Last year, President George Bush announced a plan to sell off our national forestlands, including parts of the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests here in Western North Carolina, to developers. Fortunately, Americans and the Democrats in Congress knew that selling off national forests was a horrible idea, and the plan went down in flames.
Now we see the same thing on a local level. A chunk of the City/County Plaza in downtown Asheville [has been sold] so a developer can build an 11-story luxury condominium.
Developer Stewart Coleman put forward this plan, and he thinks that he can buy a City Council that will be his lapdog. He has already contributed $1,000 to Dwight Butner and Republican candidate Bill Russell. Both of these candidates are heavily bankrolled by big developers. In fact, almost 90 percent of Bill Russell’s campaign donations have come from realtors and developers that want to scar our ridge tops.
If you want to protect our parklands and ridge tops, please vote on Nov. 6 for Newman, Freeborn and Lite. Better yet, vote early at the Board of Elections. If you are not registered, you can register and vote the same day if you vote early. For more early-voter info and directions, call 250-4200.
— David Roat
Asheville
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