Last week the Western North Carolina Regional Air Quality Board approved a permit for Blue Ridge Concrete to build a plant on Murphy Hill Road.  This was the last permit required, and it was approved by a vote of 3-2.  I’ve heard the North Buncombe Association of Concerned Citizens (NBACC), who have actively opposed the plant at that location, will appeal the decision.  So the 2-year plus battle continues, and should NBACC move forward with an appeal it’s likely the libel lawsuit Blue Ridge Concrete filed against the group earlier this month will also move forward.  No end in sight for this fight, and definitely no love lost between these potential neighbors.

A public hearing on the intention of the Western North Carolina Regional Air Quality Agency (WNCRAQA) to issue a permit to Blue Ridge Concrete will be held 6-9 p.m. Wednesday, May 26, 2010 at North Buncombe High School (890 Clark’s Chapel Road).  Blue Ridge Concrete wants to build a plant near the intersection of Murphy Hill Road and the Old Mars Hill Highway, and the air permit is apparently the last thing the company needs to obtain in order to complete construction.  The North Buncombe Association of Concerned Citizens is encouraging community members to attend the hearing or write the WNCRAQA and make their views known.  Details about the public hearing and public comment rules from WNCRAQA:

WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA REGIONAL AIR QUALITY AGENCY
OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT
The Western North Carolina Regional Air Quality Agency (WNCRAQA) announces its intent to issue a permit to construct and operate a concrete batch plant for Blue Ridge Concrete, Inc., located on Murphy Hill Road in Weaverville, North Carolina. The permit has been written to allow operation of a ready mix concrete batching process with a maximum rated capacity of 60 cubic yards per hour.

The draft permit, permit application, emissions calculations, and all other materials available to the WNCRAQA that are relevant to the permit decision are available for public review at the following address:

Western North Carolina Regional Air Quality Agency
49 Mount Carmel Road
Asheville, NC 28806

Materials are available for review during the hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

In addition, because there has been significant public interest in the proposed permit, the WNCRAQA will be holding a public hearing. The public hearing will be held:

May 26, 2010
6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
North Buncombe High School Auditorium
890 Clarks Chapel Road
Weaverville, NC

Individuals may register to speak at the hearing and/or submit written comments. Participants will be allowed to speak up to three minutes, but the hearing officer will have discretion to reduce speaking times if it is necessary to accommodate the number of speakers.

Persons wishing to comment on the draft permit are required to submit their comments in writing to the WNCRAQA, or in person at the public hearing being held on May 26, 2010. Comments must be received by the WNCRAQA no later than June 2, 2010. All comments received on or prior to that date will be considered by the WNCRAQA in making its final decision to issue the permit.

Written comments should be mailed to:

Western North Carolina Regional Air Quality Agency
49 Mount Carmel Road
Asheville, NC 28806

or emailed to Ashley Featherstone at ashley.featherstone@buncombecounty.org.

By law, the WNCRAQA must review permits for compliance with air quality regulations. The division has no authority over zoning, land use or where a company decides to locate a facility. Local governments are responsible for regulating land use. More information about other air quality issues can be found at the WNCRAQA Web site, www.wncair.org.

For additional information, please contact Ashley Featherstone, Engineering Supervisor, at (828) 250-6778 or ashley.featherstone@buncombecounty.org.

The old fire station on Main Street is looking better already. The bay doors have been replaced with french doors and windows, and they’re now painting the exterior. Nothing’s definite yet, but the owner hopes to have 2-3 retail businesses in the space and a restaurant/pub.

You’re invited to a free workshop on Thursday, November 12, 2009 at Weaverville Town Hall (30 South Main Street), where we will discuss updates on issues affecting farm and forest landowners.  Topics of discussion will include tax information, insurance and financial options, forestry management plans, conservation easements, value added and new enterprises, and farm transition programs.  Commissioner David Gantt will discuss the Buncombe County Strategic plan and the goal to sustain farming livelihoods.  Lunch will be provided.  On November 13, 2009, one on one consultations will be available at the same location.  To register, contact Erin Bonito at the Buncombe Co. Cooperative Extension office at (828) 255-5522.  Registration is limited to 100 people.

The town is taking bids for the old Weaverville Fire Station until July 15. Here’s the announcement from the Town’s Bid Requests page:

Public Notice
The Weaverville Town Council is currently in the process of receiving and soliciting for bids for the property located at 10 South Main Street, Weaverville North Carolina. This property is also known as the “Old Weaverville Fire Station”. The Town of Weaverville will dispose of this surplus property according to North Carolina General Statute’s 160A-269 “Negotiated offer, advertisement, and upset bids” process.

