The need for additional housing in the Asheville area has been well documented, so the potential for new home construction in our area is welcomed. However, the conditional zoning request by Kevin Jackson for The Meadows at Haw Creek, to rezone 26 acres of farm and forested land in the Haw Creek community from RS-4 (four units per acre) to zoning that would allow 95 homes, is clearly in conflict with the community’s interests.
Most importantly, the request is in direct conflict with Asheville’s comprehensive plan that was just completed in 2018. Residents of the Haw Creek community participated in the planning process and fully expected that the basic tenets of the plan would be adhered to in future rezoning requests.
There were six main themes in the comprehensive plan that laid out the key ideas for the city’s future growth and development. The proposed project — rezoning from the allowed 49 homes to 95 homes and removing 80% of the mature trees — would not meet any of the themes in the plan as outlined below.
The Livable Built Environment theme included directing future growth to identified growth areas, improving quality of development, enhancing preservation of neighborhood character and historic resources, increasing walkability and bikeable infrastructure, and improving ease of getting around.
The Harmony with the Natural Environment theme included supporting growth synergies between the built and natural environment, and fostering resilient redevelopment that is responsive to climate change.
A Resilient Economy theme included increasing affordable housing (note the homes would be sold at market rates) and promoting the public interest across the built environment.
A Healthy Community theme included enhancing the public safety of the public realm. The Interwoven Equity theme included expanding neighborhood planning and supporting strategies for livability and connectivity. The sixth theme, Responsible Regionalism, included preserving and celebrating regional environmental systems.
Again, the proposed conditional zoning request would violate all these planning recommendations.
Lastly, as part of the comprehensive planning process, the city asked local neighborhoods what their main concerns were related to future growth, and these were captured in the Neighborhood Plans on a Page (Appendix C, a guide for the city to use in setting priorities and facilitating improvements for residents). In 2018, the Haw Creek community highlighted inadequate infrastructure, walkability/bikeability, stormwater management, access to recreation/green space, traffic and infill housing concerns. All these concerns would be exasperated by the proposed rezoning.
As an Asheville and Haw Creek resident, I must ask our City Council members: Why would you approve a rezoning that is so openly opposed by the community and in direct conflict with a well-thought-out comprehensive plan?
The Haw Creek community is not opposed to all development — we have supported both apartment and new home developments in the past. So, this is not a NIMBY situation. Our residents simply want reasonable development that meets the vision of a healthy, livable and connected community. I urge the City Planning and Zoning Commission and ultimately the City Council to reject the proposed conditional zoning request for The Meadows at Haw Creek.
— Doug Baughman
Asheville
