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From YouTube: City Council Meeting – March 24, 2020
Description
March 24, 2020
Asheville City Council Meeting
A
Okay,
so
before
we
get
started
before
we
get
started
with
the
consent
agenda,
I
just
have
a
few
introductory
comments.
First
of
all,
thank
you
to
all
the
residents
that
are
complying
with
the
emergency
mandates
that
have
been
put
out
locally
and
statewide,
and
County
wise
and
big
thanks
to
the
staff,
who've
been
working
incredibly
hard
to
keep
our
vital
services
happening
and
I
just
urge
the
public
to
help
them
stay
safe
by
complying
with
social
distancing,
as
it
relates
to
any
city
staff,
city
and
county
staff.
A
A
We
are
trying
to
balance
the
need
of
our
community
to
be
safe
and
healthy,
and
the
need
to
keep
the
government
business
going
with
that
in
mind.
The
our
public
input
is
welcomed.
We'll
continue
to
explore
ways
to
get
public
input
while
observing
smart
interaction.
We
received
130
public
comments
for
this
agenda.
96
of
the
comments
were
in
support
of
the
urban
forester
and
the
urban
forest
master
plan.
Other
comments
range
from
the
mayor's
additional
authority
to
respond
to
the
Cova
19
pandemic.
A
A
Just
I
just
urge
the
citizens
and
the
residents
and
everybody
to
be
patient
with
us
and
to
be
patient
with
each
other.
While
we
all
navigate
this
emergency
I'm
going
to
move
to
the
consent,
agenda
and
I'm
going
to
ask
that
we
vote
on
the
item
a1
individually
and
that
that
must
be
voted
on
only
by
the
council
members
that
are
present
and
that
will
obviously
need
to
be
unanimous.
So
the
motion
is
to
allow
remote
participation
by
up
to
three
council
members
during
public
meetings
during
the
duration
of
the
locally
declared
state
of
emergency.
A
A
A
C
A
C
C
So
item
G
is
is
a
resolution
relating
to
the
I
26
connector
project.
As
folks
know,
this
project
has
been
going
on
for
gosh,
thirty
plus
years
here
in
town.
This.
This
resolution
is
in
response
to
the
current
public
comment
period
on
the
final
environmental
impact
statement
for
this
project.
The
comment
period
on
the
Final
EIS
is
has
been
extended
to
April
17th.
If
people
are
interested
in
making
comments,
you
can
see
what
the
city
has
done.
C
It
is
intended
to
meet
the
the
Komet
deadline,
which
originally
was
April
3rd,
which
is
why,
which
is
why
we
push
to
have
it
on
this
agenda
and
and
I
just
want
to
say.
You
know
and
thank
NCDOT
publicly
it's
in
the
resolution,
but
thank
them
publicly
for
the
very
close
collaboration
that
we
have
had
with
them.
For
the
last
four
years
on
this
project,
we
have
gotten
a
lot
done.
C
We
have
improved
this
project
immeasurably
and
I
really
appreciate
the
the
efforts
and
the
resources
that
NCDOT,
both
in
Raleigh
and
here
at
the
Division,
have
put
toward
making
this
a
better
project,
and
those
efforts
would
continue.
Just
so
folks
know
throughout
the
life
of
this
project.
The
city
will
continue
to
be
a
critical
key
partner
within
CBOT,
as
this
project
moves
forward.
D
A
it
says,
speakers
were
previously
allowed
three
minutes
at
a
normal
speaking
rate
of
140
to
160
words
per
minute.
That
would
be
420
to
480
words.
I
therefore
suggest
the
that
the
proposed
350
word
limit
be
increased
at
450
words,
one
can
read
450
words
in
less
than
3
minutes,
so
450
words
should
not
be
an
undue
burden
on
the
council.
Members
on
consent
F,
particularly
we
had
a
comment.
D
I
just
pray
that
the
mayor
uses
the
new
powers
with
even
greater
skill
and
her
ethical
example
of
emergency
power
is
good
enough
to
be
recognized
and
replicated.
