Mountain Xpress 04.07.21

OUR 27TH YEAR OF WEEKLY INDEPENDENT NEWS, ARTS & EVENTS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA VOL. 27 NO. 36 APRIL 7-13, 2021

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C ONTENT S

NEWS

NEWS

FEATURES 10 RISKY BUSINESS Local commerce organizations adapt to pandemic

16 BUNCOMBE BEAT Team-building, trust at core of Asheville City Council retreat

PAGE 24 HIKERS’ HEAVEN

PUBLISHER: Jeff Fobes

The 2.5-mile Youngs Mountain trail, set to open in late April, is the most recent addition to a growing trail network in the Hickory Nut Gorge, an area of rugged terrain that lies just beyond Buncombe County’s southeastern border.

Trail builders, from left, Devon Hathaway, Cathy Cooper and Jason Austin pause to take in a view that includes Lake Lure.

ASSISTANT TO THE PUBLISHER: Susan Hutchinson

FEATURE

COVER PHOTO Courtesy of Conserving Carolina 19 ‘A VALUABLE ASSET’ City residents support clubhouse for women, 1917-26

COVER DESIGN Scott Southwick 4 LETTERS

WELLNESS

4 CARTOON: MOLTON 22 HUMAN ANTENNAS Local dowsers harness intuition to find water, personal empowerment

5 CARTOON: BRENT BROWN 6 NEWS 16 BUNCOMBE BEAT 19 ASHEVILLE ARCHIVES

A&C

20 COMMUNITY CALENDAR 28 CRUNCH TIME Hendersonville’s BrightFarms will produce 2 million pounds of leafy greens a year

22 WELLNESS 24 GREEN SCENE 28 ARTS & CULTURE

A&C

36 CLUBLAND 29 IN TUNE Local musicians find new creative outlets to sustain them during COVID-19

38 FREEWILL ASTROLOGY 38 CLASSIFIEDS 39 NY TIMES CROSSWORD

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OPINION

Send your letters to the editor to letters@mountainx.com.

Small businesses need our support COVID-19 has negatively affected a lot of people over the course of this past year. Not only has it made everything difficult, but it changed some people’s lives forever.

We’ve lost loved ones, friends, social activities, and local businesses have lost so much money and business here in Asheville.

At the start of the pandemic, local businesses had to shut down due to state regulations and did not know when they would be able to open back up. The owners lost so much money, and many employees of those businesses had to be let go.

It has been a very difficult time for everyone, but with the release of vaccines, we are starting to see some hope. Even though vaccines are being pushed out, and things are slowly starting to go back to normal, local businesses need our help and support now more than ever as some open back up with limited space.

— Isaac Elliott Swannanoa

A village, not a mall, on Charlotte Street The Charlotte Street neighborhood is an active, community-minded, blended, diverse, historic and neighborly area. A village, not a commercial mall.

The partners, Killian and RCG, appeal to us as preservationists on the basis of the long-departed Dr. Killian’s work and awards. No. That was his legacy. It will not be theirs. This proposal involves destruction of 13 homes and up side streets of Baird and Chestnut, a bad idea chipping away in the whole city.

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C AR T O O N B Y R AN D Y MO L TO N The gargantuan design is pretentious in the cottage area. Increased traffic, dangerously absurd. Total disregard for historic treasures, even worse. All 13 homes contribute to the National Register Historic District designation. Now they say the buildings are too run-down. … The bones are good, as those who have improved our homes can attest.

Increased traffic from 183 residential units on a neighborhood street is in direct opposition to the only recently completed, decades coming “road diet” for an already severely traffic-stressed street.

The overwhelming majority opinion was: 1.) the safety of pedestrians and 2.) conserve the historic character and design of the area.

Will the city ignore this objective?

Mercenary developers called Charleston’s Rainbow Row and New Orleans’ shotgun homes a blight. They are now major attractions with rich economic benefits.

They said, “This is how we do it.”

Wise city councils came back with, “This is not how we do it here!”

And made it official policy. I urge our city: Accept only enlightened developers, such as [those who] designed for the “Pit of Despair.”

Do the right thing to protect all in our unique, historic city as you were elected to do.

— Kieta Osteen-Cochrane Asheville

An informed discussion on the Vance Monument My first reaction was outrage that the city would squander money on removing a geometric object [“Council Votes to Demolish Vance Monument,” March 31, Xpress].

However, I began to realize that the feeling was caused by poor messaging on the part of the city. Doubtless there are many people on the other side of this question, but their views by and large have not been shared with the community.

Why haven’t the public comments to the Vance Monument commission been published on a website so we can have an informed discussion?

— Lou Lieb Asheville

Could we still fix the obelisk?

Perhaps the monument could be repurposed, recommemorated, covered up until the new title and meaning of the obelisk are decided and ceremoniously received by the city.

There are a lot of creative people in this city, perhaps adding colors to it or textures. Could it be more affordable and beneficial to use what’s already there and make it work together, rather than tearing it down?

— Vivian Saich Fletcher

CARTOON BY BRENT BROWN

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NEWS

Thinner blue line

APD staffing shortage reaches critical level

BY MOLLY HORAK mhorak@mountainx.com Lou Popovitch remembers a time when an Asheville police car was a regular sight around his house on South French Broad Avenue. Since he and his wife, Stewart, moved to the neighborhood almost six years ago, they’ve called the Asheville Police Department many times to report incidents of theft, trespassing and drug sales outside their home.

The APD was always quick to respond and willing to help, Popovitch recalls. And while the latter hasn’t changed, the presence of officers certainty has in recent months. “It’s just become an absolute skeleton crew,” he says, noting that bike, foot and car patrols have “practically vanished.”

“We know how quickly things can go bad when there’s no police force present and there’s no perceived consequence,” Popovitch says. “That gives us concern, and it’s starting to make us feel unsafe.”

Popovitch’s observations are part of a broader issue plaguing the APD. Staffing is “without question” the biggest problem facing the department, says Chief David Zack. Since the start of 2020, 72 employees have left the APD, 69 of which were resignations.

As Asheville’s 2021-22 budget process gets underway, complete with public engagement sessions to brainstorm alternatives to traditional policing methods and repeated community calls to reduce the size and scope of the APD, some residents view any police presence as too much. Others are starting to see and feel the effects of a force stretched too thin — and Zack is worried.

“Whether you’re a private entity or are providing a public service, a 30%-

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STRETCHED THIN: Fewer Asheville police officers on the beat means longer response times for the community and more work for the employees who stayed, like Sergeant Brien Griffin, pictured above. APD Chief David Zack predicts delays will only worsen as COVID-19 restrictions lift and more tourists return to the area. Photo courtesy of APD 35% daily loss of staff is going to have a major impact on operations,” he says, noting that the total number of department staff had dropped from 238 in May to around 160 by March.

“I think we’d be hard pressed to find another agency who is dealing with as many big challenges as we are.”

CRISIS MODE

Officer turnover isn’t a new phenomenon, Zack says. In 2019, APD

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lost 36 sworn and unsworn personnel. The year before, 39 employees left the department.

But this time, recruitment can’t keep up with the compounding resignations. In August, six new employees were hired to begin basic law enforcement training; three of those individuals have since resigned.

Of the eight employees who began basic training in January, one has already quit. And hanging over the department’s day-to-day operations

is the ever-present threat that more sworn and nonsworn staff could give notice and walk away from their positions at any point, Zack says.

In contrast, the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, which has a total full-time staff of 418, had 29 people leave its enforcement division from March 2020 to March 2021, spokesperson Aaron Sarver said in an email. In that same period, 20 new employees were hired; the remaining nine positions were filled by detention center employees who wanted to shift into an enforcement role.

There’s no one factor that’s driving the APD exodus, Zack notes.

Internally, it’s hard for APD staff members to see their peers resigning in droves. Despite efforts to address morale, officers “don’t feel supported,” APD spokesperson Christina Hallingse said in an email.

Add in the area’s high cost of living, regional competition among local law enforcement agencies to attract the best candidates, frequent leadership turnover, loud community criticism and the inherent dangers of police work, and conditions become ripe for mass resignations.

Some salary concerns will likely be addressed in the city’s upcoming budget cycle. A recent compensation study conducted by Rock Hill, S.C.-based Archer Co. and presented to Asheville City Council at a March 9 budget work session found approximately half of city employees were earning a salary below what other similarly sized and surrounding governments offered. The most significant discrepancies were found within the police, water resources, public works and parks and recreation departments.

To reach the new minimum pay rates outlined in the study would cost $4.5 million; to give raises to employees currently above the paygrade minimum, thereby preserving differences between lower- and higher-wage workers, would add another $3.3 million. Proposals under consideration would either implement all salary changes at once or over a two-year period.

If the recommendations are adopted and incorporated into the 2021-22 operating budget, the minimum salary of a police officer would jump from $37,000 to $44,738. The maximum salary of a senior officer would increase from approximately $50,707 to $59,901.

When asked if the anticipated raise would be enough to attract qualified candidates, Zack shrugged.

“It’s a start.”

LONG WAIT, MORE WORRIES

Having fewer officers on the beat directly correlates with the time it takes APD to respond to 911 calls.

In January, it took officers two to three minutes longer to reach the most urgent calls for assistance than it would have taken in May 2020 — a big difference during life-or-death situations when every second counts.

The average response to the lowest-priority calls, a broad category that includes breaking and entering, vandalism, missing persons reports and reckless driving, was about 30 minutes longer than May levels.

Those delays will only lengthen as the city prepares for an expected return of tourists as COVID-19 restrictions lift and warmer weather sets in, Zack warns. “What’s it going to look like in June or July, when downtown businesses are all open

TAKING ACTION

Nancy Schneiter befriends the wild Unlike most dog breeds, cats have retained the skills to survive without human companions. Feral cats thrive so well, in fact, that female cats can become pregnant as young as 5 months of age and have an average of four kittens per litter (and as many as 10!), according to the Humane Society of the United States.

To create a healthier feral cat population, Asheville resident Nancy Schneiter runs Friends2Ferals, a local trap-neuter-return program for feral cats.

“By not having feral cats in the shelter as much, we allow more space for others, and it allows the shelter to do so much more for the community,” Schneiter says.

The free program, which is funded primarily through private donations, has handled roughly 14,000 cats since its inception in 2007. Of those served, some were reintroduced into cat colonies, while others went on to adoption programs. In addition to being spayed or neutered, the animals also receive vaccinations and treatment for internal parasites and ear mites.

“The idea is, especially with feral cats, we want them going back in much better shape than when they came in,” Schneiter explains.

When it comes to the impact of feral cats on local bird populations, Schneiter says the cats’ laziness shouldn’t be underestimated. When it

later in the evening?” he asks. “It’s a major, major concern right now as we think about how quickly we can respond to emergencies.”

Already, the response rate isn’t great, says Tami Bebber, community manager of the Lofts at South Slope apartments on Coxe Avenue. In January, she called the APD to report a series of smashed car windows outside the property. It took officers about four hours to respond, she says.

“We had several people in the building whose cars had been damaged, and they waited around and waited around for someone to show up,” she recalls. “I totally understand why it took so long, because it wasn’t an emergency, but if we had more officers I’m sure it would have been a much quicker thing.”

To help focus APD response on immediate needs, the city’s four patrol districts were reduced to three.

Several detectives were reassigned to patrol duties, Zack told members of Asheville City Council’s Public Safety Committee at a Feb 23 meeting, as were specialized units. An in-person report office run by nonsworn personnel is operating in South Asheville, and the number of officers assigned to local schools is down to three.

Downtown resident Steve Stevenson hasn’t had any negative experiences with crime but he is worried that APD officers wouldn’t show up in time should he call for assistance.

“If the city doesn’t staff its police force adequately, many of us can and will leave,” he wrote in an email. “Taxes are quite high in Asheville, and taxpayers in return naturally expect high-quality services and a safe environment.”

Several downtown businesses have also shared concerns about the decrease in visible police presence, says Meghan Rogers, executive director of the Asheville Downtown Association. Downtown foot and bike patrols were put on pause as APD officers have been pulled in other directions, causing some members to worry, she notes.

“In my opinion, a safe downtown has that balance between the appropriate level of police presence and activity, as well as resources and programs for people in need and to prevent crime in the first place,” Rogers says. “They’re in the middle of this Reimagining Public Safety process, so I’m interested to see how those two dots get connected.”

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NANCY SCHNEITER comes to hunting a meal, she explains, cats are opportunistic feeders.

“People always think that if there are feral cats around, they’re going to be going after birds. Birds are much harder to catch,” Schneiter maintains.

“The best thing about feral cats in a lot of people’s viewpoints is that they take care of the rodent population.”

— Brooke Randle X

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NOT HERE FOR LONG: Of the 14 new hires who participated in APD’s August and January basic law enforcement training, four have already resigned. Here, a class runs through training exercises in early spring 2020. Photo courtesy of APD

A CITY WITHOUT POLICE?

The Reimagining Public Safety process Rogers mentions is one way the city is engaging citizens in the budget process. In September — before Asheville City Council approved a 2.5% cut to the APD’s annual budget — a public safety survey garnered more than 250,000 responses and 19,000 comments. Another 461 residents

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attended virtual listening sessions to brainstorm which police functions and resources could be reallocated to other city departments or service providers.

Recommendations from those sessions prompted Asheville City Manager Debra Campbell to share a series of priorities for the 2021-22 budget, including a new model for school resource officers to mentor students; enhancing safety in Housing Authority

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communities; and consolidating the county’s 911 emergency call center.

