Asheville City Council
June 27, 2023
Regular meeting
WaterStreets and transitOther City businessHousing
What it did
- Rezones 319 and 311 Biltmore Avenue, with conditions, from Residential Business (RB) to Residential Expansion - Conditional Zone (RES EXP-CZ).Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
- Lets the City Manager ratify and amend the existing Transit Operations and Maintenance Contract between the City of Asheville and RATPDev USA…Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
- Signs a contract with Buncombe County for americans with disabilities act Paratransit Services for Fiscal Year 2023-24.Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
- Permanently close an unopened right-of-way adjacent to 26, 30, 34, and 38 Sunrise Drive.Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
- Votes recorded
- 12
- Voted on separately
- 2
- Routine items, one vote
- 10
- Votes that split
- 0
Why it matters
Regular meetings are where Council votes on laws, the budget, contracts and zoning. Routine items pass together in one vote, called the consent agenda.
The recording
Everything on the agenda
From the minutes, in the order the City lists them. Each item's first lines are the minutes' own words.
PROCLAMATIONS
Proclamation proclaiming July 2023 as “Parks and Recreation Month”
“Vice-Mayor Kilgore read the proclamation proclaiming July, 2023, as "Parks and Recreation Month " in the City of Asheville.”
CONSENT AGENDA
10 routine items, passed together in one vote.
PRESENTATIONS & REPORTS
Manager’s report - employee recognition
“City Manager Campbell said that City of Asheville employees are heroes in many ways.”
PUBLIC HEARINGS
Public hearing to consider approving a Land Use Incentive Grant for 46 Aston Street
“Councilwoman Mosley moved to continue this public hearing until July 25, 2023.”
Public hearing to amend a conditional use permit for 509 Biltmore Avenue for the purpose of increasing the amount of allowed signage
“This public hearing has been withdrawn.”
Public hearing to close an unopened right-of-way adjacent to 26, 30, 34 and 38 Sunrise Drive: assistant
“Assistant Transportation Director Jessica Morriss said that this is the consideration of a resolution to permanently close an unopened right-of-way adjacent to 26, 30, 34 and 38 Sunrise Drive.”
Public hearing to conditionally zone 319 Biltmore Avenue from Regional Business District to Residential Expansion/Conditional Zone: Page 18 urban
“Page 18 Urban Planner Clay Mitchell said that this is the consideration of an ordinance to conditionally zone 319 Biltmore Avenue from Regional Business District to Residential Expansion/Conditional Zone.”
NEW BUSINESS
Resolution to Temporarily suspend consideration of micro-apartment applications and awards for the Land Use Incentive Grant Program until the Policy is revised and includes standards for micro-apartment projects: affording Housing
“Officer Sasha Vrtunski said that this is the consideration of a resolution to temporarily suspend consideration of micro-apartment applications and awards for the Land Use Incentive Grant (LUIG) program until the policy is revised and includes standards for micro-apartment projects.”
INFORMAL DISCUSSION AND PUBLIC COMMENT
Public comment
- invitation to October 21, 2023, event of the unveiling of the State of North Carolina Historical Highway Marker for the Allen School
- need to open a tent area on a bus line for the homeless with restrooms being monitored by staff
- disappointment with the Juneteenth event as there was nothing for the children to do
- men in crisis
- thank you for the support of the pickleball players and shared the mission of the Asheville Pickleball Association
- concern of safety issues on the buses
Voted on separately
Each of these had its own motion and vote.
Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
Who it's for: Households earning 60% to 80% of the area median income: $61,440 to $81,920 a year for a family of four (HUD's 2026 income limits for tax-credit housing in the Asheville area).
More from the minutes
- “Dionne Nelson, President and CEO of Laurel Street Residential (LSR), said that LSR is a North Carolina firm that develops high quality, mixed income communities for working families and seniors that are affordable to households of a variety of incomes.”
- “The project description is mixed-income; 221 unit count - 11 studio, 108 one-bedroom, 72 two-bedroom, and 30 three-bedroom; the income mix of 20% @ 60% AMI, 10% @ 80% AMI, and 70% @ Market Rate.”
- “LSR is working with the Asheville Housing Authority to set aside 22 units for Project Based Vouchers.”
