From Staff Reports 

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Asheville City Council on Sept. 8 unanimously approved a “No Rent for Slumlords” housing code amendment. 

The rule makes it illegal for landlords to collect rent on residential properties officially deemed unsafe or unfit for human occupancy, providing a pathway for tenant rent refunds.

Key details of the ordinance are as follows:

• Trigger: Applies after a formal city code inspection and issuance of an official violation order confirming unlivable conditions.

• Support: Championed heavily by the Asheville Area Tenants’ Union to protect vulnerable and low-income renters. 

• Covered conditions: Includes severe issues like lack of heat or air conditioning, broken elevators, raw sewage, and unsafe electrical setups.

• State law limitations: City officials and Mayor Esther Manheimer,who is a lawyer, noted potential conflicts with North Carolina state statutes, which generally restrict tenants from unilaterally withholding rent prior to a formal judicial determination.

Officials described the ordinance partly as a strong ethical statement against uninhabitable housing, even if legal hurdles mean direct local enforcement faces restrictions under state statutes

In the aftermath of the vote, the public response — reportedly — has been deeply supportive among renters and advocacy groups, albeit tempered by a major warning from city officials about potential state law conflicts.

From Staff Reports

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Buncombe County Schools may eliminate about 118 positions to help balance the budget for the 2027–2028 school year. 

Regarding the need for the job cutbacks. district school leaders point to a projected $15 million shortfall, driven by declining student enrollment, federal funding reductions, and shifting state and local financial support.

Key budget pressures cited include the following;

• Declining enrollment: The district is down roughly 300 students compared to previous counts, which directly reduces future state funding allocations.

• Rising expenses: Local expenditures have climbed to about $124 million while local revenue projections sit lower, putting a squeeze on the fund balance.

• Federal and state cuts: Reductions in federal funding and changes to state wealth-based supplemental funding have accelerated the shortfall.

Managing the reductions includes the following:

• Minimizing layoffs: Officials hope to absorb the 118 position reductions through natural staff attrition, such as resignations and retirements during the hiring cycle.

• Reserves impact: Relying too heavily on emergency savings could drop district reserves well below the recommended one-month operating expense target of $10.3 million. 

• Next Steps: The upcoming budget proposal and further staffing discussions are anticipated at the school board’s next meetings. 

From Staff Reports 

ASHEVILLE, N.C. —Data from the Asheville Police Department shows that gun violence and gunfire rates dropped in Asheville over the summer, reflecting a broader statewide downward trend in North Carolina, according to a report by Asheville television station WLOS (News 13) on Sept. 9.

The context and statistics are as follows:

• Statewide trends: State analysts note that firearm violence is falling across North Carolina following post-pandemic highs. 

• Local factors: Officials attribute the local stabilization to increased community investments in family stability, housing programs, and targeted intelligence-led policing.

• Ongoing concerns: Despite the summer decrease, the drop follows high-profile violent incidents earlier in the year — including a mass shooting in downtown Asheville — keeping community attention focused on long-term safety strategies 

Meanwhile, there reportedly is notable nuance and skepticism surrounding police data on Asheville gun violence. While recent summer reports indicate a downward trend in gunfire incidents, community members and officials point out data limitations —such as exclusion of non-discharged firearm crimes or minor injuries — and contrast these figures with high-profile retaliatory shootings earlier in the season.

The skeptics’ context and data nuances are as follows:

• Limited definitions: Police data tracking shooting victims often omits robbery victims or threats where a gun was brandished but not fired.

• Injury classification: Official metrics for gunshot injuries group together major and minor trauma, including secondary injuries like cuts from shattering glass. 

• Prior spikes: High-profile incidents, such as the multi-victim retaliatory shooting on Biltmore Avenue in July, have left residents questioning broader safety trends despite month-over-month improvements reported by the APD.

News 13’s “Comment Bubble” that appeared after its story included the following assertions:

• Bobbyjoebob — “Good job, Trump!!!”

