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Reporter Lilly Knoepp talks with Nikwasi Initiative Director Elaine Eisenbraun about the next stage of plans for the areas around the Nikwasi Mound in Franklin. The Initiative secured the deed to the mound in 2019. Now Eisenbraun says the agriculture of the early Cherokee will be celebrated at the site.
The nonprofit that took control of the sacred Nikwasi Mound in Franklin two years ago is releasing more details about its plans for the site.
The Nikwasi Initiative is made up of representatives from Macon County, the town of Franklin, Eastern Band of Cherokee(EBCI) and Mainspring Conservation Trust.
Elaine Eisenbraun is its new director. She recently updated the Macon County Commissioners and the Franklin Town Council that the initiative wants to focus on the agricultural history of the site.
A flat area at the end of Blackrock Road offers a sweeping view and could be used as a helipad in case of emergency. Donated photo
A group of Western North Carolina mountain biking enthusiasts has unveiled plans to bring the highest-elevation mountain bike trail on the East Coast to Jackson County, and after receiving a thumbs up from leaders in Cherokee and Sylva last month they’ll start seeking grants to make it a reality.
“Sylva is so set up for this, where it’s a destination,” said Sylva Commissioner Ben Guiney during a Feb. 25 meeting. “People go out and they ride, then they go to any of our local restaurants and our breweries.”