Most
leaders
need
to
do
those
things
right
now
with
examples
like
Trump
and
Senator
burr.
We
are
seeing
that
there
is
plenty
of
low
quality
leaders
out
there.
I,
basically
trust
our
mayor
10
times
more
than
Trump
or
the
people
I
per.
We
need
to
pray.
The
leaders
we
need
now
are
much
more
the
case
than
the
frequent
fallings
that
do
not
make
the
news
I.
D
Don't
f
should
also
be
about
mitigating
crisis
stressors,
which
lead
to
poor
citizen
morale.
Morell
needs
to
be
part
of
what
the
local
co
food
19
response
and
recovery
is
about
as
well
as
modeling
for
the
state
and
national
level.
For
example,
we
are
going
to
deal
with
things
like
a
noise
ordinance
that
still
focuses
on
citizens
to
use
the
ludicrous
CEO.
A
noise
ordinance,
Appeals,
Board
process,
people
staying
as
sincere
as
possible
and
not
being
nuisances
is
actually
a
big
behavioral
thing
of
this
crisis
lasts
as
long
as
it
might
use.
D
These
powers
wisely
feel
free
to
direct
a
PD
to
maintain
order
in
an
effective
and
just
manner.
Then
he
goes
on
to
talk
about
the
noise
ordinance,
which
I
will
not
read
his
comments
on
that
also
on
the
mayor's
powers.
We
have
another
comment.
I
should
hope
that
this
would
include
power
to
implement
widespread
testing
for
the
novel
kovat
19
disease.
This
is
a
Nia
unique
opportunity
for
Asheville
to
get
ahead
of
the
curve
of
many
other
cities
in
the
u.s.
D
D
Believe
the
clause
regarding
to
expanding
bicycle
and
pedestrian
infrastructure
by
a
mere
5
miles
is
severely
inadequate,
particularly
in
regards
to
the
scale
of
the
I-20
Sikh
expansion
project.
Well,
I
can
agree
that
the
road
infrastructure
is
not
ideal.
In
many
circumstances,
the
solution
to
the
problem
has
been
overlooked,
the
solution
being
making
Asheville
and
its
surrounding
area
it's
more
connected
by
a
fully
separated
pedestrian
bicycle
pathways.
These
take
up
far
less
room
than
expanding
roads
can
be
implemented
smoothly
into
existing
infrastructure
and
will
lessen
the
amount
of
dry
on
the
road.
D
Imagine
if
you
will
that
people
who
live
in
the
southern
region
of
Asheville's
metro
area
had
the
possibility
to
bike
along
the
projective
psycho
path,
all
the
way
downtown
or
if
there
were
pathways
to
easily
get
to
a
main
corridor
to
utilize
the
direct
bus
route
that
would
run
more
frequently
than
every
30
minutes.
The
number
of
people
on
roads
and
cars
would
vastly
decrease
and
decreases
the
traffic
load.
It's
time
for
Asheville
to
put
its
money
where
its
mouth
is
and
make
itself
into
a
bike
friendly
area.
D
If
smaller
municipalities
can
implement
such
changes
like
Brevard
than
surely.
This
is
within
reason
when
I
think
of
a
bike
friendly
faith
place
I,
think
of
places
where
there
are
parks
with
writing
distance
from
one's
home
and
where
one
is
not
intimidated
to
merely
ride
the
bus
around
town.
Almost
every
other
media
Mecca
excuse
me
for
biking
has
features
except
Asheville.
D
Another
one
on
I
26,
please
support
the
I
26
the
FIS
resolution
unanimously.
The
fact
that
Asheville
government
and
citizens
have
run
such
concessions,
as
we
have
from
d-o-t
is
almost
astonishing,
is
the
fact
that
the
state
has
already
more
miles
of
road
pavement
per
capita
than
any
other
refuses
to
slow
its
20th
century
highway
building
joke
amount,
even
though
the
induced
sprawl
development
on
fossil
fuel
pollution
in
and
Courage's
our
primary
contributors
to
our
21st
century
climate
emergency.
