Final ideas for city-owned property at Haywood Street and Page Avenue set to be on display

From City of Asheville:

Asheville residents invited to come see finalist ideas for City-owned properties on Haywood Street and Page Avenue

Asheville residents will get an update and peak into possible uses for City-owned properties on Haywood Street and Page Avenue during a March 8 meeting downtown.

Facilitated by the Asheville Design Center, a 17 member Council-appointed Haywood Street Advisory Team has been meeting since last spring to develop a community vision to inform future use of the properties abutted by the Basilica of St. Lawrence, U.S. Cellular Center and Battery Park Apartments.

The process kicked off in May 2016 with an Asheville presentation by national placemaking experts Ethan Kent and Philip Winn from Project for Public Spaces, who shared ideas for key components of great public spaces. It continued with two open houses in June during which the public was invited to consider what they would like to do in the space (rather than focus on what they’d like to see). An online visual survey on Open City Hall Asheville followed in the fall. Most recently, the Advisory Team participated in a workshop to work toward developing a vision statement and bubble diagram of program elements (i.e. uses and amenities) for the properties.

Chris Joyell of the Asheville Design Center and Andrew Fletcher as Chair of the Advisory Team gave presentations before Asheville City Council in November and December to provide updates on the process, and to propose possible temporary uses on the site, including mobile food vending, open vendor markets, seating, garden beds and performance space. From there, the Advisory Team turned its focus back to the long-term vision for the properties, while City staff is working on implementation of the temporary uses.

With all this work in mind, now residents will get to see a draft long-term vision for the site during a public reveal from 5:30 to 7 p.m. March 8 at the U.S. Cellular Center Banquet Hall, 87 Haywood St.
Participants will be asked to provide feedback to the ideas presented by the visioning team. The Haywood Street Advisory Team will be able to consider that feedback before they present their final vision to City Council at its March 28 meeting.

Asheville City Council will ultimately decide how to use the space.