world's largest producers of bicycle headsets serving both original equipment manufacturers and the aftermarket. Biberdorf told the council that company officials plan to make $185,000 in machinery and equipment improvements and add three new employees. If the incentives package is approved next week, the company would have to meet those benchmarks over the five-year period.

01.12.12
City Of Hendersonville Changes Committee Application Process

The city of Hendersonville has changed the way it reviews applications for committees, and it now will wait a month to take action regarding candidates so that City Council members have time to fully consider them. The new process will allow council members time to research, meet or interview the candidates at their discretion. The change came after Councilman Ron Stephens was sworn in this past month and brought up the issue. Stephens said he wanted council members to have a chance to review the applications and even conduct interviews. Prior to Stephens' request, the city had interested people fill out an application, City Manager Bo Ferguson said. Those applications were included in the council's agenda packet, and council members reviewed the application to familiarize themselves with a candidate's experience and qualifications. When the appointment was placed on the agenda for consideration, the mayor would call for a nomination and then a vote was held on all nominated people. A majority vote then appointed an applicant to the vacant spot. At Stephens' request, city staff considered the issue, and Ferguson presented four alternatives Thursday — in which there would be a one-month delay between when applicants for a committee or board are announced and when they are appointed. Other options Ferguson presented included holding phone interviews, council interviews or committee interviews. The council currently is advertising a vacancy on the city's tree board. Anyone interested in applying can contact City Hall at 828-697-3005 for more information, or visit www.cityofhendersonville.org/index.aspx?page=68.

01.12.12
Church Looks To Protect Centurie-Old Asheville Basilica

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte has offered Asheville $2 million to buy land near the 103-year-old Basilica of St. Lawrence to try to protect the historic building from vibrations coming from nearby construction. The Asheville city council is considering the offer, but that parcel of downtown real estate has also drawn interest from a company looking to build a hotel. Church leaders and supporters say a hotel would spoil the historic integrity of the area, and the construction could damage the basilica by widening a crack in the building. The basilica was built in 1909 and supports the largest free-standing tiled dome in the United States. The city council referred the offer to a planning committee scheduled to meet next Tuesday.

01.12.12
Hoops & Wine at Falderal Winery

Hoops and wine at Falderal Winery Falderal Winery, 131 Third Ave W., downtown Hendersonville, is starting the new year with wine and hoola-hooping. Combining these things — exercise, charity and wine — Falderal is hosting this unusual Hoops 'n Wine event from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Jan. 21 with Hooping Hearts, an Asheville-based nonprofit. The cost is $10 per person. Flights of wines produced at Falderal Winery will be served, and hoola hoops will be provided. The hoola-hooping part will be led by Caitlin Gleidman, owner and creator of Hooping Hearts, and the wine-tasting part will provide tastings of Falderal's best winter-focused small-batch wines that have been aging in the downstairs winery for several months. Hooping Hearts is a nonprofit organization that works with schools, gyms and individuals to help promote healthy hearts through hulahooping. Gleidman will teach the basics of hoola-hooping in a fun, low-stress environment. Hoops will be provided, and will be available for purchase, with a portion of the profits going back to the school-outreach program. Falderal Winery is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays. Any wine sold at the retail store can be tasted during business hours. For more information about the Hoops 'n Wine event, or to make a reservation, call Falderal Winery at 693-7676 or email info@falderalwinery.com.

01.12.12
McGrady Discusses Impact Of Recent Laws

Henderson County was impacted by several decisions made during the General Assembly's 2011-12 session, state Rep. Chuck McGrady said this week. The former Henderson County commissioner spoke to a group of local business people Wednesday during Business Morning Update at the Chariot in downtown Hendersonville. One of the most controversial pieces of legislation concerned redistricting, McGrady said, as lawmakers redrew the congressional district maps during the session. The maps must receive approval from either the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia or the U.S. Department of Justice before they can be enforced. If the maps survive the courts, most of Asheville, which favors Democrats, would be moved from the 11th District to the heavily conservative 10th District. Democrats fear this could pave the way for Republicans to take control of the 11th District, which includes Henderson County. "There's nothing more political in the world," McGrady said about redistricting. "Now we're (lawmakers) just waiting to see what the courts do with what we've done." Beer has been a big topic in the county recently as well as in the legislature, he said, as the Breweries to Sell Malt Beverages on Premises Law also was passed. McGrady introduced the bill at the request of Hendersonville officials after Southern Appalachian Brewery owners Andy and Kelly Cubbin hit roadblocks while trying to open their business in the Historic Seventh Avenue District. Previously, state law required the Cubbins to obtain a full liquor license and open their brewery's tasting room as a private club — a law that could only be overturned by a local referendum, according to Hendersonville City Manager Bo Ferguson. The ability for a business to obtain a beer-on-premise license had never passed a local referendum.

01.12.12
New Art Studio Opens In Downtown

Sterling Edwards brought a splash of color and then some to downtown Hendersonville when he opened his new business Dec. 1. Sterling Edwards Fine Art Studio, in the same building as 2 Guys Pizza at the corner of West Barnwell and Church streets, showcases Edwards' watercolor paintings, oil acrylic paintings, abstract art and black and white photography. Lately his interest has turned to abstract art. "The last few years, I've been trying to get into the fine art aspect of it," said Edwards, 60. "My style of painting is to use the big brush strokes, bold applications of color. I like to make a strong visual statement, so I rely on very bold colors and expressive brushwork, and I also like very strong contrasts of dark and light colors in my paintings to make them really stand out." Edwards said he and his wife, Diane, used to visit Western North Carolina on weekend trips from Winston-Salem, where he had an art gallery for two years. "We just fell in love with the area and decided to move here several years ago," Edwards said. "I don't think you could drag us out of here." When he is in town, you can find Edwards at his easel in the studio, painting watercolor images ranging from portraits to landscapes. When he is not working at his Hendersonville studio, he teaches painting to professional artists across the United States, Canada and Mexico. He also created his own brushes that feature big, stiff bristles and are sold in art supply stores in various areas across the country. Sterling said the brushes he designed are able to hold more paint, which allows him to create expressive and unique interpretive paintings that are a blend of shapes and unusual colors. Edwarsd' philosophy is that anyone is capable of creating beautiful things, and that painting can be learned and is not necessarily a God-given gift. "There are so many venues you can work through, so many styles — not to mention the subject matter there is to choose from. Otherwise we are all just painting the same thing, the same way and how boring would that be?" he said. Sterling Edwards Fine Art Studio is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday.