Archive for Local
Exit Shuler
Posted by: | CommentsRep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.) will not run for reelection after three terms in office.
“This was not an easy decision,” Shuler said. “However, I am confident that it is the right decision. It is a decision I have weighed heavily over the past few months. I have always said family comes first, and I never intended to be a career politician.”
Strategic Priorities 2012-13
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Each year the Asheville City Council holds a retreat to measure our progress on last year’s stated goals and to set goals for the coming year.
Last year’s City Council Strategic Goals are here. You’ll see that we met or exceeded a lot of them.
This Friday we’ll come together at UNC-Asheville’s Sherrill Center. The meeting is open to the public and takes place from 8:30am-4pm.
If you were setting Strategic Goals and Priorities for the City of Asheville, what would be your top three? I welcome any input you can offer in advance of the date.
LWV H20 Public Forum
Posted by: | CommentsFrom S.A.W.:
The League of Women Voters have announced that a forum on the water issue will take place on Feb. 13th, at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, 789 Merrimon Ave. Asheville, from 6:30 – 9:00 pm. Panelists will include City Council member Esther Manheimer, study committee member Rep. Chuck McGrady, MSD Chairman Steve Aceto, and former Buncombe County Chair Gene Rainey.
Smart Math
Posted by: | CommentsResident Urban Planning guru and Asheville advocate, Joe Minicozzi, authored this piece for Planetizen. Joe has been discussing these ideas for a long time, and I’m glad to have this opportunity to share them with you. Normally I’d just excerpt pieces, but this one is so Asheville-oriented that I’m going to repost it in full.
Downtown Pays
Asheville, North Carolina — like many cities and towns around the country — is hurting financially.
It’s not that Asheville is some kind of deserted ghost town. Rather, it’s a picturesque mountain city with a population of about 83,000 that draws tourists from all over the world, especially during the leaf-peeping season. But it’s also a city that appeals to its residents, who revel in strolling about a true walkable downtown chock-full of restaurants and retail shops featuring locally grown and crafted products. Downtown is not only one of Asheville’s main draws; it also serves as a major driver in helping the city overcome its budgetary doldrums.
Most of us – city planners, elected officials, business owners, voters, and the like – understand that the city brings in more tax revenue when people shop and eat out more. However, we often overlook the scale of the property tax payoff for encouraging dense mixed-use development.
Many policy decisions seem to create incentives for businesses and property developers to expand just about anywhere, without regard for the types of buildings they are erecting. In this article, I argue that the best return on investment for the public coffers comes when smart and sustainable development occurs downtown.
We’ll use the city of Asheville as an example. Asheville realizes an astounding +800 percent greater return on downtown mixed-use development projects on a per acre basis compared to when ground is broken near the city limits for a large single-use development like a Super Walmart. A typical acre of mixed-use downtown Asheville yields $360,000 more in tax revenue to city government than an acre of strip malls or big box stores.
Eliminate Corporate Personhood
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A resolution calling for a Constitutional Amendment to invalidate the 2010 Supreme Court’s Citizen United decision will be on the February 14th agenda of Asheville City Council. I’d intended to sponsor it onto an agenda using our regular process with Council members Pelly and Bothwell co-sponsoring it. However, during the free-for-all regarding Occupy Asheville at the January 24th meeting, the notion was brought up, and Council agreed to bring the measure forward at the February meeting.
I was approached a couple of months ago by the local chapter of Move To Amend about introducing this resolution. Normally I don’t entertain resolutions that have a national political context. I think national issues can create unnecessary schisms among Council members, when we ought to be focused on working together to solve Asheville’s problems. The more I thought about it, the more I acknowledged that our small community is vulnerable to the issues raised by the Citizens United decision. I think it’s important for Asheville’s elected officials to take a stand against abuses to our electoral system.
Then after seeing the Asheville Grown Business Alliance list it as one of their Big Ideas for 2012, I realized that even our business community is ready to recognize the inherent dangers of unchecked corporate power and money in our political process. Below you’ll find the text of the proposed resolution.
Wednesday Diversionary Reading
Posted by: | CommentsMy friend, the gifted and tall Devin Walsh, has this piece online at the Mountain Xpress. Other than some drawings by the also gifted and talented (but not as tall) Brent Brown it’s the only thing there worth reading. Yes, you read cartoons too.
It’s about beer and life, and other stuff.