Permanently close an unopened right-of-way adjacent to 26, 30, 34, and 38 Sunrise Drive.
Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
More from the minutes
- “City Council passed a resolution on May 23, 2023 to set a public hearing for the proposed right-of-way closure on June 27, 2023.”
- “All homes fronting this right-of-way have Sunrise Drive addresses for mailing and E911 purposes.”
- “She showed a map of the proposed closure.”
Routine items, passed together
The consent agenda: items Council approves in one vote, without separate discussion. A member can ask to pull an item out for its own vote.
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “The proposed amendment will be the fourth amendment to the contract and it will cover services provided between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024.”
- The money, in the minutes' words: “6-27-23 Page 9 Action Requested: Adoption of a resolution authorizing the City Manager to ratify and amend the existing Transit Operations and Maintenance Contract between the City of Asheville and RATPDev USA for a total of $10,645,929 for Fiscal Year (FY) 2023-24.”
- “There are no proposed changes to the language of the Contract with this amendment.”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- The money, in the minutes' words: “Action Requested: Adoption of a resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a contract with Buncombe County for ADA Paratransit Services in the amount of $1,000,000 for Fiscal Year 2023-24.”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “The award of this contract will result in the resurfacing of 1.16 miles of City streets.”
- The money, in the minutes' words: “Action Requested: Adoption of a resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a contract with Tarheel Paving and Asphalt, Inc. in the amount of $839,861.90, plus a 20% contingency of $167,972.00 ($1,007,833.90 total) for the FY 2022-23 Asphalt Resurfacing Part 2 contract.”
- “The main scope of the project is the resurfacing of 7 streets for a total of 1.16 miles.”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “This project will provide a critical redundant water transmission main for the North Asheville water service area”
- The money, in the minutes' words: “Action Requested: Adoption of a resolution authorizing the City Manager to sign a contract with WK Dickson & Co. for engineering services in the amount of $814,900.00 for the Water Distribution Project 3 - Central Ave 24” Transmission Main.. Background:”
- “If approved, the proposed engineering services described here within will be developed into a subcontract under the conditions of the master agreement.”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “This program is an enterprise fund that is supported by the participation and work generated by partner agencies (Metropolitan Sewerage District, Dominion Energy, City of Asheville Water Resources, and City of Asheville Stormwater Division), and individual permit fees from other, typically lower volume customers.”
- The money, in the minutes' words: “Action Requested: Adoption of a resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a contract with Appalachian Paving and Concrete, Inc. in the amount of $355,036.00 plus a 19.5% contingency of $69,232.00, for a project total of $424,268.00, for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023-24 Utility Cut Concrete Repair contract.”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “The proposed contract would remove and replace the current generators with more efficient and reliable generators that will supply backup power to all of the critical functions of the fire stations.”
- The money, in the minutes' words: “Action Requested: Adoption of a resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a contract with Jackson Electrical Contractors, Inc. in the amount of $109,850 for generator replacements at Fire Stations 2, 8, 9, and 12.”
- “On May 25, 2023 bids were due and only one bid was received that was outside of the proposed budget.”
Applies for the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program to improve cybersecurity monitoring…
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- The money, in the minutes' words: “Action Requested: Adoption of a resolution authorizing the City Manager to apply for the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program funding of $100,000 to improve cybersecurity monitoring and network security for city water production networks.”
- “For the proposed point-to-point campus radio network replacement, MC Communications, the City’s current fiber optics vendor associated with the ERC franchise agreement, will be responsible for project implementation.”
Signs a contract with Bene Vivere LLC D/b/a Steri Clean North Carolian for biohazard waste cleanup.
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “This new contract will replace the one approved by Council on February 28, 2023, and will be allocated no additional funding beyond that which was previously approved by City Council for this purpose.”
- “The Public Works Sanitation Division proposed to fill a current service gap by providing services for roadside litter and hot spot litter collection, including cleanup of sites which may contain biohazardous materials.”
Lets the City Manager execute a one-year contract renewal with Smith.
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
The plain-language lines are written by fixed rules from each item's official title, which is on each decision's page. Every vote the minutes record is listed; procedural motions, like approving the minutes or adjourning, are left out.