Campbell also stated her intention to create a rapid-response team for mental health, homelessness, domestic violence and drug and alcohol calls, similar to the CAHOOTS model pioneered in Eugene, Ore. She’s yet to publicly detail any of these plans or what funding may be needed to advance them.

Meanwhile, activists like Greenleaf Clarke Prentice view the current staffing shortage as a way for police divestment to happen organically. “We’re already seeing high amounts of violence and harm at the hands of the police and we’re also seeing lower staffing numbers now than ever before,” Clarke Prentice says. “It’s an easy avenue — don’t rehire to fill the empty spots and use that budget in other ways.”

For his part, Zack is adamant that any move to shift responsibilities away from the APD won’t actually shrink the department’s size. He’s all for diverting tasks away from the department and having other agencies take the lead on the scene, but he doesn’t see a way to make that safely happen without a police officer present in case something goes wrong.

He points to Buncombe County’s Community Paramedic and Post-

Overdose Response, a team of three paramedics, a mental health clinician, a peer support specialist and a program manager that responds to 911 overdose calls. To expand a program like that and ensure enough people remain available to respond to concurrent calls, in different parts of town, 24 hours a day, will be a massive undertaking.

“If you think the resource allocation is equal to 50 police officer salaries, you’re fooling yourself,” Zack says.

“We welcome the investment, we’re not fighting it at all, we’re just telling you it’s going to require a heck of a lot more than you think it will.”

But if some in the city don’t want to see a police presence, Popovitch of South French Broad Avenue does.

Neighborhood association leaders lobbied for years to get more police coverage into the area before South French Broad was “finally” redrawn into the downtown patrol district, he says.

“We were going to get more officers than we ever had before to help do proactive policing instead of the reactive calls we’ve been dealing with,” Popovitch says. “And no sooner does that happen than everything starts to go crazy in 2020. It’s disappointing. We were making progress.” X

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NEWS

Mountain Xpress

Risky business

Local commerce organizations adapt to pandemic

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mountainx.com/ bestofwnc SILVER LININGS: The staff of the 2019 Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce poses for a pre-pandemic group picture.

Kit Cramer, the organization’s president, says that while the COVID-19 pandemic forced the chamber to make temporary budget cuts, the outbreak also allowed the organization to focus on upgrading its technology to allow for greater flexibility for its staff and members. Photo courtesy of the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce

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Business is all about taking risks.

And local business organizations such as the Asheville Downtown Association tend to have their fingers on the pulse of potential risks to area entrepreneurs.

But last year, even the most commerce-savvy could not have anticipated the far-reaching economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We did the State of Downtown luncheon last year on Feb. 26. We stood in front of about 250 people and talked about how awesome 2020 was going to be,” remembers Meghan Rogers, who heads the ADA. “Yeah — we were wrong.”

While much attention has been paid to the struggles of individual businesses that have borne the economic brunt of the pandemic, Asheville’s business organizations, which provide a critical framework for entrepreneurs to network, collaborate and market their wares, have also taken a hit.

The events of 2020 have pushed those organizations to adapt and, in some cases, to take on innovative roles in response to their members’ needs, even amid their own tightening budgets and financial uncertainties.

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COST CUTTING

As did most businesses, many Asheville business organizations began to feel the economic shockwave of the pandemic last spring when in-person events were either scrapped or made virtual. Rogers told viewers at this year’s virtual State of Downtown presentation that the ADA relies primarily on income from live events like Downtown After Five, its July Fourth celebration and the Asheville Holiday Parade. The loss of in-person events in 2020, she noted, slashed the nonprofit’s revenue by roughly 85%.

Kit Cramer, president of the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce, says that while her organization has a more diverse set of income streams, it too experienced a financial blow due to lower visitor center gift shop sales and slower fundraising progress. As a result, the chamber cut all staff salaries by 6% and reduced matching retirement contributions by two-thirds.

“Our first commitment to our staff was that we would not lay anyone off, and as a result, we asked the staff to take compensation cuts for both what we do for matching for 401(k) as well as in their salary amounts,” Cramer explains.

After seeing better-than-expected budget figures early this year and receiving a $250,000 job retention grant from the state, Cramer says, the organization was recently able to offer employees a one-time payment making up for reduced salaries and retirement matches through February. But the reductions will remain in place through at least the end of June.

And the Asheville Independent Restaurant Association, which supports itself through a combination of member dues, sponsorships and the Taste of Asheville event, lost its largest revenue source after discontinuing the AIR Passport. Jane Anderson, AIR’s executive director, says offering the popular buy-one-get-one coupon booklet would have placed too large a burden on participating member restaurants.

“When COVID hit, and we saw it was not going to be a short-term thing, we had to look at the [passport], and our board made a decision that now is not the time to be asking our restaurants to discount anything,” she explains.

As a result, the organization had to furlough a full-time employee in March last year. So far, the nonprofit

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N EWS has not been able to rehire that staffer back. “I’ve been working solo,” Anderson adds.

Despite their losses, all three organizations say that they are being as flexible as possible with their annual membership dues, which range from $125 for small-business membership to the ADA to up to $8,000 for the highest-tier chamber membership.

Members who are struggling to pay their dues can opt to extend their memberships free of charge or agree to pay at a later date. The ADA also offered complimentary one-year memberships to downtown businesses during March.

So far, 36 downtown businesses have taken advantage of the offer.

“We just realized it was more important to have a membership base than it was to have that revenue. Once we talked about it, keeping members and keeping them engaged was more important,” Rogers says.

MEETING THE MOMENT

While the COVID-19 pandemic left many entrepreneurs scrambling to keep up with ever-changing rules, it also created an opportunity — and a necessity — for business organiza-

tions to shift their roles in support of their members.

“My phone never rang off the hook like it did, especially when there was confusion around some of the ups and downs we’ve had with local regulation,” recalls Anderson, who has led AIR for the last eight years. At one point during the pandemic, she was taking up to 90 phone calls a month, helping members understand capacity limits and alcohol sales curfews.

AIR became a conduit to restaurants for what was going on in the city, the county and the state. “To that end, we were very outspoken when our county either attempted to or did levy restrictions upon us that we felt singled out restaurants as a category of business,” Anderson notes.

Late last year, Anderson says, county officials considered a new curfew on all restaurants beyond the existing 50% capacity limit. AIR pushed back on the proposal and demonstrated that area restaurants were following required safety protocols; the county later backed off the added restriction in what she calls a “major victory.”

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IN YOUR CORNER: The Asheville Independent Restaurant Association advocated for its members during the pandemic as city and county leaders weighed restrictions on indoor dining capacity and other safety measures. Photo courtesy of Strada Italiano “I think if anybody thought that AIR was not an integral part of the community, 2020 would prove otherwise,” says Anthony Cerrato, chef and owner of downtown’s Strada Italiano and the neighboring Social Lounge cocktail bar.

Cerrato, who also served as AIR’s president in 2012, says that the organization has tended to stay out of politics. But the pandemic encouraged the group to leverage Asheville’s restaurant community with a unified voice. “I don’t think AIR maybe had the confidence in the past to give that voice so freely. But now it has been required of them, and I think that it’s setting a precedent for the organization,” he says.

Cramer says that the chamber has filled an informational role through a series of town halls aimed at employers on a range of coronavirus-related topics, including vaccines, accessing feder-

al Paycheck Protection Program funds and job retention. She also points to the chamber’s coronavirus resource page, which is continuously updated with the latest state and local regulations and resources.

Meanwhile, the ADA took a different approach: injecting funds directly into the pockets of local workers.

“What we heard in 2020 is, ‘We’re holding on, but we need help.’ And that help really means money,” says Rogers. “People needed to be able to pay rent and mortgage and to be able to pay their employees. Those were the biggest concerns I heard over the pandemic.”

Through the virtual Downtown After 5 series and a virtual July Fourth event, the organization managed to pump roughly $60,000 into the local economy by employing area music professionals,

TAKING ACTION food vendors, waste management staff and other workers.

BACK TO THE FUTURE

As 501(c)(6) nonprofits, all three organizations now qualify for the latest round of Paycheck Protection Program funding. The new funds will both stabilize the organizations and allow their leaders to think about the future of business.

Cramer says the COVID-19 outbreak has caused the chamber to focus on upgrading its technology to allow for greater flexibility.“We think that the way people work has changed fundamentally,” she explains. “If we have a staff member that needs to be home with a child one day or if we have volunteers who, for whatever reason, decide they can’t be present in a meeting, we want them to have that virtual option as well. That’s the next stage.”

Rogers adds that the ADA plans to diversify its revenue streams. The organization is looking into ways to further activate the Asheville Downtown Association Foundation, an associated 501(c)(3), to apply for new grant funding for some programs. The ADA is also keeping a close eye on pandemic-related crowd restrictions and sharing

information with its members. As more people become vaccinated, Rogers hopes that there will be a safe return to in-person events late this year.

“We’re tentatively planning for late summer and fall events, so possibly an August or a September Downtown After Five. Hopefully Oktoberfest and then the holiday parade for this year.

That’s tentative, of course, a lot will just depend on how we proceed as a country,” she maintains.

The return of tourists to Asheville, Anderson predicts, will also cause a hiring blitz for area restaurants, which are currently operating understaffed.

AIR is preparing to assist its members in employee recruitment and retention to meet the demand.

She says that AIR is also wrapping up a new campaign called AIR Friends, which asks for donations to help support the organization. As of March 25, the effort had brought in about $35,000.

Anderson adds that she anticipates a robust recovery in the year ahead.“We’re very cautiously optimistic. I wouldn’t put so much emphasis on cautiously — we’re very optimistic,” she says.“But obviously during COVID times, you can’t count anything out.” X

Marsha Sterling fights for native plants In Asheville, sometimes you can’t see the forest for the invasive ivy.

Asheville resident Marsha Sterling says that’s exactly what drove her to create an informational post about the threat of invasive English ivy vines on the social media site Nextdoor.

“I had nine different people contact me and say, ‘If you want to come work on the English ivy in my yard, you’re more than welcome to do that,’” Sterling recalls.

Her passion quickly grew into a business, Raven Invasive Plant Management, which helps residents of Western North Carolina identify nonnative invasive plants in their backyards and protect native trees.

Sterling emphasizes that she does not use chemicals to remove the invasive species, safeguarding pollinators, wildlife and the trees themselves.

In addition to English ivy and another notorious invasive vine, kudzu, Sterling points to a third and lesser-known invasive, oriental bittersweet, as one of the area’s top ecological threats. Like the other harmful vines, oriental bittersweet wraps around tree trunks and overtops their canopies, cutting off the flow of water and nutrients and blocking photosynthesis, according to Sterling.

As the invasive plants move into the forests beyond Asheville, they begin outcompeting native plants for land, water and light and displace other

MARSHA STERLING Photo by Franklin Grippe plants and animals that call the native trees home.

“The implications are far, far reaching. People have no idea how harmful these plants are and they’re in most people’s yards in and around Asheville,” Sterling explains. “There’s a big gap in knowledge.”

For Asheville’s DIY-ers, Sterling also welcomes the opportunity to educate homeowners to recognize and safely remove the plants in their own yards.

“What I’m really here for is to just help people see what this issue is, how they can do something about it in their own yard, and how they can also spread this knowledge to other people,” Sterling says.

— Brooke Randle X Keeping Asheville Weird Since 2010

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BUNCOMBE BEAT

Team-building, trust at core of Asheville City Council retreat Anxious. Skeptical. Weary. Relieved.

That’s how members of Asheville City Council described their state of mind as they settled in for their two-day annual retreat at Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville. As the sometimes contentious discussions unfolded, members grappled with ambitious priorities for the upcoming year, and, perhaps more importantly, what their working relationships would look like for the next 18 months.

For members Sandra Kilgore, Antanette Mosley, Kim Roney and Sage Turner, it was the first time participating in the annual policy-setting forum. For Mayor Esther Manheimer, Vice Mayor Sheneika Smith, member Gwen Wisler and senior city leadership, it was the first retreat with loose social distancing measures in place.

For all, it was the first time meeting in-person as a group after conducting official business remotely since May. As facilitators Nicholas Beamon of Charlotte and Kimberly Hunter of Asheville walked Council through exercises meant to “build a solid foundation for success,” the conversation kept returning to trust: in fellow members, in city staff and among skeptical community members.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE UNITED The first five hours of the March 31 session were devoted to team-building — a necessary step for what Beamon repeatedly referred to as a “historic” group, a nod to the all-female elected body. Members were asked to reflect on their motivation for running for office and, later, to share the “idea, possibility or group” they most passionately represented in this moment.

The day before, a coalition of local media outlets, including Mountain

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APRIL 7-13, 2021

GIVE ME SPACE: Asheville City Council and senior city leadership met in person for their annual retreat, held March 31-April 1 at Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville. It was the first time the elected body had gathered in the same space since May. Photo by Molly Horak Xpress, sued the city over its plans to conduct the team-building portions of the meeting in private. Buncombe County Superior Court Judge Steve Warren ruled the team-building sessions constituted an official meeting, opening the door for members of the media and the public to attend the retreat in its entirety.

Mosley, who was appointed to fill outgoing Council member Vijay Kapoor’s vacancy in September, spoke of her commitment to speak up for Black women during the ongoing conversation around community reparations. Turner, the parent of two adult children, said she felt compelled to fight for everyday Asheville residents who soon may be driven out of the city by high costs of living. Roney,

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who works with young people on a daily basis, is committed to including their voices in decisions.

