Asheville City Council

Council pitches compromise on water laws Parks plan needs more work Bele Chere ‘09 scaled back Asheville City Council’s Feb. 24 meeting—all seven hours of it—was book-ended by dollar signs and question marks. It started with a city budget update and ended with a report on the federal stimulus package, both of which presage more […]

Asheville City Council

Council approves veterans memorial Multilingual signs here to stay Asheville City Council members are still settling into 2009, tweaking the priorities laid down at their January retreat and adjusting to the ramifications of a slumping economy. Nonetheless, they took two votes during their Feb. 10 meeting that showed strong support for the city’s developing greenway […]

Putting a name on the I-26 debate

There has been no shortage of stances in the I-26 connector debate. Resolutions have been passed, endorsements made. Buncombe County and the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce have supported the option known as Alternative 3. Asheville City Council and several community groups and developers have backed the Asheville Design Center-initiated Alternative 4b. (See Xpress ongoing […]

Root Shock: Weighing the cost of urban renewal

Urban renewal, once hailed as the savior of urban areas, has often led to unintended consequences. The drastic reshaping of a city can prompt the demolition of entire neighborhoods, often including homes that were historically owned by African-American families. Asheville has its own history of troublesome urban renewal, especially in the East End neighborhood, where […]

The eye of the storm: Hearts With Hands

While many international aid organizations focus long-term efforts and energies on a specific population or location, Hearts With Hands’ work is determined by the disaster du jour. From hurricanes to tsunamis, the group turns its attention wherever the latest large-scale crisis has erupted. Healing touch: Dr. Maureen McLaughlin-Grant examines a patient at the Hearts With […]