This article has all the information you need to register to vote, vote, and/or participate in the 2022 Primary Election. Scroll down for information on:

• How to register to vote/update your voter information
• Fine your Sample Ballot
• Find Early Voting Locations
• The Three Ways to Vote:
  • Early Voting
  • Absentee Ballot by Mail
  • Election Day Voting
• How to be a Paid Poll Worker
• Resource Links and Contact Information at Bottom

Just a reminder, to get election updates and reminders via our mobile text notification system, text BCAlert to 99411, or sign up at buncombecounty.org/codered and select “Election Reminders.”

Learn More About the New Online Playbill

We’re going green!

Flat Rock Playhouse is now producing online playbills! View the online playbill at your leisure before and after the performance!

You can view the online playbill ahead of time by clicking the link in your concierge email, which will be sent approximately 7 days before your performance.

The below instructions are for viewing the online playbill once at the theatre.

This month, Asheville GreenWorks will deploy four new self-serve clean-up stations at area libraries. Each station will be stocked with supplies that individuals can check out to run their own clean-ups.   Locations: Enka/Candler Library 1404 Sand Hill Rd, Candler, NC 28715   Swannanoa Library 101 W Charleston Ave, Swannanoa, NC 28778   Weaverville Library 41 N Main St, Weaverville, NC 28787   Skyland/South Asheville Library 260 Overlook Rd, Asheville, NC 28803   Library staff will NOT maintain these boxes. Please direct all questions or requests to [email protected]

Stories from the House is a virtual tour of our 1840s-era brick mansion as seen through the eyes of many of the people who walked these same hallways over a century ago and whose stories represent a microcosm of the history of western North Carolina. In 1918 vs. 2020, we took an in-depth look at the 1918 influenza epidemic in Western North Carolina through newspaper clippings, advertisements, ephemera, photographs, and oral history and place the events of 1918 into context with our present-day response to the coronavirus pandemic. Old Shiloh was one of Asheville’s first communities established by emancipated people. The community moved to its present-day location – New Shiloh – after George Vanderbilt, in an effort to expand his land holdings as he planned to build his Biltmore Estate, purchased the land and buildings and agreed to relocate the Shiloh church and cemetery.

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.

The Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County (PSABC) was formed in 1976, with interest in preservation sparked by observance of the U. S. Bicentennial, and in response to threats to local buildings and sites posed by neglect, insensitive alteration, and large-scale transportation projects. Disinvestment in downtown, plans for the open cut through Beaucatcher Mountain, and a proposal to turn Montford Avenue into a through street connecting to U.S.19-23 spurred formation of the volunteer group, which quickly incorporated and initiated work as a community non-profit.

Online Education Programs

If you are able, consider making a donation to our Community Funded Ticket program, which provides no-cost tickets to our live events to those who could not afford to attend. Donate Here Vaccines and Public Health in WNC: Past and Present In this two-hour event, three historians discuss previous epidemics, pandemics, and public health campaigns in WNC and Appalachia, including the 1918 flu, smallpox, and polio, as well as the community and government efforts to combat these crises. These historians are followed by an immunologist and a virologist—both professors of biology at Appalachian State University— who present information on Covid-19 variants as well as data on lives saved by vaccines. Watch Now The Brevard Rosenwald School Betty J. Reed discusses her research into the Brevard Rosenwald School and other segregated schools in WNC. This school, also funded by Julius Rosenwald, served African American students in Transylvania County from c1923-1966 and, according to Reed, represents “a microcosm of Black education in southern Appalachia.” Reed, a native of Western North Carolina, is an independent scholar who has spent over twenty-five years researching the history of schools in the region, especially those functioning during the era of segregation. Watch Now Buncombe Co. Remembrance Project This project acknowledges the personal and community trauma inflicted on individuals of color after the Civil War, the Equal Justice Initiative’s research related to lynchings, and the three lynchings of record that occurred in Buncombe County, NC. Dr. Joseph Fox is a life-long educator, mentor, and community advocate. He has advocated for students of a darker hue for more than 30 years in his role as a community college instructor, as well as his role as a former Department Chair of Business Administration at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College. Watch Now

Hands On Asheville-Buncombe has teamed up with the WNC Chapter of Project Linus. Project Linus blankets provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need. They are handcrafted by caring volunteers who want a child in crisis to know that someone cares about them. It is hoped that each blanket will become a treasured possession. The gifts of new handmade blankets and afghans lovingly created by volunteer “blanketeers” provides a rewarding and fun service opportunity for interested individuals and groups for the benefit of children. Blankets are given to the WNC Project Linus chapter for distribution by hospitals, social workers, or police.

Since this project is done from home,we ask volunteers to provide their own equipment and supplies.

What is your 20-year vision for Buncombe County? The initial phase of gathering community feedback is in full swing, and we are excited to announce that in addition to the public meeting schedule, self-guided activities are now available at engage.buncombecounty.org.