• ILUVICE — “Did it actually decline, or did people stop reporting it because nothing would be done?”

• Flyrodholder — “So I guess crossing your fingers does work, huh?”

• liberalcritic — “Under Trump, gun violence and shooting deaths across the United States are down significantly from their peak during the Biden administration.”

• WindRidge — “All better! 

“You know... it really don't matter if the shooters are actually caught.

“They good boys.”

From Staff Reports 

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — During a tense campaign forum on Sept. 11, Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer called her opponent, City Councilwoman Kim Roney, a liar.

The exchange marked a significant negative turn in the mayoral race during a candidate forum hosted by the Asheville-based Council of Independent Business Owners.

Details of the the dispute include the following:

• The accusation: Mayor Manheimer accused Roney of lying regarding how the city conducts private meetings.

• The response: Roney immediately countered by pointing out that because the minutes and notes of the city’s “three-by-three” meetings are not part of the public record, voters have no way of verifying the mayor’s transparency claims. She referenced specific private budget, public safety and land use check-ins from earlier in the year. Roney argued for a shift toward “more inclusive meetings” to reduce chaos.

The confrontation stood out as the first time during the 2026 campaign cycle that Manheimer used such sharp language against Roney, breaking from the much more reserved tone of their earlier debates. 

Beyond transparency, the two candidates also traded barbs over community engagement, public safety and approaches to addressing homelessness in Asheville.

In the reportedly tight rematch between Manheimer and Roney, following is some context on the exact issue that sparked the Sept. 11 exchange over the issues of council transparency and “3-on-3” private meetings: 

• The “3-on-3” backlash: Some Asheville residents have expressed deep frustration with the city administration’s use of 3-on-3 meetings. Neighbors told local news outlets that these meetings essentially happen “behind closed doors” to hash out policy, leaving the public unaware of how decisions and votes are being formed. 

• The debate flashpoint: During the Sept. 11 forum, Roney leaned into this community frustration regarding transparency, prompting Manheimer to directly call her a “liar” over how she characterized the purpose and execution of those private city sessions. 

According to reports by Asheville television station WLOS (News 13), Asheville’s mayoral race is one of the most closely watched contests in Western North Carolina, ranking as a high-stakes rematch of their 2022 mayoral battle, which Manheimer won by a relatively narrow margin. 

Beyond transparency, News 13 has reported that voters are pressing both candidates on critical city deficits, public safety, and approaches to homelessness.

Following reports of the tense exchange, local public response has reportedly been highly active on community platforms. 

Supporters of Roney defended her stance on transparency and criticized Manheimer’s defensive approach, while others argued over the necessity of private “informational” staff check-ins for the government to function effectively.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — A highly charged Asheville mayoral candidate forum turned uncharacteristically negative during the latest program in the Business on the Ballot candidate forum series hosted by the Council of Independent Business Owners on Sept. 11 at UNC Asheville’s Sherrill Center.

About 75 CIBO members and guests attended.

In a rematch from 2022, the one-hour forum pitted Mayor Esther Manheimer against Kim Roney, the city’s first openly queer City Council member who was endorsed in her bid for re-election to council two years ago by the Democratic Socialists of America. 

Roney narrowly lost — by a margin of roughly 4,000 votes – in her campaign to take over the reins as the city’s mayor in 2022, but once again is challenging Manheimer in the Nov. 3 general election.

Roney’s strong baseline performance, combined with her continued presence on the Asheville City Council since 2020, reportedly establishes her as a highly competitive challenger.

At the CIBO’s Sept. 11 forum, CIBO Past President John Carroll served as the emcee and welcomed everyone to the early-morning breakfast session.

Among a number of the guests that Carroll recognized at the forum were Asheville Vice Mayor Antanette Mosley, Asheville Councilman Bo Hess, and Gary Parris, a Republican candidate for Buncombe County sheriff.

Instead of the usual forum preliminaries, wherein the candidates introduce themselves in opening statements, Carroll said CIBO instead would jump right into asking prepared questions of the mayoral candidates, as both are relatively well-known to members of the pro-business group.