D
If
we,
if
all
we
can
continue
to
do,
is
advocate
point-by-point
for
minimizing
the
destructive
impacts
and
adding
the
benefits
we
have
been
seeking,
then
that's
exactly
what
we
need
to
do
now.
There
item
on
I
26.
I
support
the
adoption
of
the
resolution
on
the
I
26
connector
project.
This
adoption
will
move
the
project
forward,
but
gives
the
city
and
the
french
broad
MPL
the
latitude
to
ensure
that
the
project
meets
the
needs
of
all
transportation,
not
just
cars
and
trucks.
D
A
A
A
E
D
One
public
comment
regarding
this:
thank
you
for
preserving
good
governance
in
this
time
of
crisis.
By
postponing
the
public
hearings
on
the
controversial
Collier,
Alva
and
Luigi,
and
the
still
debated
open
space
amendment
both
should
wait
until
in-person
public
comment
and
the
board
Commission
meetings
can
safely
be
restored,
since
they
are
not
dependent
on
external
deadlines.
Thank.
A
A
Have
a
motion
in
a
second
and
I
open,
there's
a
public
hearing
but
I
there's
no
public
hearing
for
that.
I
mean
no
comments,
so
all
those
in
favor
and
you
you
all
on
the
phone
can
just
jump
in
you-
don't
have
to
go
after
each
other
cuz
I'll
ask
for
anybody
opposed
all
those
in
favor
aye,
good
job,
any
opposed
all
right.
So
now
we
move
to
item
4c,
I
moved.
E
A
C
A
Come
here
I'm,
sorry,
all
those
okay,
any
opposed;
okay,
so
unfinished
business.
This
is
the
second
reading
of
ordinance
number
47
94
an
ordinance
amending
conditional
zoning,
which
was
ordinance
number
4602
for
the
rad
lofts
project,
look
located
at
146
and
179
Robert
Street.
The
public
comment
has
already
been
received
at
the
last
meeting.
This
is
just
a
second
reading,
so
I'm
going
to
ask
for
a
vote
and
in
this
case
the
folks
here
will
hold
up
their
hand
and
then
we'll
we'll
vote
individually
from
the
folks
on
the
phone.
So
all
those.
A
G
G
A
A
A
B
G
Good
afternoon,
members
of
council
I'm
Sam
powers,
Director
of
Community
and
Economic
Development.
The
action
requested
for
this
item
is
really
twofold.
Today
it
is
consideration
of
participation
in
the
one
Buncombe
fund
and
to
set
a
date
of
April
14th
for
a
public
hearing
for
participating
in
the
one
Buncombe
fund.
G
G
G
Fund
is
a
really
a
partnership.
It's
partnership
between
local
governments,
including
the
county,
the
city,
the
chamber
of
commerce,
business
leaders,
achieving
business
leaders,
including
the
chamber
of
commerce,
mountain
biz,
Works
and
the
land
of
sky
Regional
Council.
The
program
at
its
heart
is
a
relief
program.
The
mission
of
this
fund,
the
one
Buncombe
fund,
would
be
to
support
the
basic
needs
of
individuals
and
businesses
impacted
by
kovat
19.
G
G
Since
this
outbreak
of
kovat
19,
thousands
of
jobs
in
our
community
have
been
reported
as
furloughed
lost
or
in
parallel,
while
programs
may
exist
to
support
members
of
our
community.
Many
of
the
individuals
impacted
by
kovat
19
will
not
be
eligible
people
like
independent
contractors,
for
example,
while
there
are
also
programs
being
designed
to
support
businesses,
many
of
the
businesses
impacted
by
kovat
19
will
not
be
able
to
sustain
operations
until
disaster
relief.
Funding
is
available.
G
How
would
this
fund
be
governed?
