As western North Carolina continues to recover from the damage done by Hurricane Helene over eight months ago, the Western North Carolina Chamber Business Coalition has declared this week “WNC Open for Business Week.”
Many Chambers of Commerce, including Boone and Blowing Rock, will highlight events across the region during the week and work throughout the summer with local businesses, event organizers, and others to promote the area. They say the area has been resilient and ready for visitors to revitalize local economies.
North Carolina First Lady Anna Stein kicked off the week in Watauga and Ashe counties.
I’m in Western NC today to kick off WNC Open for Business Week! The best way to get back is to come back – the most impactful thing we can do to support western NC is to spend our tourism dollars here. pic.twitter.com/1BiVps6mdP
— Anna Stein (@FLONC) June 2, 2025
Gov. Josh Stein went on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS Monday night to promote the week.
“I wanted to go because it’s open for business week for western North Carolina, and it was really great the way he started out, and I didn’t know he was going to do this as he showed a picture of Anna canoeing yesterday,” he told reporters after Tuesday’s Council of State meeting. “His staff found it on Twitter, and he said, ‘Tell me about this picture,’ and it gave me an opportunity to say to all of America, western North Carolina is open for business, and the best way you can help now is to have a great time. And that’s not a hard sell, because everyone knows that if you go to Western North Carolina, you will have a great time.”
Stein, a Democrat, thanked Colbert for encouraging his viewers to donate millions of dollars after Helene hit the state. Colbert also urged his viewers to visit western North Carolina this summer.
They also talked very briefly about barbecue, since Colbert is originally from South Carolina, and about FEMA and Medicaid.
He told reporters that towns like Marshall are working very hard at getting things reopened, and it is vital that visitors come back and support the economy.
“In Marshall, I would say half the storefronts were reopened, maybe 40%,” Stein said. The other 40% are washed down the river, but the others are in there with hammers and nails, and putting glass in the windows. So, everyone is working furiously to reopen, and it’s exciting to see. We just need to help them get the revenue that they need to stay in business because what we don’t want is for them to have busted their tails for eight months, nine months, to open their doors and not have enough customers to survive.”
During the Council of State meeting, the governor told members that he recently submitted his second Helene funding request of $891 million to the General Assembly, which included provisions for small business development, infrastructure, firefighting and fire prevention, and multifamily housing. He said he was pleased to see that there is a separate bill in the House and the Senate included some money in their budget for western North Carolina.
Stein said he also agreed with State Auditor Dave Boliek’s idea behind promoting tourism in western North Carolina.
Boliek told members during the meeting that he had the opportunity to be at the 2025 PGA Championship in Quail Hollow recently for a day where he had the opportunity to be with the governor, and he challenged him to a friendly match of golf in western North Carolina sometime this summer to help promote the tourism industry in western North Carolina. He also urged other Council of State members to take him up on his offer.
“I agree with the auditor’s urge that all of us try to get out West this summer,” Stein said at the meeting. “If you’ve got a long weekend, if you have a favorite place to go, go there. “If you hadn’t been there in a long while, go to a town you’ve never been to. You will find a jewel wherever you go. They are open for business.”
Deadline to apply for helene cashflow loans is june 6
In other Helene-related news, State Treasurer Brad Briner told Council of State members that the deadline for local governments that experienced losses due to the hurricane is this Friday, June 6, to apply for Helene Cashflow Loans. He said 52% of the funds have already gone out, and the remainder will be sent out this month.
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