Buncombe County Commission

The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners tossed off a thin agenda in short order at their April 2 session. The high point of the meeting came when Swannanoa resident Eric Gorney, a former candidate for a seat on the board, presented Commissioner David Young with a pair of pink flip-flops. During the public-comment period, Gorney spoke out against the county’s prospective zoning plan and accused Young of flip-flopping on the issue. Young opposed countywide zoning several years ago, but he told Xpress he has changed his position in response to widespread development in the county.

Stormwater Administrator Mark Goodson, who stepped into the new post two months ago, delivered a six-month update on the implementation of new rules adopted last September. (See “Commissioners Approve Storm-water Ordinance,” Oct. 4, 2006 Xpress). Goodson said he has set up systems for processing permit applications and answering storm-water complaints, a Web site for public education, and has delivered presentations to private and public groups. He is now trying to hire storm-water technicians.

“What are you seeing as some of the big challenges?” asked Chairman Nathan Ramsey.

“Water that we detain, we have to detain [for] between 48 and 120 hours. We have to use very small pipe for drainage, and there are maintenance issues,” said Goodson.

Commissioner David Gantt inquired, “When you’re talking to developers, do you see a lot of people who don’t know about these [storm-water-control] techniques, or do they not want to be bothered?”

“Mostly it’s a matter of education,” Goodson replied. “The simple methods are often things that haven’t been done here. One of the challenges is finding another place with the kind of terrain we have here that has implemented a storm-water ordinance.” That makes it harder to borrow solutions from other areas, he noted. “We will have to invent some of our own solutions. We can start with some of the ideas they use down east, but they were developed for flatland.”

Ramsey also inquired about the estimated cost of implementing storm-water controls. Citing U.S. Environmental Protection Agency figures, Goodson said it typically accounts for 25 or 30 percent of the total cost of preparing a site for development.

Other business

The commissioners formally approved a tax-increment-financing policy discussed at the board’s March 13 retreat. They also voted to create a Judicial Facilities Task Force, which will evaluate future needs and proposals. Both votes were unanimous.

In addition, they made the following board appointments: Jennifer Waite, Julie Strum and Judy McDonough (Nursing Home Community Advisory Committee); Sarah Foster, Ceasar Romero, Karen Gettinger, Joel Bender, Tim Laughlin, Barbara Mayer and Brenda Crisp (Adult Care Home Community Advisory Committee); and Lynn Hicks (Environmental Advisory Board).

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Cecil Bothwell
A writer for Mountain Xpress since three years before there WAS an MX--back in the days of GreenLine. Former managing editor of the paper, founding editor of the Warren Wilson College environmental journal, Heartstone, member of the national editorial board of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, publisher of Brave Ulysses Books, radio host of "Blows Against the Empire" on WPVM-LP 103.5 FM, co-author of the best selling guide Finding your way in Asheville. Lives with three cats, macs and cacti. His other car is a canoe. Paints, plays music and for the past five years has been researching and soon to publish a critical biography--Billy Graham: Prince of War:

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

2 thoughts on “Buncombe County Commission

  1. Don Yelton

    a civil engineer is a person that wants curbs and gutters and drains to carry water..not manage non-point source storm water.

  2. I always thought that a civil engineer was someone who was so good at Sim City that they just gave them a job doing it for real.

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.