WECAN Board Meeting November 6, 2014 at 64 Clingman Ave.
Board Members Present were: Jessie Nell Coleman, Joe Fioccola, AnnaBeth Hardcastle and Rafael Rettig. Board Members not present were Byron Ballard, Jeff Carnivale, Tom Gibson, Mike Kenton, Yuri Koslen, Rachel Larson, Luke W. Perry, JoAnn Skinner, Pattiy Torno and Suzanne Willis. Also present were: Marsha Stickford, CRO Sean Davis,
Acting Chair Joe called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. with Skittles.
MINUTES: The Draft September minutes were approved as distributed. The treasurer reported receipt of a $50 donation from Austin CPA at 301 Haywood Street. The current balance is $687.64. Joe received the check when the Garden Club was working across the street at Knoxville Place. They were grateful for the work the club has been doing around the neighborhood.
APD/CRO UPDATE: Sean noted the tremendous cleanup by the DOT across from Jefferson. Several homeless campsites were cleared out. Joe noted that while it was impressive and a great job, what was cleared was private property owned by Naegle Sign Company. There are still more campsite leavings between the fence and the interstate. Marsha noted another problem spot for DOT at Haywood Road and Patton Avenue where weeds are growing so tall they block vision at the intersection. She will report the remaining campsites. Sean reported an incident on Park Avenue where the subject was arrested. and a couple who were living in an older F250 truck on Jefferson. They were referred to Homeward Bound and warned not to return. AnnaBeth noted that things have been better on Jefferson that it really makes a difference to have random checks. She noted that the lighting is better now. She also thanked her neighbors for their patience with the stretch limo parked there.
NEIGHBOR/BLOCK JESSIE UPDATES: Luke is having an 'open house' to share initial designs for his house on Rector Street this Saturday November 8 between 3:30 and 5. AnnaBeth reported that the Halloween Celebration on Jefferson was a big success. There was a pot luck and people showed up in costumes and the rain held off until six o'clock. She would love it to be an annual affair.
MAILING LIST: Joe noted that the list needs to be updated soon ( to reduce postage costs before the newsletter is sent out.)
NEWSLETTER: Joe completed one article about the Garden Club. AnnaBeth agreed to write one on Jefferson Socials. Articles due: Byron: Two Neighborhoods into One; Luke: The history of Yarrow Place; Rachel: Olympians in WECAN. The copy deadline is November 10 for a publication date of November 20
ANNUAL MEETING: The General Membership Meeting will be on Thursday December 4 at 6:30. Still looking for ways to increase attendance. Local micro brew tasting and pizza were suggested.
The main agenda item is election of new board members. Those whose first term expires in December are: Mike Kenton, Jo Anne Skinner and Suzanne Willis. They are each eligible for a second term and another slot is also open.
ASHEVILLE IN MOTION: Joe attended the symposium on Saturday October 25. The panel did have a good conversation looking at the big picture issues of generational change and expectations. They have an online survey and encourage everyone to respond. The link is http://ashevilleinmotion.metroquest.com which will be open for about a month. Their initial survey results should come back before the second symposium sometime in March.
NAC/CAN CONVERSATION: Joe announced that the next Coalition of Asheville Neighborhoods meeting would be at the Oakley Community Center on Monday November 10 from 7 to 9 pm. Marsha explained that there would be a conversation on affordable housing. There will be an overview on the situation and explanation of what's being done, how sites are selected and what challenges are faced by Jeff Staudinger, Assistant Director of Housing and Community Development, Scott Dedman from Mountain Housing Opportunities and Paul Reeves from Habitat for Humanity. Some challenges are infill, short term rental effects and even the effect of micro homes at high end costs.
NAC PROFILE: Joe on the Neighborhood Advisory Committee reported that they are working on the city website and will be including neighborhood profiles. He will fill out the basic information for the profile.
PARKS FACILITY STATUS: AnnaBeth asked for an update. Marsha explained that the old National Guard Armory was being prepared to receive the Parks maintenance equipment. There is no asbestos in the facility and when the move is complete the building would be taken down. At some point an RFP would go out probably for mixed use/ mixed income with affordable housing. The School of Government was working on an RFP but unknown what the status is. Marsha advised that she could talk to Nicki Reed to get someone to talk to us about it.
STORMWATER ISSUE: Rafael found that because of the funding the project is overseen by the state and not by the city. He met with an engineer and reviewed plans and could not find a temporary parking lot already located on the old ball field anywhere in the plans. Some legal action may be an option. The support letter proposed will be on hold for now.
NEW BELGIUM BREWERY: Marsha reported changes in the street closing on Craven Street moving from Logan through Waynesville to Waynesville through Hazel Mill. Progress is also moving on the rerouting Hazel Mill to Craven Street and Emma Road.
OLD DAVE STEEL APARTMENTS: Marsha indicated that some private development projects could be accessed on the ashevillenc.gov website under Development Mapper. AnnaBeth noted that sometimes projects are announced and then drop out of sight or change. There should be a way to make the process more visible to the community.
COMMUNITY GARDEN: There was a community gardening workshop on the same day as the AIM Symposium. Marsha repeated the city's resistance to manage these projects. She will contact Agricultural Extension Agent Allison Arnold.
The meeting adjourned at 7:42 p.m.
DRAFT Minutes submitted by Joe Fioccola.
December 4 next WECAN General Membership Meeting 6:30 pm at 64 Clingman Avenue
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