The City is seeking public input on the College Patton Bike Lane Project design through an online survey. Your responses will remain anonymous and will help City staff make updates to the plan that best accommodate all needs on the corridors. Staff will collect survey responses through Tuesday, June 5, 2023, and will share input received from this survey in an update to the City Council Planning and Economic Development Committee and on the City’s project page.

This project proposes to add buffered bike lanes in the core of Downtown on College Street between Spruce Street and Pritchard Park and on Patton Avenue between Pritchard Park and Biltmore Avenue.

Goals for this project include: creating protected east-west bicycle connections downtown that would connect to the larger bicycle network and creating a safer, more inviting multimodal environment downtown for everyone including bicyclists, pedestrians, and motor vehicles (including delivery trucks).

In addition to the proposed bike lanes, this project also includes restriping high-visibility crosswalks and reconfiguring loading zones throughout the project area.

This project is supported by City Councils 2036 Vision of Transportation and Accessibility. This Vision ensures whether you drive a car, take the bus, ride a bike or walk, that getting around Asheville is easy. Public transportation should be widespread, frequent, and reliable. Sidewalks, greenways, and bike facilities can get us where we want to go safely and keep us active and healthy. This Vision ensures it is easy to live in Asheville without a car and still enjoy economic, academic, and social success.

Food Scraps Drop Off

The City of Asheville, in partnership with Buncombe County and the Natural Resources Defense Council, is offering a FREE Food Scrap Drop-Off program in two locations for all Buncombe County residents.  This organic matter will be collected and turned into good clean compost, keeping it OUT of our landfill and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Register for Food Scraps Drop Off

Need a handy kitchen countertop food scrap bin?  Let us know on the registration form! We’ll be having bin giveaways at city and county facilities and would love to give you one.

Locations

Murphy Oakley Community Center and Library – “Food Scrap Bin Shelters” on the east side of the parking lot

749 Fairview Road, Asheville

• • Dawn – Dusk

Stephens-Lee Recreation Center “Food Scrap Shed” next to the Community Garden on the North side of the parking lot

30 Washington Carver Avenue, Asheville

• • Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. – 6 p.m.
  • Saturday, 8 a.m. – 2 p.m.
  • Sunday, 12 – 4 p.m.

West Asheville Library – “Food Scrap Bin Shelters” on the south side of the building

942 Haywood Road, Asheville

• • Library open hours
  • Buncombe County Landfill – Convenience Center

    85 Panther Branch Road, Alexander

    • • Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
      • Saturday, 8 a.m. – 12:30 pm

Extension Master Gardener^SM volunteers will be staffing the Helpline as indicated in the schedule below. You may send an email or leave a voicemail at any time and an Extension Master Gardener volunteer will respond during Garden Helpline hours. When emailing, please include a photo if it helps describe your garden question. Soil test kits can be picked up at the Extension office, 24/7. The kits are located in a box outside the front door.

Three ways to contact the Garden Helpline

Call 828-255-5522
Email questions and photos to [email protected]
Visit the Extension Office at 49 Mt. Carmel Road during Helpline hours, listed below.

Garden Helpline Hours

March – (starts March 6)
Monday 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon
Thursday 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

April through September:
Monday 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Tuesday 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon
Wednesday 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m.
Thursday 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

October – (ends October 26th) 
Monday 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon
Thursday 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

We are here to help and support you! Please contact us. We look forward to answering your gardening questions.

GreenWorks will lead a NOAA heat mapping campaign of the greater Asheville area this summer.

But we can’t do it without volunteers like you!

If you choose to join the fun, you’ll received an assigned route to drive or bike using specialized sensors to collect temperature and humidity data. You’ll have one hour to complete your assigned route.

The heat data you collect will be translated into maps we’ll use to identify the hottest streets, and ultimately, find ideal tree planting locations in the neighborhoods that need them most. You’ll be helping Asheville take a huge step forward on its road to climate-resilience.

• Volunteers will meet GreenWorks staff, pick up their materials, go drive their routes, and return their equipment
• Volunteers will work in two-person teams to drive their one-hour routes.
• These same routes will be driven three times in the same day; 6-7am, 3-4pm, and 7-8pm
• Routes will be approximately 10 square miles each.

A limited number of volunteers will be needed. Volunteers may be prioritized if their neighborhood is included in a mapping route.

If you’re behind on your water bill or afraid your water might get cut off, a new resource might be able to help you. On Jan. 4, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners approved more than $450,000 in federal funding for the Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP). The initiative is aimed at preventing water disconnections and helping reconnect drinking and wastewater services.

The LIHWAP will be administered by Buncombe County-based Eblen Charities. The nonprofit will make payments directly to utilities on behalf of qualifying households. The program is slated to run through Sept. 30, 2023 or until funds are exhausted.

