Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
Some of what’s going around:
-Dressing Downton coming to Biltmore Estate: The Dressing Downton exhibition is coming to the Biltmore Estate in a couple of weeks. From the press release:
February 5 – May 25, 2015
Visit to enjoy the exciting new experience of viewing more than 45 costumes from the popular PBS Masterpiece series Downton Abbey® showcased in America’s largest home. The Dressing Downton exhibition displays costumes in groupings throughout the house inspired by the fictional show and by real life at Biltmore. Ranging from servants’ uniforms to lavish evening gowns, the award-winning costumes reflect how world events—the sinking of Titanic, World War I, the Jazz Age, and the evolving roles of women—influenced fashions.
Biltmore House, the exhibition’s premiere location, strikingly resembles Highclere Castle where the series was filmed, making it easy for guests to imagine how the Vanderbilts and their employees lived a century ago.
-Billionaire brewer: Being a craft brewer can make you a billionaire. Just ask Sierra Nevada’s founder, Ken Grossman. His son is leading Sierra Nevada’s new brewery in Mills River just south of Asheville.
-Pack Memorial Library accepting book donations: Members of the library’s book sale committee can pick up books at your home. Simply call Sandy Denman , chair of the committee, at 627-2370 to arrange a pickup. The 2015 Annual Book Sale is scheduled for July 23-25.
-Google Fiber coming to the Tar Heel state: The Raleigh News & Observer reported that Google Fiber “will deploy in Raleigh, Durham, Carrboro, Cary, Chapel Hill, Garner and Morrisville, as well as the Charlotte area.”
-City Mac robbed again: This is getting ridiculous: WLOS reports that City Mac has been robbed five times since last March.
-Celebrate Tom Selleck’s birthday: At Burial Beer on the Beer Slope, Jan. 29.
-Oskar Blues taproom in Brevard: The tasting room at Oskar Blues in Brevard – the Tasty Weasel – will be closed Wednesday to upgrade its tap system. The tasting room is doubling the number of taps, from eight to 16.
-What is Project Granite? The Hendersonville Times-News reports that a foreign manufacturer is considering expanding its operations to a new site in Mills River. From the story:
The unnamed company, dubbed “Project Granite” by economic development officials, would create 172 full-time jobs paying in excess of the average county wage of $35,200, plus benefits, and would invest at least $27.1 million in real and personal property.
Described as a “manufacturing concern located outside the United States,” the company has asked to remain anonymous “due to competitive pressures,” local government officials said in two legal notices advertising proposed economic incentives totaling $817,802.
Andrew Tate, CEO of the Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development, said Thursday that “Project Granite” is unrelated to a recent Italian-Israeli partnership called Tri-Hishtil that announced a $2 million Mills River purchase last August that will create 125 jobs.
-Lawsuit in case of controversial doctor in Henderson County nears end: The Hendersonville Lightning reports that the legal case of a controversial Hendersonville doctor is nearing an end.
Filed in 2003 on behalf of a patient who went to see Dr. Michael J. Rosner, the lawsuit required 11 years and, according to plaintiff’s attorney Wade Byrd, almost $4 million to bring to trial.
Byrd argued that Rosner, a neurosurgeon known for his controversial surgeries to treat people who complained of lifelong chronic pain or fatigue, injured his client, Pam Justus, during two surgeries in 2000 and 2001. Mrs. Justus suffered severe headaches, diabetes and depression for most of her adult life and went to Rosner in hopes of getting relief. Instead, her attorneys argued at trial, the surgeries left her in more pain than ever, unable to lift her head from her chest and with a paralyzed a vocal cord. She died in September 2012.
After a seven-week trial, a jury in Henderson County Civil Superior Court found that Rosner was negligent but reduced a damage award from $512,162 to $1.
In a hearing on Monday before Judge Zoro J. Guice Jr., Byrd argued that the jurors had improperly reduced the award based on one of the 14 questions the judge had given them: “By what amount, if any, should the plaintiff’s actual damages be reduced because of Pamela Justus’s unreasonable failure, if any, to avoid or minimize her damages?”
Byrd asked Judge Guice to strike the mitigation question, leaving the full award.
-The synth is back: The LA Times notes that Moog Music Inc. in Asheville is reviving the golden-age analog synth. From the story:
The value — musical, sentimental and monetary — of analog synthesizers, however, has been steadily growing since their premature demise in the early years of the Reagan administration.
“I see the Moog [analog] synthesizer as not just as a sound-making machine but as an event-making machine,” said Malcolm Cecil, a 78-year-old musician, composer, physicist, recording engineer and one of the world’s leading proponents of the modular analog synthesizer. Among his many other credits, Cecil and collaborator Robert Margouleff helped shepherd Stevie Wonder through his high watermark series of albums in the 1970s as associate producers of Wonder’s “Music of My Mind,” “Talking Book,” “Innervisions” and “Fulfillingness First Finale” albums.