2012 Buncombe County Campaign Volunteer/Job Fair
Posted by: | CommentsFrom Parker Sloan with the Buncombe County Young Democrats:
If you would like to work or volunteer for a Democratic campaign in 2012 come out to the Bar of Soap on Merrimon Ave. near UNC Asheville on Monday, Jan. 30 at 7pm. This event will focus on State and local races in 2012. We know you’re going to be engaged in the Congressional and Presidential races, but we want to make sure these local candidates get the people they need. We’ve seen how important new leadership is in Raleigh, and the new formation of our County Commission means we’ve got more races to run and win right here in Buncombe County. Click here for the location and more information (FB link).
There will be District maps, lists of races (with declared candidates), and lots of room to discuss how to help folks find the work they want in the various campaigns this season. All of our local candidates are invited to attend as well and will hopefully be there to talk with you.
Thank You to City Councilman Gordon Smith and Party Chairman Emmet Carney for putting this event together.
We’ve got a lot of work to do to ensure that our County Commission and local legislative delegation have quality folks serving the people of Buncombe County. There are too many who would have Raleigh ride roughshod over our best interests or who would turn the clock backwards on County Government. We’re going to have to take a stand and win some elections this May and this November.
Come out, meet the candidates, and get on board.
Three-Laning Charlotte Street?
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Thanks to the YMCA’s Pioneering Healthier Communities for spreading the word about a community meeting coming up Feb. 6. City Planners are looking at moving forward on the 2002 Charlotte St. Corridor Plan. The plan includes three-laning a part of Charlotte St. to allow for broader sidewalks and added bike lanes. Attend this meeting to get the facts and share your input.
Below is information regarding a public input meeting to discuss potential changes to the traffic patterns on Charlotte Street. We encourage you to attend the meeting if you live in the area to hear about the potential changes and share your voice!
ASHEVILLE – A community meeting to discuss the Charlotte Street corridor, originally scheduled for Mon. Jan. 23, has been rescheduled for Mon. Feb. 6 at 6:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Jewish Community Center at 236 Charlotte Street. Members of the community will have an opportunity to hear from City of Asheville transportation department staff concerning concepts for changing the traffic pattern for the Charlotte Street corridor between the I-240 bridge and the intersection with Edwin Place.
The meeting was organized in response to a request by a group of neighborhood and business representatives that the city revisit the 2002 Charlotte Street Transportation Enhancement Study.
City staff will present data from recent traffic studies and information about potential elements that could be included in the design if the project is developed for implementation. Input from neighborhood residents and area businesses is an essential next step before a project proposal is developed.
For more information about the meeting, contact Jeff Moore, City of Asheville Traffic Engineer at 232-4586 or jmoore@ashevillenc.gov.
Kelly Ingram
Pioneering Healthier Communities Office Assistant
YMCA OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
Water System: Decision Makers and Perspective
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Agenda for today's 2pm Study Committee
You can listen to the audio broadcast of today’s meeting here.
There are lots of reasons for everyone to keep an eye on this process, and I hope that folks get very engaged. In order to most effectively advocate for your position, it’s important to recognize who holds the decision-making power and to tailor one’s advocacy to persuade those holding the reins.
Who’s calling the shots?
Rep. Moffitt started this entire process on his own, and he’s Chairing this Study Committee.
The other members are:
Rep. William Brawley
Rep. William D. Brisson
Rep. Chuck McGrady
Rep. Tom Murry
List of members’ email addresses: Tim.Moffitt@ncleg.net, Bill.Brawley@ncleg.net, William.Brisson@ncleg.net, Tom.Murry@ncleg.net, Chuck.McGrady@ncleg.net
The Study Committee will meet four times and then recommend something. Today’s 2pm meeting will be audio broadcasted here. A meeting will be held in Asheville in late February, and the public will reportedly be invited to offer comments.
Asheville City Council Agenda 1.24.12
Posted by: | CommentsYour Asheville City Council comes together this Tuesday for another session of deliberation and decision-making. Over the fold you’ll find the agenda, and if you click here you can see it with all supporting documents at the City website.
Please let me know your questions, suggestions, opinions, and harangues in the comments section. As usual, it’s best to do that before Council decides.
Some highlights upcoming include: Proposed ordinances to create a permitting process for camping, movement on the Reed Creek Greenway, proposal to rezone a parcel in South Asheville to high density, amendment to the standards regulating push carts and encroachments on public sidewalks, report from the Ethnic Minority Business Alliance.
