More than six years after first approving the project, Asheville City Council is circling back to the mixed-use development known as the RAD Lofts. During a public hearing at Council’s meeting of Tuesday, Jan. 14, officials will be asked to substantially scale back their affordability requirements for 235 housing units at the site. The previously […]
A total of 19 candidates are currently in the running for Rep. Mark Meadows’ 11th Congressional District seat, including 12 Republicans, five Democrats and one candidate each from the Green and Libertarian parties. But even beyond that contentious federal race, the 2020 election season promises plenty of action for Western North Carolina.
“There can be no justification for the willful and arbitrary cancellation of an election.”
ASHEVILLE, N.C.
How did Xpress readers process all the local news and changes this year? Here’s a look at the topics that generated the most commentaries, letters to the editor and online comments in Xpress in 2019.
“Cutting down a tree unnecessarily is like throwing the original ‘Mona Lisa’ into a fire. There is great urgency to save the Ravenscroft acreage.”
“By letting the urban forest become too dense over the last several generations, and by failing to clear away the underbrush bears love, we have invited them back in from the wilderness.”
Downtown traffic is about to get a lot worse, according to Asheville City Council member Sheneika Smith. “Because this project is so massive and we’ve already accommodated for almost 1,000 parking spaces — which is equivalent to, we’ll say, 500 vehicles flowing up and down this major area where our bus terminal is — I […]
Asheville City Council will consider two requests for Land Use Incentive Grants and a Housing Trust Fund Loan request for new affordable housing developments during its Tuesday, Dec. 10, meeting.
As world leaders met in Spain for a United Nations conference on climate change, Western North Carolina residents converged on Pack Square for their own environmental action on the morning of Dec. 6. Organized by Sunrise Movement Asheville in conjunction with six other area nonprofits, the Asheville Climate Strike for a Green New Deal called for government leaders “to take bold action and treat this like the climate emergency that it is.”
After months of haranguing City Council over the wording of a climate emergency resolution, over 40 protesters with Sunrise Movement Asheville occupied the government building on Dec. 6 to demand that Mayor Esther Manheimer and her colleagues pass the document as written by the climate justice group.
“This is an emergency — we should act like it!”
“Council had the courage to fight the state over the election process. Let’s hope they find the courage to choose to fight over this life-and-death climate emergency.”
On Nov. 26, Asheville City Council declined to allow tiny home communities in Highway Business zoning districts, saying those areas should be reserved for higher-density, transit-oriented forms of development. Activists with the Sunrise Movement urged Council to pass a climate emergency resolution advanced by the group without changes of any kind. And a group of bear advocates asked the city to help investigate whether local black bears are being caught in illegal snare traps.
Asheville City Council will consider a zoning change that would allow tiny homes on wheels to operate as permanent residences within the city’s Highway Business zoning district during its Nov. 26 meeting.
“And if that isn’t enough, you’ll also get to see one of your current or former City Council members do stand-up comedy.”
Asheville City Council announced that it would consider on a resolution to declare a climate emergency during its upcoming meeting. But representatives from the Sunrise Movement feel that the vote is being pushed through without proper vetting from activists and city staff.
Buncombe County had a 76% response rate during the 2010 census, in line with the state average, but Asheville officials will try to raise participation to 80% next year. The city will join Buncombe’s Complete Count Committee to work alongside county government, area schools and universities, nonprofit and faith communities, business leaders and the media to spread information about the count.
Roughly 75 people, including Asheville City Council member Brian Haynes and Council candidate Shane McCarthy, took part in demanding that local government take stronger action in response to climate change. Extinction Rebellion chose the date of the march to coincide with the time local elections would have been held before they were moved to 2020 through the passage of Senate Bill 813.
City staff announced that a plan to extend the hours of all bus routes until 10 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 8 p.m. on Sunday will likely be delayed until after the start of the next fiscal year during the Oct. 22 meeting of Asheville City Council.
Asheville City Council will consider updating affordable housing incentives; amending the city’s charter to restore at-large elections during its Oct. 22 meeting.
