[Regarding “Liftoff: TDA Approves About $10 Million for Community Projects but Not Affordable Housing,” May 1, Xpress:]
The move to put one-third of occupancy tax revenues to capital projects is going in the right direction, but I think it could have gone further.
We need to protect visitors’ experiences with more police patrols, a continuous downtown shuttle originating from a satellite parking lot, better sidewalks, turning the pit of doom into a busking zone, etc.
I really wish they’d throw a ton of money at subsidizing workforce housing so we can keep good people who love that work in their jobs and give visitors the experience they want. I am sick of the city kicking this issue to developers who are having a tough time making market-rate apartment developments profitable.
I understand hotel and Vrbo stays are down most everywhere, so revenues aren’t going to be great at this transition point, but our brand is out there everywhere. We have a lot to sell, and the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority, the Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Chamber of Commerce sold it well.
— Bill Steigerwald
Burnsville
