Local Matters: Russell drops from City race, poverty legal aid and Asheville as a “cesspool of sin”

In this edition of Local Matters — the Xpress weekly news podcast — reporter David Forbes talks about City Council member Bill Russell dropping out of his bid for re-election, Pisgah Legal Services efforts to increase access to legal help for the poor, and the recent claim by NC State Sen. James Forrester that Asheville is a “cesspool of sin.”

The Beat news roundup: Grand Old Party poopers

It was a bad week for the Buncombe County Republican Party. The party and its chairman, Chad Nesbitt, were harshly criticized for a 9/11 fundraiser and an associated video; the Board of Elections found their highly publicized complaints over an early voting site to be based on faulty information; and Asheville City Councilman Bill Russell left the party, citing its “antics that demonize people” and “political games.”

Filling the holes

City green-lights Civic Center roof replacement Some gated communities can expand City to help fund water hookups for affordable/green housing Through snow and rain and heat and gloom of night … it leaked. Over the years, the Asheville Civic Center’s roof—probably the ailing facility’s No. 1 structural woe—has gotten less than glowing press. Celebrities have […]