As COVID rages, Canton Labor Day events debated

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER

After the Canton Board of Aldermen/women spent nearly three hours on Aug. 9 going back and forth with Haywood County Medical Director Dr. Mark Jaben over how — if at all — the town’s iconic Labor Day Festival could be held safely, a rare split vote with a tiebreaker cast by Mayor Zeb Smathers set the stage for ongoing debate.

“It’s not going to get any better,” said Dr. Ralph Hamlett, who was joined by Mayor Pro Tem Gail Mull in voting against the musical performances. “As the evidence keeps coming and with the questions that Dr. Jaben answered, the forecast for [COVID} is that it’s not going to get better in the next two weeks. We’re still at a place where numbers keep spiking, and our health system is strained.”

COVID-19, in conjunction with regular summertime accidents that cause hospital visits, has understaffed medical facilities near capacity. Hamlett also expressed concern about how outbreaks could affect the school year.

“I’ve got to make a decision where I can look at myself in the mirror and know that decision was in the best interest of people in Haywood County,” Hamlett said. “I’m glad to see people get vaccinations, but we’re still only at 42 percent in Haywood County. That does not bode well. You can ask people to social distance, you can ask people to mask up, but there’s nothing in place for enforcement. It has nothing to do with people’s liberty. It has to do with safety.”

Along with Alderman Tim Shepard, Alderwoman Kristina Smith voted to let the performances continue.

“My philosophy has been innovation over cancellation,” Smith said. “I wanted to make sure we were looking at all opportunities to have the event. My rationale is that the information that Dr. Jaben presented was, as always, very thorough. Some of the stuff he said really hit home for me, so the approach we would take is multi-layered.”

Smith said they’d encourage people to act responsibly at the events, but that the implementation of safety protocols for the Sept. 5-7 festival is still a work in progress.

“This is an ever-evolving thing. We’ll follow any protocols the state implements, but that was not discussed (at the Aug. 9 meeting),” she said.

With Shepard and Smith for, but Hamlett and Mull opposed, Smathers was forced to cast only the second tie-breaking vote in his four years as mayor. Last summer, in similar fashion, Smathers broke a tie when he opted to open the town’s pool.

“It was absolutely a wonderful discussion back and forth,” Smathers said, explaining his “yes” vote. “I hate we could not come to a consensus, but then as now, town staff has the ability to balance safety and uphold the tradition” of the 114th Labor Day Festival — the oldest in the South.

“Being outside helps,” Smathers said of the performances, which include headliners Diamond Rio, Doyle Lawson and Joe Lasher. “If this was an indoor situation, it would be different. We play a role as a town in hosting it, but people coming also play a role in making responsible choices for themselves and their families and that’s very important.” Diamond Rio was also the headliner of last year’s festival, which was cancelled. The town was still on the hook with deposits of more than $80,000 to various performers, and if the event was cancelled this year, the town would lose the money, but Smathers said that was a lesser consideration, because “the safety and ability of the staff to hold the event is foremost.” Although they were on opposite sides of the issue, Smathers, Hamlett and Smith all agreed that there were no ill feelings and that the board would continue to work together to ensure a safe, wholesome event as in years past.

“We are a team here in Canton,” Hamlett said. “While we may disagree, we’re not disagreeable.”

The board also voted 4-0 to hold the annual parade.

Further discussion over the Labor Day festival will take place at the town’s next regular meeting, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 12.

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Forest therapy trail approved for Sylva

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER

Sylva may soon be home to the first certified forest therapy trail in North Carolina following the town board’s unanimous vote to enter into a memorandum of understanding with Mark Ellison, a certified nature and forest therapy guide who lives in Jackson County.

The board took the vote during its regular meeting Thursday, June 22, after first tabling the decision at its June 10 meeting.

The agreement states that the town would work with Ellison on recommendations for future trail improvements — currently, none are recommended — and that Ellison would manage the application process, complete any trail scouting and documentation work needed and create content for a brochure to facilitate self-guided therapy walks. Any fees would be paid by the occupancy tax-funded Tourism Development Authority, not by the town.

The trail in question is a half-mile loop path at the base of Pinnacle Park. During the June 10 meeting, Ellison said the trail is the “perfect setting” for forest therapy, which he said was an “emerging ecotourism offering that people are looking for.” Called ShinrinYoku where it originated in Japan, forest therapy consists of slow-paced walks that allow participants to relax and connect with the natural world by awakening their senses to the sounds, smells, sights, tastes and feeling of the forest around them, according to a description on the TDA website.

An “in-depth” review of Pinnacle Park’s trail showed that no modifications would be necessary to meet the standards for certification, said TDA Director Nick Breedlove. While future development at Pinnacle Park could impact the trail’s ability to meet those standards, the certification would not actively restrict the town’s ability to develop the park, Breedlove said.

Should changes occur on the site, “Mark Ellison the certifier would take a look and make recommendations to the Pinnacle Park Foundation or to the town and say, ‘This is what we see, and this is what we would recommend to keep it within the program,’ but you’re correct,” Breedlove told Commissioner David Nestler, who had asked about the impact of future trail development. “There’s no restrictions whatsoever on the trails or what the town can do with the trails.”

Certification would come from the Arizona-based Association for Nature and Forest Therapy. According to the association’s website, there are currently a dozen certified trails scattered around the country. The closest are in southern Georgia.

The agreement will remain in effect for five years, at which time the parties will decide whether to continue the partnership. Ellison expects that gaining approval from the association and installing the necessary signage will take three to four months.

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