The Town of Weaverville will receive or solicit an offer to purchase the above noted property until July 15, 2009 at 3 p.m. Offers to purchase must be sent to:

Michael JaVan Morgan, Town Manager
Weaverville Town Hall
30 South Main Street
Weaverville, North Carolina 28787

Upset bids will be allowed as according to NCGS 160A-269.

For your review, a “Prospectus for the Old Weaverville Fire Station Facility” is available at the Weaverville Town Hall. This is only a guide to assist the potential buyer of the property. The buyer must evaluate the condition of the property and complete their own “due diligence”. The Town will be selling the property as is and will make no guarantees or warranties. Please note the deed restrictions and easements that will be placed on the property by the Weaverville Town Council. The buyer will need to make connections to the Weaverville Water System and MSD Sewer based on usage of the facility. The Town of Weaverville has the right to reject any and all bids.

For additional information please contact the Weaverville Town Manager.

Creekside Village, the new development located just south of Lake Louise on Merrimon Avenue/Weaverville Highway, will be hosting a Grand Opening Celebration Saturday, April 25.  They’ll have 3 models open from 1 until 5 p.m.  Also at the opening:

• Carolina Cinemas Hollywood will be passing out popcorn and movie tickets.
• There will be a raffle for a day at the Spa at Biltmore Village.
• Pineapple Jacks will be serving food.
• 96.5 will be doing a Live Radio remote between 2-4

This is the question I get asked the most: when are Wal-Mart and Lowe’s going to open in Weaverville?  For Wal-Mart, I’ve heard June 17 bandied about for a few weeks now, and this week’s edition of the Weaverville Tribune confirms that June 17 is indeed the opening date for the supercenter.  Hiring is currently in process.

No set date yet for Lowe’s, but the Tribune reports it is expected to open later this month.

This week’s Tribune is on newstands now.  The Wal-Mart article is on page 21.

Here’s a video update showing the progress at the Northridge Commons shopping center, courtesy of AskAsheville:

New stoplights are going up at the 25/70 entrance for the Northridge Commons shopping center. This seems awfully close to the already existing stoplights at the Monticello Road and 25/70 intersection. Hopefully they’ll have both sets of lights timed correctly to keep the stop and go traffic going more than stopping.

AskAsheville took this close-up video of the new Lowe’s and Wal-Mart buildings in the Northridge Commons development. There’s still no official word on when the stores will be opening, though I’ve heard Lowe’s may open in March and Wal-Mart in May.

Monday morning, this lot on the corner of 25/70 and Monticello Road housed a BP station. By Monday afternoon, a reader tells me, that station had been torn down. A CVS store will be built in its place.

Rumors are swirling that Lowe’s will be opening this year, but I don’t yet have any official confirmation of that. Work on the Lowe’s building has certainly been ramped up in the last few weeks — it’s hard to believe construction began just a month ago.

More Northridge Commons construction photos here.

The wall’s are going up quickly for the new Lowe’s store. This photo was taken yesterday (September 9). Rumors have started swirling that they’re going to be opening by Christmas or the first of the year, but official word is still a Spring 2009 opening.  More photos of the Northridge Commons project are available to view here.

I haven’t posted an update on Northridge Commons for awhile, mainly because until recently all I could really say was they’re pushing dirt around. Now, however, they’ve started putting up walls for Wal-Mart, as seen in this photo. It was taken on August 24 from the road behind the store (off Monticello Road). Opening date for both Wal-Mart and Lowe’s is still scheduled for Spring 2009.

Also, in response to requests, I’ve started a Northridge Commons photo page on my Flickr account. There’s only a few pictures there now but I’ll keep it updated as work progresses. A big thanks to Daniel for sending me photos he’s taken as well.

Road construction at Monticello Road for Northridge Commons. According to the DOT website there will be construction on both Monticello Road and 25/70 for “an entrance to the new business at the corner of US 25/70 and Monticello Road (SR 1727). The construction will involve constructing an access for the business on Monticello Road (SR 1727) and Turn Lanes on US 25/70 and Monticello. Motorists can expect delays intermittently during the turn lane and entrance construction.” End date for the construction is listed as October 1, 2008.

I’m told the Weaverville Tribune has an article coming up in the next issue about the construction, so look for that on Thursday for more details.

