QUESTIONABLE
Public investment in Buncombe County should strengthen communities—not price people out (new)
Buncombe County Commissioners will consider two public-investment decisions on August 4 that demonstrate the need for anti-displacement analysis: (1) advancing approximately 3.3 miles of greenways and related park improvements in Woodfin, and (2) supporting a $31 million expansion of Enka manufacturer Southeastern Container with up to $185,000 in state and County incentives. Both proposals may offer meaningful public benefits—including recreation, connectivity, jobs, and economic activity—but those benefits will not necessarily be shared equitably. The proposals do not assess whether the greenways could increase housing costs and development pressure or explain how public investment that creates jobs will affect local residents. These are precisely the kinds of questions a practical anti-displacement analysis framework would help the County answer before committing public resources.
SPECIAL OPPORTUNITY
Don’t Mute the Block
On Saturday, August 8, from 2–5 p.m. at the Stephens-Lee Community Center, GAPavl and the Center for Participatory Change will facilitate an interactive community-learning session examining Washington, D.C.’s Don’t Mute DC movement as a case study in culture, public action, and systems change. Featured guests Dr. Natalie Hopkinson, founding chief curator of the Go-Go Museum & Café, and Ronald “Moe” Moten, the museum’s founder and CEO, will discuss how residents defended go-go music as an expression of Black culture, neighborhood identity, and civic power. The conversation is particularly relevant in Asheville as communities consider how development and displacement affect not only who can remain in a neighborhood, but whether its culture and identity can survive. GAP supporters are warmly invited to learn more and register.
This event is part of Bridging the Beat, a three–day cultural exchange connecting Washington, DC’s go-go culture with Asheville’s Black cultural anchors, legacy neighborhoods, youth, public spaces and community leadership.
REPORT BACKS
Promising Anti-Displacement Commitment Needs a Timeline
City Council voted 6–0 to adopt the anti-displacement resolution, with Councilmember Maggie Ullman absent. Before the vote, Council amended the motion to require the City’s forthcoming strategic plan to include measurable milestones, expected outcomes, and a reporting structure. That change responds meaningfully to GAPavl supporters’ requests for accountability, but Council did not adopt the requested 90-day implementation deadline. Despite that, this result is an important policy milestone: the City has formally committed to assessing displacement risk and integrating protections across its work. However, the pace and substance of implementation will still require monitoring.
Home Repair Can Prevent Displacement — But Who Will Receive Help?
Council voted 6–0 to approve the Home Repair Policy and allocate $3 million from the 2024 Affordable Housing Bond. The program can help an estimated 68–108 lower-income homeowners address critical repairs, accessibility needs, and other conditions that could otherwise force them from their homes. Council did not add the more-detailed selection rules, hardship protections, or reporting requirements we advocated for. Approval is nevertheless a positive anti-displacement investment; the central question now is whether implementation reaches households with the lowest incomes and greatest displacement risks. GAPavl will continue to monitor how outcomes take shape alongside the City’s other anti-displacement measures, and report back.
A Better Transit Network for Many Riders — But Not Everyone
Council received the transit redesign presentation but took no vote. Staff presented the proposed network, the overwhelmingly negative survey results, and options for retaining service to destinations that could lose direct access, including ABCCM’s Transformation Village, MAHEC, the Social Security office, West Haywood, and the Outlet Mall. Councilmembers expressed significant concern about the proposed losses and discussed smaller vehicles, partnerships with major employers and institutions, and additional funding. Staff is expected to return for a decision on August 25, so this issue remains unresolved and the discussion created an opportunity to seek a revised plan before the final vote.
Sweeten Creek Road Project: “100% Affordable” — But Affordable to Whom?
Council voted 6–0 to approve the conditional rezoning for 130 apartments at 3862 Sweeten Creek Road. All units must be affordable to households earning no more than 80% of area median income for at least 20 years. The nonprofit developer said it typically maintains affordability at its properties for 40 years or longer, but the approved conditions do not guarantee that any particular share of the apartments will serve households at lower income levels, such as 30%, 50%, or 60% AMI. That deeper affordability could emerge through the project’s financing, but it’s unclear whether the developer will pursue that.
Don’t Trade Away the Asheville Mall’s Housing Future
Council voted 4–2 to approve rezoning approximately 40 acres of the Asheville Mall from Urban Place to Regional Business, with Councilmembers Kim Roney and Sage Turner voted against. The decision went against the recommendations of both City staff and the Planning and Zoning Commission. It removes requirements intended to produce housing, walkability, internal street connections, and transit-supportive redevelopment without securing a specific development plan or enforceable public benefits. Although supporters argued that Urban Place zoning had made redevelopment financially and practically difficult, the vote gave away substantial public leverage over one of Asheville’s largest redevelopment opportunities.