Local partners and federal officials joined USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station staff Tuesday, Aug. 31, for a tour of The Boggs Collective: an Asheville-based, sustainability-oriented fine woodworking operation which received a grant of nearly $100,000 from the Land-of-Sky Regional Council’s WNC Forest Products Cooperative Marketing Project. That project is funded by federal dollars from the Recovery Act. The Southern Research Station and Land-of-Sky Regional Council sponsored the tour, which was conducted by The Boggs Collective co-owners Melanie Moeller and Brian Boggs.

photo courtesy of The Boggs Collective

TThe Pack Memorial Library is putting books back on its shelves in downtown Asheville. But don’t check ‘em out just yet: Although the renovation project is ahead of schedule, the estimated reopen date is for sometime in late fall or early winter.

Photo by Jonathan Welch

North Carolinians will get their first taste of instant-runoff voting on Nov. 2, when a 13-candidate field for the N.C. Court of Appeals appears on the statewide ballot. And according to an N.C. Bar Association report, this marks the first time nationally that the new form of voting will be used by a state. Early voting begins

The CTS/Mills Gap Road property just moved one step closer to being named a Superfund site: Today, Sept. 1, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it’s “moving forward” with the process to add the former electroplating plant to its National Priorities List of hazardous-waste sites.

About 7 p.m., a two-hour standoff in downtown Asheville ended without incident, as Hilton Head, S.C.-resident Kenneth Allison surrendered peacefully. Police took Allison to Mission Hospital for evaluation, and have filed commitment papers.

Here’s a photo taken by Ashevillean CJ Mason .

In this edition of the Local Matters podcast, Xpress reporters Jake Frankel and David Forbes discuss East Asheville sidewalk concerns with neighborhood activists Chris Pelly and Kim Engel ahead of tonight’s special Asheville City Council meeting on the issue. The duo also discuss last week’s City Council meeting (including the scope of the Hillcrest pedestrian bridge reopening and the controversy around the incentives granted to the Montford Commons development) and Congressman Heath Shuler’s recent visit to Asheville.

Unemployment in both the Asheville metropolitan area and Buncombe County dropped to 8 percent in July, according to figures released by the state Employment Security Commission. However, the figures also reveal losses in government jobs and a number of other areas.

In this week’s WNC Wellness review: Xpress launches a print version of wellness review; YWCA Wellness Open House being held Aug. 30; CDC temporarily closes Lake Powhatan; a protein killer could possibly treat all cancers and many illnesses; the dark side of health antioxidants; sizing up the iPad for healthcare; and more.

There will be no strike in the Asheville transit system, as the local bus drivers’ union voted today to accept a contract from management company First Transit, according to a source within the union.

The TEDxAsheville multimedia conference happens today, Sat. Aug. 29. This post contains a live video stream of the event, which is being held at the Orange Peel in downtown Asheville starting at 5 p.m.