Asheville Council OKs new housing developments near Biltmore Village and Lake Julian

ASHEVILLE - City Council approved a total of 560 housing units at its Dec. 12 meeting across two different housing developments at Lake Julian in Arden and Fairview Road in South Asheville.

Discussion lingered around the 269 apartments and 12 townhomes, totaling 281 units, proposed near Biltmore Village on an 8.25-acre site where the Screen Door antiques now sits. The development was proposed by Charlotte-based developer Catalyst Capital Partners at 115 Fairview Road.

Ultimately, council voted 5-2 to support the project, with council members Sheneika Smith and Kim Roney opposing.

It includes two multifamily residential buildings, three fourplexes, 333 parking spaces, a pool and an amenity building.

Earlier in July, a Screen Door Facebook post confirmed that the property was under contract, but that “there was not yet a date” for the sale of the land. In previous Citizen Times reporting, Beau McIntosh, a managing partner with Catalyst, said the current owner will vacate the property upon the completion of the sale. According to site plans, the existing building will be demolished.

The conditional zoning request was unanimously approved by Planning and Zoning Commission Sept. 14.

What about affordability?

The project proposed 20% of its units, or 57, to be affordable at or below 80% of the area median income. That's an annual income of $47,600 for one person, or $54,000 for a two-person household. It will also accept 29 housing choice vouchers, which typically target households at 50% AMI and below, according to the city's Affordable Housing Officer Sasha Vrtunski.

Language in the project conditions specified that those units would not only be reserved for voucher holders, but they would receive "priority" as to the leasing of those units.

Based on Asheville Housing Authority data, 95% of tenant mobility voucher holders have incomes in the 0-30% range and 44% of those voucher holders are African American households.

In November, council heard a report from local nonprofit Thrive Asheville, which called for more housing targeting incomes in the 30-50% AMI level, with 80% AMI considered still out of reach for many families, noting significant racial disparities between median household incomes, such as "drastic gaps" between white and Black households.

This report was the backdrop not only for the conditional zoning request, which would approve the project itself, but for a Land Use Incentive Grant request that came before council that same evening.

Created in 2011, the LUIG program is intended to incentivize affordable housing for area developments. It uses future projected tax revenue to fund affordable rental units.

While the LUIG request was ultimately approved in a 4-3 vote — with councilmembers Smith, Roney and Antanette Mosley opposing — conversation lingered largely around the policy itself, with some concern from council members that it does not target deep enough levels of affordability.

"Because LUIG is a tax incentive, the current policy hinders our ability to leverage tax dollars for more deeply affordably units," said council member Antanette Mosley.

A presentation from Vrtunksi, and council discussion, noted LUIG is being reviewed at a policy level, beginning in the Housing and Community Development Committee. It was not originally designed to produce units for lower income residents, at 50% AMI or below, without additional funding layers like vouchers or other sources.

The city is currently working with Enterprise Community Partners on an Affordable Housing Plan which will include recommendations on affordable housing incentives, including LUIG and the Housing Trust Fund.

Catalyst's project qualified for 16 years of taxes paid. The developer is requesting a 21- year grant "due to additional construction expense and the location," according to the Dec. 12 staff report. Staff came down in the middle, recommending 18 years of taxes paid.

The applicant requests a total grant of $4.56 million. That's payments of up to $253,333 per year for 18 years.

Residents weigh in

There was support from some public commenters for the project including Andy Paul, lead organizer with Asheville for All, who highlighted the project's location — near Biltmore, Mission Hospital and downtown — and a diversity of unit and home sizes.

He was there to support not only the conditional zoning and more housing capacity in Asheville, but the LUIG request as well.

“If we decide LUIG isn’t perfect and vote it down on an ad hoc basis, we are closing a gap, but we are closing that gap by bringing down those who are struggling down to the level of those who are really struggling," Paul said. "That’s not how I want to close this gap.”

Resident Bobby Smith shared concerns with council around increased traffic, congestion and speed on already busy corridors.

"This project would devastate our community," Smith said.

He said he's been working for years to slow traffic on nearby Stoner Road, which now runs beside The District apartments, toward River Mill Lofts. He asked for developers to go back to the drawing board and return with something "less intrusive."

Council OKs 279 units proposed in Arden

Also on Dec. 12, developers behind a 279-unit project proposed near the banks of Lake Julian came before City Council for the second time, this time clinching approval after making tweaks to renewable energy offerings.

The Arden development is planned for one of the several peninsulas of land that extend into Lake Julian, a 300-acre public lake in South Asheville, at 2 Butler Road.

Asheville City Council approved the project in a 5-1 vote, with council member Sage Turner opposing.

Mayor Esther Manheimer recused herself from the vote and discussion as the applicant is represented by attorney Craig Justus, who practices at the Van Winkle Law Firm, where Manheimer is also an attorney.

Council member Maggie Ullman voiced appreciation for the project changes, like the inclusion of solar panels.

"I'm pleased with that, I'm excited for that," she said. "I'd love more, always. But I feel you all listened."

The development plans five residential buildings, 376 surface parking spaces, 24 garage spaces, 22 accessible spaces and 40 bicycle spaces, an outdoor pool and other amenities. The proposal includes 10% of units, or 28, to be designated affordable at 80% AMI and below. Half of the affordable units, or 14, would accept vouchers.

Georgia-based Flournoy Development Group is also the developer of another Asheville apartment complex, "The District," on Fairview Road, across the road from the Screen Door.

The initial Nov. 14 presentation resulted in a continuance, with council members expressing a lack of appetite for the project as proposed.

Specifically, members voiced a desire for more affordable and family size units and a greater dedication to renewable energy, particularly given that the parcel qualifies for an energy community tax credit bonus due to its proximity to the retired Lake Julian coal plant, which shut down in 2020.

November renewable energy offerings included bike parking, maximized windows for "passive energy efficiency" and around 20 electrical vehicle charging stations, which some council members classified as the "bare minimum."

At the Dec. 12 meeting, developers returned with some new project conditions. These include:

• A new solar array condition: The project will install a minimum of 30 total solar panels (approximately 6 feet, 9 inches by 3 feet, 9 inches each) on the site at optimal locations on the roof area of the garage buildings.

• New unit count condition: The project will include a mixture of one-, two- and three-bedroom units. A minimum of 14 three-bedroom units will be provided.

• New drive access condition: Access to to the project will be provided by both a new driveway from Plott Place and a second full access road off the adjacent commercial property along Julian Shoals Drive.

• The Project will include bicycle-friendly signage near the two entry/exit points to the Project and bicycle-safe storm drainage grate covers will be installed throughout the Project.

Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on Twitter at @slhonosky. Please support local, daily journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville developments OK'd for 560 new units