Kilgore wants to bring unity back to Asheville’s Black and white communities. And Smith shared that she was driven by a desire to bring Asheville back to “the good ol’ days” — but better. “Everything about Asheville is a utopia to so many people, so let’s get back to that utopia.”

The conversation then transitioned to a critical analysis of the group’s professional and personal dynamics.

Almost every member pointed to a lack of active trust among colleagues as a major team weakness. Unity also needs to be a priority, said City Attorney Brad Branham. “It doesn’t have to be on everything, but we all

have to row in the same direction,” he said.

The idea of unity is common among board members working in the private sector, Turner added. Once a decision is made, a private board stands by that choice as one unified body, she said, a mentality that could be applied to Council’s work.

But Council is overseeing people, not a product, countered Smith. Even if members were to come together as a unified body, discussions will inevitably turn from “rules of engagement” to “rules of war” as members speak up for their beliefs, ideas and constituents.

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N EWS “Our focus, anyone who is at this table, is not to appease each other,” Smith said. “It’s to work for the people we serve.”

GROWING PAINS

To build the active trust the team has been lacking, Beamon asked members and staff to share agreements that would “ensure an environment of respect, trust and productive dialogue.”

Kilgore, who was the sole member to oppose the removal of the Vance Monument, asked that members make time to listen to the concerns of others without immediately dismissing their ideas.

Feedback should be given early and often, offered City Manager Debra Campbell. Mosley took the suggestion a step further, asking that feedback be given first in private before offering thoughts in a public setting. And Wisler requested there be “no gotchas, no surprises” at Council meetings.

“There are many times when we as elected officials need to say something publicly,” she said. “It doesn’t necessarily mean what I’m going to say at the dais is something that staff is really really happy about, but no surprise ‘gotcha’ moments. Staff should know

what we’re going to say, if it’s something we’ve contemplated.”

Roney immediately pushed back, reminding the group about the recent release of the Asheville Police Department’s 303-page after-action report detailing the agency’s response to the spring’s racial justice protests. It came out just 16 hours before Council’s Public Safety Committee met to discuss its findings.

“Often, in meetings, we’re dealing with some pretty heavy stuff,” she said.

“I’m often surprised by what I hear in the meeting, and there may be times I do something surprising because I’m also surprised.”

Manheimer chimed in, saying Roney had nearly made the mayor “have a heart attack” when Roney asked a direct question of Campbell at the March 9 Council meeting. “What I heard in that moment was ‘Debra, I’m very critical of you and how you’re managing things,’” Manheimer said. “Maybe you didn’t mean it that way, but I spent two hours after that thinking how you could have said that in a way that didn’t make me have a heart attack and let me hear what the real issue was.”

That wasn’t her intention, Roney said. She offered her own commitment to ask for clarification on future topics

DOING THE WORK: Consultant Kimberly Hunter leads Asheville City Council members through an exercise to prioritize member’s goals for the upcoming year. Screen capture courtesy of the city of Asheville and to be more careful about comments that could be misinterpreted.

UPCOMING PRIORITIES

By the end of day two, members had whittled their key priorities for

the coming year down to four. A plan for reparations, including identifying funding streams and crafting a policy for the disposition of city-owned land acquired as part of urban renewal efforts of the 1970s and ‘80s, topped the list, as did directing federal COVID-19 relief spending.

The city is expected to receive $26 million from the federal American Rescue Plan. Crafting a policy framework to equitably distribute those funds within the federal guidelines will likely take significant staff time, Manheimer said.

Implementing pay raises for city employees and continuing to reimagine public safety priorities round out the focus areas. At Council’s regular meeting of Tuesday, April 13, Campbell will share a summary of the strategic priorities and a general timeline for delivering results.

A third budget work session will be held at 2:30 p.m. the same afternoon.

“Essentially, we have consensus on these four areas,” Turner said. “I think that sends an incredible message.”

— Molly Horak X

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FEA T U RE S

ASHEVILLE ARCHIVES

by Thomas Calder | tcalder@mountainx.com

‘A valuable asset’ City residents support clubhouse for women, 1917-26

CONSTRUCTION DELAYS: Starting in 1917, the Asheville Club for Women began raising funds to finance a clubhouse. But World War I and the subsequent economic recession derailed the group’s plans, postponing the project until 1926. Photo courtesy of the North Carolina Collection, Pack Memorial Library, Asheville Author’s note: This week’s Archives takes place during segregation in the Jim Crow South. Therefore, the social benefits discussed in the following piece excluded African Americans and other people of color.

In a Jan. 28, 1917, editorial, The Asheville Citizen observed how “all the good things that Asheville has secured, for the most part, have benefitted the men of the city.” As the paper pointed out, men’s organizations like the YMCA, the Board of Trade, the Asheville Club and the fraternal orders of the Masons and Elks all had “magnificent buildings of their own.”

Meanwhile, the editorial continued, the city’s women’s groups “have no club building that they might call home.”

But that was soon to change, the article reported. The Asheville Club for Women was in the midst of raising $1,500 (roughly $30,500 in today’s currency) for a down payment for a lot at Church Street and Ravenscroft Road.

“A woman’s club building in Asheville will be a valuable asset, giving us a suitable place for lectures, receptions and other entertainments,”

the editorial declared. “Our citizens should bear in mind that every building of this character erected in Asheville makes for the upbuilding, welfare and prosperity of the community as a whole.”

Early efforts were quite successful.

On April 15, 1917, the paper proclaimed: “The Citizen feels that it is justified in saying that the members of the women’s clubs of Asheville have given the men a splendid object lesson in the matter of successful organization.”

At the time, the group had surpassed its initial $1,500 goal and was closing in on the lot’s total $4,500 sale price. The article went on to assert that if state officials in Raleigh witnessed the group’s efforts, “they would have been convinced that the women of Buncombe are entitled to vote and would use that vote intelligently.” (The 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote was not ratified until 1920.)

Unfortunately for the Asheville Club for Women, America’s entry into World War I and the economic recession that followed the conflict’s conclusion hampered the project’s

progress for several years. Not until the fall of 1924 did interest return.

On Oct. 5, The Sunday Citizen reported that the Asheville Club for Women had announced plans to construct its long-awaited clubhouse at a new location on Charlotte Street and Sunset Parkway. By that time, the paper continued, several women’s clubs had completed similar structures throughout the country. Any further delay in Asheville would harm the city’s reputation.

“Every season it seems that a greater number of women nationally and internationally prominent visit Asheville,” the paper wrote.

Regrettably, the article continued, “there were many embarrassing situations during the past season,” due to the absence of a women’s clubhouse.

(Sadly, no details were offered about these “embarrassing situations.”)

The construction of the proposed clubhouse, the paper stressed, “is one of the most important projects in the progress of Asheville.”

To the paper’s delight, plans worked out the second time around. On Feb. 12, 1926, The Asheville Citizen reported that hundreds were expected “to be on hand this morning … for the cornerstone laying ceremony of the new Women’s Club building.” The project’s cost, the paper noted, was roughly $125,000 (or $1.8 million in today’s currency).

Six months later, the Asheville Club for Women celebrated the clubhouse’s grand opening. “The building is more than something material,” The Asheville Citizen wrote on Aug. 2, 1926. “It is the tangible sign, the beautiful token of the unseen spirit which created it for a fine purpose.”

The paper continued: “This is the spirit of the clubwomen of this community — the high and dauntless spirit which registers in more than mere physical form and which serves the cause of woman in more than provision of a building for their comfort — it is but the vehicle in which the spirit finds part of its concrete expression. Effectively practical and admirably ornate, the new building is evidence of the power which created it.”

According to the North Carolina Room at Pack Memorial Library, the clubhouse was sold to the Plonk School for Creative Arts in 1941. The school operated out of the location until 1970. Today, the former clubhouse is privately owned.

Editor’s note: Peculiarities of spelling and punctuation are preserved from the original documents. X

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COMMUNITY CALENDAR APRIL 7-16, 2021 For a full list of community calendar guidelines, please visit mountainx.com/calendar. For questions about free listings, call 828-251-1333, ext. 137.

For questions about paid calendar listings, please call 828-251-1333, ext. 320.

Clubland is back!

See Pg. 36

In-Person Events = Shaded All other events are virtual

ART River Arts District Second Saturday Open galleries, artist talks and live demonstrations.

SA (4/10), 10am, Free, River Arts District Studio Stroll, Depot St/Clingman Ave Jackson Arts Market Live demonstrations by local artists.

SA (4/10), 1pm, 533 W Main St, Sylva Discussion Bound Book Club Beauford Delaney and James Baldwin: Through the Unusual Door edited by Stephen C. Wicks.

TU (4/13), 12pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97e Asheville Art Museum: Coloring & Cocktails Featuring an interview with artist and photographer Byron Tenesaca.

TH (4/15), 7pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97b

MUSIC Thursday Night Live: Muse Asheville Classical French vocal performance.

TH (4/8), 6pm, Included with admission, Asheville Art Museum, 2 S Pack Square

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APRIL 7-13, 2021

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BMC Museum + Arts Center: Mario Galeano Toro New electronic performance.

TH (4/8), 7pm, Free, avl.mx/prvt Asheville Area Piano Forum: 15th Annual Spring Benefit Concert Featuring pianists William Bares, Kimberly Cann and Elizabeth Child. Proceeds benefit AAPF Student Assistance Awards program.

SU (4/11), 3pm, $20, avl.mx/97o

LITERARY When All God’s Children Get Together: Fostering Racial Justice Book Club Discussion on white privilege and its impact on communities.

TH (4/8), 1pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/96p WCU Spring Literary Festival: Who Can Tell that Story?

Panel discussion on representation in fiction, featuring authors Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle, Chantel Acevedo and Ashleigh Bryant Phillips.

SA (4/10), 2pm, Free, avl.mx/97v

WNC Historical Society: LitCafe Discussion on John Ehle's The Road led

by Steve Little and Richard Starnes.

TU (4/13), 6pm, Registration required, $5, avl.mx/97p Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance: Reader Meet Writer Featuring Stacy D. Flood, author of The Salt Field: A Novella.

TU (4/13), 7pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97w CRAFT: Authors in Conversation Featuring John E. Torres, M.D., author of Dr. Disaster’s Guide to Surviving Everything: Essential Advice for Any Situation Life Throws Your Way. WE (4/14), 7pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97x

THEATER Say Goodnight, Gracie: The Life, Laughter & Love of George Burns & Gracie Allen Tickets: avl.mx/97t.

• TH-SA (4/8-4/17), 7:30pm •SU (4/11-18), 2pm Fangmeyer Theatre at HART, 250 Pigeon St, Waynesville Magnetic in the (Smoky) Park Outdoor variety show.

Tickets: themagnetictheatre.org.

TU (4/13), 7pm, $18, Smoky Park Supper Club, 350 Riverside Dr Blue Ridge Theatre Department: Comedy of Errors One-act adaptation of the Shakespeare play.

TH (4/15), 7:30pm, Free, avl.mx/97m UNCA Drama: The 3 Pigs & the Red Line Puppet adaptation of the classic fable, inspired by the history of redlining and urban renewal in Asheville.

• FR (4/16), 7pm • SU (4/18), 2pm $3-$9, avl.mx/97j

BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY Craft Your Commerce: Creating Your Brand Story Introduction to branding for business growth.

WE (4/7), 2pm, Registration required, $5, avl.mx/97z SBCN: Building Your Online Store with WordPress & WooCommerce Start-up assistance webinar.

TH (4/8), 3pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/96r A-B Tech: Is Contracting with the Government Right for my Business?

Webinar by Rosanna Mulcahy.

TU (4/13), 1pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97y Deep Dive Lab: Experts of Marketing & Sales Webinar by Western Women's Business Center.

TH (4/15), 12pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97n Young Professionals of Asheville: Failure Friday Professional development panel discussion with Venture Asheville and WestBase Coworking.

FR (4/16), 3pm, Free, avl.mx/980

CLASSES, MEETINGS & EVENTS Crafting Resilience: Education & Community Engagement Roundtable discussion with UNC Asheville and the Center for Craft.

TH (4/8), 5pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97a

HEMP & HEALTH

I’LL HUFF & I’LL PUFF: The UNC Asheville Drama Department will present The 3 Pigs and the Red Line, an adaptation of the classic fable inspired by the history of redlining and urban renewal in Asheville. Using “toy theater,” a combination of paper puppetry and shadow puppetry, the show aims to spark a conversation around persisting effects of the city’s complicated history. Friday, April 16, 7 p.m. | Sunday, April 18, 2 p.m. $3 student/$9 general admission. avl.mx/97j. Photo courtesy of UNCA Drama Department Leadership Asheville: Winter Buzz Breakfast Panel discussion on equity in creative placemaking moderated by Darin Waters.

TH (4/15), 8:30am, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97c Ramsey Center for Appalachian Studies: Country Queers Presentation on efforts to document rural queer and trans experiences, led by oral historian Rae Garringer.

TH (4/15), 6pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97h Asheville Friends of Astrology Monthly meeting.

FR (4/16), 7pm, fb.com/ ashevilleastrology

ECO & OUTDOORS MountainTrue University: How Local Governments Respond to Climate Change Discussion on sustainability in civic life with riverkeeper Andy Hill and environmentalist George Santucci.

