The City of Asheville’s Community and Economic Development Department issued a public notice last week informing citizens of a Programmatic Agreement between Asheville and The North Carolina State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO). In exchange for the City agreeing to identify and protect historic properties, it will secure eligibility for certain HUD and Federal Covid relief funds.
The City will accept comments on the proposed agreement from December 22, 2021, until 5:00 PM on January 20, 2022. The contract specifies how the City will identify and protect historic properties.
Wait! What? Our city leadership doesn’t know how to respect and protect historic properties that make them feel “uncomfortable”!
It seems to us that the City has demonstrated nothing but contempt for history that it doesn’t like or that doesn’t promote its narrative. In addition to qualifying the City to accept more federal grants to fund their social welfare programs, is this agreement going to give Debra Campbell free rein to destroy whatever memorials she finds offensive without state or federal oversight?
Read the public notice and provide your written comments. First Tuesday suggests, however, that instead of addressing your comments (as directed in the public notice) to the City’s Community Development Analyst you send your thoughts to the North Carolina State Historic Preservation Officer (darin.waters@ncdcr.gov) and his deputy (ramona.bartos@ncdcr.gov). Encourage them to look long and hard at the City’s handling of the Vance Monument and Confederate memorials in the City. Perhaps they will discover how incapable and irresponsible our local leaders have been in regard to protecting history.
