The key to managing homelessness is allowing affordable housing in one’s backyard. Some cities are better at that than others. Asheville? Not so much.

The key to managing homelessness is allowing affordable housing in one’s backyard. Some cities are better at that than others. Asheville? Not so much.
Small-business owners recognize that they not only add value but are a driving force behind the popularity of this quirky city.
“Congratulations to any landlord who graciously holds the line, but I suspect most cannot afford to do so for long and still provide the housing.”
Together the projects would bring 281 units of affordable housing online.
“I imagine that many landlords don’t need to raise rents or turn housing into short-term rentals.”
“It has become a place where local people cannot afford to live and many of us no longer want to visit.”
“But we can directly help our county’s workers, the people who drive our tourism economy — and thus drive contributions to the TDA’s coffers — by asking the TDA to give some money back to build housing for such workers.”
Evictions in Asheville have returned to pre-pandemic levels, and many evictions begin when a tenant has raised concerns about housing conditions, says David Bartholomew, the nonprofit’s homelessness prevention services director.
“What we can’t do is continue pretending that headlines, hand-wringing, a lack of diverse thinking, anger, studies, politicians, enabling and spending other people’s money will create the solutions.”
Nearly 480 affordable housing units could be built on property owned by Buncombe County, according to a new analysis shared with the county Board of Commissioners.
This new funding, to be voted on by City Council during the regular meeting of Tuesday, Feb. 14, would come on top of more than $1.4 million the city has already budgeted for bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure along the I-26 corridor.
“Now we lament with our brother and sister homeless friends downtown that Asheville has outgrown its kindness, its friendliness and toleration over the years.”
Much of the presentation focused on the shortcomings of how local governments and service providers currently collaborate to address homelessness.
“The city would benefit by (1) selling the condos and getting repaid most or all of its investment and (2) using the sales proceeds to fund other housing options.”
“Being housed makes a tremendous difference when looking for employment, creating a stable base for school assignments and the beginnings of being part of a community.”
Readers had a lot to say in 2022 about a host of local issues — from our region’s growth and development to the environment, homelessness and more.
“Today, Asheville’s a tourist destination fueled by wealth-take-all capitalism beset with growing urban issues such as parking, pollution, land use, development, affordable housing, crime and allocation of tax revenues. Yet are all these intractable problems with only temporary solutions? Not really.”
“In this economy, it takes a lot of nerve to even mention increasing taxes.”
“Our wealthiest households are not paying their fair share now, and these bonds will simply add to the inequity, asking disproportionately assessed lower-income households to continue to shoulder more than their fair share of the burden.”
“Our community faces two mounting crises that we must address in concert — housing affordability and climate change. We can do this by providing a wider range of housing options in and around Asheville and our other municipalities, while not contributing to sprawling development patterns that clear forested land, feed gridlock and increase auto emissions.”
“Together, land conservation and affordable housing lessen the need for expensive new road infrastructure in the more rural areas of Buncombe.”