The
Buncombe
County
Service
Foundation,
which
is
a
501c3
that's
been
in
existence
for
many
years,
would
serve
as
the
fiduciary
for
the
fund
for
all
of
the
donations
that
would
come
in
the
governance
structure
would
be
through
a
board
of
directors.
Seven
members
that
include
members
from
local
government,
banking,
business
and
the
philanthropic
community
would
all
serve
on
the
board.
There
would
also
be
a
technical
committee
that
would
include
advisors
from
legal
finance,
fundraising
and
program
support.
The
administration
of
the
two
components
of
the
program.
G
G
Support
component
individuals
that
have
lost
employment
due
to
kovat
19
will
be
eligible.
The
use
of
funds
would
be
for
life
essential
needs
caused
by
the
covent
19
public
health
crises
such
as
utility
bills,
mortgages
overnight,
lodging
etc
and
I'm
going
to
go
back
in
a
second
well
just
I'll.
Stop.
G
We
have
a
comment.
Nee
male
comment
that
some
things
were
not
explicitly
mentioned
in
the
staff
report,
and
that
is
because
this
is
still
rapidly
developing
and
all
of
the
final
details
have
not
been
decided.
The
board,
which
is
meeting
on
this
daily,
would
be
determining
those
someone
mentioned,
for
example,
gripped.
G
It
would
be
hard
for
me
to
imagine
that
RIT
would
not
be
eligible
if
and
here's
where,
where
it's
important,
the
Health
and
Human
Services
Department
will
screen
applicants
to
ensure
that
other
potential
sources
are
exhausted,
including
public
assistance
programs
and
the
services
of
our
community
partners.
So
the
Health
and
Human
Services
would
be
the
screener
of
the
potential
applicants,
the
other
key
thing,
the
direct
assistance
grants
would
be
paid
to
service
providers
not
directly
to
individuals
and
that's
the
model
that
that's
being
done
now
as
well.
G
Small
business
support
the
eligibility
for
small
businesses
impacted
would
be
businesses
that
are
currently
defined
as
businesses
with
less
than
50
employees.
A
lot
of
different
definitions
for
small
business
of
the
United
States
SBA
defines
small
businesses
as
a
much
larger
group,
I
think
even
up
to
500
employees,
and
so
we
want
to
make
sure
with
the
the
limited
funds
that
would
be
available,
that
we
actually
hope
are
going
to
be
substantial
but
but
limited.
Given
the
need,
the
the
preliminary
definition
would
be
50
or
less
employees.
Usage
of
funds.
G
Business
operations,
including
payroll
accounts,
payable,
fixed
debts,
other
bills
that
the
business
is
unable
to
pay.
This
would
be
through
low-interest
loans
of
up
to
$10,000,
with
no
payments
for
six
months.
This
would
be
in
essence,
low-cost
bridge
funding
to
help
businesses
stay
open
and
limit
job
losses
until
businesses
can
qualify
for
longer-term
disaster
funding
from
SBA
or
other
entities.
G
This
program
component
would
be
administered
by
Mountain
biz
Works,
a
non-profit
community
development,
financial
institution
which
will
provide
the
Lund
loan
underwriting
and
it
been-
and
there
was
also
a
comment-
the
the
staff
important
notes
that
initially
the
the
loan
program
is
looking
at
a
five
point:
five
percent
interest
rate.
There
is
some
discussion
about
that.
The
city
attorney
I
think
could
help
when
we
get
to
the
discussion.
But
I
think
there
is
some
requirements
that
the
the
rates
need
to
be
close
to.
G
What
market
rates
would
be
to
keep
us
from
getting
into
other
kinds
of
trouble
in
offering
non-competitive
ones.
And
so,
if
you
have
questions,
I
think
he
has
been
doing
some
research
and
could
can
add
to
that
again.
This
is
still
all
being
developed
and
we
would
be
able
to
provide
I
think
much
more
information
to
you
at
the
date
of
the
public
hearing
on
on
April
14th,
but
we
felt
it
was
important
to
go
ahead
and
request
the
the
council's
interest
in
participating
and
to
try
and
schedule
the
public
hearing
day
the.
