Facing increased scrutiny and concern over problems associated with freestanding news boxes, Mountain XPress distribution manager Sammy Cox (pictured) and publisher Jeff Fobes organized local publishers to form the Community Publishers Group (CPG). Members of the CPG now share the cost of purchasing and installing new multi-publication distribution units, which are installed in 36 locations throughout Asheville, N.C. According to Cox and Fobes, the new boxes conserve space and reduce clutter, and have pre-empted potentially harmful measures like news rack legislation. They spoke with AAN News recently by phone and email about the benefits these boxes and the CPG have had for Mountain XPress and the local publishing community.
