REDISCOVER
SUNSET TERRACE
nEws
by Caitlin Byrd
cbyrd@mountainx.com
Doubleheader
AT THE OMNI GROVE PARK INN
Two mayoral forums spotlight different constituencies
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Come rediscover the iconic Sunset Terrace, featuring the finest hand cut steaks, premiere chops and fresh Carolina seafood. Partnering with local farmers and artisans, Sunset Terrace delivers a unparalleled chophouse experience in a phenomenal fall setting. COMPLIMENTARY OUTDOOR PARKING
10
octoBER 2 - octoBER 8, 2013
mountainx.com
The stages and supporters could not have been more different: A Sept. 25 power lunch at Magnolia’s Raw Bar & Grille, sponsored by the conservative Council of Independent Business Owners, and an evening forum at the Odyssey Gallery, hosted by the multimodal-minded group Asheville On Bikes. The latter event was also attended by City Council candidates (see “Getting Things Rolling” on p. 8). Before the three mayoral candidates ― current Asheville Vice Mayor Esther manheimer, former city Risk Manager john miall and community activist martin Ramsey ― began talking transit at the River Arts District gallery, they sipped beers with voters outside the neighboring Clingman Café. Earlier that day, both Manheimer and Miall had handed out buttons and stickers urging people to vote for them before getting down to business at Magnolias. Ramsey did not attend the CIBO event due to a scheduling conflict. A piece of paper with Ramsey’s name typed on it rested on an empty chair a few feet away from where Manheimer and Miall faced each other one-on-one for the first time in a public forum. Both said that fiscal and financial stability would be top priorities if they were elected mayor, and both voiced support for the long-delayed Interstate 26 connector project, even if it means means making Interstate 240 eight lanes through West Asheville. Some
fRom thREE: Asheville mayoral candidates John Miall, Martin Ramsey and Esther Manheimer make their pitches before the Tuesday, Oct. 8 primary. Photos by Max Cooper
options for the multimillion-dollar undertaking include an eight-lane I-240 — a controversial issue since the project was first proposed many years ago. Miall, a West Asheville native who still lives there, told the more than 50 CIBO attendees, “Eight or 800 [lanes], we need relief. It’s that simple.” He continued, “I don’t think it’s a question of how many lanes; I think it’s a question of how committed are we” to completing the project. Manheimer, meanwhile, told the CIBO crowd that she will “of course” support the connector. “I’m not sure if the recommendation is going to include six lanes or eight. … But whatever the recommendation is, I’m going to support it, because that’s what it’s going to take,” she assured them. “We need the I-26 project: That is not a question. We have been stymied in moving that forward.” Asked whether they would consider a new study to assess the effectiveness of traffic-calming measures along Kimberly, Macon and Murdock avenues (specifically the bulb-outs and traffic islands), Manheimer said that, although there have been “some hiccups in people learning to drive around them and not over them, the community has absorbed them.”