How do you imagine the city of the future? Sprawling ribbon development and denuded slopes everywhere?
No, probably you see an emerald metropolis rising into the sky with self-energizing, green skyscrapers. Economical, efficient mass transportation. Less driving around looking for overpriced gas. Less getting pulled over for driving after enjoying dinner and drinks.
Yet, another investor has been turned away because his buildings are “too tall”? I beseech our local representatives to rethink. If we build vertically, we have a chance at leaving some of our slopes in their present pristine condition. And, if we stipulate that these tall buildings are solar, green and efficient, everyone benefits—both business and environment.
Why are we still voting for low-rise sprawl?
— Tom Coppola
Asheville
This kind of false-dichotomy is still being circulated?
What’s false about it? A tall building takes up less space downtown, where all those residents can walk around, than a subdivision takes up on a mountain, where all the residents have to drive to get where they want to go.
Mainly, I think we keep voting for sprawl because if, when we’re downtown, we can’t see the tall buildings of a big city, we can pretend that we don’t already have the suburbs of one. We can also willfully ignore the tall buildings we already have, come to think of it. And we can look away quickly should our gaze happen to fall upon the ruins of Reynolds Mountain. At any rate, wearing our stylish Birkenstock blinders is simply the Asheville way.
I think building tall, with limitations, is the way to go. I also think bringing business into Asheville is good.. We need it!
10-1 odds say that big buildings downtown will have no effect on the amount of “sprawl” in the county. But, I bet the lack of available bank loans will help “preserve our Slopes”.
Sprawl will continue as long as the city’s property taxes remain high, and the city places more requirements and restrictions on developers. They are going to build outside the city where it is cheaper and less restrictive. More “unintended consequences” of our liberal, democrats in city government.