River Arts District proposal would see 240 apartments off Riverside Drive; 5% affordable

ASHEVILLE - After receiving approval for a mixed-use project in the River Arts District, the developer is looking to change up the plan, proposing to build only apartments in the area, while scrapping the adaptive reuse of a historic building and planned commercial space.

A mixed-use development at 179 Riverside Drive was approved in 2021, but Tampa-based developer BRN Development submitted a conditional zoning amendment on Feb. 6, ditching the mixed-use plan to instead build 240 apartments in the seven-story building — an increase of 104 units from the original submission.

The project site is across the river from New Belgium Brewery and adjacent to Cotton Mill Studios.

During a neighborhood meeting on the development, Peter Alberice with the architecture firm MHA Works stated the proposed amendment was the result of a old mill building's recent collapse and suggestions from local advocacy groups to include more residential space and less commercial space.

The final size and number of units have not been determined, according to neighborhood meeting notes.

The 2021 City Council vote on the previous application split 5-2. Objections on the development came from Council Members Kim Roney and Sage Turner, who criticized the number of apartments deemed as "affordable."

In the Feb. 6 Technical Review Committee application, only 5% of the residential units for the development have been proposed as "affordable" for those earning under 80% of Asheville's area median income. By that metric, if the development is built to 240 units, only 12 will be deemed "affordable."

In Asheville, one would have to earn $47,600 a year to qualify for an apartment at 80% AMI, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2023.

Part of Asheville Cotton Mill collapsed, no longer included in project

The project is one of many residential developments proposed to come to Asheville's history-rich former industrial center.

The land used to be home to the Asheville Cotton Mill building, where a section of the building would have been reused as an entrance for the previously proposed mixed-use plan.

"We're going to renovate the mill building just to the south of the stack, and repurpose that," project developer Brennan Smith said to the Citizen Times in a 2022 article about the old development plans. "We want to tie that into the personality of the project, so the main entry will be from Riverside Drive and lead into the commercial space."

The Citizen Times reached out to Smith but did not hear back before deadline.

Between the 2021 approval and the 2024 amendment, the building slated for reuse — described as the "ruinous remnants" of the mill in the National Register of Historic Places — collapsed and was approved for demolition in 2023.

Only the foundation and smokestack of the building remain, where the smokestack will be integrated into the building's final design.

The reused building would've contained several "green features," including a green roof and rainwater harvesting.

Constructed in 1887 by the C.E. Graham Manufacturing Company, Asheville Cotton Mill was an early industrial base for the city, where the mill produced textiles used in both world wars. The mill closed in 1953 and later suffered a devastating fire in 1995.

In 2019, Jettie Rae's, a highly-reviewed Asheville oyster house, proposed an expansion location on the site. The project was withdrawn after public criticism.

Formerly owned by RiverLink, development area is a 'brownfields site'

The area is in a floodplain and is defined as a "brownfields site" by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. Brownfield sites are abandoned, idled or underused properties where the threat of environmental contamination has hindered redevelopment.

The project is close to the Wilma Dykeman Greenway, where the two development areas are gated off. The site closest to the greenway will be turned into "grass parking" containing concrete wheel stops and will not see any apartment construction.

The gated area on the east side of Riverside Drive will be the apartment complex. Parking for the apartments will be located underneath the development's six stories of residential housing.

The conditional zoning amendment will have to pass through the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council.

More: Karen Cragnolin Park greenway is now open; former brownfield site is missing link

More: Answer Woman: What is the fenced-in area along the greenway in the River Arts District?

Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: River Arts District could see 240 apartments near New Belgium Brewery