ASHEVILLE, N.C.
![](https://mountainx.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/MOLTON_Mixed-Use-330x255.jpeg)
ASHEVILLE, N.C.
Sen. Chuck Edwards, who represents Henderson, Transylvania and eastern Buncombe counties in N.C. Senate District 48, said he remained firm in his desire to see the city of Asheville take a different approach to electing its council members. “I get constant feedback from constituents in Asheville that they can’t get City Council folks to pick up the phone, let alone to listen to a specific concern that they might have in their neighborhood,” he said.
“As a community, we have the opportunity to change the direction and priorities of City Council by electing representatives who more closely reflect our values and vision for Asheville going forward.”
Asheville City Council members clashed over whether a state-imposed district election system would negatively impact black voters during Sept. 24 meeting.
Asheville City Council voted to halt hotel approvals for one year and will use the time to examine the impact of hotels on the community and develop new guidelines for hotel approval.
Asheville City Council is gearing up for a long night. Six public hearings are scheduled for the body’s regular meeting of Tuesday, Sept, 24 — including discussions of overturning Asheville’s state-imposed district election system, enacting a temporary hotel ban and approving a mixed-use hotel before that ban would go into effect. And if the change […]
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our community to meet several of its goals with one carefully crafted development project.”
“Many artists, creatives, musicians and performers are leaving due to the rapidly increasing cost of living, putting Asheville’s culture at risk,” says Stephanie Moore of the Center for Craft, Creativity and Design. Despite a flurry of concern and initiative, local leaders and developers are finding that providing affordable living and working space for the area’s working artists remains a difficult challenge as property values and rents continue to climb in the city.
“It does not escape me the amount of money that the city of Asheville funnels into the tourism industry here in Asheville, yet we do not have the money or funding to make the communities where these children live safe or enriching.”
The hotel project hearing is now tentatively scheduled for the same meeting in which Council members will vote on whether to implement a temporary ban on new hotel construction.
“However, given the high number of other similarly unique hotel developments already underway in our community, and given the negative impact that this project will have on the market, I am vehemently opposed to its approval at this time.”
“It is my heartfelt opinion that Create 72 Broadway, as currently proposed, would be the death of Asheville City Market.”
“Do our millions of yearly visitors think it’s some kind of modern art? Maybe Rockpile Impressionism, a Christo creation or abstract nihilism?”
Asheville City Council deferred a vote on an amendment that would have revised the definition of a kitchen for short-term rentals out of concern that the change would have led to negative impacts on Asheville’s long-term housing availability.
Asheville’s current short-term rental rules do not allow homestays to offer rooms that contain either a stove, a full-sized refrigerator or a kitchen sink. A new definition of “kitchen,” proposed by local host organization the Homestay Network, would still forbid stoves in homestay dwellings but allow sinks and refrigerators.
ASHEVILLE, N.C.
Students participating in the Middle School Magic program at Asheville Middle School presented the results of their three-week exploration of the city’s African American history on July 25.
On Friday, Sept. 6, said Council member Julie Mayfield, the city will hold an affordable housing work session to explore options such as tiny homes and housing voucher acceptance for long-term rentals. Mayfield also announced that Council plans to discuss whether the city should temporarily ban new hotels in the city during its Planning and Economic Development Committee meeting on Thursday, Aug. 29.
Beyond the city’s loan of more than $48,000 for each of the 11 affordable units in West Asheville, which will be deferred for 30 years and accrue no interest, Homeward Bound is also seeking roughly $280,000 in commercial loans and has received $89,153 in federal HOME funding administered by the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium.
ASHEVILLE, N.C.
ASHEVILLE, N.C.