How much more can Highlands and Cashiers handle?
Or maybe the question should be, how many more can Highlands and Cashiers handle?
Without a doubt, the Fourth of July holiday and the closest weekend to it, is the busiest time of the entire year in our humble hamlets and 2024 was no exception. Masses of people crowded into community events, local attractions, parks, businesses, and pretty much everywhere else last weekend and the most common question asked around town by locals was – how much more can we take?
The question is certainly not a knock on tourism. Anyone who lives and/or works in Western North Carolina, specifically Highlands and Cashiers, knows that tourism is a huge economic driver for the region. Having a robust tourism industry is a boon that helps keep tax rates low, businesses thriving, and sustains growth.
But after experiencing record crowds during the holiday weekend, it’s fair to ponder when Highlands and Cashiers will reach terminal velocity in terms of visitors. Neither location was planned or built out with the thousands (perhaps even tens of thousands) of visitors seen on holiday weekends in mind, and both Highlands and Cashiers have their share of issues carrying the load of more and more guests.
Cashiers’ easiest to see hindrance is the lack of infrastructure to accommodate people and their vehicles. On Wednesday, prior to the Independence Day festivities at The Village Green traffic was backed up beyond Ingles going toward Sapphire, and past the Slab Town Road intersection toward Glenville. Toss in a lack of public parking, and the issue is even more apparent.
Highlands was so busy Thursday, despite what is normally ample public parking, spaces were nil. Narrow sidewalks crowded everyone together on Main and 4th Streets as strangers pushed past each other bumping elbows along the way in the “downtown” area. It wasn’t just crowded, it was congested.
The crowds lingered throughout the weekend as festivities continued in nearby communities and by Sunday, Highlands and Cashiers felt like places that collectively needed a breather.
Our communities are beautiful places to live and visit, and it’s easy to understand why people want to come here. But how much more stress can we put on our resources, both natural and man-made, before it’s too much?
It’s a question with no clear answer.