The Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office is seeking funding from the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners to add downtown patrols between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. on weekend nights. The requests for either $56,000 or $88,000 is a revised version of a proposal unveiled at a Dec. 5 commissioners meeting, just before Asheville Police Chief David […]
The Buncombe County Board of Elections thinks Director of Elections Corinne Duncan deserves a pay raise, but county staff isn’t so sure. The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners said they need more time to consider the request for a less than $6,000 raise — about 5% — and put it off until its Jan. 16 meeting.
“Are you OK with your local and state taxes helping these weapons industries?”
“Did the Board of Commissioners listen and act on behalf of their informed and passionate constituents? Not a chance.”
The state will operate on its third set of maps in four years for the U.S. House, N.C. Senate and N.C. House districts after the N.C. General Assembly passed redrawn lines Oct. 25.
On Tuesday, Dec. 5, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners will conduct a public hearing on the rezoning of more than 760 acres of land owned by Biltmore Farms adjacent to the Pratt & Whitney plant.
After existing provider WastePro proposed rate hikes as part of its contract renewal, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Nov. 21 to seek alternative providers on the open market.
As part of a potential contract extension, WastePro is proposing an almost $3 increase to $25.16 per month to continue its existing services. Customers currently pay $22.55 monthly.
Ryan Cole, assistant emergency services director for Buncombe County, told the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners Nov. 7 that conditions now remind him of what fueled the blaze that burned more than 7,000 acres in three weeks near the Buncombe-Henderson county line.
In her first move as facilitator, Vernisha Crawford implemented a more rigid meeting process designed to allow more commission members an opportunity to speak while keeping meetings on schedule, things the 25-member commission had struggled to do at times.
Over $40 million in upgrades could be coming to a number of schools in Asheville and Buncombe County if the request from the School Capital Fund Commission is approved at the Tuesday, Nov. 7, Buncombe County Board of Commissioners meeting.
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners will consider taking the lead to solicit a new study analyzing the feasibility of merging Asheville City Schools and Buncombe County Schools at its meeting Tuesday, Oct. 17.
Wanda Greene, her son Michael Greene, who also worked for the county, and daughter-in-law, Celena Greene, have agreed to pay the county $502,500 by December 2025, said Philip Anderson, an attorney representing Buncombe County in the case, at the Oct. 3 board meeting. The payments are related to the improper use of county funds to purchase sponsorship and advertising at equestrian-related venues, he said.
A year and a half ago, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners approved a nearly $221,000 contract with the UNC School of Government’s Development Finance Initiative for an affordable housing development study. On Tuesday, Oct. 3, commissioners will receive an update on the development plan.
“It’s a cynical and shameful ploy to deny you the ability to serve your constituents. It’s anti-democratic, and I look forward to working together with you to reject this encroachment on our rights to protect our health and the health of our mountains, rivers and streams,” Karim Olaechea, deputy director of strategy and communications for MountainTrue told commissioners during public comment.
“On balance, our ordinance would significantly reduce the amount of pollution, waste and greenhouse gases created to help county residents carry their groceries out of the store.”
If the application is approved at a future meeting, Buncombe hopes to get $1.6 million in federal funds allocated for rural transportation projects for Mountain Mobility, a community transportation service that primarily serves people with disabilities and older adults in Buncombe County.
Tax Assessor Keith Miller says he is “very confident” that the changes he’s implemented will improve the process used in the next reappraisal in 2025. However, consultant Joe Minicozzi of the Asheville-based Urban3, whose unsolicited, unpaid analysis was what prompted the commissioners to establish the reappraisal committee, says those changes haven’t gone far enough and that the committee itself wasn’t given a sufficient opportunity to review his firm’s work.
As part of an interlocal agreement, the City of Asheville will administer $875,000 in county funds, as well as an equal city match, to three area shelter providers for extra beds.
Starting Aug. 21, qualifying downtown workers can apply for one of 50 affordable parking spots in the College Street parking deck for $40 a month.
Tax Assessor Keith Miller and County Attorney Curt Euler are recommending commissioners deny the request for an almost $280,000 refund on the grounds that GE did not appeal its apparent listing errors after they were made and the county had legal authority to levy the tax based on the information provided, according to a staff presentation.