I’ve mentioned before that the Public Hearing for the proposed concrete plant on Murphy Hill Road was rescheduled for Wednesday, May 14. It will be held at the North Buncombe Middle School at 5:30 p.m. The auditorium at the school can hold 400 people and opponents want to fill the auditorium.

The concrete plant proposal is the only item on the agenda. Proponents of the plant will go first, followed by expert witnesses for the opposition, then any citizens who wish to speak. Organizers are asking remarks be kept short (under three minutes unless you’re an expert witness), polite, factual, and non-repetitive.

North Buncombe Middle School is located at 51 North Buncombe School Road.

If you need more information about the proposal and the reason for the opposition, here’s some of the more recent articles about it, and the public hearing process that’s stretched out for months (it actually started before I began publishing this website):

MyWeaverville.com Posts

Mountain Xpress Articles
Round Two
Concrete Plant Halted on a Technicality
Concrete Plans Not Yet Firm

Weaverville Tribune
Hearing on Proposed Plant Not Concrete (PDF, story of page 9)
Court Schedules Public Hearings for Concrete Plant (PDF, story on page 6)
Shepherd Now Owns Murphy Hill Land (PDF, story on page 27)

Asheville Citizen-Times
Concrete Plant Hearing Stopped

Did you see this sign on Weaver Boulevard? Could you read it as you were driving by at 35 m.p.h.? Yeah, me neither, so here’s a close up. The parcel in question is known as the McPhail Property or Weaver Village. A public hearing will be held 6 p.m. on Monday, April 14 at the Weaverville Town Hall.

Update from the North Buncombe Association of Concerned Citizens regarding the rescheduled concrete plant hearing. For more information contact Aaron at 645-9291.  I will post the time and location as soon as it is made available.

Dear Friends and Neighbors,
 
Last Monday, the Concrete plant proponents “writ of mandamus” – was heard in Court. They were trying to force us and the County to rehear their case in early April. 
 
The judge found that there was no reason to force a meeting in April and required that the County set the meeting in May.
 
In short, the concrete hearing will restart from the beginning. It will be held early Wednesday evening, May 14th, probably at 5:30, at either the North Buncombe Middle School or the North Buncombe High School.
 
Since the date was mandated by the court, it will not be rescheduled!!!!
 
It is more important than ever that as many people as possible show up. Please circle the date and time and start telling your friends and neighbors.
 
It has been wonderful to work with our attorneys (Gary Davis and Jamie Whitlock) but their time is expensive – even though they have agreed to cut their customary rate. Thanks to the many who have already donated to the North Buncombe Association of Concerned Citizens.
 
If you haven’t yet sent a check, or, if you can afford to give again, please make a tax deductible contribution to the North Buncombe Association of Concerned Citizens and mail it c/o Martha Claxton, 240 Upper Flat Creek Rd., Weaverville, NC 28787.  We need to raise approximately $8,000 more to put on an effective defense at the upcoming hearing. This will pay for printing, expert witnesses, legal fees, and other misc. expenses. All of the many non professionals who have so generously given of their time have been working for free.

A Zoning Board of Adjustment Public Hearing is scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday, March 24 at the Weaverville Town Hall.   On the agenda:

• Request from Ingles to add 16,300 square foot garden center at the store located on 140 Weaver Blvd.

Some news from our Flat Creek neighbors. Mountain Xpress is reporting the public hearing for the proposed concrete plant at Murphy Hill Road was adjourned due to “insufficient notification of the project’s neighbors.”

A proposed North Buncombe concrete plant hearing before the Buncombe County Board of Adjustment was adjourned after two hours of testimony due to insufficient notification of the project’s neighbors.
…
a March 12 hearing before the Board of Adjustment was cut short — after testimony from representatives of the plant and two opposing speakers — once it surfaced that letters notifying adjacent landowners of the hearing were mailed nine days earlier. By law, those letters had to be mailed at least 10 days before the hearing.
…
The adjournment means the process will start all over again with a new application from Blue Ridge Concrete. County Zoning Administrator Jim Coman told Xpress that discussions are underway to find a date for another hearing, but that Blue Ridge Concrete will not have to resubmit its application.

Read the full story

Also online:
Citizen-Times article
WLOS video

Here’s a quick video of the crowd that turned out for the hearing:

Video by Ashvegas

Lowe’s announced yesterday it will delay the opening of about 20 new stores this year in hard-hit housing markets. No doubt this will fuel even more rumors about the Northridge Commons development, but according to this item in today’s Citizen-Times, Lowe’s spokeswoman Karen Cobb says plans for the Weaverville Lowe’s are unaffected.