Hickory Sun

The mayor of a western North Carolina municipality asked the state for guidance in regards to accommodating summer residents.

Blowing Rock Mayor Charlie Sellers wrote a letter to Drew Christy in April, the director of the North Carolina Governor’s Western Office in Asheville, seeking advice about summer residents, in addition to how to safely reopen.

“Our seasonal residents are returning from all areas of the south and we need the support and recommendations from Raleigh to handle and manage the needs of our full-time residents and returning seasonal residents,” Sellers wrote in the correspondence to Christy published on the High Country Press’s website. “The High Country implemented 14-day self-quarantine for residents returning from outside of Watauga County which many people seem to be adhering too, moving forward there is no way our public officials can handle the influx of returning residents and visitors. In addition, most of our residents are in the high-risk category.”

Sellers further explained to Christy that Blowing Rock’s economy is buoyed by businesses deemed nonessential during the COVID-19 pandemic such as restaurants, gift shops and short-term rentals.

“We need to be working on a plan with the assistance of Raleigh to begin opening on a limited basis with protective measures in place,” Sellers wrote in the letter obtained by High Country Press.

The mayor attached a memo from a group of state lawmakers to his correspondence. Addressing Gov. Roy Cooper, the representatives called for the state to release a plan for reopening to reboot the struggling economy.

“I think we need plans going forward to come up with some ideas for soft openings, upcoming restrictions, implementation and enforcement of restrictions. Everybody is asking what do we do next and when do we do it,” the mayor said, according to the publication.