Community Development Last updated or reviewed on March 4, 2026 Welcome to Community Development! The Community Development Division manages and administers programs that are funded by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development for Asheville and a four-county consortium consisting of Buncombe, Henderson, Transylvania and Madison Counties. We administer the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) programs funded by HUD. Most of the funding from these programs is distributed to organizations in Asheville and the four county consortium through competitive application processes. PUBLIC NOTICE: Proposed Amendment to Consolidated Plan 2025-2029 The City of Asheville is proposing to amend the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan to add Affordable Rental Construction as a goal and priority need. The City will be taking public comment from January 30, 2026 – March 6, 2026. The City’s Community Development Division, in collaboration with the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium, developed the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan, which guides the allocation of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Partnership Act (HOME) funds. It establishes the five-year needs, priorities, strategies, and performance targets for activities funded by these grants. The proposed amendment would add Affordable Rental Construction as a new goal and priority need within the plan’s existing framework, enabling the allocation of funds for this purpose. Comment can be mailed to: Community Development Division, 5th Floor, P.O. Box 7148 Asheville, NC 28802. Comments will also be received via email at CommunityDevelopment@ashevillenc.gov. Written comment must be received no later than 9:00 am on Friday March 6th, 2026. A public hearing will be held at the Asheville City Council meeting at 5:00 PM on February 24th, 2026. The agenda will be posted at https://www.ashevillenc.gov/government/city-council-agenda. Citizens are encouraged to comment and information is also provided on this same web page about how to participate and comment. Our Web Pages To help navigate the Community Development Division, please find the links to our web pages below. HUD Programs Plans, Policy and Reports Public Notices Community Development Projects and Initiatives Get Involved To be added to the Community Development email list, please fill out our google form found here. Consider joining one of our meetings below to get more involved. Asheville Regional Housing Consortium (ARHC) ARHC is our regional consortium that helps manage HOME funds in our 4 County region – Buncombe, Henderson, Madison & Transylvania. Housing & Community Development Committee (HCD) HCD is made up of 3 City Council members who provide policy recommendations to Council on all matters relating to the creation and maintenance of affordable housing within the city, as well as services related to homelessness. Affordable Housing Advisory Committee (AHAC) AHAC provides guidance on priorities and policies to Preserve, Protect & Produce Affordable Housing. Community Development Staff Staff Name Title Program Area Email James Shelton Community Development Division Manager Annual Entitlement jshelton2@ashevillenc.gov Deborah Johnson Community Development Analyst II Annual Entitlement djohnson2@ashevillenc.gov Kaylee Pulliam HOME Program Analyst Annual Entitlement kpulliam@ashevillenc.gov Sofia Bonilla CDBG Program Analyst Annual Entitlement sbonilla@ashevillenc.gov Dora Tovar Community Development Coordinator Annual Entitlement dtovar@ashevillenc.gov Elma King CDBG-DR Program Manager Disaster Recovery eking@ashevillenc.gov Amber Stapleton CDBG-DR Housing Programs Lead Disaster Recovery astapleton@ashevillenc.gov Charlie Savage CDBG-DR Economic Revitalization Programs Lead Disaster Recovery csavage@ashevillenc.gov Kate Fehlenberg CDBG-DR Infrastructure Programs Lead Disaster Recovery kfehlenberg@ashevillenc.gov Rebecca Walter CDBG-DR Communication Specialist Disaster Recovery rwalter@ashevillenc.gov If you are looking for affordable housing, suffering a housing crisis, in need of rental assistance or down payment assistance, or you have concerns about our homeless community, please call 211. The service is free, confidential and available in any language.