WE (4/7), 12pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/96q

Black Mountain Library Sowing Circle: Planning Your Vegetable Garden How to identify a garden site, select vegetables, improve soil quality and choose tools, led by master gardener Mary Alice Ramsey.

SA (4/10), 10am, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97k Lenoir-Rhyne Film Screening: Water Blues, Green Solutions Documentary screening and panel discussion on stormwater and green infrastructure with RiverLink and Green Opportunities.

WE (4/14), 6:30pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97g

SPIRITUALITY Recipe for Serenity: Journey of Self Discovery How to reconnect with your inner joy and peace using the "Emotional Freedom" technique. Register to get Zoom info: anancy08@gmail.com.

TH (4/8), 6pm, Free OLLI at UNCA: Bringing Meditation to Everyone The science behind meditation, presented

by Bob Roth.

MO (4/12), 4:30pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97d Groce UMC: A Course in Miracles Group Study Register to get Zoom info: 828-712-5472.

MO (4/12), 6:30pm, Free Baha'i Devotional: Think Not of the Imperfections of Others Devotional with prayers and music.

TU (4/13), 7pm, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97i

WELLNESS Pack Library: Mixed Level Pilates Class Led by Cisco Pilates.

SA (4/10), 11am, Registration required, Free, avl.mx/97L Steady Collective Syringe Access Outreach Free naloxone, syringes and educational material on harm reduction.

TU (4/13), 2pm, Firestorm Books & Coffee, 610 Haywood Rd

VOLUNTEERING Asheville GreenWorks: Sand Hill Nursery Workday Mulching, repotting trees and tending to plants. Register: avl.mx/85d.

WE (4/7), 10am, Buncombe County Sports Park, 58 Apac Circle

FESTIVALS Cider, Wine & Dine Weekend Educational programs, live music, facility tours and more.

Details: avl.mx/5wr.

TH (4/15), 10am, Historic Downtown Hendersonville

Delta 8 ies, Gu m m & Flower More!

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APRIL 7-13, 2021

21

WELLNESS

Human antennas

Local dowsers harness intuition to find water, personal empowerment

BY EDWIN ARNAUDIN earnaudin@mountainx.com For centuries, humans have used dowsing to tap into their intuition and find answers to a host of questions. And for nearly as long, skeptics have sought to disprove the ancient method. While numerous scientific studies have failed to definitively support the practice’s validity, Asheville-area dowsers remain steadfast in their commitment to harnessing forces beyond the five senses and introducing interested parties to the plentiful rewards they’ve experienced.

“Our culture is very dominated by the rational mind, and our rational mind can do incredible things, but it’s only one tool we have accessible to us,” says Bill Muerdter, a dowser based in Maggie Valley. “The intuition, we’ve minimized that, and it’s an equal part of us.”

ISO Warehouse Space You: 1,000-ish sq.ft. rough space with a roll-up door and possibly a loading dock Us: Local independent newspaper with a thing for purple

THE QUEST: Bill Muerdter dowses his Asheville property using a pair of L-rods. While the practice is primarily known as a way to locate water prior to digging a well, dowsing also has a long, rich history in exploring energy in general and as a tool for expanding one’s intuition. Photo by Judy Muerdter

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HISTORICAL ENERGY

Dowsing has long been associated with locating water sources, and the image of a person walking around, holding out a forked stick is likely what first comes to mind when most people hear the word. The practice is still used to pinpoint places to dig a well. The American Society of Dowsers claims the water-finding method dates back at least 8,000 years, citing paintings on the Tassili Caves in North Africa that depict a person “holding a forked branch in his hand, searching for water, surrounded by a group of admiring

tribesmen.” Modern dowsing has been traced to 15th century Europe, when it was employed to find minerals and metals.

Regardless of what is sought, Muerdter says the general approach remains about the same.

Instead of Y-shaped willow sticks, dowsers now primarily use two L-shaped metal rods. Dowsers hold these “L-rods” loosely by the short end, one in each hand, parallel to the ground with the long end pointed forward and the short end facing the ground.

“The main thing is asking a really refined question,” Muerdter says.

“Then it’s just a matter of going into a meditative state.”

After pausing to relax, slow down and get into a more receptive mindset, Muerdter typically puts forth a prayerlike request prior to dowsing.

He asks that the answers come only from the highest and purest sources; that they’re not influenced by his own expectations, desires, uncertainties or limiting unconscious directions, nor from malignant or malicious entities or energies; and that they are pure and accurate. He then sits in that space and asks his question. The rods respond almost instantly, he says.

Beginning dowsers first ask to be shown which response is “Yes” (usually both rods bending inward) and “No” (rods bending outward to either side). Muerdter says it’s important for dowsers to to set their egos aside and not ask a question with a preferred answer already in mind. He adds that new dowsers also tend to doubt what the L-rods tell them and repeat the query, which usually clouds the accuracy of the answer.

He compares such persistence to a child who continues asking the same question, hoping for a different response, noting that doing so suggests distrust, which is essentially the antithesis of dowsing. But much like entering a more specific set of terms into an internet search engine or database, rephrasing the question typically produces a confirmation.

“The skeptical mind is very potent,” Muerdter says. “It’s a lot like if you were a person before television or radio and somebody started to talk to you about, ‘You know, if you had an antenna, you could start picking up this amazing thing.

You could even hear voices and see images.’ They would think, ‘This is hogwash,’ because it isn’t part of

the visible world. … L-rods are like antennas. If you relax with them, they can be an incredible tool for self-knowledge and information.”

WNC TALENT

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Appalachian Dowsers, the local chapter of the ASD, held quarterly meetings at A-B Tech, with time built in for socializing and two hands-on dowsing tutorials for beginners. The inability to meet in person this past year prompted a pivot to webinars, featuring talks by such renowned dowsers as Joey Korn, author of Dowsing: A Path to Enlightenment.

Among the chapter’s members is Lee Barnes of Haywood County, ASD’s 2019 Dowser of the Year and a popular locater of well sites throughout the state. He also holds a doctorate in environmental horticulture.

Barnes describes science as “a linear sequence of knowledge” and dowsing as something “so holistic that it’s hard to be tested” by traditional means. He says these scientific studies are often conducted “with underground pipes under a building” instead of “in the field where [dowsers] have developed this skill and craft.” But his track record of consistently finding water sources that produce the amount of flow specified by property owners suggests to him and others that dowsing is an effective practice.

“When I find good water, I think I sense the electromagnetic fields around the fractures and the flowing

water,” Barnes says. “When I pick a spot that’s 10 feet from a 600-foot dry well and get them 13 gallons a minute … I’m convinced by the number of times [that’s happened] that I’m definitely sensing something that, you know, helped save lives. That’s why we’re surviving is our ancestors used these abilities to find water.”

On multiple occasions, Barnes and Black Mountain’s Marty Cain have dowsed the same land without knowing the other’s findings and come up with the same results.

Cain, however, specializes in the spiritual side of dowsing and has traveled the world to set up labyrinths in England, South Africa and Brazil. She also clears detrimental energy from houses and responds to electromagnetic fields in the earth to find spots that are conducive for sleep and work.

“The most important part of it is dowsing nature and knowing that the earth and everything on it is alive and intelligent. And once you start speaking and dowsing questions of these other beings — be it rocks or trees or animals or birds — they can tell you what they want and need,” Cain says. “The more we’re connected to where we live and the more we know how to live on it in a way that’s in harmony with each other and with all the other critters — I mean, it’s a joy. A total joy.”

Learn more at appalachiandowsers. org X

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23

GREEN SCENE

Crushing rocks for crushing views New trails are opening up Hickory Nut Gorge

BY MARK BARRETT

remembers Jerry Stensland, president of the nonprofit Rutherford Outdoor Coalition.

markbarrett@charter.net Doughty volunteers armed with shovels, hoes, rakes and sledgehammers are building trails through scenic Hickory Nut Gorge as part of a campaign to both preserve wild places and provide better access to them.

A cooperative effort by Conserving Carolina, state and local governments, other nonprofits and the general public is gradually developing the Hickory Nut Gorge State Trail in and around the rugged terrain that lies just beyond Buncombe County’s southeastern border. Already, hikers and mountain bikers can enjoy miles of trail and thousands of acres of protected land. One segment, the Weed Patch Mountain Trail, has received national recognition, and the gorge — which runs through Henderson and Rutherford counties, just a 25-minute drive from downtown Asheville at its closest point — is an increasingly popular hub for outdoor recreation.

That’s a huge turnaround from 15 years ago, when access to many of the area’s waterfalls, cliffs, bluffs and hardwood forests seemed des-

BUSTING ROCKS: Members of Conserving Carolina’s volunteer Rock Crushers trail crew work on a set of steps on the Youngs Mountain Trail, set to open in late April. Photo by Mark Barrett

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tined to become limited to people wealthy enough to live in a gated community. In the 2010s, people were taking helicopter rides to pick out homesites to buy north of Lake Lure, and developers appeared poised to put McMansions on every other privately owned peak or ridge in the vicinity.

There were plenty of “No Trespassing” signs around the communities of Gerton, Chimney Rock and Lake Lure, and little publicly accessible land apart from the 600-acre Florence Nature Preserve, which was deeded to Conserving Carolina incrementally in 1996 and 2001. For the most part, taking a walk in the woods might have required owning them, paying to visit the then privately owned Chimney Rock Park or asking around about which property owners didn’t mind an occasional hiker traipsing through.

“It was just local knowledge and a wink and you head out,”

A BIODIVERSITY HOT SPOT

Public access to the outdoors around Lake Lure was “lagging behind in a lot of ways, given the natural resources we have here,” says Larry Czajkoski, a veteran member of the town’s Parks and Recreation Board. “When people come to this part of the world … one of the first questions out their mouths is, ‘Hey, where can we go hike?’”

Now, instead of walking between souvenir shops, people can walk trails offering stunning views and highlighting different aspects of the area’s diverse landscape. Hikers might visit a waterfall offering ice climbing in the winter and scenery year-round, or rock outcroppings where they can traverse a cave formed by fallen boulders. The breathtaking scenery includes the Craggy and Black mountains to the north, Lake Lure at their feet and much of North Carolina’s foothills and Piedmont stretching seemingly forever to the southeast.

The gorge is a deep slash in the earth with a swift stream flowing down the middle, steep slopes and cliffs on either side and, curiously, nearly flat valleys tucked behind ridges away from its center. In a reference to the Lord of the Rings books and movies, Conserving Carolina’s Peter Barr playfully calls it the “Gates of Mordor to the North Carolina mountains.” Kevin Adams’ definitive book, North Carolina Waterfalls, lists 12 named waterfalls and cascades in the area.

Barr, Conserving Carolina’s trails specialist, has been a driving force behind the nonprofit’s growing network. He calls the gorge “a biodiversity hot spot because of its considerable and abrupt change in elevation between the high country of North Carolina and the Piedmont.”

A 2006 study conducted for state government said the area that’s spread across parts of Buncombe, Henderson, Polk and Rutherford counties has national significance for its unusual natural communities. According to one count, 37 rare plant species and 14 rare animal species can be found there.

“To have a trail you don’t have to sell your land or relinquish the rights to your property.”

— Peter Barr, Conserving Carolina

THE TOM SAWYER METHOD

North Carolina’s state trails program uses the same strategy to expand the network that Tom Sawyer employed to get a fence painted in the Mark Twain novel: Persuade someone else to do it.

Once the General Assembly authorizes a trail, the state develops a master plan identifying a wide corridor within which it might go; after that, it’s primarily up to nonprofits and local governments to make it happen.

“We figure out what can and can’t be done … then the partners that actually are developing the trails” acquire land or property easements, develop more detailed plans for individual segments and eventually start building, state trails planner Smith Raynor explains.

Conserving Carolina was formed in 2017 from the merger of two local land trusts, the Carolina Mountain

Land Conservancy and the Pacolet Area Conservancy. The former played a key role in the creation of Chimney Rock State Park, which takes in much of the lower end of Hickory Nut Gorge. In 2005, notes Barr, members of the organization’s board put up their homes and retirement savings as collateral to enable it and The Nature Conservancy to outbid a developer and acquire the 1,568-acre Worlds Edge tract south of Chimney Rock Park. The two nonprofits subsequently sold the Worlds Edge property to the state.

Soon after, North Carolina bought Chimney Rock Park, which had been operated for decades as a private nature preserve. The two properties were then combined to create Chimney Rock State Park.

A subset that’s now called Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park is operated by a concessionaire that charges $17 admission per

ROCK ON: Boulders on the Wildcat-Bearwallow connector trail are draped with lush foliage. Photo by Gordon Tutor, courtesy of Conserving Carolina adult, but hundreds of acres in and around Hickory Nut Gorge that are also part of the state park are open to the public for free.

In 2009, Conserving Carolina volunteers broke ground on what

became the first segment of the Hickory Nut Gorge State Trail to be completed: an easy path to the

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GREEN top of Bearwallow Mountain. The high peak is crowned with a pasture offering expansive views. The trail was made possible by an easement acquired from the owners of what’s still a working farm, and the transaction, says Barr, “served as proof of concept that to have a trail you don’t have to sell your land or relinquish the rights to your property.”

Tapping both volunteer and professional labor as well as state and federal grants and private dona-

tions, Conserving Carolina has gradually expanded the trail network, linking Bearwallow Mountain to U.S. 74A via similar easements or land purchases. The final piece of a route between Bearwallow and Florence Nature Preserve in Gerton was completed last year.