-On the Asheville economy: The Asheville Metropolitan Statistical Area’s economy is on par with that of Mozambique, according to a report by the Carolina Population Center at UNC Chapel Hill. The Asheville area’s GDP is $15.8 billion, compared to Mozambique’s $15.6 billion.
-Photography studio open house: Jesseca Bellmare of Jesseca Bellmare Photography will host an open house on Jan. 29 (that’s Thursday) from 5-8 p.m. at her new studio space, 15 Lee St. in Asheville. She’s offering “door prizes including gift certificates from Suraj Spa, Va Va Voom Lingerie Boutique and Makeup by Meg. But even better – the grand prize is a complimentary makeover & photo shoot and $500 in prints (a $725 value).”
-Full Circle Farm Sanctuary gets grant: From a press release:
Full Circle Farm Sanctuary announced this month it will receive a $10,000 grant jointly awarded by The Pamela Anderson Foundation and Sam Simon, co-creator of the long-running animated classic TV show, “The Simpsons”.
$5,000 each will be awarded by both The Pamela Anderson Foundation of Los Angeles, CA, and Sam Simon of Los Angeles, CA.
The grant will allow Full Circle Farm Sanctuary to purchase a much-needed truck for transporting hay, building materials, and tools. It will also allow the sanctuary to safely transport rescued farm animals.
Kayla Worden, Founder and Executive Director of Full Circle Farm Sanctuary, said the non-profit organization is grateful for the generosity received from The Pamela Anderson Foundation and Sam Simon.
-Asheville GreenWorks benefit: From a press release:
Asheville GreenWorks, an urban environmental conservation organization working to enhance the community through educational and volunteer based environmental programs, has been chosen by Highland Brewing Company as its non-profit partner for the month of February. A special Community Night featuring GreenWorks will be held on Sunday, February 22nd, Highland Brewing, located on 12 Old Charlotte Highway, Suite H, will donate a $1 for every pint sold in its tasting room on Community Night and during brewery tours throughout the month of February.
You stated that they committed fraud. Stated it baldly. You can’t backtrack your idiotic statement and say it was just “your opinion”.
Perhaps instead of railing at how you are being oppressed by mean Democrats, you could think before you put your fingers to the keyboard. But that’s too much to ask, I’m betting.
You’re too irrepressibly manly to allow yourself to be stifled by PC ideas of civility and decency.
Should I sue you for saying “You’re too irrepressibly manly to allow yourself to be stifled by PC ideas of civility and decency.”? A society that is too quick to sue lacks civility and decency. Secondly, I am not backtracking, You statements out of context by one quoting the second line. The first sentence made it quite clear that my statements were an opinion (I’m starting to think….). Thirdly, you are adding words (also against the law). I never “stated that they committed fraud.” The word fraud wasn’t even there. The idea wasn’t either. The idea was the situation was making think they were robbing themselves to collect the insurance (which is a valid opinion which should be investigated-actually it probably already is being).
The suspect is innocent until proven guilty, so no one is guilty at this point.
Your an idiot. By calling them a suspect, your implicitly endorsing my interpretation of what you said.
What a tool.
So much for civility and decency. Your true colors are coming out. If you are the owner of City Mac, I’m telling everyone not to shop at your place.
I’m done with this conversation.
Really!? You actually think I own City Mac?!
WHAT A TOOL! HOLY CRAP!
You made my night!
Thanks for being the perfect embodiment of conservative backassery.
I said I was done, but I’ll clarify this last point. That is, you jump to conclusions where I have left questions. I never said they were guilty of fraud or that they were even a suspect. I don’t know either. I’m starting to think something is fishy and am thinking of some possibilities. I hope the police sort it out.
You should apologize for your mean statements, but I’m going to be the mature one and forgive you. Have a good night.
“Help, help! I’m being repressed! Witness the violence inherent in the system!”
Poor little conservative huckleberry.
You blithely wave around accusations that CityMac are committing the robberies themselves, as if *everyone* must be thinking it, utterly devoid of a _shred_ of care to the people you are slandering, then cry when your wittle feewings get huwt.
No apologies from me, you little monster.
But perhaps you could apologize to the people at CityMac who have not only had to suffer being repeatedly targeted by criminals, but now suffer under accusations from yet another know-nothing from the vile wastes of the internet.
I’m starting to think City Mac is robbing itself. It is staging a robbery to collect the insurance.
Perhaps you should think twice before spitting out such slander.
I did NOT accuse, but you have admit things are REALLY fishy.
You stated it as a fact: “It is staging a robbery to collect the insurance.”
That, friend, is slander, plain and simple.
Perhaps they can make up for some of their losses by suing you.
Chill out man. I guess you never heard of free speech?? Are you the robber?
The First Amendment protects statements of opinion. “I’m starting to think….” is clearly a statement of opinion. I NEVER said I have evidence or it was a fact City Mac was staging these robberies.
Statements of opinion are clearly protected under the First Amendment. I said “I’m starting to think….” which is clearly a statement of opinion. You Democrats are always trying to restrict people’s opinions. Crazy.
Suing an anonymous internet handle? Sounds legit.
Happens all the time.