City

Have a say in the local landscape

Thanks to City and County engagement hubs + community workshops, there’s no need to keep your opinion to yourself.

October 6, 2023 • 
Molly Wilson
pack square park in front of city of asheville buildings

Now’s the time to get engaged with the community.

Photo by AVLtoday

Table of Contents
Getting engaged
Getting out there

Last week, we posed a question to our readers — What do you want to see for downtown Asheville? In return, we received hundreds of responses that voiced your ideas, concerns, and desires for our city. Many of you expressed a need for green spaces, bike lanes and parking, and affordable housing, including changing the affordable housing definition. Others wanted to see museums and a preservation of the historical buildings + skyline.

But these ideas don’t have to just be answers to our survey. Here are a few ways you can speak up about the present and future of our community.

Getting engaged

The City of Asheville and the Buncombe County Government have community engagement hubs where they make frequent calls for public input and highlight ongoing projects. On the County’s page, you can find surveys on broadband expansion, community board participation, and Board of Commissioners meeting times, and a calendar shows upcoming meetings and events.

The hub for the City also has a calendar, surveys, and City Council meeting agendas, public comment guidelines + a place to submit virtual comments if you can’t attend a meeting. You can also sign up for Your Voice, Your Choice — which asks a couple of questions about experiences and interests then sends you notifications when related projects and initiatives come up.

ferry road project rendering of a street and houses

With updates to the proposal, the County is looking to keep the public informed about the Ferry Road project.

Rendering via Buncombe County

Getting out there

You don’t just have to raise a virtual voice, though — projects often call for in-person feedback during public meetings or community workshops, and there are a few coming up soon.

As the proposal for the Ferry Road project moves forward, the County is hosting three information sessions.

  • Wednesday, Oct. 25 | 5-7 p.m. | Enka-Candler Library
  • Saturday, Oct. 28 | 9-11 a.m. | Virtual
  • Thursday, Nov. 9 | 5:30-7:30 p.m. | Buncombe County Government Administration, downstairs conference room

There’s also still a chance for you to give in-person feedback on Asheville Parks & Recreation’s Recreate Asheville plan (including a meeting this afternoon).

  • Monday, Oct. 9 | 2-6 p.m. | Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center
  • Thursday, Oct. 12 | 5-7 p.m. | Carrier Park
    (Spanish language interpretation and translation services will be available.)