And a stretch of trail that’s scheduled to open this summer will connect Bearwallow and Hickory Nut Gap on the Buncombe/Henderson county line.

“You just have to go with opportunities over time, then you figure out how to connect things.”

— Kieran Roe, Conserving Carolina

STEP BY STEP

But the most spectacular path the organization has built in the area is the Weed Patch Mountain Trail, which runs 8.6 miles along a

MAPMAKER: A map of the evolving trail system shows walkways in different parts of the Hickory Nut Gorge. Map courtesy of Conserving Carolina 26

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high ridge north of Lake Lure that features spectacular rock outcroppings. The steeply sloping land was supposed to be part of the GreyRock subdivision, but after the developer went bankrupt in 2008, Conserving Carolina bought about 2,000 acres.

The Grey Rock that gave the development its name is one of the highlights of the footpath, which opened in 2018. Both Weed Patch and one of the Bearwallow segments won national awards from The Coalition for Recreational Trails.

The western end of the trail lies in Chimney Rock State Park, and short stretches wind through private property, but most is on land that Conserving Carolina sold to the town of Lake Lure in a deal funded largely by state grant money. The town land is now Buffalo Creek Park, which at more than 1,500 acres is one of the largest municipal parks in the state.

It’s taken state government a little while to catch up with these impressive efforts. The General Assembly authorized creation of the Hickory Nut Gorge State Trail in 2017, and the N.C. Trails program recently completed the public comment phase of the process of fashioning a master plan for the project. Raynor expects the plan to be finished by the end of this year.

A map of the trail concept looks like an unbalanced barbell. One circle that includes the Bearwallow trails lies in the upper Hickory Nut Gorge. A trail paralleling U.S. 74A will connect it to a bigger circle of peaks overlooking Lake Lure, including the Weed Patch Mountain Trail. Different sources say the fully realized state trail could run anywhere from 60 to 100 or more miles long.

Within the broad corridor identified by the master plan, the state and Conserving Carolina will work with willing landowners to develop the actual routes. When they run into a dead end in one spot because a property owner is reluctant to sell or donate land or an easement, they look for alternatives or simply work on a different section.

“We are not going to impose this on anybody,” stresses Raynor.

Everyone involved says completing the trail will take many years.

“If we waited until we knew entirely how we were going to create … a trail, we’d never get started,” says

Kieran Roe, the land trust’s executive director. “You just have to go with opportunities over time, then you figure out how to connect things one segment at a time.”

Building trails and conserving land go hand in hand, he maintains.

Routing trails requires protecting at least some land on either side, and protecting land from development spurs public demand to see what’s there. “It helps our mission when people are able to get out and enjoy places we have conserved,” he says.

BUILT TO LAST

On a sunny March Wednesday, the Rock Crushers crew — nine volunteers and two Conserving Carolina employees — climb the side of Youngs Mountain, northeast of Lake Lure, to work on a roughly 2.5-mile segment that’s set to open in late April. One of the day’s tasks is to pound stones to golf ball size, dump them into steps formed by locust logs, then cover them with a thin layer of dirt.

The resulting steps aren’t likely to wash out in a heavy rain, says volunteer Stefan Israel of Fairview.

An old logging road runs just a few feet away, and initially it would have been easier just to route the trail over it, but staffer Kelly Waldron says that’s not how Conserving Carolina does things. Logging roads aren’t usually built to last, she explains.

Conserving Carolina takes a longterm approach, notes Barr. Many

Western North Carolina trails run in a straight line with a steady grade and intermittent water bars — small logs or rocks laid at right angles to the trail’s direction — to divert water and reduce erosion. But if those measures fail, sediment can flow into streams, and trails fill with loose stones that can be tedious to walk on.

Instead, the nonprofit’s trails undulate up and down and from side to side, which Barr says creates many more opportunities for water to drain and reduces maintenance needs. “Straight trail is bad trail; curvy trail is good trail,” he declares.

These days, the group relies on a hybrid model. Barr or another pro crisscrosses the land and decides on a route, volunteers help move brush out of the way, and a professional trail builder uses a small mechanical excavator like a Bobcat to create the trail tread. Volunteers take it from there.

“It’s really fun to do volunteer work that’s going to last,” says Hendersonville retiree Kim Chao.

“If you come back five, 10 years from now, our work is going to be there.” She and her husband, Bob Carlson, are longtime Rock Crushers members.

There is a downside, however, says Israel, an avid hiker. When walking for pleasure on a trail he’s helped build, “You can discipline yourself and resolve I’m not going to fix anything, but it’s always a temptation.” X

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A Hickory Nut Gorge sampler These three hikes offer tastes of what the area has to offer: WEED PATCH MOUNTAIN TRAIL Eagle Rock and its sweeping views are about 0.4 miles from the parking lot at 1911 Shumont Road; the short Tunnel Trail is an additional 0.6 miles.

The entire Weed Patch Trail, which is open to hiking and mountain biking, runs 8.6 miles. Its eastern terminus is in Lake Lure’s Buffalo Creek Park.

For now, Chimney Rock State Park has dropped its requirement that people reserve a space in the small Shumont Road lot. On nice weekends, go early or late to ensure getting a spot there.

BEARWALLOW MOUNTAIN TRAIL From the trailhead on Bearwallow Mountain Road south of Gerton, it’s an easy 1-mile hike up to the large pasture, still grazed by cattle, on top of the mountain. Hiking only.

WILDCAT ROCK TRAIL This trail leads south from the Florence Nature Preserve parking lot on U.S. 74A in Gerton. It’s about a mile to Little Bearwallow Falls — impressive in wet weather, less exciting when dry — and 2 miles to a large rock offering views of upper Hickory Nut Gorge. Hiking only.

For detailed information on these and other hikes, check the “Get Outside” section of conservingcarolina.org. X

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ARTS & CULTURE

Crunch time

BrightFarms to produce 2 million pounds of leafy greens a year for local distribution

BY KAY WEST kwest@mountainx.com March 25 was a green letter day in Henderson County. That morning, the first seeds were planted in BrightFarms’ newest greenhouse — a 280,000-square-foot structure where 55 “green-collar” workers will produce over 2 million pounds of leafy salad greens a year for the local market.

In April, BrightFarms is testing its systems, with the first couple of harvests to be donated locally; Western North Carolina retailers within a two-hour drive of the greenhouse will begin receiving products in May. “We’ll go as far east, for example, as the Charlotte area,” says BrightFarms CEO Steve Platt.

The 6-acre Hendersonville farm is the 10-year-old company’s fifth and its largest, most technologically advanced and most sustainable. Like many entrepreneurial ventures, BrightFarms began with one person studying a system and thinking it could be improved

GREEN ACRES: WNC native Johnny O’Neal is the head grower at BrightFarms’ new 280,000-square-foot greenhouse in Henderson County. Photo courtesy of BrightFarms upon. In this case, it was company founder Paul Lightfoot.

Lightfoot had observed that the vast majority of leafy greens sold in almost 50,000 U.S. grocery stores are grown in California and Arizona, requiring at least a week of travel in the back of a truck to reach East Coast markets.

Frequently, says Platt, those greens have pesticide residue, and more significantly, occasional E. coli contamination resulting in emergency recalls.

“Paul saw a system that had good intentions of feeding people but

thought there had to be a better way to grow fresh and local without pesticides,” says Platt. “That’s when we started working on the idea of growing lettuce and leafy greens hydroponically inside greenhouses.”

The company spent a few years doing research and development before the 2013 launch of a concept farm in eastern Pennsylvania, where it worked on perfecting its four-step process: seeding, germinating, transplanting and harvesting. All BrightFarms products are non-GMO, pesticide-free, seeded

on lightweight boards of nutrient- and mineral-rich soilless media.

Two days after seeds are planted, the boards are transferred to ponds of recirculated water within the glass-ceilinged, temperature- and humidity-controlled greenhouse where they float as the greens grow. After 14-21 days, the plants are fully grown and ready for harvesting and packaging.

The first of BrightFarms’ large greenhouses was erected in Culpepper, Va., in 2016 with a distribution area extending to Baltimore and Washington, D.C. That project set the company’s model for locating subsequent operations in agricultural areas outside the urban markets they service. Besides Virginia and now North Carolina, other farms are in Rochelle, Ill., Wilmington, Ohio, and Selinsgrove, Pa. When the company decided to build a greenhouse in the Southeast to fill a hole in that area — and service one of its biggest retail partners, Food Lion — the Asheville region was identified for its climate, labor force and agricultural culture. Hendersonville specifically checked all those boxes.

BrightFarms grows several varieties of greens, including spring mix, baby arugula, baby butter, mixed greens, baby romaine, basil and baby spinach.

Platt points out that the country as a whole is moving to healthier, fresher, more local and plant-based eating, and BrightFarms sees opportunity there for growth.

“If you can grow your own greens in your backyard, that’s fantastic,” he says. “If you have a local farmers market nearby to buy your greens, that’s great, too. We want to be the next best alternative by providing fresh greens grown by people in your community.

The Hendersonville farm will be growing greens for years to come.” X

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MUSIC

In tune

Local musicians find new creative outlets to sustain them during COVID-19

ROCK ON: Local musician Steven Gaona began making his own guitars during the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo courtesy of Gaona

BY JARRETT VAN METER jarrettvanmeter@gmail.com With music venues slowly starting to reopen, many local musicians are seeing the light at the end of the long COVID-19 tunnel. Yet for some, time away from the stage created new opportunities or allowed them to expand on other creative outlets that helped sustain them during the crisis.

Xpress recently spoke with three local talents about their professional pivots and how COVID-19 has reshaped their plans.

HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT

Via, a local electronic band, was fortunate enough to have an album in the works when the pandemic erupted, and more fortunate still that twothirds of the group — partners Karen Austin and Steven Gaona — lived together. To keep the project going, drummer Dylan Jenkins quarantined with his bandmates. But when the monotony of the lockdown began

to wear on them, Austin suggested Gaona, a trained woodworker, take on a challenge that had been hiding in plain sight: guitars.

“That’s been really important for us, to keep being creative even though we can’t do a lot on the platform that we typically would, which is touring and connecting with people.

But there’s always a way to find an outlet for creativity regardless of the circumstances,” says Austin.

Gaona went to work on the first guitar, a neck-through Jazzmaster/Les Paul hybrid that he finished in time to feature on the band’s new album, Vessels of Sound Volume III. Aside from the actual contribution that the instrument lends to the record, Gaona says the process of building the guitar provided a mental reprieve that ultimately benefited the album.

“It’s helped me open up my mind a little bit to what we are recording, or even mixing and producing,” he explains.

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AR T S & C UL TU R E Austin and Gaona, who support themselves through their property management, cleaning and concierge company, Better Living Services, say they plan to begin selling their guitars at merchandise tables once they are able to begin touring again.

“I think it was important to us to just realize that we could do it, and for Steven to see the finished product and feel so proud of what he is gifted at, which is building,” says Austin.

REMODELING THE FUTURE

Like Gaona, guitarist Noah Proudfoot also found solace through a new outlet: in his case, construction.

With his income cut nearly in half due to venue closures and lost teaching opportunities, Proudfoot kept busy renovating Cedar Moon Studios, his new recording and rehearsal space for local musicians.

“Over the year, I kept acquiring tools and knowledge,” he says.

“Friends would come in and be like, ‘This is how you wire, this is how you do plumbing, here’s how you frame out a wall, dry wall, mudding, taping.’”

With these newly acquired skills, Proudfoot subsequently launched Cedar Moon Solutions, a home

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remodeling business. The new company has helped sustain Proudfoot, both financially and artistically, during the shutdown.

“It’s provided a lot of spaciousness for my creativity,” he says. “I no longer have to push music as a primary monetary hustle, and I’ve never had that opportunity before, so to take the pressure off music to be the breadwinner has been a huge blessing.”

And a huge shift. While Proudfoot remains involved in the local music scene through Cedar Moon Studios, he says handiwork is now his primary focus.

“In terms of the future, I really enjoy learning and building,” he says.

“It’s similar to music in a way. It’s creative. It’s artistic — the tile work can be artistic — so it kind of satisfies that itch.”

FINDING HER VOICE

While Gaona and Proudfoot fell into their new crafts through circumstance, singer/songwriter Carly Taich’s running start into voice acting predates the pandemic. Since 2018, Taich has supplemented her income through the work.

“It’s just been really cool because over the last 2 1/2 years, the jobs have picked up so much more, and I’ve become so much better at script reading,” she says. “There’s a lot of psychology behind reading a script.

It’s not just about the sound of your voice, it’s about everything behind it.

It’s all sort of clicked and made sense, and I’ve developed a lot.”

Most of Taich’s jobs are booked through online casting. Under her voice alias, Lillian Field, she has recorded everything from an anti-vaping public service announcement to a promo for a birthday party store.

Despite her growing list of clients, Taich still considers herself a musician first and foremost. In December, she released a new six-song EP and hopes to continue to build upon the momentum she is enjoying in both her musical and voicing careers.

“I don’t want to put music on the back burner,” she says. “I think ideally, in my perfect future, I would keep doing voice-over because I enjoy it, and it’s a consistent revenue stream, but I would also be doing just as much music. Ideally, I’d like to have it half-and-half.” X

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A week into the fix and it has already set, then broke, the array’s daily production record. Only regret I have is not working w/ Asheville Solar from day one. Thanks Nate!”

