Benched: Asheville’s ‘hostile architecture’ and the fight over public space
Behind downtown’s shortened and disappearing benches is a struggle about the future of the city’s public space By David Forbes On Walnut Street, there exists a particularly odd bench, one that attracts comments from locals and tourists alike. It’s clearly supposed to be, well, a…
Against Asheville’s ‘stay in your place’ mantra
Above: locals protesting Gov. Pat McCrory’s appearance at Moogfest on April 24 . Photo by Scott Owen. Our latest opinion column is from leftist activist and former mayoral candidate Martin Ramsey, who attacks what he sees as an attitude of “stay-in-your-placeism” from political decision-makers in…
Asheville Council member Bothwell: no plans to resign after DWI charge
By David Forbes The Asheville Citizen-Times reported this morning that Asheville Council member Cecil Bothwell was charged with driving while impaired. Bothwell, driving a friend’s car, was pulled over last night by a state trooper with a blood alcohol level of .10. Bothwell, in a…
Kick-off parties for the Asheville Blade!
UPDATED June 24: I’m happy to announce Miss Mousie & the Rigmarole and Andrew J. Fletcher will play our June 29 shindig! It’s been a busy first few months for the Asheville Blade, with investigation, in-depth analysis, sparking a major public dialogue, sharing powerful stories and…
The Asheville Blade needs your support
Logo designed by Wendy Lou I want to thank everyone for the immense support you’ve given the Asheville Blade over the past weeks and months. I believe it shows a real hunger for hard-hitting news and sharp perspectives on our city and its times. Now…
The Last Shift
The log for the volunteer escorts at the Femcare clinic, June 7. Photo by Byron Ballard. At the end of this month FemCare, currently the last clinic in the Asheville area providing abortion services, will close. Last year, the clinic was controversially shut down for nearly…
Wading through the Asheville budget
By David Forbes The city of Asheville is on course to spend $147 million. That’s the amount of its annual budget, covering everything from parks to public art to smartphones for cops. Except for us urban policy masochists, the words “city budget” don’t usually make…
Stories of Asheville for the rest of us
In the five days since I posted An Asheville for the rest of us, I’ve been happily overwhelmed by the response. There’s clearly a real desire to discuss and address the issues raised; of how to create a functioning city for those of us that aren’t…
An Asheville for the rest of us
Skyline of downtown Asheville, looking toward the Flat Iron building. Photo by Max Cooper. By David Forbes The doldrums are over. “Real estate rebound in Asheville, N.C.” blared a recent headline from the Wall Street Journal. It’s the latest in a long, long line of…
What’s in a motion: the fight over innocence and a district attorney’s conduct
When I first put a story up here just over a month ago, I planned to use the Asheville Blade exactly once. But on April 16, I was fired from my job at Mountain Xpress after pushing to organize a union and reveal unethical behavior.…
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