Cop Out: Officers can’t afford to live the city they patrol
Volume
30
/ Issue 37
Cover Design Credit:
Scott SouthwickCover Photography Credit:
Brent Brown
Over 85% of Asheville Police Department officers live outside city limits. Lack of affordable housing, says Police Chief Mike Lamb, is a key factor. Despite the majority of his staff’s commute, Lamb says APD is committed to community-focused policing. But what does it mean for Asheville when local law enforcement is priced out of the city they serve?
arts
Moon Bride and Weird Mountain release new albums
Both groups adjust to new names while sharing engrossing new collections.Debut novel revisits unsolved political assassination
The former journalist discusses the challenges of shifting to writing novels.Playbill picks: April local theater highlights
A pair of one-person shows and a Roald Dahl musical are among this month's top options.Waynesville-based nonprofit spotlights WNC storytellers
The monthly events run April-August and feature Adama Dembele, Ann Miller Woodford, DeWayne Barton, Marsha Almodovar and Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle.Around town: Annual Maker Faire hosts innovators of all ages
Maker Faire Asheville returns. Plus: Scuttlebutt premieres at LaZoom Room; a poetry showcase comes to Weaverville; and more!food
What’s new in food: Food trucks debut with Native American, Middle Eastern fare
Two recently launched food trucks offer Native American and Middle Eastern fare at local breweries. Also in this week's food news, a new food hall comes to Fletcher, chefs and…living
Q&A with Joshua Arnold on climate studies, agriculture and bee hotels
Warren Wilson College’s environmental studies department will begin offering a master’s degree in applied climate studies in summer 2025. The program will draw on the college’s natural sciences and social…news
Sustaining community: A conversation with local candidate Terri Wells
Commissioner Terri Wells is seeking reelection in 2024, representing the newly drawn District 2.Police officers struggle to afford Asheville addresses
Roughly 86% of Asheville Police officers live outside of the city limits, according to Asheville Police Department spokesman Samantha Booth.Sustaining community: A conversation with local candidate Bruce O’Connell
Bruce O'Connell is running as an unaffiliated candidate for Buncombe County Board of Commissioners District 2.WTF?: How Buncombe conducts property reappraisals
The county derives 62% of its more than $400 million budget from property taxes, which relies on the accurate assessment of thousands of properties, a process that happens every four…Sustaining community: A conversation with local candidate Paul Benjamin
Paul Benjamin, a Republican, is running for Buncombe County Board of Commissioners District 1.Business, nonprofit roundup: WNC Career Expo coming April 17
Employers will have the opportunity to interview candidates and make employment offers on the spot, and employment experts from NCWorks Career Centers will also offer free interview and resume preparation…Veterans Healing Farm searches for new site in Henderson County
The Veterans Healing Farm is seeking to raise $5 million to purchase a new location and expand its offerings year-round.Sustaining community: A conversation with local candidate Jennifer Horton
Jennifer Horton, a Democrat, is running for Buncombe County Board of Commissioners District 1.Dancing days: The forgotten history of the Kenilworth Hippodrome
Popular antiques store started as a swinging dance hall in the 1920s.Buncombe County seeks to join N.C. Attorney General’s HCA lawsuit
Buncombe County filed a motion to intervene in N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein’s lawsuit against HCA Healthcare and Mission Health. The county seeks more than $3 million in damages from…A state title for Cherokee Lady Braves basketball team is a win for whole region
The championship game was a larger-than-life community affair. The team represents the only high school on the Qualla Boundary, the home of the federally recognized tribe of the Eastern Band…County advances affordable housing development on Coxe Avenue
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners voted 5-0 on April 2 to invite private developers to partner on a $59.1 million complex for 200 affordable units at 50 and 52…Planning Board updates proposed STR rules ahead of public hearing
The proposed changes will be considered at a public hearing Monday, April 22, at A-B Tech’s Ferguson Auditorium starting at 5:30 p.m. in which planning board members will vote on…opinion
Letter: Beware of infected ticks
" See 'The Quiet Epidemic' and please ask your representatives and senators to give North Carolina free tick testing, an accurate tick count and education in the schools."Letter: Zoning can promote intergenerational benefits
"Zoning changes to encourage multifamily/multigenerational occupancy serve the economic and social needs of older and younger adult residents in particular."Letter: City Council should get priorities straight
"Our children are our/their first priority and not a public loo, which will probably not be used by the tourists but by the homeless folks who hang out in the…Letter: A history of embracing challenge
"I hope we continue to find, face and overcome challenges as individuals and as communities."High times in the ’70s: A Jew in Asheville
"For the next 24 hours, we had armed agents guarding the gate and the driveway, and lookouts toting automatic weapons were posted on the roof."Stock and trade
Letter: It’s time to get money out of politics
"While some claim they support Israel on ideological grounds, money makes it more difficult to evaluate what is truly motivating one’s motives and actions."Letter: Fossil fuels aren’t the only problem
"It turns out that the best thing we can do for the Earth is to reduce our consumption of meat, at least factory-farmed meat — which is most of the meat in…Letter: Haw Creek rezoning foes likely don’t have a chance
"Greater density development in the Haw Creek neighborhood must be respectfully designed, including leaving some old-growth tree areas, effective visual shielding and more realistic assessment of flooding impacts."Inn error