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CRAFT

Knit together

The Center for Craft’s Crafting Resilience series walks a fascinating line between contemporary issues and centuries-old artistic practices.

The three free webinars are coordinated by Juliana Barton, an American Council of Learned Societies Leading Edge fellow tapped to develop programming with UNC Asheville on the intersections of craft with social justice, the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 presidential election.

Barton says that in speaking with faculty, local artists and community members about how to address those topics, the theme of resilience kept coming up. Another through line was discovering what people need to hear at a time when public health and social issues intersect in complex ways.

The series began March 11 with “Public Health and Collective Memory.” That discussion featured local artist DeWayne Barton speaking about his recent work and Patricia Eunji Kim of Philadelphiabased public art and history studio Monument Lab on her group’s nationwide audit of monuments.

The second installment, “Education and Community Engagement,” takes place Thursday, April 8, at 5 p.m., during which artists Tanya Aguiñiga, Celia Lesh and Cristina Tufiño will talk about their craft-based education projects that serve communities impacted by COVID-19.

Their efforts were made possible by the Craft Futures Fund, which Juliana Barton says seeks to build resilience for craft and explore how craft practices relate to community engagement.

Webinar series encourages collaboration through craft “I hope that it will build bridges between the local community and the university community,” Barton says. “And that partnerships and collaboration like the one that created this program can move on and help support the work that comes up.”

Stephanie Moore, the Center for Craft’s executive director, says such efforts are critical as neighbors “rebuild from the devastating impacts of COVID-19 on our community as a whole.”

“Craft is a vital tool for encouraging collaboration,” Moore says.

“And Crafting Resilience is the perfect example of how these collaborations result in solutions that we can apply on a local and national level.”

To learn more and register for the two remaining programs, visit avl.mx/97s.

— Edwin Arnaudin X Mountain Xpress

COMMUNITY DESIGN: UNC Asheville has long championed the power of craft. Above, one student creates an interactive art installation for the UNITY Project as part of Arts Fest in 2018. Photo by Adam Taylor/UNCA Closing out the series on Tuesday, April 20, at 6 p.m. is “Activism and Overcoming Obstacles.” In this session, ceramic artist Roberto Lugo and curator Michelle Millar Fisher will speak to using creative platforms to expose and address social inequities.

Though Juliana Barton is coordinating Crafting Resilience remotely

from Massachusetts, she says the series has provided “a wonderful way for [her] to learn about the community from afar.” Her goal for the series is that viewing “vital topics” through the lens of craft will help amplify the importance of these art forms, as well as forge bonds so that resulting action can be sustained.

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AR T S & C UL T U R E

The

Sustainability

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Asheville Parks & Recreation plans nutritional food hub

Exploring the landscape of sustainability in WNC

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828-251-1333 x1 advertise@ mountainx.com

GARDEN PARTY: Volunteers from the Stephens-Lee Recreation Center After School Program put in a hard day’s work at the Dr. George Washington Carver Edible Park next to the center, preparing grounds for planting. Photo by Paul King When the National Recreation and Parks Association awarded Asheville Parks & Recreation an $80,000 grant in May 2020, the original vision was to develop a community nutrition hub at the Stephens-Lee Recreation Center with the intent of improving community access to healthy foods, support services, educational programming, a resource guide and physical activity.

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“Part of the reasoning for doing a Stephens-Lee nutrition hub was we knew we had the staff to commit to make the grant successful,” says Lydia Escobedo, NRPA nutrition grant coordinator for Asheville Parks & Recreation. The community center also has the East End Valley Street Community Garden on site adjacent to the Dr. George Washington Carver Edible Park as well as a fitness center with a personal trainer on staff and had begun work with the YMCA to create a food pantry.

Like everything else in 2020, those plans evolved. “During the community engagement process we became more flexible about what a nutrition hub is and would look like and being more of a program to reach all of Buncombe County and our centers,” says Escobedo. “We want to broaden programming to give a whole picture of wellness — what we eat, activities and how we connect to nature.”

Asheville Parks & Recreation has developed a survey to identify and prioritize what needs the program will address. The printed form is

available at community centers; an online version is accessible at avl.mx/95x. The survey closes at 11:59 p.m. Monday, April 12.

Snap to it

Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer has declared April Food Waste Reduction Month and is working with the Food Waste Solutions WNC group to call attention to preventable food waste; an estimated 57,500 tons of food waste is generated in Buncombe County every year.

Jump into the effort by snapping some shots of the ways you’re fighting food waste — compost bins, meal plans, freezing leftovers, cleaning out the fridge with one-pot meals — and post to social media with the hashtag #AVLFoodWasteChallenge to be entered to win prizes from local media outlets. For tips on reducing food waste, to access a form for auditing home food waste and for updates on a planned compost drop-off program for the public, visit avl.mx/970.

M&M’s Set aside the pastel M&M’s you swiped from the Easter Bunny and, instead, take a safely distanced seat at Ivory Road Café & Kitchen for the Macarons & Mimosas event.

Chef/owner Jill Wasilewski says she was inspired by the multiple beer flight offerings in Beer City to create an M&M flight: four flavors of house-made macarons will be paired with four flavors of mimosas, among them a cardamom & orange blossom macaron paired with a classic fresh-squeezed OJ mimosa, and a blueberry lemon basil macaron paired with a rosé/lemonade mimosa. Cost is $15 per person (nonalcoholic bubbles are available as well).

The event is planned for Sunday, April 11, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.; reservations are not required. Full brunch is also available. More details are at avl.mx/971. Ivory Road, 1854 Brevard Road, Arden

Only natural

Shortly after leaving the restaurant business, moving to Asheville and opening Crocodile Wine —

devoted entirely to natural wines — on Biltmore Avenue in December 2018, John Hale became acquainted with the staff of Chai Pani restaurant and its restaurant group. “They’re big natural wine fans, and I’m a Chai Pani fan, and we became friends,” Hale says.

When Nani’s Rotisserie Chicken — the newest member of the Chai Pani Restaurant Group family — decided to add wine to its menu, the restaurant naturally turned to Hale.

To create the list, he admits, he was forced to eat his way through the entire menu. “It was awful,” he says with a laugh.

To match what he calls an “intense char” on both chicken flavors and some of the sides, Hale says, he wanted wines on the list that are “thirst-quenching but also things that can hold up to those big, bright aromatics and sometimes spicy seasoning.” The result is four bottles priced from $19-$24 and an $8 can of Vina Maitia Aupa Pipeno, described as a light red. The selections will change periodically and seasonally.

Nani’s Rotisserie Chicken, 1 Page Ave., avl.mx/prv4. Crocodile Wine, 27 Biltmore Ave., avl.mx/95y.

— Kay West X

“The Wind Under the Door is a love letter to contemporary Asheville and the North Carolina mountains, but it’s also a love letter to our reckless hopeful moments and dangerous impulses … This is a beautifully nuanced and resonant novel.”

— Wiley Cash, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Ballad

Order your copy today at Malaprop’s or anywhere else books are sold.

Visit Thomas-Calder.com to learn more.

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33

ARTS & CU L T U R E

ROUNDUP

Around town

New books, Shakespeare, fundraisers and more

BY THOMAS CALDER tcalder@mountainx.com For nearly 10 years, Laura Gardner, a youth services librarian, has been sharing her love for storytelling with the children of Transylvania County.

In time, this passion for literature led Gardner to try her hand at writing a kids book. This March, Page Street Kids Publishing released her debut work, Blue Ridge Babies 1, 2, 3.

The rhyming text introduces kids to 10 different animals native to the Appalachian Mountains with illustrations by Stephanie Fizer Coleman.

Gardner has also recorded a song and video based on the book, working with several local musicians, including Nikki Talley, Ty Gilpin and Gardner’s husband, Tim. “I hope parents and kids will take away a love and appreciation for the Appalachian Mountains and the opportunity to explore the power and beauty of language,” says Gardner.

“Music only enhances a child’s assimilation of language, and this book is essentially a love song to my home.”

On Wednesday, April 14, at 10 a.m., Gardner will read her book and share

MOVIE LISTINGS Bruce Steele’s and Edwin Arnaudin’s latest critiques of new films available to view via local theaters and popular streaming services include: THE 2021 OSCAR NOMINATED SHORT FILMS — LIVE ACTION: A distrust of law enforcement and authority figures runs throughout these five dramas, all of which are well-made and feature compelling writing and acting. The lone exception to this message-driven commonality is the heartwarming “Feeling Through,” about a young man’s surprise encounter with a deaf-blind person — which will likely lose out to the brilliant, Groundhog Day-like “Two Distant Strangers.” Grade: A-minus.

Not rated

ANIMALS AND NUMBERS: Transylvania County youth services librarian Laura Gardner recently celebrated the release of her debut children’s book, Blue Ridge Babies 1, 2, 3. Photo courtesy of Gardner her song during Miss Malaprop’s virtual storytime, hosted by Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café. To learn more, visit avl.mx/96c.

WNC author David Joy and Penn State anthropologist Kirk French contribute to the book as well. To purchase a copy, visit avl.mx/96d.

‘Comedy of Errors’

Popcorn Sutton

Speaking of books, North Carolina photographer, filmmaker and author Neal Hutcheson recently celebrated the release of his latest book, The Moonshiner Popcorn Sutton. A biography, the work includes photographs and interviews with the late Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton, the infamous moonshiner from Haywood County.

Shakespeare goes virtual Thursday-Sunday, April 15-18, when the Blue Ridge Community College theatre department presents Comedy of Errors. The one-act production will feature interactive elements, including a game of bingo, says Jennifer Treadway, the show’s director.

“In these Zoom times of theater, I think the most difficult challenge is how to engage the audience, particularly when the language can be tough to understand,” Treadway says.

“Because of this, I thought it particularly important to focus on the slapstick elements that are inherent in all Shakespeare comedies.”

All three performances begin at 7:30 p.m. on Zoom. For more information or to reserve your free ticket, contact the theater department at js_treadway@blueridge.edu.

Find full reviews and local film info at ashevillemovies.com patreon.com/ashevillemovies 34

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Call for artists

On April 23, The Center for Art & Entertainment, 125 S. Main St. in downtown Hendersonville, will

reopen. The center is currently seeking artists to create original works on the surfaces of 62 wood tables placed throughout the space to allow safe social distancing. Artists will work with table sponsors to create a design that will feature the sponsor’s name or company logo. According to a press release, sponsors may provide artists with concepts, but “the artist is creating an art piece, not a billboard.”

Each design will include the artist’s signature; artists will also receive a voucher for two complimentary tickets to a show of their choice. To apply, call 828-698-8547 or email info@ thecenterai.com.

Asheville Area Piano Forum

On Sunday, April 11, the Asheville Area Piano Forum will premiere its 15th annual Spring Benefit Concert on YouTube. The virtual, prerecorded performance will feature AAPF pianists William Bares, Kimberly Cann, Elizabeth Child, Luke Shaver and Wayne Smith. Tickets are $20. All proceeds go to scholarships for local children to receive piano lessons. The concert link will remain active until Sunday, April 25. To purchase tickets, visit avl.mx/96j. X

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CLUBLAND WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7 OKLAWAHA BREWING CO. French Broad Valley Mountain Music Jam, 6pm THE 2ND ACT Open Mic w/ Letters to Abigail, 6pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Witty Wednesday Trivia Night, 6:30pm ONE WORLD BREWING WEST Charlie Traveler Presents an Evening w/ Mike Dillon & Brian Haas (punk, jazz), 7pm ALLEY CAT SOCIAL CLUB Karaoke Party, 8pm

THURSDAY, APRIL 8 ONE WORLD BREWING WEST Eleanor Underhill & Friends (jazz, blues), 5pm HIGHLAND BREWING CO. Crafted Singer Songwriter Series w/ Matt Smith, 6pm

SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN BREWERY Howie Johnson & Bill Mattocks (blues, rock), 6pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Open Mic Night, 6pm ALLEY CAT SOCIAL CLUB Open Mic Night, 7pm

FRIDAY, APRIL 9 SMOKY MOUNTAIN EVENT CENTER Papadosio 15-Year Anniversary Drive-in Show (progressive rock), 5pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Billy Litz (multi-instrumentalist), 6pm FLEETWOOD'S Fortezza (garage punk), 7pm ISIS MUSIC HALL Love Bubble (oldies), 7pm ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Mr Jimmy & Friends (blues), 7:30pm ALLEY CAT SOCIAL CLUB Karaoke Party, 8pm

SYNTH WHEN?: Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center will present Colombian composer and producer Mario Galeano Toro in a livestreamed concert. Using an “electronic ecosystem” constructed of Latin American and European-made synthesizers, Toro will perform Falla Comun del Bendix, a new composition exploring interpersonal relationships during pandemic times. Wednesday, April 7, 7 p.m. Free. avl.mx/prvt. Photo courtesy of Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center THE PAPER MILL LOUNGE Jackson Grimm & the One String Band (folk, country), 8pm

SATURDAY, APRIL 10 ASHEVILLE CLUB Mr Jimmy (blues), 2pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Generous Electric (Grateful Dead tribute), 3pm WEHRLOOM HONEY MEADERY Music & Mead w/ Phantom Pantone DJ Collective, 4pm ISA'S FRENCH BISTRO James Hammel (solo acoustic), 5pm SMOKY MOUNTAIN EVENT CENTER Papadosio 15-Year Anniversary Drive-in Show (progressive rock), 5pm

