Asheville City Council may have set a new record for brevity in its regular session on Nov. 8, which was Election Day.
Council unanimously passed its consent agenda, with one exception: Item M, a contract with Cekra, Inc. for the Cedar Street bridge repair project, was withdrawn from consideration.
In new business, Council made the following appointments to city boards and commissions:
- Appointed Jan Davis to the ABC Board and appointed Lewis Isaac as chair. Council member Gordon Smith said Isaac had recently represented the Board well at the state level, while Council member Julie Mayfield pointed out that he is also chair of the Housing Authority Board.
- Appointed Mark Collins to the HUB Economic Development Alliance
- Appointed Ken Miller to the Neighborhood Advisory Committee
- Appointed Micah Mackenzie to the Public Art and Cultural Commission
- Appointed Tiffany DeBellot to the Recreation Board
- Reappointed Pete Hildebrand to the Soil Erosion/Stormwater Review Committee and decided to re-advertise a second vacancy. In response to questioning by Mayfield, City Clerk Maggie Burleson said the committee has never met. Mayfield suggested that scope of the committee’s responsibilities should be reconsidered. City Attorney Robin Currin explained that a member of the city’s legal department is currently researching the issue, and she promised to report back to the city’s Governance Committee with the results of that research.
- Council deferred voting on an appointment to the Homeless Initiative Advisory Committee, pending the recommendation of that committee.
- Council decided to re-advertise for a seat on the Historic Resources Commission, with the goal of soliciting greater diversity in the candidate pool.
After determining that no member of the public wished to speak during the public comment period, Council went into closed session at 5:11 p.m.
Asheville City Council’s next meeting will take place Dec. 13. Though they are subject to change, public hearings scheduled for that meeting include:
- Land use incentive grant for Skyland Exchange (Hathaway Development LLC).
- Rezoning 90 Asheland Ave. and 202 Asheland Ave. from Regional Business District to Central Business District; 206 Asheland Ave., 216 Asheland Ave., 222 Asheland Ave. and 90 Southside from Office Business District to Central Business District; and a portion of 88 Southside from RM-16 Residential Multi-Family High Density District to Central Business District.
- Ordinance amending the officially adopted Height Zone Map.
- Conditional zoning of 12 Loop Road, 352 Airport Road and a portion of 360 Airport Road from Highway Business District to Highway Business District/Conditional Zoning for a 7.5-acre commercial retail development.
- Amendment to Chapter 7 of the Code of Ordinances to modify the development review procedures for Level II development applications.
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