Asheville City Council
March 10, 2026
Regular meeting: City Council Meeting (In-Person)
HousingOther City businessWaterPublic safetyHelene recoveryBudget and taxes
What it did
- Rezones 230 Sardis Rd, with conditions, from Industrial (IND) to Residential Expansion - Conditional Zone (RES EXP-CZ) as well as amend the Future Land Use Map from Industrial/Manufacturing to Residential Neighborhood.Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
- Rezones 383 N. Louisiana Avenue, with conditions, from Office (OFF I) to Office - Conditional Zone (OFF I-CZ).Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
- Adds money to the budget from N.C. dept. of Environmental Quality, for Water Resilience Improvements.Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
- Adds money to the budget from Office of State Budget and Management - Helene Local Government…, for the azalea park recovery project.Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
- Votes recorded
- 15
- Voted on separately
- 4
- Routine items, one vote
- 11
- 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 March, 2026, as “Red Cross Month”
“Mayor Manheimer read the proclamation proclaiming March , 20 26 , as " Red Cross Month " in the City of Asheville.”
CONSENT AGENDA
11 routine items, passed together in one vote.
PRESENTATIONS & REPORTS
Manager’s report - recovery progress update: recovery
“Coordinator Bridget Herring provided the following key takeaways from her presentation as follows: (1) Project development work is being completed to ensure that cost recovery is maximized and that infrastructure is rebuilt to be more resilient; (2) While availability of recovery funds remains…”
PUBLIC HEARINGS
Public hearing to conditionally rezone 230 Sardis Road from Industrial District to Residential Expansion - Conditional Zone
“Principal Planner Will Palmquist said that this is the consideration of an ordinance to conditionally rezone 230 Sardis Road from Industrial District to Residential Expansion - Conditional Zone.”
Public hearing to conditionally rezone 383 n. Louisiana Avenue from Office District to Office District - Conditional Zone
“Project Location and Contacts: The project site totals 3.13 acres on one parcel addressed as 383 N Louisiana Avenue, and identified in the Buncombe County Tax Record as PIN: 9638-29-1363 Owner(s): Betty Hampton, Marlisa Faris, John Drake, and Mark Drake Applicant: Civil Design Concepts/Warren Sugg,…”
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Resolution regarding 2025-29 Consolidated Plan amendment to add Affordable Rental Construction as a priority need and goal: community development
“Division Manager James Shelton said that this is the consideration of a resolution approving the proposed amendment of the City’s 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan to add affordable rental construction as a priority need and goal and submission to the US Dept. of Housing & Urban Development; and further…”
INFORMAL DISCUSSION AND PUBLIC COMMENT
Public comment
- spend more money on the Walton Street pool to return it to the way it was
- concern that the City put a dog park in Aston Park
- concern of the redesign of our public transit network and the human costs of removing routes
- need to have resilient development
Voted on separately
Each of these had its own motion and vote.
Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “The proposed project would result in a total impervious area of 37%.”
- “Compatibility Analysis: The proposed multi-family project is compatible with the surrounding land uses, including: Existing multi-family residential uses to the south, known as Greymont Village.”
- “Proposed multi-family development across from the project site, known as Sardis Apartments, which received a conditional zoning approval in 2022 for 297 residential units.”
- “The maximum building height of the proposed project is approximately 52’ as measured to the ceiling of the highest floor.”
Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “The proposed project would result in a total impervious area of 54.3% or 1.7 ac.”
- “Some building impact landscaping is also being proposed as open space and tree canopy preservation.”
- “The maximum building height of the proposed project is approximately 48’, as measured to the ceiling of the highest occupiable floor of the apartment building.”
- “Maximum density in the OFF-I district is 50 units/acre for projects meeting affordability criteria, which would be 186 units total for the proposed project site.”
Rezones 383 N. Louisiana Ave for 89 affordable homes.
Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
Who it's for: Households earning up to 80% of the area median income: up to $81,920 a year for a family of four, or $57,360 for one person (HUD's 2026 income limits for tax-credit housing in the Asheville area).
Passed. Everyone present voted yes.
More from the minutes
- “The 2025-2029 Asheville Area Housing Needs Assessment (the Bowen Report) indicated a profound need for new affordable rental units.”
- “Currently, the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan does not include Affordable Rental Construction as a goal and priority need, meaning no such projects, like multifamily new construction, may be undertaken.”
- “On January 14th, 2026, the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium voted unanimously to recommend amending the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan to add Affordable Rental Construction as a goal and priority need.”
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
- The money, in the minutes' words: “Motion: Motion to adopt a budget amendment in the Water Capital Projects Fund in the amount of $10,000,000 from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality for Water Resilience Improvements ORDINANCE BOOK NO. 36 - PAGE 390”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “The program funds capital projects to repair, renovate, or replace damaged infrastructure that is ineligible or denied for FEMA Public Assistance.”
- The money, in the minutes' words: “Motion: Motion to adopt a budget amendment in the General Capital Projects Fund in the amount of $2,487,500 from the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) - Helene Local Government Capital Grant Program for the Azalea Park Recovery Project ORDINANCE BOOK NO. 36 - PAGE 389”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- The money, in the minutes' words: “The City entered into a Supplemental Professional Services contract/ Change Order with GHD Engineering for Task Order 8-Debruhl Water Treatment Plant Chemical Bulk Storage Project as approved by City Council Resolution No. 24-30 on February 13, 2024 in the amount of $145,000.”
Cancels the Stewart Street Cottages loan.
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- “To restore and provide reliable sanitary sewer service to the park, the sewer line must now be extended approximately 3,000 linear feet along Hominy Creek, exclusively due to the storm-related damage.”
- “The sewer infrastructure will serve over 100,000 square feet of existing, completed speculative industrial space that is currently available for lease.”
- “The extension also unlocks approximately 30 additional acres of industrial land, planned for more than 500,000 square feet of future Class A industrial space designed to accommodate small businesses.”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “This amendment will extend the current contract through June 30, 2026 and allow those discussions and negotiations to continue.”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- “Fleet Management alongside the City’s Purchasing Division is working on the purchase of twenty-one (21) additional SUV units expected to arrive this calendar year.”
Passed with the routine items, in one vote, without discussion.
More from the minutes
- What the minutes say it will do: “This grant allows personnel expenses to be funded.”
Motion approving the alcoholic beverage commission’s updated pay range for the general manager.
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.