Eligibility requirements

Households that currently receive Food and Nutrition Services (FNS), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or Work First services, or those that received Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) services from Oct. 1, 2020-Sept. 30, 2021, are automatically eligible to receive this benefit if their water services have been cut off or are in danger of being cut off.

For additional eligibility information or to apply, please contact Eblen Charities at (828) 255-3066.

Join us this Summer for PUSH Skate Camp at the Asheville Skate Park in downtown Asheville at 50 Cherry St N.

We’re offering 6 weeks of camp, ages 5-15

Monday-Thursday from 9am-12pm.

Skateboarders, sign up for one or more weeks! Dates are as follows:

June 12-15, 19-22,

July 10-13, 17-20,

August 7-10, 14-17.

Rollerskaters, sign up for one or more weeks! Dates are as follows:

June 19-22,

July 17-20,

August 14-17.

Montgomery sky farm is incredibly excited to offer our first summer farm camp series. Two sessions, both five-day educational programs unlike any other, for kids to learn what it is like to spend a week on a working farm.

Learn about farm basics, daily animal care, vegetable gardening, how food is grown, simple farm recipes, dirt, bees, pollination and the lifecycle of chickens! Children will get to interact and explore on our 50 acre farm, with the curriculum being taught by an educator and mom herself, Haleigh Lincoln. Sky Camp will be limited to the first 15 enrolled campers. In an effort to maintain quality learning, spaces will be extremely limited.

Daily camp will begin at 9AM with drop off at MSF and will include three hours of educational activities, unique animal encounters and a daily take home craft. We will spend the day in nature, working up close to our animals, learning about where food comes from and the ecosystem of a farm.

*The last day of camp (Friday, July 14 and Friday, August 18th) we will invite campers families and siblings to come meet & greet the animals from 11AM-12PM.

Sky Camp includes:
-5 day educational program with a different curriculum and lesson each day
-unique, animal encounters
-learn about vegetable produce, how to pick produce and basic farm recipes
-1:1 learning in a small, group setting
-Daily take home craft
-Daily snack and beverage provided
-Farm t-shirt
-Farm water bottle

Sky Camp price: $375/week
*Add on option: the Adventure package $125- customized farm backpack, farm bucket hat, carabiner clip, notepad, pencils, bug spray, sunscreen + gardening gloves

All deposits paid at the time of registration are non-refundable. Sky Camp will occur rain or shine, in the event of inclement weather, the day will be conducted in our covered barn.

In August of 2022 the President of the United States signed into law the PACT Act, the most sweeping legislation in regards to Veteran benefits in three plus decades. This legislation will provide healthcare and disability benefits to hundreds of thousands of Veterans who served in hostile locations across the globe. It is a new law that expands VA health care and benefits for Veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances and adds to the list of health conditions that are presumed to be caused by exposure to these substances.

On April 1, 2023, multiple veterans affairs groups organized a town hall at the A-B Tech Conference Center to help veterans in WNC. Charles George VA partnered with Vietnam Veterans of America and the North Carolina State Council to host a Toxic Exposure/PACT Act Veterans Town Hall. At the event, veterans received assistance with signing up for healthcare benefits, filing disability claims, and completing toxic exposure screenings.

According to the VA website, the PACT Act will bring these changes:

• Expands and extends eligibility for VA health care for Veterans with toxic exposures and Veterans of the Vietnam, Gulf War, and post-9/11 eras
• Adds 20+ more presumptive conditions for burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic exposures
• Adds more presumptive-exposure locations for Agent Orange and radiation
• Requires VA to provide a toxic exposure screening to every Veteran enrolled in VA health care

The PACT Act also includes benefits for surviving family members of a Veteran including a monthly VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (VA DIC) payment, a one-time accrued benefits payment, or a survivors pension. More information on the PACT Act can be found here.

Buncombe County residents who think that they could be eligible for the PACT Act should contact the Buncombe County Veterans Service Office (VSO). Buncombe County Veterans Services Supervisor, Heath Smith, gave a presentation about the PACT Act at the town hall event. Navigating benefits eligibility can be a challenge which is why Smith encourages people to contact their local VSO. Smith says, “If you think that a health condition is due to your time in service, get in touch with your local Veterans Service Office and they will guide you through the benefits that you might be entitled to. We encourage people to contact a Veterans Service Officer to learn more about this new legislation.”

In Buncombe County, Veterans Service Officers can be reached by calling (828) 250-5726. Our Veterans Services team will be happy to assist you with questions you might have about the PACT Act and other benefits that you and your relatives could qualify for.

Click here to watch the video of Heath Smith’s presentation at the Town Hall.

Click here for WLOS coverage of the event.

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”