Carroll began by asking, “If you’re elected as mayor, what is the single most important change you’d make to improve Asheville’s business climate?”

Manheimer, a lawyer, replied, “On 9/11, I was working in the North Carolina legislature and pregnant with my first son... To your question, we have experienced the devastation of Helene. We have already made a special effort around that....”

Roney, who is a West Asheville piano teacher and musician, answered, “I’ve been your neighbor for more than 20 years… I’m a music educator… We can try some new things rather than just expensive things that are on the shelf...”

Next, Carroll asked, “Should Asheville residents and businesses expect property taxes to increase, decrease or stay the same during your term” as mayor? He also asked: “What benefits should people expect to receive?”

Roney answered, “I espouse transparency. I did support the budget in 2025 because it was about supporting our first responders with better wages… We know businesses are still recovering from Helene. Now there will be (general obligation) bonds on the ballot. If people support the bonds,” they will help to finance large, long-term public capital projects and infrastructure improvements. 

Manheimer said, “Unfortunately, property taxes is about the only lever we can pull for more revenue.”

At that point, the mayor asserted, “I do want to address the transparency issues raised by Councilman Roney... She’s lying... She said there are 3-on-3 private meetings...”

Roney then arose abruptly from her chair and vehemently expressed her disagreement with Manheimer’s declaration. 

Following Roney’s response, Manheimer asked Carroll, as emcee, for an opportunty to respond, Carroll denied her request, but he did tell the mayor she could respond on the next question, instead of addressing the question. He added, “What we do here is totally transparent.”

On a question about the city’s transportation needs and budget, Roney said, “Let me give you the example of transportation… So we have something like the ‘transportation study’. By the time the train has left the station, your best choice is to throw your body on the tracks….”

When Carroll asked, “Downtown (Asheville) has not been as friendly and business-owners are moving out — how can things be improved?” Roney replied succinctly, “We’ve spent a lot of money and time not solving the crisis.”

 Manheimer then answered, “So Asheville has something very similar to the HART,” referring to a Holistic Assistance Response Team program, involving a dispatch team that responds to non-emergency 911 calls regarding homelessness, behavioral health, and social welfare. 

In an apparent swipe at Roney, the mayor said, “I don’t know why we keep having to disparage our first responders.” She then thanked Councilman Bo Hess “for his efforts.” She also spoke about the city efforts to be “worker-friendly.”

Roney then said, “So the business-owners who wrote a letter to City Council wrote it in November... Did you know we’re cutting transit services?”

Then, Carroll told the two candidates, “It seems a member of our audience wants to ask about socialism... Tell us what aspects of socialism you approve and those you oppose?”

Manheimer replied, “For those of you who don’t know, I actually was born in Denmark, a socialist country, Some aspects (of socialism) are good... But we are America and one of the things we love about America is capitalism, which creates the greatest amount of production.”

Nonetheless, the mayor concluded her answer by asserting, “I personally think it (socialism) has a lot of benefits.”

Roney responded, “I’m not a card-carrying socialist,” but “it (socialism) has many benefits. I support Medicare for All. Insurance provided by the marketplace is pretty expensive and not necessarily” providing the needed coverage.” 

Ultimately, on the question of her view of socialism, Roney said, “I approve of social services, yes.”

The candidates next we asked: “Should the city approve of any program to reduce costs?”

Manheimer replied, “The answer is ‘yes.’ We hired DK Wesley as city manager earlier this year. She is systematically working through all of the departments in the city, looking for ways for us to become more efficient. For example, one of the big expenses for the city is overtime pay. She’s looking for ways to reduce overtime pay...”

Roney answered, “One of the things I’d like to cut is the duplication of work between the city and the county. One of the ways we have duplication is with the transit system. By having one transit authority we could have more service” and options. “We also need a dedicated sales tax. I’d also raises the wages of those at City Hall...”