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City Council Welcomes NBDL to Asheville with 6 - 1 Vote. NBDL Selects Asheville Over Macon.

In a 6 - 1 vote, with Councilman Brian Peterson the lone dissenter, Asheville City Council, on June 19, voted to sign a contract with the National Basketball Association's new development league, the NBDL, clearing the way for a November start for the league's first season.

In an odd twist, Macon, Georgia's City Council also voted on Tuesday night to host the final NBDL team in their city; seven of the eight teams have already come to an agreement with various cities around the Southeast, leaving only one city remaining to be selected. However, the NBDL announced on Wednesday that they will accept Asheville as the final city for their eight-team league

This decision may mark the beginning of the much-needed renovations to Asheville's 26-year-old Civic Center. Certain changes to the building, such as a new basketball floor and refurbished locker rooms, are necessary for the NBDL to remain in the city beyond the first three years of the contract.

Asheville City Council members, in their comments prior to the vote, expressed a great deal of enthusiasm for the possibilities this decision holds for Asheville and its citizens. Not only will the new basketball league provide additional entertainment at the Civic Center, Council members anticipate the city will be able to make a profit from the NBDL's location in the city. Downtown businesses stand to profit from the additional events held at the Civic Center as well.

The one organization that will have the most trouble with the new league's arrival on the local scene is the Asheville Smoke Hockey Team. Dan Wilhelm, the Smoke's owner and general manager, expressed regret at City Council's decision, although he was not surprised at the outcome. The different needs of these two major Civic Center tenants will keep the Civic Center staff on their toes throughout each team's season, which will coincide with each other. Some thirty floor changes, from ice to basketball to ice again, will be necessary for the teams to fulfill their league requirements. Profitable weekend dates will also be competitive between the two organizations. Avid Smoke fans spoke passionately at various City Council public hearings of their love for their team, and City Council members spoke in return of not letting the Asheville Smoke or the fans down.

Other groups that will lose ice time at the Civic Center are public skaters, recreational hockey leagues, and the Asheville Figure Skating Club. While City Council said they would do all they can to ensure enough ice time to make it worth everyone's time, several Council members spoke of the need for a separate year-round ice facility, perhaps to be located on the French Broad River where the City already owns large parcels of land. Given the depth of commitment from a large number of local residents, Mayor Leni Sitnick addressed the possibility of putting such a facility on the long-range plan for Asheville Parks and Recreation. Her vision would include a facility that encompasses a public/private partnership with an ice rink, roller skating rink, bowling alley, track, climbing wall, and various other activities, and would be geared toward the family. Preliminary plans to explore the viability of such a facility are underway.