WNC farmers are left with bitter losses — 90 percent for peaches in Henderson County alone, amounting to $600,000 in lost revenue, says Terry Kelley, tree fruit expert and director of the Henderson County cooperative extension.
Author: Greg Parlier
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Buncombe commissioners consider morning meetings
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners will reconsider changing the time of some government meetings after a survey of residents revealed a majority in favor of a new schedule. According to a proposal attached to the board’s agenda for Tuesday, July 18, the board’s first meeting each month would move to 10 a.m., preceded by […]
Sky-high growth: Asheville Regional Airport expanding as demand soars
Asheville Regional Airport’s growth has outpaced all projections, already almost doubling numbers outlined in the airport’s 20-year master plan, drafted in 2013, for 2025 enplanements. However, more travelers are creating parking headaches at the state’s third-busiest airport.
Asheville City Schools outsources school meals
The Asheville City Board of Education voted 6-1 to enter into an annual contract for the fiscal year starting July 1 with Chartwells, a subsidiary of Compass Group USA, at a special called meeting June 29.
BCTDA adopts $27.5 million operating budget
“The staff of Explore Asheville get paid way beyond what the city and county are paying. It sends a message, and it’s not a message that’s good,” said board member Andrew Celwyn, who voted against the budget.
Vets use military past to inform brewing future
Local veterans discuss how their military service helped inspire the breweries they operate today.
Black Mountain experiences boom in local food and beverage scene
New restaurants and breweries continue to open in Black Mountain, leaving business owners cautiously optimistic about the town’s potential as a tourist destination.
Citing education, Buncombe raises property taxes
The $430.4 million general fund budget increases the property tax rate one cent to 49.8 cents per $100 of taxable value, or about 2%, resulting in the county’s highest tax rate since 2021.
Top of the town: Conservancy may save Deaverview from development
The 342-acre tract atop Deaverview Mountain, just five miles from downtown Asheville, was purchased by an anonymous conservationist in March with the intention of selling the land to the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy. SAHC has three years to obtain federal and state grants to repay the buyer, then it plans to turn the property over to Buncombe County as a park or preserve.
School staff and advocates speak out during budget hearing
The red-clad advocates filled the commission chambers and two overflow rooms, with about 25 speaking during the county’s budget hearing. They said the 10.3% increase for both Asheville City Schools and Buncombe County Schools in the proposed $423.6 million fiscal year 2023-24 budget was far below the level needed to meet local education’s needs.
Incoming Asheville schools superintendent withdraws from job
Once again, Asheville City Schools is without a superintendent. Rick Cruz has decided not to take the job as new ACS superintendent due to a “family medical emergency,” according to an email from Dillon Huffman, ACS spokesperson. “It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that I will no longer be able […]
Buncombe school board opposes proposed change in district lines
Since 1975, Buncombe has elected one school board member to represent each of the county’s six attendance zones — Enka, Erwin, Owen, North Buncombe, Reynolds and Roberson — and one at-large member. Candidates must live in the district they represent and residents can vote for all school board representatives, who run on a nonpartisan basis, regardless of their address, according to the resolution passed by the board.
Service industry workers petition for affordable housing funding from BCTDA
Representatives presented a petition signed by 2,000 workers and supporters asking the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority to consider using the Legacy Investment From Tourism fund to increase subsidized housing for tourism industry workers.
Commissioners to hear from public on budget June 6
The meeting represents the public’s last opportunity to speak directly to commissioners about the $423.6 million general fund budget proposed for fiscal year 2023-24.
A little respect: Teachers and school staff hold breath for increased pay
“If I don’t have the resources I need, I can’t do [the kids] justice. It’s impossible. I’ve tried to twist myself and do educational yoga for the last 20 years. And I can only do it so much longer,” says Matthew Leggat, a sixth-grade teacher at Montford North Star Academy.
Staff shortage turns up heat for 911 operators
There’s usually not much time for breaks between calls to step outside or use the bathroom, so workers in the windowless, dark call center basically stay glued to their chairs.
Buncombe unveils proposed budget with modest bump for schools
The $423.6 million general fund budget for fiscal year 2023-24, as presented by County Manager Avril Pinder during the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners meeting May 16, represents a roughly 6.4% increase over the budget adopted last year.
Asheville Schools board chooses new superintendent
Rick Cruz will start as the ACS chief July 1 after leaving his role as deputy superintendent for Houston Independent School District in Texas, where he worked in numerous roles for 15 years, according to a press release from ACS spokesperson Dillon Huffman.
Buncombe Schools’ board recommends pay raises for school employees
More than 20 teachers, staff members and parents spoke during the three-plus hour meeting in the Minitorium at 175 Bingham Rd., advocating for higher pay for all school employees in front of a crowd that at one point overflowed into an adjacent room with a live stream of the meeting.
Asheville considers ban on single-use plastic bags
“A third of microplastics we’re seeing in the French Broad watershed is coming from these plastics that we might use for 12 minutes and end up throwing away. So anything we can do to curb the input of that into our daily lives the better,” said Anna Alsobrook, watershed science and policy manager for MountainTrue.
BCTDA seeks to waive part of penalty for bed-and-breakfast’s missing taxes
If the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners take the BCTDA’s recommendation, owner Dean Whiteford still will owe almost $6,000 in late fees in what was the largest waiver request several board members could remember seeing during their board tenure.