Although chronic homelessness has been curtailed substantially since 2005, the combination of a severe economic downturn, an acute shortage of affordable housing and the rising cost of living has hindered the overall progress in eradicating homelessness. Despite those setbacks, partners in the project are forging ahead with new initiatives to combat housing insecurity and ensure that those in need of shelter get it.
Transitioning to a new language, country and culture can be extremely disruptive — particularly for children. To address the growing numbers of students from non-English-speaking households, the Asheville and Buncombe County schools are developing a curriculum that gives students from all backgrounds a chance to explore what makes each tradition unique, fostering cross-cultural dialogue and preparing students to be productive members of today’s increasingly global society.
The future of getting around the city via foot, bicycle, private vehicle or mass transit took another step forward in the form of the final-draft presentation of Asheville in Motion (AIM), a comprehensive study and information-gathering endeavor that the city can use to shape its transportation priorities over the horizon. “This wasn’t about creating yet another plan. […]
In its latest efforts to increase the availability of affordable housing, the nonprofit organization Mountain Housing Opportunities hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony and gift registry drive Thursday evening at its brand new apartment complex, The Villas at Fallen Spruce Apartments, just off New Leicester Highway. MHO staff, partner organizations, sponsors, local and state government officials were […]
Robin Reeves is the sixth generation to grow up on her family’s Madison County farm — a lineage that dates back to before the Civil War. Reeves spent much of her youth helping her parents raise cattle, burley tobacco and tomatoes as well as her extended family in Sandy Mush. As an adolescent, she sold […]
Who (or what) is the cause of black people being disenfranchised in Asheville? Those arguing that systemic racism is the culprit were declared unanimous winners at the conclusion of a Nov. 13 debate.
During the Blind Pig Supper Club’s Kitchen Ready Hands dinner on Sunday, Nov. 8, four of Asheville’s top chefs collaborated with students of Green Opportunities Kitchen Ready to present a meal that raised thousands of dollars to support the culinary training program.
In 1960, a group of student activists at Asheville’s all-black Stephens-Lee High School courageously challenged the racial status quo, bringing the civil rights movement closer to home. Through public demonstrations, boycotts and engagements with city officials, the members of the Asheville Student Committee on Racial Equality helped break down Jim Crow-era barriers. For the past […]
Although there were a lot of hurdles in getting the ball rolling with the 147 solar panels that are now active atop the roof of the Parish of St. Eugene, Father Pat Cahill says there were definite signs along that way that he and supporters of the project were on the right track. One such instance was […]
The iconic community-owned food market and grocer has announced initial plans to expand its current space on the 60-100 block of Biltmore Avenue and is reaching out to community organizations and the city of Asheville to begin discussions on the possibility of a massive multiuse facility.
Inspired by Authors/activists Neal Shirley and Saralee Stafford’s book Dixie Be Damned, artist Phil Blank has created stunning visual representations of the hard-fought, often violent struggles of the disenfranchised throughout Southern history, from the coalfields of Tennessee to the anti-KKK partisan groups that roamed Robeson County, N.C., during Reconstruction.
Asheville is a city full of transplants that loves to celebrate its diversity. Yet the area’s third-biggest immigrant population goes mostly unnoticed.
In the damp morning hours of Oct. 2, 1929, gunfire erupted between law enforcement and a crowd of picketing mill workers at the gates of the Marion Manufacturing plant in the quiet foothills of McDowell County, leaving six residents dead and a town torn apart in its wake. The “Marion Massacre,” as the conflict came […]
Even in Foodtopia, hunger is a big problem. Last year, MANNA FoodBank alone distributed 15 million pounds of food through 248 agency partners in 16 counties in Western North Carolina. Just more than 100,000 people were served from MANNA alone, in about 40,000 households.
UPDATED with video coverage. Asheville is known for many things, but high-powered morning business events don’t usually top the list. Even restaurant owners and other night-owl local entrepreneurs can turn out early, however, when a not-to-be-missed business luminary comes to town.
Students and members of the public packed Warren Wilson College’s Kittredge Community Arts Center this week to quiz activists Bree Newsome and Warren Wilson alumnus Jimmy Tyson about why they took down a Confederate Battle flag flying on the South Carolina Statehouse grounds this past June.
As the new executive director of Green Opportunities, the green jobs training program that works with low-income Asheville residents, George C. Jones plans to continue the environmental consciousness that was practiced by previous leadership, but his tenure will be guided by his business background.
This year’s fundraising dinner — prepared by Michael Marshall of the Renaissance Hotel with pours from Biltmore Wines — will enable the Literacy Council to secure volunteer tutors for some 350 locals lacking reading, writing and language skills.
Do you know a young person who works hard doing good for not much money? That deserving person may be eligible for Asheville’s first Julian Award, a $1,000 cash prize that will be given this fall at the kickoff of Mountain Xpress’ Give!Local campaign for local nonprofits.
As of March 31, there were 2,386 kids in foster care in the 28 western counties. While innovative agencies and evolving state standards are making strides in streamlining the system and reuniting families, the available resources can’t keep up with the growing numbers of children needing foster care.
“Every day, our case managers work to find safe, affordable places for our clients to live. Now, however, we simply cannot find those homes.”
