From Staff Reports

Following a state Court of Appeals decision on April 5 affirming  the City of Asheville’s right to remove a downtown monument honoring a Civil War ex-governor, the city officially proclaimed victory in its battle with the Historical Preservation of the 26th North Carolina Troops, the plaintiffs seeking to preserve the monument.

In a press release issued April 5, just after the court’s ruling was announced, Mayor Esther Manheimer stated:

“This morning, the North Carolina Court of Appeals issued a decision in the lawsuit filed against the city regarding the removal of the Vance Monument. In its decision, the court affirmed the previous decision of the Buncombe County Superior Court, which dismissed all of the claims against the city.

“This result allows the city to proceed with removal of the monument, including the remaining base and fencing. 

“We were pleased to hear the court’s decision and stand behind our community task force’s recommendation to remove the monument.

“While additional appeals may still be made to the N.C. Supreme Court, the deadline to do so only exists for the next 15 days. If no further appeals are filed, the city will proceed with the revisioning process for Pack Square. “

Meanwhile, the Associated Press reported April 5 that  the appeals panel “unanimously affirmed Superior Court Judge Alan Thornburg’s decision last year to dismiss a lawsuit filed by an historic preservation group. The Society for the Historical Preservation of the 26th North Carolina Troops opposes the demolition of the obelisk honoring former Gov. Zebulon Vance in Asheville.

“The Asheville City Council voted in March 2021 to remove the structure from Pack Square Plaza. The 75-foot (23-meter) tall obelisk was dismantled before the Court of Appeals told the city and Buncombe County in June to stop the demolition while appeals were heard. So the monument base has stayed in place.”

Further, the AP noted, “The society had entered a formal agreement in 2015 with the city to restore the monument, according to Tuesday’s opinion. The society raised over $138,000 for that project, but that contract did not require city officials to preserve the 1897 obelisk, as the society contends, Court of Appeals Judge John Arrowood wrote.

“Instead, the contract ‘was for the donation of restoration work, which was completed prior to (Asheville’s) decision to remove the Vance Monument,’” Arrowood wrote in upholding Thornburg’s dismissal on grounds a contract breach claim was insufficient. Chief Judge Donna Stroud and Judge April Wood agreed with Arrowood’s ruling.”

Further, the AP reported on April 5, “Vance, who was born in Buncombe County, served as governor from 1862-1865 and 1877-1879. He was also a Confederate military officer and U.S. senator. The city has said the monument is located on a site where enslaved people are believed to have been sold.

“The monument was one of many Confederate statues and memorials that have been removed across the South since 2020 amid protests for racial justice.”

Meanwhile, the Asheville Citizen Times reported that City Attorney Brad Branham said both he and the city were “incredibly pleased” with the court’s decision.

Asheville television station WLOS (News 13) reported that Branham said the decision was “a long time in the making,” but acknowledged that the case could be appealed to the state Supreme Court.