At a March 27 press conference, Gov. Roy Cooper announced a stay-at-home order, effective throughout North Carolina at 5 p.m. Monday, March 30, that will stay in effect until Wednesday, April 29 — nearly three weeks longer than the duration of Buncombe County’s recently enacted mandate.
“Anybody that follows the economy or follows the news will tell you that there’s a big elephant in the room that we can’t measure, and we’re all thinking about it, and it’s going to affect your planning,” Tom Tveidt, president of SYNEVA Economics, told Council members at their March 13 annual retreat. “That being said, I think there will be a pre-coronavirus economy and a post-coronavirus economy.”
“Wouldn’t you be thrilled if the French Broad Food Co-op moved into Westgate plaza to occupy the former Earth Fare space?”
In an effort to capture the impact of COVID-19 on our city — both for our readers and for future historians — Xpress is accepting local photographs related to the current health crisis.
“At best, this fake and incompetent president’s amateur hour performance has left them scratching their collective heads in bewilderment.”
“Yes, ABC [Alcoholic Beverage Control] stores are considered essential retail. You’re welcome,” deadpanned Fletcher Tove, Buncombe County’s emergency preparedness coordinator, during a March 26 press briefing on the county’s COVID-19 response.
According to the Buncombe County mandate, all lodging facilities are required to close except those that provide one of the following services: “work-related accommodations, facilities housing persons experiencing homelessness and any facility being used for isolation and quarantine purposes.”
Myriad nonprofit and community groups are springing into action to help locals persevere through the crisis. As existing organizations adjust their work to focus on COVID-19 needs and new efforts begin to knit neighbors together, community resilience is blooming throughout WNC.
The new order, which will take effect at 8 p.m. on Thursday, March 26, orders “all individuals anywhere in Buncombe County to stay at home,” with limited exceptions for essential activities, through 6 a.m. Thursday, April 9.
“All this fuss about firearms and the Second Amendment, while we ignore the core intent of the Constitution: balance of power!”
Though both ensembles are working within the jazz idiom, the styles of music they create as worlds apart.
With nine people present in the echoing City Hall chamber, Council members on March 24 unanimously approved a consent agenda that granted Mayor Esther Manheimer broad emergency powers.
For individuals who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19, the fund could pay for “life-essential needs” such as utilities and mortgages. Businesses with fewer than 50 employees could receive low-interest loans of up to $10,000 to sustain operations until they could reopen or get additional support from the federal government.
Asheville singer/songwriter Hannah Kaminer connects local musicians with homebound fans.
“By the way, I’m glad that there has been a diversity of movie reviewers in the Xpress. Good to get different viewpoints, especially women’s.”
At a March 24 press conference, Fletcher Tove, Buncombe County’s emergency preparedness coordinator, said public health staff were finalizing a new supplemental state of emergency declaration that would mandate a “stay home, stay safe” approach to fighting the spread of the disease.
Suddenly, hundreds of restaurants and thousands of employees, from chefs to dishwashers, are out of work. The ripple effect is profound, affecting farmers and suppliers who rely on the restaurant trade.