G
As
we've
noted,
this
would
be
considered
an
economic
development
assistance
and
for
that
reason
a
public
hearing
is
required.
That's
part
of
the
motion
is
to
schedule
the
public
hearing
from
a
financial
impact.
The
money
for
this
is
proposed
to
come
from
the
city's
fund
balance
for
an
appropriation
of
a
hundred
thousand
dollars.
That
would
require
a
budget
amendment
which
would
also
be
considered
at
the
April
14th
meeting.
There
is
a
suggestion
motion
that
you
have
in
your
staff
report
and
I'm
available.
C
G
Can
tell
you
who
some
of
them
are
I'm,
not
sure
that
they
all
have
been
appointed
or
agreed
to
serve
yet
from
the
city.
Richard
white,
our
assistant
city
manager,
will
be
serving
on
the
board.
I
just
went
blank
Phillip
Hardin,
who
works
in
Health
and
Human
Services
for
the
County
would
be
the
county's
representative.
G
C
G
We
see
it
is
being
built
as
we
as
we
speak.
Suzanne
the
ferry
who
is
recently
retired
from
First
Bank
has
extreme
amount
of
experience
serving
with
nonprofits
and
financial
institutions
has
agreed
to
serve
I
think
there
are
a
couple
of
other
folks
I'm
a
little
hesitant
to
name
because
I'm
not
sure
that
they
have
agreed
yet.
G
But
if
you
think
of
folks
in
the
community
who
have
philanthropic
experience
banking
experience,
those
are
the
folks
that
we're
trying
to
look
for
we're
also
trying
to
look
for
small
businesses,
minority-owned
businesses
and
so
we've
reached
out
to
those
folks
as
well
and
I
think
we
would
certainly
be
able
to
report
back
to
you.
You
know,
what's
what's
that?
What's
their
acceptance
has
been
made
and-
and
there
was
a
discussion
about
how
do
we
get
folks
like
from
the
accounting,
the
CPA
profession,
even
with
the
deadline
being
extended
for
taxes?
G
It's
really
really
really
hard
to
get
somebody
to
be
pulled
away
from
advising
their
clients
right
now,
somebody
from
a
CPA
firm,
but
that
was
a
discussion
point
as
well
and
that
as
the
board
evolves
and
the
Technical
Committee
evolved.
Certainly,
there
could
be
opportunities
because
this
is
going
to
be.
This
is
going
to
be
for
a
while
and
all
going
really
active,
Technical,
Committee
and
board.
C
C
Biz
works
for
for
agreeing
to
manage
the
business
part
of
it.
This
is
this
is
one
of
those
things
that
gives
me
hope
in
the
midst
of
this
crisis
organizations
coming
together
again,
given
the
lack
of
leadership
that
we're
seeing
from
the
federal
level,
you
know,
there's
there's
a
lot
that
we
can
do
in
this
community,
and
this
is
a
this
is
a
perfect
example
and.
G
And
I
think
we
hope-
and
there
may
have
been
some
discussions-
that
if
we
can
get
a
base
amount
established
in
the
fund
that
there
could
be
matching
donations-
or
you
know,
maybe
even
donations,
that
do
more
than
just
match
what
the
contribution
is
and
so
and
it's
a
it's
a
way
for
folks
every
day.
Folks
in
the
community.
Who
would
like
to
be
able
to
make
a
difference
to
contribute
and
to
do
it
in
a
way
that
helps
them.
G
A
G
Start
getting
yeah,
thank
you
sometimes
I
mean
Kippur.
That's
a
great
question
and
I've
actually
should
have
probably
covered
that
I
think
the
the
request
was
so
Buncombe
County
is
holding
their
board
of
commissioners
is
holding
a
called
meeting
tonight
right
now
to
discuss
this.
The
request
was
going
to
all
of
the
other
municipalities
to
consider
holding
a
calls
meeting.
If
we
can
get
the
thumb
established
with
a
base
amount,
we
would
I
think
be
looking
to
go
ahead
and
start
receiving
applications.
