r/boone

Hi,
we’re four guys, and we’ve put together Westminster’s restaurant scene in an app called Vota. The concept is simple: you see two places side by side (for example Famille vs. Kachina Southwestern Grill), you choose the place you’d rather go to, and the ranking updates instantly. The more people vote, the more accurate the list gets over time. There are still a few duplicates here and there, but I’m continuously cleaning up the data.

Here’s the iPhone version, with categories that actually fit Westminster’s food scene:
https://apps.apple.com/app/vota-restaurant-ratings/id6744969212

And here’s the Android version (finally live):
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.vota.app

P.S. I’m not from Westminster (I live in Gothenburg). I’m not collecting data, not selling anything, and the app does not use AI-generated content. I’m posting in a few different subreddits because we now support more regions, and I genuinely want honest feedback from people who actually know the area.

NO ROOMMATES!!! Looking for Lease Takeover ASAP. Studio apartment available for lease take over immediately. $855 a month. I’m out by the 28th of August so move in will be available SEPTEMBER 1ST!!!! I will also give you my security deposit for the place as well if you take over the lease! Full size fridge, comes with microwave as well! Water and trash included, WiFi not, power through NRLP. Parking included as well. Please contact me if interested.

I recently opened False Idol Tattoo in Foscoe, right outside of Boone. I specialize in illustrative black & gray work and I’m appointment only.
I’m new to the area and have been trying to get my work in front of more local people, so I figured I’d introduce myself here too. Here’s some of my work along with a flash sheet I just finished. The flash is currently $100–150 since I just opened.
The portrait and bird are both healed. If anyone wants to check out more of my work, I’m @falseidoltattoo_ on Instagram

Disclosure up front: I'm an attorney and I run DeFlockILM, a nonpartisan group that files public-records requests about automated license-plate-reader (ALPR) cameras in North Carolina. I filed one with Appalachian State, and the results are a Boone/Watauga story, so I wanted to put the actual records in front of this community rather than just a hot take. I am also a graduate of Appalachian and lived there nine years. I love Boone!

The short version: App State PD operates three Flock license-plate cameras (about a $16k contract). I asked for the standard records, including the Flock "network audit." For March–May 2026, that audit shows those three cameras were searched 1,511,722 times by 3,487 different agencies, and ~84% of the searches came from outside North Carolina.

Important caveat, because the number is easy to misread: App State shares its cameras into Flock's nationwide network. When any agency runs a search, that single query sweeps thousands of networks at once, and Flock logs each as a "search" that reached App State's cameras. So when the top searcher is Houston, TX PD at 177,461, that's not 177k people deliberately looking up Boone — it's a measure of how wide-open the shared network is. A search from almost anywhere automatically reaches here.

The local hook: Charlotte-Mecklenburg PD searched App State's cameras 13,392 times in that window. CMPD is the department whose officer was recently charged for running a Watauga County Sheriff's undercover vehicle plate through Flock.

The part I find hardest to defend: App State refused to tell me how many cameras it runs, citing a state "sensitive security information" exemption — even though the contract it produced lists the count (three) on the first page. Meanwhile, Boone PD publishes its own camera count and network-sharing settings on a public Flock portal. Same town, opposite answer.

Full write-up with the records (raw files mirrored on the Internet Archive): https://deflockilm.org/appalachian-state-flock-alpr-audit/

Genuinely curious what students, faculty, and locals think — both about a public campus feeding a nationwide search network, and about the records/transparency question specifically. Happy to answer questions.

Final Note - I read the rules and believe this post is fully allowed but if not, mods please delete and my apologies.

https://thegoodliars.substack.com/p/a-short-interview-with-greg-bovino

Might be ice. He told me he was just passing through at circle k by local lion. My wife saw him at Lowe’s hardware in uniform 2 days ago

He’s Middle Aged, white hair and beard

Hope it’s nothing