nEws
by David Forbes
Send your news tips to news@mountainx.com.
News desk dEvELopER withdRaws chEstnut stREEt pLans Last year, developers Richard Fort and Chad Roberson of Physis proposed building a 16-unit apartment complex on Chestnut Street. The plan sparked debate about neighborhood preservation, the need for housing and urban density (see “No Vacancy,” May 29, 2013, Xpress). A week before a scheduled public hearing at Asheville City Council, Fort and Roberson withdrew the project. “The unpredictability of the development process, minimal qualifications required for protest petitions, and the potential for further delays present risks that small developers such as Physis can ill afford,” the developers said in a Jan. 20 withdrawal letter sent to city officials. mark deverges, who opposed the project, wrote in an email to fellow neighborhood residents, “I really hope the developers use this fresh opportunity and gain some good momentum for a more desirable proposal we can be excited about.” For more, see: avl.mx/04h. suit aLLEgEs REtaLiation, discRimination against poLicE oFFicER Asheville Police Department Lt. mark Byrd, claiming the city of Asheville’s management and the APD’s leadership retaliated and discriminated against him on a number of occasions, filed a lawsuit in federal court Jan. 21. Byrd alleges that, in its treatment of him and other dissenting officers, the APD has “engaged in discrimination, retaliation, intimidation and the use of falsehoods.” According to the suit, Byrd was assigned to “duties and projects in excess of those normally assigned to an officer in his position,” excluded from disciplinary and planning meetings that he normally would have been a part of, and assigned duties that ensured he couldn’t take family leave he had been approved for following the 2013 birth of his child. While Byrd was promoted to a lieutenant in 2012, the suit claims this was part of a pre-determined process, and that afterwards he was publicly insulted by a supervi-
sor, given duties that normally wouldn’t be assigned to his rank and kept out of disciplinary and decision-making processes. The suit also links these actions to the sexual harassment complaint his wife, fellow officer cherie Byrd, filed in 2010 against then-Sgt. Eric Lauffer. Asheville Interim City Attorney martha mcglohon issued this official response: The City and APD take any allegation of discrimination extremely seriously. Because we safeguard the privacy of our employees and because of state law, we cannot comment on pending litigation. But what we can say is that our employment guidelines are very clear that we do not tolerate discrimination or retaliation for any reason whatsoever. For more, including the full lawsuit, see: avl.mx/04j. citY announcEs that thE Bid BoaRd is going doRmant With prospects of a special tax to fund a downtown Business Improvement District unlikely, the city announced Jan. 24, that the Asheville Downtown Improvement District’s board was going dormant. According to a board representative, the members continue to work to accomplish the BID’s goals through other organizations and methods. “It’s because [Asheville City] Council is not really interested in funding a BID downtown at this time. They’re not interested in funding a further tax in the future,” says Ruth summers, a BID board member and executive director of the Grove Arcade. “The city is starting to address some of the pressing issues in downtown.” As its backers pushed for its formation over the past few years, the BID — a service nonprofit funded by a special tax on downtown property — had the support of a number of notable downtown figures and organizations that asserted it would ensure the area’s prosperity and help deal with issues of cleanliness, sustainability and safety in a way
Participants in an annual peace march departing from St. James African Methodist Episocopal church met others honoring Martin Luther King Jr. at a rally in Pack Square on Jan. 20. The event was organized by the local Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Association. Photo by Carrie Eidson
city government couldn’t. BID members were chosen and in 2012, the BID proposal was presented to Council, where a majority of members also supported the idea. But the BID proved controversial. An alliance of residents, business owners and activists argued that the tax hike was unnecessary and that the BID would place too much power in the hands of an unelected, unrepresentative board. Council members approved the BID’s formation, formally naming it the Downtown Improvement District, but balked at the requested tax. There were ensuing tensions between the board and city government over how to proceed. Meanwhile, Council passed the first major tax increase in over a decade, and the prospect for BID funding became increasingly unlikely, as it meant local leaders would be reluctant to pass another tax increase. Nonetheless, Summers says that the city is carrying out a number of BID organizers’ priorities. And BID advocates continue to push for their goals through groups, such as the Chamber of Commerce and Asheville
mountainx.com
Downtown Association. She cited the inclusion of increased downtown recycling and cleanliness efforts in the city’s last budget, the recent statement from the chamber calling for a ban on female toplessness and ongoing Asheville Downtown Association initiatives, such as a volunteer program of “ambassadors” to assist visitors, similar to a program in Wilmington, N.C. “We’ve heard from so many property owners that they’re tired of the aggressive panhandling, they’re tired of the graffiti, they’re tired of trash on the streets,” says Summers. “Because we spoke up, the city heard us.” “We’re still going to bring awareness to Council, we’re still going to look for funding, but we felt that we didn’t want to tie up the board’s time if we weren’t going to have money and really couldn’t go forward,” Summers adds. The BID “might come back, especially if the city looks at more budgeting issues, that’s why we’re not totally disbanding,” she notes. “It’s not like we’ve stopped our work. We’re just pursuing it in a different way.” X
JanuaRY 29 - FEBRuaRY 4, 2014
11