Public outrage finally gets a hearing as the latest city budget promises more of the same and the rift between the public and City Hall widens Above: Council at their dais. File photo by Max Cooper. After over a decade of mounting distrust in Asheville…

Asheville’s bus system needs real support to help thousands of locals. But the city’s proposed budget puts money to top-level staff and policing rather than the needs of the public. That must change Above: Part of the map of Asheville’s bus system, which thousands of…

Rolled and Roasted’s history of blatant transphobia, mistreatment of workers and unsafe conditions lie behind a supposed local business success story Above: A Haywood Street billboard advertising Rolled and Roasted alongside other local businesses. Showing how deep the rot runs in multiple businesses in town,…

With the fight over the Flatiron looming, here’s a primer about the many battles over one of Asheville’s fastest-growing and most hated industries Above: the Flatiron building, which the owner and a hotelier are pushing to convert into a luxury hotel, kicking out the roughly…

Beyond the glamour of Asheville’s name and the millions spent on PR lies an industry that is anything but natural or generous. As more locals are underpaid and pushed out, we must delve into the history of Asheville elites’ obsession with tourism, its ties to…

Water lines break, City Hall’s communications fail, the public’s questions go unanswered and locals are left wondering if the water’s safe to drink Above: documents from a press packet handed out by city officials this afternoon, depicting a somewhat sunnier picture (and clearer water) than…

Behind the controversies that weren’t discussed, the Airbnb presentation that wasn’t presented and the closed door dilemmas looming over a brief, bizarre Asheville City Council meeting  Above: Asheville City Council. File photo by Max Cooper As a place where systems of power touch the ground, a local…

As public pressure to fight a state-imposed racist gerrymander mounts, Council finally breaks their silence, revealing more delays and refusing to challenge a part of the law giving them another year in office Above: Mayor Esther Manheimer, who finally responded to mounting public outcry about…

The giant 1920s-era murals in City Hall are drenched in an ugly racist history, depicting a mythical all-white Appalachia and a glorification of genocide. It’s time for them to go. Above: ‘The White Man’s Family Council’ (yes, that is actually its name), the Clifford Addams…

Despite claims of a new era of transparency, the selection of one of Asheville’s most powerful jobs — city attorney — is being decided behind closed doors, with no public input and few clear answers Above: A binder of city attorney candidates and a confidentiality…