GAP Report for 1/12/26
URGENT
- 0 Items
PROBLEMATIC
- 0 Items
QUESTIONABLE
- Asheville’s rezoning decisions must address displacement (new)
- Buncombe County is growing tourism while working families are still waiting (report back)
- Buncombe County is allowing more density without ensuring affordability (report back)
- Buncombe County funds schools without knowing who is being left behind (report back)
POSITIVE
- 0 Items
Summary of the Report
New Item: Asheville’s rezoning decisions must address displacement
The Asheville City Council will consider a proposed rezoning of 13 Baldwin Street (in the Oakley neighborhood) from a Neighborhood Business (NB) zone to a Residential Single-Family High Density (RS-8) zone, which presents an important test of City policy on housing growth, equity, and displacement. Oakley has been identified by the City’s own Missing Middle Housing (MMH) Study as one of the neighborhoods most vulnerable to displacement due to rising land values, cost-burdened residents, and redevelopment pressure. While the rezoning could add housing capacity, it also removes space for neighborhood-serving commercial uses like small businesses and lacks any mechanism to protect long-term residents from displacement pressures. While we don’t recommend that the rezoning request be denied, we think it could be amended and improved. More broadly, we think it’s time for the City to adopt an explicit anti-displacement analysis and mitigation policy applicable to this rezoning and all future zoning or ordinance changes that increase development capacity. Such a policy would ensure that growth does not come at the expense of the people who already call Asheville home.
Item Updates
1/5/2026’s GAP Report items regarding rezoning of County property, tourism development, and school funding have all been updated below, and a template to apply continued pressure on the County to continue to center equity in each of these issues is provided.
Active Issue Reports
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
PREVIOUS REPORTS
GAP Report for 4/3/23
The Buncombe County Commission meets this Tuesday, April 4th, 2023 at 5 pm. You can attend the meeting at 200 College Street, Room 326 in downtown Asheville. You can watch the meeting online via Buncombe County's Facebook page. The full agenda is here. 0 Items 0 Items...
GAP Report for 3/27/23
The Asheville City Council meets at 5 pm this Tuesday, March 28th in the Council Chamber on the 2nd Floor of City Hall at 70 Court Plaza in downtown Asheville. You can watch the meeting online here. The full agenda is linked here. 0 Items 0 Items 1 Item 0 Items EMAIL...
GAP Report for 3/20/23
The Community Reparations Commission will hold their next meeting TONIGHT, Monday, March 20th from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. The meeting is being held at the Harrah's Cherokee Center Banquet Hall at 87 Haywood Street in Asheville. The public is welcome to attend the entire...
GAP Report for 3/13/23
The Asheville City Council meets at 5 pm this Tuesday, March 14th in the Council Chamber on the 2nd Floor of City Hall at 70 Court Plaza in downtown Asheville. You can watch the meeting online here. The full agenda is linked here. The Community Reparations Commission...
GAP Report for 3/6/23
The Buncombe County Commission meets this Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at 5 pm. You can attend the meeting at 200 College Street, Room 326 in downtown Asheville. You can watch the meeting online via Buncombe County's Facebook page. The full agenda is here. 0 Items 0 Items 0...