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THE GREY EAGLE Patio Show w/ Virginia Man (rock), 6pm THE GREENHOUSE MOTO CAFE Mr Jimmy Blues Quartet, 7pm ISIS MUSIC HALL Alexa Rose Trio (modern folk), 7pm THE OMNI GROVE PARK INN Brian Turner (solo piano), 7pm

SUNDAY, APRIL 11 HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Soul Jazz Sundays w/ Taylor Pierson Trio, 2pm RABBIT RABBIT Outdoor Movie: Finding Nemo, 3pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Mr Jimmy (blues), 3pm SALVAGE STATION Empire Strikes Brass (funk, rock), 6pm

THE GREY EAGLE Patio Show w/ WNC Writers (folk), 6pm

MONDAY, APRIL 12 HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Totally Rad Monday Night Trivia, 6pm OKLAWAHA BREWING CO. House of SYNth, 6:30pm THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Blue Monday w/ Mr Jimmy, 7pm ALLEY CAT SOCIAL CLUB Industry Nite w/ Sam Wild, 9pm

TUESDAY, APRIL 13 MAD CO. BREW HOUSE Trivia Night, 6pm

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14 OKLAWAHA BREWING CO. French Broad Valley Mountain Music Jam, 6pm THE 2ND ACT Open Mic w/ Letters to Abigail, 6pm THE GREY EAGLE Patio Show w/ Brie Capone (singer-songwriter), 6pm SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Witty Wednesday Trivia Night, 6:30pm

THURSDAY, APRIL 15 SWEETEN CREEK BREWING Open Mic Night, 6pm SALVAGE STATION Stephen Marley (acoustic soul), 7pm SILVERADOS Mr Jimmy Power Trio (blues), 7pm

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FREEWILL ASTROLOGY ARIES (March 21-April 19): Author Susan Sontag defined “mad people” as those who “stand alone and burn.” She said she was drawn to them because they inspired her to do the same. What do you think she meant by the descriptor “stand alone and burn”? I suspect she was referring to strong-willed people devoted to cultivating the most passionate version of themselves, always in alignment with their deepest longings. She meant those who are willing to accept the consequences of such devotion, even if it means being misunderstood or alone. The coming weeks will be an interesting and educational time for you to experiment with being such a person.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In the 1930s, Taurus-born Rita Levi-Montalcini was a promising researcher in neurobiology at the University of Turin in Italy. But when fascist dictator Benito Mussolini imposed new laws that forbade Jews from holding university jobs, she was fired. Undaunted, she created a laboratory in her bedroom and continued her work. There she laid the foundations for discoveries that ultimately led to her winning the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. I foresee you summoning comparable determination and resilience in the coming weeks, Taurus.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Religious scholar Karl Barth (1886–1968) wrote, “There will be no song on our lips if there be no anguish in our hearts.” To that perverse oversimplification, I reply: “Rubbish.

Twaddle. Bunk. Hooey.” I’m appalled by his insinuation that pain is the driving force for all of our lyrical self-revelations. Case in point: you in the coming weeks. I trust there will be a steady flow of songs in your heart and on your lips because you will be in such intimate alignment with your life’s master plan.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): “It is not easy to be crafty and winsome at the same time, and few accomplish it after the age of six,” wrote Cancerian author John W. Gardner. But I would add that more adult Crabs accomplish this feat than any other sign of the zodiac. I’ll furthermore suggest that during the next six weeks, many of you will do it quite well. My prediction: You will blend lovability and strategic shrewdness to generate unprecedented effectiveness. (How could anyone resist you?)

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Staring at flames had benefits for our primitive ancestors. As they sat around campfires and focused on the steady burn, they were essentially practicing a kind of meditation. Doing so enhanced their ability to regulate their attention, thereby strengthening their working memory and developing a greater capacity to make long-range plans. What does this have to do with you? As a fire sign, you have a special talent for harnessing the power of fire to serve you. In the coming weeks, that will be even more profoundly true than usual. If you can do so safely, I encourage you to spend quality time gazing into flames. I also hope you will super-nurture the radiant fire that glows within you. (More info: tinyurl.com/GoodFlames) VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Physicist Victor Weisskopf told us, “What’s beautiful in science is the same thing that’s beautiful in Beethoven. There’s a fog of events and suddenly you see a connection. It connects things that were always in you that were never put together before.” I’m expecting there to be a wealth of these aha! moments for you in the coming weeks, Virgo. Hidden patterns will become visible. Missing links will appear. Secret agendas will emerge. The real stories beneath the superficial stories will materialize. Be receptive and alert!

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Jungian psychoanalyst and folklore expert Clarissa Pinkola Estés celebrates the power of inquiry. She says that “asking the proper question is the central action of transformation,” both in fairy tales and in psychotherapy.

To identify what changes will heal you, you must be curious to uncover truths that you don’t know yet. “Questions are the keys that cause the secret doors of the psyche to swing open,” says Estes. I bring this to your attention, Libra, because now is prime time for you to formulate the Fantastically Magically Catalytic Questions.

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SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In April 1933, Scorpioborn African American singer Ethel Waters was in a “private hell.” Her career was at an impasse and her marriage was falling apart. In the depths of despondency, she was invited to sing a new song, “Stormy Weather,” at New York City’s famous Cotton Club. It was a turning point. She later wrote, “I was singing the story of my misery and confusion, of the misunderstandings in my life I couldn’t straighten out, the story of the wrongs and outrages done to me by people I had loved and trusted.” The audience was thrilled by her performance and called her back for 12 encores. Soon thereafter, musical opportunities poured in and her career blossomed. I foresee a parallel event in your life, Scorpio. Maybe not quite so dramatic, but still, quite redemptive.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): I love to see you enjoy yourself. I get a vicarious thrill as I observe you pursuing pleasures that other people are too inhibited or timid to dare. It’s healing for me to witness you unleash your unapologetic enthusiasm for being alive in an amazing body that’s blessed with the miracle of consciousness.

And now I’m going to be a cheerleader for your efforts to wander even further into the frontiers of bliss and joy and gratification. I will urge you to embark on a quest of novel forms of rapture and exultation. I’ll prod you to at least temporarily set aside habitual sources of excitement so you’ll have room to welcome as-yet unfamiliar sources.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Capricorn poet John O’Donahue suggested that a river’s behavior is worthy of our emulation. He said the river’s life is “surrendered to the pilgrimage.” It’s “seldom pushing or straining, keeping itself to itself everywhere all along its flow.” Can you imagine yourself doing that, Capricorn? Now is an excellent time to do so. O’Donahue rhapsodized that the river is “at one with its sinuous mind, an utter rhythm, never awkward,” and that “it continues to swirl through all unlikeness with elegance: a ceaseless traverse of presence soothing on each side, sounding out its journey, raising up a buried music.” Be like that river, dear Capricorn!

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): “Is life not a thousand times too short for us to bore ourselves?” wrote philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. In response to that sentiment, I say, “Amen!” and “Hallelujah!”

Even if you will live till age 99, that’s still too brief a time to indulge in an excess of dull activities that activate just a small part of your intelligence. To be clear, I don’t think it’s possible to be perfect in avoiding boredom. But for most of us, there’s a lot we can do to minimize numbing tedium and energy-draining apathy. I mention this, Aquarius, because the coming weeks will be a time when you will have extra power to make your life as interesting as possible for the long run.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I know of four different governmental organizations that have estimated the dollar value of a single human life. The average of their figures is $7.75 million. So let’s say, for argument’s sake, that you are personally worth that much. Does it change the way you think about your destiny? Are you inspired to upgrade your sense of yourself as a precious treasure? Or is the idea of putting a price on your merit uninteresting, even unappealing? Whatever your reaction is, I hope it prods you to take a revised inventory of your worth, however you measure it. It’s a good time to get a clear and precise evaluation of the gift that is your life. (Quote from Julia Cameron: “Treating yourself like a precious object makes you strong.”)

MOUNTAINX.COM

MARKETPLACE

BY ROB BREZSNY

REAL ESTATE & RENTALS | ROOMMATES | JOBS | SERVICES ANNOUNCEMENTS | CLASSES & WORKSHOPS | MIND, BODY, SPIRIT MUSICIANS’ SERVICES | PETS | AUTOMOTIVE | XCHANGE | ADULT EMPLOYMENT GENERAL A-B TECH IS HIRING A-B Tech is currently taking applications for a Part-Time position of Police Officer. For more details and to apply: https:// abtcc.peopleadmin.com/ postings/5557 ESTATE SALES ASSOCIATE Diverse responsibilities: Pack, Transport Boxes & Furniture.

Computer Literate, Social Media & Online Research Skills a Plus. Ability to work with people. PT-FT, some weekends. bonnie@bonnieroseappraisals. com. 828-281-8110.

FRONT OFFICE & LISTINGS COORDINATOR Mountain Xpress is seeking an organized, multitalented, high-energy person ready to handle a variety of tasks from connecting incoming callers to the resources they need, to helping develop routines, to simple accounting and collections work. Skills needed are a friendly, professional demeanor, attention to detail, strong verbal and written communication skills, broad computer literacy, including social media and office software tools, as well as the ability to self-organize, engage with repetitive data entry and multitask under pressure. Must have a knowledge of Asheville/WNC and be community-minded.

Experience in customer service (especially using point-of-sale systems) and/or publishing preferred. This position is full time; somewhat flexible hours and some benefits are available.

To apply, send a cover letter and resume to xpressjob@ mountainx.com.

CALENDAR COORDINATOR & EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Mountain Xpress is looking for an engaged and engaging communicator to gather, organize and present community news and event information across multiple formats: the Xpress website, including our Community Calendar/Clubland online platform; daily email newsletter; and weekly print newspaper. A great candidate is enthusiastic about contributing to Xpress’ community-oriented journalism • has strong writing skills (AP style knowledge a plus!) • sweats the details • is highly organized • collaborates well • meets deadlines. To apply, send a resume and cover letter explaining your passions and expertise to xpressjob@ mountainx.com.

HELP WANTED Westmore Apartments, a 72-unit apartment complex in Asheville, is looking for a part-time Site Manager to work 25-30 hours/week. $14-$15/hr. The position requires exceptional customer service skills, positive and professional demeanor, excellent communication and attention to detail. Job entails taking applications, renting apartment homes, communicating with tenants, and other administrative duties.

Basic computer and email skills are a must. Affordable Housing experience a plus, but will train

the right person. Must pass credit and criminal background check. Please email letter of interest to Jpatricktaylor@ partnershippm.com or mail to Attn: J. Patrick Taylor at Partnership Property Management, PO Box 26405, Greensboro, NC 27404. Equal opportunity provider and employer.

SKILLED LABOR/ TRADES EXPERIENCED BREWER FOR ASSISTANT BREWER POSITION AT ONE WORLD BREWING WEST One World Brewing, West Asheville, seeking to fill Assistant Brewer/Brewer position.

20 - 30 hrs./week. Negotiable.

Text inquiries to Jay Schutz 508-982-3757 or email jay@ oneworldbrewing.com (May be edited) www.oneworldbrewing.com

RESTAURANT/ FOOD DISHWASHERS PART TIME & FULL TIME The Dishwasher, who reports to the BOH Supervisor, is a member of the kitchen team who will receive and organize products; wash and sanitize equipment, plates, utensils, and spaces; stock equipment as needed in order to maintain proper BOH operations for the continuity of the guest experience. To apply please visit our website: https://sierranevada.com/ careers/ LINE COOK The Line Cook is a member of the kitchen team, who will work closely with all other positions in the Back of the House operations to prep, cook, and expedite food to the guests ordering onsite, delivery, and to-go.The Line Cook, who reports to the BOH Supervisor Team, operates grills, fryers, broilers, and other commercial cooking equipment to prepare and serve food. https://sierranevada.com/ careers/

MEDICAL/ HEALTH CARE MEDICAL POSITIONS AVAILABLE Medical - $20/ hr for C.N.A.’s on L.T.C and behavioral units in Black mountain. All shifts, full time. Call Emily at Worldwide Staffing, 866-633-3700, extension 118.

RN/LPN POSITIONS-NEW GRADS WELCOME FT & PRN positions available in mental health residential treatment facility. hr@cooperriis.org • www.cooperriis.org.

HUMAN SERVICES AURA HOME WOMEN VETERANS IS LOOKING FOR A GRANT WRITER! We are dedicated to serving homeless women veterans.

Payment is negotiable based on experience, please respond to aurahome.alyce@gmail.com.

FULL-TIME POSITION: COMMUNITY MENTOR Onsite position(s) at treatment center for LGBTQ+ folx struggling with substance abuse and co-occurring mental health issues. Exp req/33-36k.

Daytime and overnight-awake positions available. Send resume/cover letter to info@ elevatewellnessandrecovery. com.

PART TIME COMMUNITY SUPPORT SPECIALIST-HINDS' FEET FARM Part Time Community Support Specialist working with veterans who have sustained a brain injury or have some other neurological condition. 12 hours per week.

Salary $18-25/hour based on education/experience. Email erawls@hindsfeetfarm.org.

PART TIME DIRECT SUPPORT PROFESSIONAL Part Time Day Program Direct Support Professional with Hinds' Feet Farm providing 1:1 care and supervision for an adult client with a brain injury. 9a-3p Monday-Wednesday. Starting $13/hour. Email erawls@ hindsfeetfarm.org.

