Arts and Events Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville is known as a quality venue that hosts a diverse variety of events that reflects the creativity, uniqueness, and artistry that Asheville is known for. With over 200 days of events and drawing well over 200,000 people annually, the venue continues to support the vitality of the region as a whole and the vibrant downtown of Asheville in particular. Outdoor Special Events and Festivals The Community and Economic Development Department manages outdoor special event consultations, permitting, partnerships, lease agreements, and city service coordination for all event and festival productions on city-owned property, sidewalks, streets, and parks. The Outdoor Special Events office at Community and Economic Development serves as the City’s one-stop shop for outdoor special event applicants. Commercial Filming and Photography The Community & Economic Development Department manages permitting, location agreements, and city service coordination for all commercial filming and photography work involving city-owned property, sidewalks, streets, and parks. Commercial filming and photography is permitted under the same conditions as other special event uses of public property in Asheville. A permit may not be required for small scale projects that do not require the reservation of public space, closure of streets/sidewalks/parking, use of generators, structures or unusual scenes. Public Art Public Art improves our experience in public spaces, provides an opportunity to support regional artists and creative commerce, and helps us and others learn about and experience the richness of Western North Carolina’s culture. As you go about your day in Asheville you’ll see murals (most of which are not owned or managed by the City-our local businesses and not for profits invest heavily in creative public expression!), a number of sculptures and other pieces of art. Well known examples include the Energy Loop on College Street; the Deco Gecko in Pritchard Park; the murals in the City Hall chambers; the bronze life-size sculpture of Martin Luther King, Jr. at MLK Park; and the more than 30 sculptures and plaques along the Urban Trail. Find out more about Asheville’s public art program. Sports Commission Asheville Buncombe Regional Sports Commission works to identify and attract sports events and related meetings to enhance the health, wellness and quality of life for area residents and sports enthusiasts and will generate a positive economic impact by promoting our region as a recognized sporting destination. Contact Information Community and Economic Development Department Asheville City Hall, Fifth Floor, 70 Court Plaza Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. 828-232-4505 P. O. Box 7148 Asheville, NC 28802 Updated 11/07/2019 Related Services MWSBE Certification Find information to register for certification as a Minority, Woman, and/or Small Business Enterprise (MWSBE) with the City of Asheville. Business Inclusion The Business Inclusion Office for the City of Asheville actively seeks to identify minority and women-owned businesses for an opportunity to participate as providers of goods and services to the city. Apply for a commercial film or photography permit Information about commercial filming and photography work involving city-owned property, sidewalks, streets, and parks. Apply for a special event or festival permit Information about hosting an event on city-owned property, sidewalks, streets and parks. Find cold weather emergency shelter When extreme cold weather is expected, the Asheville Homeless Coalition issues a Code Purple Alert. Participating homeless shelters voluntarily add space beyond their normal capacity to keep as many people as possible out of the cold. To find out when Code Purple is in effect, visit the Homeless Coalition’s Code [...] Find financial support for your Asheville business Learn about financial support that may be available for your business. Find or register a minority, women or disabled-owned business Resources for finding or registering a minority, women or disabled-owned business. More Related Services Arts and Events News City of Asheville’s Business Inclusion Office launches AVL Pathways to Grow training program Posted on September 7, 2021September 7, 2021 by Angelica Driver The City of Asheville’s Business Inclusion Office is excited to announce a new training program for local small businesses, AVL Pathways to Grow. The training program is geared towards helping women and small business owners of color to grow and scale up their businesses. AVL Pathways to Grow is a collaboration between the City’s Business Inclusion [...] Share your feedback on ‘AVL Shares Space’ outdoor expansion initiatives Posted on September 3, 2021 by Polly McDaniel The City of Asheville is seeking public feedback on temporary initiatives launched in the spring of 2020 to support safe business operations and customer access during COVID-19. These initiatives have enabled over 100 businesses and organizations in Asheville to quickly expand outdoors into adjacent public spaces and parking lots. Take the survey here. The [...] Community meeting about emergency shelter at Ramada Inn moves to virtual format Posted on August 10, 2021 by Polly McDaniel The City of Asheville has announced that all meetings will be conducted virtually, due to the community spread of Covid-19. For that reason, the previously scheduled in-person August 12 community informational meeting about the City’s emergency shelter at the Ramada Inn will now take place virtually. Join the meeting from 5 to 7 [...] More Arts and Events News
MWSBE Certification Find information to register for certification as a Minority, Woman, and/or Small Business Enterprise (MWSBE) with the City of Asheville.
Business Inclusion The Business Inclusion Office for the City of Asheville actively seeks to identify minority and women-owned businesses for an opportunity to participate as providers of goods and services to the city.
Apply for a commercial film or photography permit Information about commercial filming and photography work involving city-owned property, sidewalks, streets, and parks.
Apply for a special event or festival permit Information about hosting an event on city-owned property, sidewalks, streets and parks.
Find cold weather emergency shelter When extreme cold weather is expected, the Asheville Homeless Coalition issues a Code Purple Alert. Participating homeless shelters voluntarily add space beyond their normal capacity to keep as many people as possible out of the cold. To find out when Code Purple is in effect, visit the Homeless Coalition’s Code [...]
Find financial support for your Asheville business Learn about financial support that may be available for your business.
Find or register a minority, women or disabled-owned business Resources for finding or registering a minority, women or disabled-owned business.
City of Asheville’s Business Inclusion Office launches AVL Pathways to Grow training program Posted on September 7, 2021September 7, 2021 by Angelica Driver The City of Asheville’s Business Inclusion Office is excited to announce a new training program for local small businesses, AVL Pathways to Grow. The training program is geared towards helping women and small business owners of color to grow and scale up their businesses. AVL Pathways to Grow is a collaboration between the City’s Business Inclusion [...]
Share your feedback on ‘AVL Shares Space’ outdoor expansion initiatives Posted on September 3, 2021 by Polly McDaniel The City of Asheville is seeking public feedback on temporary initiatives launched in the spring of 2020 to support safe business operations and customer access during COVID-19. These initiatives have enabled over 100 businesses and organizations in Asheville to quickly expand outdoors into adjacent public spaces and parking lots. Take the survey here. The [...]
Community meeting about emergency shelter at Ramada Inn moves to virtual format Posted on August 10, 2021 by Polly McDaniel The City of Asheville has announced that all meetings will be conducted virtually, due to the community spread of Covid-19. For that reason, the previously scheduled in-person August 12 community informational meeting about the City’s emergency shelter at the Ramada Inn will now take place virtually. Join the meeting from 5 to 7 [...]