Input from those who live and work in Buncombe County will be used to create a Comprehensive Plan that identifies the community’s vision, strategies, goals, and recommended actions for the next 20 years. Now you can share your thoughts on your own time and schedule with a self-guided option to provide input. The self-guided option includes a presentation regarding planning influences in the county, a self-guided poll, priorities and actions activity, and a mapping activity. These activities are also available in Spanish.

In the next stages of plan development, the information shared during this initial public input phase will help identify potential solutions and actions, upon which the community will provide additional feedback.

The Buncombe 2043 Comprehensive Plan provides the framework for growth in unincorporated Buncombe County and addresses other quality of life matters for the County as a whole. The plan will take a regional approach, being mindful of other plans, such as the City of Asheville and the Town of Black Mountain comprehensive plans.

To get caught up on everything about the Buncombe 2043 Comprehensive Plan including a short video overview, visit Comprehensive Plan 2043.

Ya se puede acceder a las actividades autoguiadas para el Plan Integral 2043 de Buncombe

¿Cuál es su visión de 20 años para el condado de Buncombe? La fase inicial de recopilación de opiniones de la comunidad está en proceso, y nos complace anunciar que, además del calendario de reuniones públicas, ya puede acceder a las actividades autoguiadas ingresando en engage.buncombecounty.org.

Los aportes de los habitantes y trabajadores del condado de Buncombe se usarán para crear un plan integral que represente la visión, las estrategias, los objetivos y las medidas recomendadas de la comunidad para los próximos 20 años. Ahora puede compartir sus opiniones cuando quiera con la opción de participación autoguiada. Esta opción incluye una presentación sobre las influencias de la planificación en el condado, una encuesta autoguiada, una actividad de prioridades y medidas, y una actividad de mapeo. Estas actividades autoguiadas también están en español.

La información compartida durante la fase inicial de participación pública ayudará a identificar posibles soluciones y medidas en las siguientes etapas de la elaboración del plan, sobre las que la comunidad hará comentarios adicionales.

El Plan Integral 2043 de Buncombe brinda un marco para el crecimiento de las zonas que no están incorporadas en el condado de Buncombe y aborda otros asuntos relacionados con la calidad de vida del condado en su totalidad. En el plan, se adoptará un enfoque regional, en el que se tendrán en cuenta otros planes, como los planes integrales de la ciudad de Asheville (en inglés) y del pueblo de Black Mountain (en inglés).

Para acceder a la información sobre todo lo relacionado con el Plan Integral 2043 de Buncombe, incluido un breve video de descripción general, visite Plan Integral 2043.

The City of Hendersonville will be offering Spring bulk leaf collection for City residents during the month of March. Bulk leaf collection will begin on Tuesday, March 1, and conclude on Thursday, March 31.

This is a service automatically provided to city residents and they do not need to call to request leaf pick-up. Residents are asked NOT to bag their leaves; simply rake leaves as close to the street, curb, or sidewalk as possible without placing the leaves in the roadway or on the sidewalk. Keeping leaf piles out of the roadways and sidewalks helps prevent them from being washed down to the storm drain which can cause flooding. This leaf collection process is separate from brush collection crews; therefore, residents will need to keep their brush and leaves in separate piles during the month of March until Spring bulk leaf collection is complete.

Leaf piles are picked up from homes approximately every seven business days but, depending on the volume of leaves placed out for collection, the piles could be picked up sooner or later than that time.

Organic Growers School is partnering with Mother Earth News to jointly produce the OGS 29th Spring Conference March 18-20, 2022 at Mars Hill University. Attendees will enjoy the usual favorite array of robust workshops, with an added bonus of new speakers and vendors joining the community.

Friday’s pre-conference workshops consist of four deep-dive, all-day opportunities. Choose between “Carbon Farming and Agroforestry,” “Build It, Plumb It, Hack It: The Basics of Fix, Mend, and Make for the Farm and Garden,” “Mushrooms, Mold, and Mycorrhizae,” and “Water Resilience and Mitigation: Practical Adaptations for Farm and Home.”

Saturday and Sunday’s conference programming consist of a wide variety of short sessions and nine half-day workshops. Choose tracks that most align with your interests, such as Cooking, Forest Farming, Herbs, Living on the Land, Permaculture, and more. Presenters include Sandor Katz, Tyson Sampson, Angie Lavezzo, and more.

OGS and Mother Earth News, both organizations with deep roots in the region, are similar in mission, values, and both have deep roots in the region. This conference and partnership allows them to leverage our relationships for the benefit of their audiences.

Learn more and purchase tickets at organicgrowersschool.org/conferences/spring.

The Art League is excited to offer free virtual demonstrations.
Watch for the announcement of our soon-to-come virtual workshops and classes.

All demonstrations are available on-line and on-demand.  Simply click on the video link to participate.