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Tuesday, 29 August 2006 20:50 |
Daily Planet's Opinion
The latest development in the ongoing controversy over three businesses in Asheville: Greenlife Grocery, Staples and Prudential Realty, occurred on Aug. 22, when a long-awaited third party review by David Owens, a professor at the UNC School of Government, arrived.
While Owens note that city staff had probably erred in grandfathering in Greenlifeës loading dock located next to a residential street, allowing the Staples building to put up a wall-like structure and a huge sign ÇƒÓ and allowing a second sign in the case of Prudential Realty, he also made sure to mention that those errors were ones of interpretation and made in good faith.
He clarified that Ashevilleës zoning regulations are
"ahead of the curve" when compared to most cities of this size ÇƒÓ and
that staff has been diligent in trying to balance the needs of all
parties involved. He suggested that the city clarify its zoning process
and make more room for informal public comment.
While we welcome the review of some of the cityës more controversial
zoning issues, and think that it provides a good guide for a process
which needs constant updating, the path that bought city government
here deserves some questioning¨? ÇƒÓ and some criticism.
The projects noted have become a controversy largely because one irate
resident has joined with a group of self-proclaimed "neighborhood
activists" who have turned from healthy scrutiny of the cityës
development process to nit-picking.
The one irate resident is Reid Thompson, who seems to have nearly
single-handedly made his issues with Greenlifeës loading docks into a
larger controversy.
While some of Thompsonës complaints are legitimate, which the owners of
Greenlife have acknowledged in spending over $100,000 and considerable
time in trying to address, some are simply a by-product of living on a
residential street located near the major commercial corridor that is
Merrimon Avenue.
At a previous meeting, city staff noted that about 90 percent of the complaints around Greenlife have come from Thompson.
That fact begs the question: is Greenlife really bothering anyone else
in the area? Or has Thompsonës rather belligerent one-man crusade blown
this matter far out of proportion?
The group Thompson joined with, the Coalition of Asheville
Neighborhoods, has also repeatedly badgered city staff and council
after coming out on the losing side of a Board of Adjustment hearing
several months ago.
While CAN has every right to bring up important issues, a fact of any
cityës development process could be best summed up as "you canët always
get what you want."
To some extent conflicts between neighborhoods, businesses and other
groups are inevitable. In those conflicts, resolutions that make
everyone happy are rarely possible.
At some point, groups like CAN need to decide to move on, especially
when there are far larger issues facing the cityës neighborhoods than
whether Prudential Realtyës sign is six inches too high or whether the
red background on the Staples sign is part of its official logo.
The city needs activists like CAN not to focus so much of their efforts
on nitpicking every project that makes someone vaguely unhappy ÇƒÓ and
instead to put their energy and time into the larger development issues
facing the city ÇƒÓ where they can do some real good.
In comments after Owensë presentation, one citizen responding to CAN
noted that those obsessing over matters like the exact height and
nature of signs should "get a life."
It is advice that Thompson and CAN would do well to heed.
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