Concerns of racial equity are increasingly shaping how Buncombe County employees do their work. But a new proposal up for consideration by the Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, May 4, would also bring an equity lens to when county workers go off the clock.
As outlined in a presentation by Sharon Burke, Buncombe’s human resources director, county leaders are requesting that Juneteenth be added as a paid holiday. Observed on June 19 or the immediately preceding Friday, the holiday commemorates the 1865 announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation by Union soldiers to enslaved people in Texas and “signifies freedom and liberation for African Americans in the United States.”
The proposed ordinance establishing the holiday states that the move is supported by the county’s Equity and Inclusion Workgroup and would “represent an authentic and more inclusive history of freedom in America.” However, Burke’s presentation also notes that recognizing Juneteenth “shows a complicated American history and may be considered divisive.”
If approved, Buncombe government workers would receive a total of 13 paid holidays per year, a number in line with other large North Carolina county and city governments. Essential county functions, such as emergency medical services and public safety, would continue to operate that day, and employees required to work would bank the holiday time for later use.
In other news
In advance of its usual funding cycle, Buncombe’s Affordable Housing Committee is recommending that $800,000 in county money be granted to two proposed residential developments by Mountain Housing Opportunities. Lakeshore Villas would bring 120 units of affordable multifamily housing to Arden near Lake Julian, while Pentland Place would provide 110 units just west of Asheville off of New Leicester Road.
Both developments would be targeted at residents making 30% to 80% of the area median income, or between $22,650 and $60,100 annually for a family of four. MHO is also applying for federal low-income housing tax credits to finance the projects.
Also on the agenda is a budget amendment increasing the amount of occupancy tax the county will remit to the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority by $8.5 million — an increase of more than 47% over the initially budgeted $18 million. Jennifer Barnette, Buncombe’s budget director, noted that occupancy taxes had been expected to take an “enormous hit” due to the COVID-19 pandemic but that “current year growth has exceeded those expectations.”
Consent agenda and public comment
The board’s consent agenda for the meeting contains 12 items, which will be approved as a package unless singled out for separate discussion. Highlights include the following resolutions:
- Authorizing a new wastewater inspector position. Jessica Silver, Buncombe’s environmental health administrator, reports that requests for septic system evaluations have increased by 22% over the past five years due to the area’s construction boom.
- Approving the disbursement of up to $100,000 to cover the cost of installing a pre-K classroom at Avery’s Creek Elementary School. The facility will be run by Community Action Opportunities, which already operates 14 Head Start classrooms at Buncombe elementary schools.
- Approving two contracts for deferred maintenance projects on the Dogwood and Bailey buildings at A-B Tech. James R. Vannoy Construction will receive nearly $36,000 for preconstruction services, while Novus Architects will receive $150,000 for design and construction administration.
The commissioners will also hold a briefing at 3 p.m. to discuss the county’s COVID-19 response and other topics. The full agenda and supporting documents for the regular meeting can be found at this link.
In a change from previous protocols, in-person public comment will be accepted at the start of the meeting. Those planning to comment must sign up online or call 828-250-4001 by Monday, May 3, at 3 p.m. Commenters will be required to leave the meeting after speaking to the board.
Commenters can also register to speak via Zoom. Regardless of medium, all commenters will receive three minutes to address the board.
Both the briefing and regular meeting will be livestreamed on the county’s Facebook page and will subsequently be available via YouTube.
So wonderful that Republicans were able to free the SLAVES from those in the original party of SLAVERY and the KKK.
So glad the Dems kicked them out and the GQP joyfully took them in and made them feel at home.
Remind us again of the last Dem presidential candidate endorsed by the Klan? And if the GOP was for ending slavery and anti-racist tell us again why the GQP is the party defending Vance and his monument to treason and racism these days and the Dems are opposed?
We haven’t seen democrackkks this mad since we FREED their SLAVES ! roflmao !!!
I take it that the “We” you refer to so smugly is in truth a pejorative term used for pure partisan argument grounded in righteous views about why the War Between the States happened and ended up with the deaths of nearly a million American People? Like all political rationale so used for righteous cause, the shallow reasons always misse the true historical background and the central cause of all war, in general: “Money” and “Power.” The fact is that the North’s Captains of Industry used Lincoln to get what they wanted (to hold the central government responsible for underwriting the vast cost of constructing the transcontinental railroad), while Lincoln (a railroad attorney) used the powerful “robber Barrons” to get him elected to office so that he could go to war to force the return of “Cotton Money” (for its international commercial value) to federal coffers as the only means of backing up the government’s promise to see the transcontinental railroad completed. It’s always about “money” and “power,” and never about what the government and the “winning side” of the conflict tell you it is. Never! The Civil War didn’t start over slavery; it started over money and power and the White politicians’ vision of an American Empire that would rival that of Great Britain. Funny how so many partisans suck up to party politicians and their version of events, such that they readily “believe” what they are told to think.
Who are the members of the Buncombe Co Equity and Inclusion ‘workgroup’ ? We need their names and contacts now! If they are not working to consolidate the school systems for equity and inclusion then their work is for naught and bullshit…
Who are these people ? names/ contacts?
You can find a current list of workgroup members on the county’s website at https://www.buncombecounty.org/countycenter/news-detail.aspx?id=18792.
Need their group EMAIL contact … don’t see one…why not?
Funny how it is found to be that the most radical of responders to X-press articles about race excuse racist slurs from the “left” when they are used to denigrate the widely-respected Black congressman from South Carolina, Sen. Tim Scott, after his rebuttal to the President’s address this past week. The most reactionary of these radical-left activists see only one side of any issue, and even that view is so narrowly focused that any citizen concerned about progress and fairness quickly understands that these “righteous” responders don’t know enough about the historical facts to argue in a manner that deserves serious consideration and debate. Invariably, there are those few who (among the many who might otherwise join the “discussion” but won’t bother to engage because of the this profound ignorance) ridicule adult-level comments. From my view, the two-party system encourages juvenile mentality and participation over matters that those of us who are unaffiliated with either side would prefer to debate in the open-market of ideas, and do so for the sake of progress and equality. Those of weak-mind and radical engagement would rather tear down the town and rip up the Constitution, and then threaten anyone who attempts to interject common-sense views. Calling Senator Tim Scott “Uncle Tim” because of his common-sense response to Biden’s remarks this past week exposes the radical-left for the weak-minded, narrow views they espouse and exposes these extremists for the racist politics they practice for short-sighted gains.