G
G
G
Councilman
Councilwoman
Smith.
It
is
my
understanding
that
if
other
sources
of
assistance
through
Health
and
Human
Services
have
been
reviewed
and
they're
determined
not
to
be
other
sources,
then
then
I
feel
sure
rent
would
be
just
like
a
mortgage
would
be
an
eligible
activity
or
an
eligible
expense.
Yes,
ma'am.
E
A
Any
opposed
okay,
great
so
that
motion
passes
any
I
believe
we've
covered
all
the
public
comments.
Okay,
all
the
public
comments
that
are
on
the
agenda
and
I
just
remind
people
that
all
the
public
comments
have
been
made
available
to
City
Council
as
well
as
they
will
be
attached
to
the
minutes
for
this
meeting.
So
when,
when
we
published
the
next
set
of
minutes,
they
will
be
attached
I.
D
B
E
We've
certainly
Buncombe
County
and
other
folks
been
asking
us-
is
to
help
keep
folks
informed
in
terms
of
what's
going
on.
So
those
of
you
who
are
probably
watching
this
or
some
of
the
more
well-informed
folks
around
the
county,
but
one
thing
that
Macomb
County
has
been
asking
a
lot
of
folks
to
do
is
to
sign
up
for
their
alerts
from
the
Buncombe
County
from
welcome
County,
and
so
for
those
of
you
who
are
watching
this,
and
you
have
your
cell
phones
nearby.
E
You
need
to
text
the
word
B
C
alert,
so
it's
B,
C
al
ERT
to
the
number
eight
eight,
eight,
seven,
seven
seven.
So
the
eight
eight
eight
seven
seven
seven
is
where
you
would
enter
the
phone
number
and
again
you're
typing
in
b
c
al
e
RT,
and
when
you
send
that
you
should
be
getting
a
text
back
very
quickly.
That
will
ask
for
your
zip
code
and
you
want
to
put
in
your
zip
code
and
send
it
back.
And
then
what
will
likely
happen
is
you'll
get
another
text
back
from
them.
E
You'd
like
enter
that
as
well,
so
this
isn't
a
scam
again,
it's
B
C
alert
to
eight
eight,
eight,
seven,
seven
seven.
That
is
a
way
to
get
yourself
updated
in
terms
of
what
is
going
on.
It's
very
important
to
do
that,
because
we're
getting
a
lot
of
good
information
from
Buncombe
County.
If
you
don't
want
to
sign
up
for
that
or
you
want
to
check
on
a
more
regular
basis.
There
is
also
a
website
too,
to
keep
you
up
to
date.
E
That
website
is
Buncombe,
County
org,
slash,
B,
C
ready,
so
Buncombe
County
org,
slash
BC
ready.
They
have
dates
on
a
daily
basis.
They
usually
do
a
briefing
I
think
around
around
4
o'clock.
Every
day,
that's
post
it
to
YouTube.
It's
opposed
to
their
website.
There's
a
lot
of
very
good
information
out.
There.
I
think
there,
with
all
with
all
that's
happening,
a.
E
B
F
Ok,
this
is
key
in
light
of
everything
that
is
proven.
I
gained
I
would
just
ask
for
a
few
considerations
from
Council
members.
I,
don't
know
when
we're
going
to
have
our
national
budget
work
sessions,
but
the
first
item
I'd
like
to
address
is
that
I
would
hope
that
we
would
make
considerations
for
our
funding,
the
physical
legal
and
our
budget
for
the
program
that
the
administer
at
the
courthouse
were
addictions.
F
We
have
about
three
million
dollars
set
aside
in
our
land.
Banking
and
I
know
that
that's
not
really
enough
for
land
banking
in
itself,
but
maybe
taking
a
portion
of
that
or
some
other
portion
from
our
affordable
house
from
our
affordable
housing
and
putting
into
the
house
of
trust,
fund
and
I
think
some
sort
of
emergency
addiction
fund
for
this
year.