Asheville Mayor Terry Bellamy is headed to Washington, D.C., on Thursday for a meeting with President Barack Obama. Bellamy was invited by the U.S. Conference of Mayors to take part in a discussion of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the economic-stimulus package.
Details about the meeting, including the agenda and who else will be in attendance, were scarce on Wednesday.
— Brian Postelle, staff writer
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.
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.
More on the Mayors in Washington here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/19/obama-to-meet-with-mayors_n_168207.html
I’m interested to see how the dialogue goes. This could be a pivitol point for Asheville if she can get him to agree to use us as an incubator for infastructure and sustainability projects since the community is already geared toward local activism and general awareness.
Everyone enjoys Asheville, from the President himself (who took some time to eat at 12-Bones BBQ) down to some of the commenters in Gordon Smith’s link above,
For Mayor Bellamy to have been chosen to be part of this overall small group of mayors to get to voice their thoughts on the matter really says a lot about our image as a community, and gives us the opportunity to be a beacon of hope to other struggling municipalities.
The Conference of Mayors sent out some details on the meet today. Here’s the press release:
[quote]———————————
For Immediate Release:
2-20-09
Contact: Elena Temple
202-309-4906 (etemple@usmayors.org)
Carlos Vogel 202-257-9797 (cvogel@usmayors.org)
U.S. MAYORS TO MEET WITH PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA
AT THE WHITE HOUSE ON FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2009
Washington, D.C. – The nation’s mayors have been invited by U.S. President Barack Obama and U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden to the White House for a meeting with The Conference of Mayors leadership on the morning of Friday, February 20, 2009. Led by U.S. Conference of Mayors President Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, over 70 mayors will also meet with Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr., Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Energy Secretary Dr. Steven Chu, Education Secretary Arne Duncan and White House Senior Staff.
The mayors meeting with President Obama and Vice President Biden will take place from 10:30 a.m. to
11:15 a.m. in the East Room of the White House and will be POOLED press for the President’s remarks only. The mayors will also hold a press availability at the White House at 11:30 a.m. immediately following the meeting at the West Wing Stakeout location.
Following the White House meeting, the mayors will gather at the Capitol Hilton in Washington, D.C. for a session with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, U.S. Department of Energy Weatherization Program Director Gil Sperling, and U.S. Department of Justice COPS Office Acting Director Tim Quinn. This meeting is closed to the press, but mayors will be available for one-on-one interviews at the Capitol Hilton between 1pm and 3pm.
The nation’s mayors commend President Obama and Congress for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which is in line with the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ priorities, and look forward to working with the Administration to implement this landmark legislation toward transforming our national economy for the 21st Century.
WHO (as of 2/20/09 at 7am):
USCM PRESIDENT MAYOR DIAZ, Miami, FL
USCM VICE PRESIDENT MAYOR NICKELS, Seattle, WA
USCM SECOND VICE PRESIDENT MAYOR KAUTZ, Burnsville, MN
MAYOR ABRAMSON, Louisville, KY
MAYOR DALEY, Chicago, IL
MAYOR PALMER, Trenton, NJ
MAYOR PLUSQUELLIC, Akron, OH
MAYOR MENINO, Boston, MA
MAYOR RILEY, Charleston, SC
MAYOR BOLLWAGE, Elizabeth, NJ
MAYOR CHAVEZ, Albuquerque, NM
MAYOR COLEMAN, Columbus, OH
MAYOR HAYS, North Little Rock, AR
MAYOR MALLOY, Stamford, CT
MAYOR MULDER, Arlington Heights, IL
MAYOR SMITH, Newark, CA
MAYOR TAYLOR, Tulsa, OK
MAYOR VILLARAIGOSA, Los Angeles, CA
MAYOR BAKER, Wilmington, DE
MAYOR BARRETT, Milwaukee, WI
MAYOR BECKER, Salt Lake City, UT
MAYOR BELL, Durham, NC
MAYOR BELLAMY, Asheville, NC
MAYOR BERMUDEZ, Doral, FL
MAYOR BLUM, Santa Barbara, CA
MAYOR BOWSER, East Orange, NJ
MAYOR BRAINARD, Carmel, IN
MAYOR BRENNER, York, PA
MAYOR BURNS, North Miami, FL
MAYOR CALLAHAN, Bethlehem, PA
MAYOR CHOI, Edison, NJ
MAYOR CICILLINE, Providence, RI
MAYOR CLAMAN, Anchorage, AK
MAYOR COOPER, Hallandale Beach, FL
MAYOR COWNIE, Des Moines, IA
MAYOR DELLUMS, Oakland, CA
MAYOR DUFFY, Rochester, NY
MAYOR DUSON, Portland, ME
MAYOR EUILLE, Alexandria, VA
MAYOR FAHEY, Omaha, NE
MAYOR FRANKEL, West Palm Beach, FL
MAYOR FRANKLIN, Atlanta, GA
MAYOR GLUBA, Davenport, IA
MAYOR GORDON, Phoenix, AZ
MAYOR HANNEMANN, Honolulu, HI
MAYOR HINDMAN, Columbia, MO
MAYOR HOLLEY, Portsmouth, VA
MAYOR HUDSON, Greenville, MS
MAYOR JACKSON, Cleveland, OH
MAYOR JOHNSON, Sacramento, CA
MAYOR LAWRENCE, Southfield, MI
MAYOR LEPPERT, Dallas, TX
MAYOR MALLORY, Cincinnati, OH
MAYOR MARIN, Caguas, PR
MAYOR McCRORY, Charlotte, NC
MAYOR MCLIN, Dayton, OH
MAYOR MCMAHON, Reading, PA
MAYOR MELENDEZ, Ponce, PR
MAYOR NAGIN, New Orleans, LA
MAYOR NEWBERRY, Lexington, KY
MAYOR NEWSOM, San Francisco, CA
MAYOR PAWLOWSKI, Allentown, PA
MAYOR POPE, Oak Park, IL
MAYOR PULIDO, Santa Ana, CA
MAYOR RAVENSTAHL, Pittsburgh, PA
MAYOR REICHERT, Macon, GA
MAYOR RIVERA, Bayamon, PR
MAYOR ROACH, Lake Charles, LA
MAYOR SALINAS, Laredo, TX
MAYOR SCHMITT, Green Bay, WI
MAYOR SMITH, Meridian, MS
MAYOR STODOLA, Little Rock, AR
MAYOR STRATTON, Schenectady, NY
MAYOR SWEARENGIN, Fresno, CA
MAYOR TOMLINSON, Corvallis, OR
MAYOR WAHLER, Piscataway, NJ
MAYOR WALKER, Bowling Green, KY
MAYOR WEINZAPFEL, Evansville, IN
MAYOR WHITE, Houston, TX
MAYOR WILLIAMS, Youngstown, OH
TOM COCHRAN, CEO & Executive Director
WHAT: Press Availability w/ The Nation’s Mayors
WHEN: Friday, February 20, 2009 at 11:30 a.m. (Immediately After Meeting)
WHERE: West Wing Stakeout Location
Washington, D.C.
The U.S. Conference of Mayors is the official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. There are 1,139 such cities in the country today, each represented in the Conference by its chief elected official, the Mayor.[/quote]