Give Your Input on the Downtown Master Plan

Want to have input into the Downtown Master Plan. The final meeting is set.

Buncombe County Tax Office will be updating the Parcel Identification Number “PIN” system beginning January 20.

Do you have a question about Buncombe County Government or the services that we provide?

It is fairly easy to stop the unsolicited credit card offers. You can telephone or write the credit reporting agencies and restrict the sale of your credit report information.

Bobcat fans - attend a home game against the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Special Needs Registry (SNR) is a database that will help emergency responders better attend to citizens with special needs in times of disaster.

Are you unsure about spending a lot of money on healthier foods? They may seem expensive, but keep in mind that there are many ways to eat smart without breaking the bank.

Garden chores in January? Of course! We have to start getting ready for spring!

Please consider giving a home to one of these wonderful pets! The shelter is okay, but I would love to have a home of my own!

Congratulations to Justin Bollinger for his Wild Mushroom Pizza recipe!

All Buncombe County Government Offices will be closed on Monday, January 19, 2009 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Each day, about 77 people receive organ transplants. However, 19 people die each day waiting for transplants that can't take place because of the shortage of donated organs.

Each organ and tissue donor saves or improves the lives of as many as 50 people. Giving the "Gift of Life" may lighten the grief of the donor's own family. Many donor families say that knowing other lives have been saved helps them cope with their tragic loss.

To learn more and/or to register as a donor, visit www.organdonor.gov/donor/.

A lot of tree pruning gets done during the winter months. It is often easier to get the job done when the leaves are out of the way. There is not a problem with that as long as you are removing a branch correctly and not topping the tree.

Reasons not to top a tree:

1. The wounds created by topping do not heal and eventually decay enters the tree.
2. A topped branch will either die, or produce multiple sprouts which quickly grow back thicker and weaker than the original branches. 
3. When a large portion of the crown is removed a like portion of the roots will die.
4. Topped trees eventually become hazardous. 
5. It’s ugly.

For information on correct branch removal, see the leaflet on tree pruning:

Pruning Trees, Flushcuts and Wound Dressing

If you see someone dumping illegally, do not risk your personal safety by approaching them directly. Instead, contact the Buncombe County Environmental Control Office at 250-5461. Please try to get the following information and pass it along to the officer:

• Specific location (address or nearby cross roads)
• Time of day
• License plate number of vehicle
• Color, make, model and/or name of business on vehicle

If you want to report an illegal dumpsite, call 250-5461 and report the following:

• Specific location of dumpsite
• Directions to dumpsite
• Approximate size of dumpsite
• Type of material visible in dumpsite
• Name and phone number of property owner (if known)