VOLUNTEER & OUTREACH COORDINATOR AT 103.3 ASHEVILLE FM We're hiring a passionate supporter and promoter of Asheville FM to facilitate community access and training in radio. Identify, organize, and place volunteers in positions to support our ongoing work. Email your cover letter, resume, and references to hiring@ashevillefm.org.

PROFESSIONAL/ MANAGEMENT DIRECTOR OF FACILITIES & OPERATIONS - HAYWOOD STREET CONGREGATION This person helps to ensure that the Haywood Street campus remains a safe and welcoming place for all. Oversees care and maintenance of the building.

Helps address safety concerns and big-picture challenges that could jeopardize the core programs. Assists with problem solving and help develops systems to enable all Haywood Street ministry areas flourish. www.haywoodstreet.org.

RESIDENTIAL OPERATIONS DIRECTOR Residential Operations Director for mental health residential treatment facility.

Exp'ed supervisor and residential experience. 828-802-0894 • hr@cooperriis.org • www. cooperriis.org.

TEACHING/ EDUCATION A-B TECH IS HIRING A-B Tech is currently taking applications for a Full-Time position of Advanced Manufacturing Center Coordinator. For more details and to apply: https:// abtcc.peopleadmin.com/ postings/5568 A-B TECH IS HIRING FULL TIME POSITION A-B Tech is currently taking applications for a full-time position Computer Technologies Instructor. For more details and to apply: https://abtcc.peopleadmin. com/postings/5560 BILINGUAL HOME VISITOR - EARLY INTERVENTION SPECIALIST $16.46 - $20.58 / HOUR. This position educates and coaches ten - twelve families in the areas of parenting, health, nutrition, and child development through weekly 90-minute home visits to assist parents/guardians in becoming more effective educators of their children. https://wcca. org/careers/ EARLY HEAD START TEACHER This position provides high-quality, responsive caregiving and educational experiences to enhance school readiness that

comply with the NC Division of Child Development and Early Education requirements and Head Start Performance Standards in an Early Head Start setting. $14.82 - $18.52 / Hour • https://wcca.org/ careers/ NC PRE-K TEACHER $16.46 - $20.58 / HOUR. This position involves providing high-quality, educational experiences to enhance school readiness that comply with the NC Division of Child Development and Early Education, Head Start Performance Standards and NC Pre-K program requirements. https://wcca.org/careers/ TLC SCHOOL: SEEKING CO-LEAD ACADEMIC TEACHERS GRADES K-5TH FOR 2021-22 Co-Lead Teacher Position: Bachelor's degree in ed., 2+ years experience in classroom at K-5th grade level FMI/To Apply: Email resume + cover letter to employment@ thelearningcommunity.org.

HOTEL/ HOSPITALITY HOUSEKEEPING/DEEP CLEANER Full time fully benefited Housekeeping position. Duties: cleaning of the public areas of campus daily, collection and dumping of trash and recyclables, towel and linen laundry, campus errands as needed. 828-802-0894 • hr@cooperriis.org • www. cooperriis.org

RETAIL

LOWES TUNNEL RD. NOW HIRING Lowes Tunnel Rd. Asheville has an immediate need for hiring Full Time, Part Time, and Seasonal positions.

Apply at jobs@lowes.com or contact Jill @ 828-299-3788, ext. 4499.

XCHANGE TOOLS & MACHINERY ITEMS FOR SALE!! Small Gas Grill (Coleman), $50.00. John Deere (Sabre) Riding Mower, $700.00. 20- Inch Mower (New Motor), $140.00. Troy Bilt Self-Propelled Mower, $215.00. Small Gas Weed Eater (New Carb.), $75.00. Call Gene at 828-606-8566.

WANTED BUYING OLD PAPER MONEY Asheville, WNC, ETN over 10 years. Fair, open, and responsive. Buying currency, bonds, maps, documents, etc. Email papermoneybuy@ gmail.com, or call/text 865207-8994. Member SPMC, NCNA, SCNA, TNA. FEMALE PIT BULL PLAYMATE Male Pit Bull; 10 years old; Needs female companion for play dates. Your dog can play in my fenced backyard or we could go on walks together.

I am in my 70's and live in N. Asheville. Please call Joan at 706.323.4670.

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5 Singer with the 2017 #1 album “Melodrama”

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6 Nervous speech fillers

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7 Cirque du ___ 8 Not look bad after all this time

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53 2021 in the Chinese zodiac, with a hint to 17-, 27- and 40-Across

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ACROSS 1 Body part whose name comes from the Latin for “little mouse” 7 Wise

SERVICES

11 Sponsored posts, essentially 14 Symbol tattooed on Popeye’s forearm

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1-833-585-1117 (AAN CAN) NOTICE OF FORECLOSURE SALE NORTH CAROLINA, BUNCOMBE COUNTY Under and by virtue of a Power of Sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust executed by Laura Stroup Creasman dated May 1, 2012 recorded on May 7, 2012 in Book 4979, Page 1773 of the Buncombe County Public Registry (“Deed of Trust”), conveying certain real property in Buncombe County to Fidelity National Title Insurance, Trustee, for the benefit of Bank of America, N.A. Default having been made of the note thereby secured by the said Deed of

37 Utah ski area

15 Fairy tale villain 16 Gossip fodder, slangily 17 Avoids, with “of” 19 Sardonic 20 Like forks Trust and the undersigned, having been substituted as Trustee in said Deed of Trust, and the holder of the note evidencing said default having directed that the Deed of Trust be foreclosed, the undersigned Substitute Trustee will offer for sale at the courthouse door of the county courthouse where the property is located, or the usual and customary location at the county courthouse for conducting the sale on April 20, 2021 at 10:00 AM, and will sell to the highest bidder for cash the following described property situated in Buncombe County, North Carolina, to wit: Tract 1: Beginning on a stake in the eastern common corner of the Dorothy Ray Creasman and Virgil Creasman properties as shown on a survey of said property made by K.G. Roberts, RLS., date on May, 1963, said stake being in the western line of the Bagby property, (old line of the Clayton property) and runs thence north 15 deg.

30’ west 150.10 feet to a stake in the northeast corner of that certain tract of land described in deed to Dorothy Ray Creasman (unmarried) from Ollie Bryant Creasman (widow), date of February 27, 1957, and duly recorded in the office of the register of deeds for Buncombe County, North Carolina, in Deed Book 783, Page 629; thence South 68 deg. 42’ west 141 feet to a stake in the northern line of said Dorothy Ray Creasman property; thence South 28 deg. East approximately 140 feet to a stake in the North line of the above mentioned Virgil Creasman property, mid stake being located north 73 deg, 28’ east of the western common corner of the Dorothy Ray Creasman and Virgil Creasman tract, 149 feet; thence North 73 deg. 28’ East 108 feet to the point of beginning being a northeastern

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44 Bird in “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”

56 Push 57 Senator Feinstein 58 Faux ___ 59 Traditional Thanksgiving desserts 60 Went bad

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10 Suffix with racket and rocket 11 In action 13 Speak, old-style 18 Mediocre grade 22 Noted evening radio address 25 Rapper in court 26 Wine-dark ___, metaphor in Homer’s “Odyssey”

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direction to Dorothy Creasman property, which outside boundary line of said roadway shall be 20 feet from the northwest corner of the property herein conveyed, and which roadway shall remain open for the purpose of ingress, egress and regress.

Being that parcel of land conveyed to Herbert Virgil Creasman and wife, Laura Stroupe from Dorothy Ray Creasman, unmarried by that deed dated June 18, 1963 and recorded June 19, 1963 in Deed Book 883, at Page 115 of the Buncombe County, NC Public Registry. Tax Map Reference: 9678-06-37-1597 Less and Excepting the portion of the parcel and the Manufactured Home located on said parcel more particularly described as follows; Beginning at a point which is 65.5 feet from the Northwest corner of the Tract of land now or formerly owned

by Sugar Bear Properties, LLC described in Deed Book 4228, at Page 1697; thence running South 10 deg East 98 feet; thence South 88 deg West 115 feet; thence North 5 deg West 75 feet; thence North 85 deg East 115 feet to the Point of beginning. Assessor’s Parcel No: 9678-37-2653-00000 Save and except any releases, deeds of release or prior conveyances of record. Said property is commonly known as 15 Cardinal Ridge Drive, Asheville, NC 28805; Parcel ID: 9678-37-265300000 A cash deposit (no personal checks) of five percent (5%) of the purchase price, or Seven Hundred Fifty Dollars ($750.00), whichever is greater, payable to Bell Carrington Price & Gregg, PLLC, will be required at the time of the sale. Following the expiration of the statutory upset bid period, all the remaining amounts are immediately due and owing. Pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 45-21.30,

43 Chef José ___, founder of World Central Kitchen 47 Ten to one, for one

36 As well

49 Actress Hatcher 51 Marked, as a ballot 53 “That’s right!”

54 Prez who delivered some 22-Downs

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ANSWER TO PREVIOUS NY TIMES PUZZLE

12 Ridicule

45 First astrological sign

(approximately ‘1/4) portion of the tract of land described in the aforementioned deed of record in Deed Book 783, Page 629. Together with a 12 foot wide right of way for a driveway and access road across the southern most portion of the remaining lands of Dorothy Ray Creasman, extending South 73 deg. 28’ west 149 feet from the southwestern corner of the lands hereinabove conveyed, to a point in the public road leading to U.S. Highway 70.

Being also that parcel of land conveyed to Virgil Creasman and wife, Laura Creasman, from Dorothy Ray Creasman, Single by that deed dated 02/02/1974 and recorded 02104/1974 In Deed Book 1094, at Page 496 of the Buncombe County, NC Public Registry. Tax Map Reference: 9678468.37-2113. Tract II: Beginning at a stake in the center of a 12 foot roadway, leading to US Highway No. 70, said stake being in the Zeb Whitaker northwest corner, and runs thence with the said Whitaker North line, North 79 deg 42’ East 238.70 feet to an iron pin in the said Whitaker’s northeast corner; thence North 15 degrees 35’ west 158.70 feet to a stake in Dorothy Creasman’s new line; thence South 73 deg 28’ West 257 feet to a stake in the center of said 12 foot roadway hereinbefore mentioned; thence with the center of said 12 foot roadway the following two courses and distances; South 21 deg 11’ East 50 feet to a stake, and South 24 degrees 30’ East 75 feet to the point of beginning.

Excepting and reserving from the foregoing conveyance a roadway on a Northwest corner of said property, which roadway shall be 10 feet wide, commencing 20 feet from the northwest corner of the property herein conveyed and running in a northeastern

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if the highest bidder at the sale, resale, or any upset bidder fails to comply with its bid upon the tender of a deed for the real property, or after a bona fide attempt to tender such a deed, the clerk of superior court may, upon motion, enter an order authorizing a resale of the real property. The defaulting bidder at any sale or resale or any defaulting upset bidder is liable for the bid made, and in case a resale is had because of such default, shall remain liable to the extent that the final sale price is less than the bid plus all the costs of any resale. Any deposit or compliance bond made by the defaulting bidder shall secure payment of the amount, if any, for which the defaulting bidder remains liable under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 45-21.30. Third party purchasers must pay the excise tax and THE RECORDING COSTS FOR THEIR DEED. Said property to be offered pursuant to this Notice of Sale is being offered for sale, transfer and conveyance “AS IS WHERE IS.” There are no representations of warranty relating to the title or any physical, environmental, health or safety conditions existing in, on, at, or relating to the property being offered for sale. This sale is made subject to any and all superior liens, including taxes and special assessments. To the best of the knowledge and belief of the undersigned, the current owner(s) of the property is/are Laura Stroup Creasman. An Order for possession of the property may be issued pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 45-21.29, in favor of the purchaser and against the party or parties by the clerk of superior court of the county in which the property is sold. Any person who occupies the property pursuant to a rental agreement entered into or renewed on or

S L A V I O W A S T E P D E P T H E P H O N J A M S T E W D R O N E I P A S T T R I E C G D O N

W R A V I O T W H E D E T E A L L A P A S I E D

H E L L

A L E S

O G L E D

L A T E N

U R S A

F A T S

after October 1, 2007, may, after receiving the notice of sale, terminate the rental agreement by providing written notice of termination to the landlord, to be effective on a date stated in the notice that is at least 10 days, but no more than 90 days, after the sale date contained in the notice of sale, provided that the mortgagor has not cured the default at the time the tenant provides the notice of termination. The notice shall also state that upon termination of a rental agreement, the tenant is liable for rent due under the rental agreement prorated to the effective date of the termination [N.C. Gen. Stat. § 45-21.16(b)(2)]. Upon termination of a rental agreement, the tenant is liable for rent due under the rental agreement prorated to the effective date of the termination. If the trustee is unable to convey title to this property for any reason, the sole remedy of the purchaser is the return of the deposit.

Reasons of such inability to convey include, but are not limited to, the filing of a bankruptcy petition prior to the confirmation of the sale and reinstatement of the loan without the knowledge of the trustee. If the validity of the sale is challenged by any party, the trustee, in their sole discretion, if they believe the challenge to have merit, may request the court to declare the sale to be void and return the deposit. The purchaser will have no further remedy. Cape Fear Trustee Services, LLC, Substitute Trustee , Attorney W. Harris, NCSB No. 48633 5550 77 Center Drive, Suite 100 Charlotte, NC 28217 PHONE: 980-201-3840 File No.: 20-47329

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