State legislator moves to force Asheville’s hand on district elections

City Council moved ahead with plans to poll city voters on whether or not they’d like to see districts put in place for seats on the Council. Three new members of the city’s school Board of Education were appointed, and the issue of homestays in accessory dwelling units returned to the Council chamber.

Asheville city seal

Council to pick Board of Education members on Feb. 28

Council will interview six candidates for three open spots on the five-member Asheville City Schools Board of Education on Feb. 28. The finalists — Yvette Jives, James Lee, Amy Ray, Joyce Brown, Patricia Griffin and Mary Ellen Lewis — were selected from 27 applicants who met residency requirements for seats on the board. Council is expected to announce the new board members during its regular meeting.

City Council gets personal, celebrates successes at retreat

While last year’s City Council retreat focused on strategy, this year was all about tactics. Council celebrated the successes of 2016 — including passing a $74 million bond referendum, launching an equity initiative and retaining control of the city’s water system — and outlined tweaks to how it will operate in 2017.

Whitesides questions commission­, Fryar sees window for criticism at county-city meeting

The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners and Asheville City Council held their first joint meeting in more than one year on Tuesday, Feb. 7. While it was mostly presentations and information updates, Commissioners Al Whitesides and Mike Fryar used the time to question the African-American Heritage Commission and energy efficiency, respectively.

Haywood Street hotel back on Council’s agenda for Jan. 24

Asheville City Council will consider another large hotel for downtown Asheville at its meeting on Jan. 24. With 185 rooms in a nine-story building at 192 Haywood St., the proposed Embassy Suites Hotel is the type of project that has generated widespread public attention and no small measure of controversy — and which Council seems hard-pressed to curb under existing zoning regulations.