Hotel Development Study Happening Now Planning and Zoning to Hold Public Hearing on Proposed Hotel Development Regulations Following two council work sessions, the City of Asheville Department of Planning and Urban Design has further analyzed the proposed hotel development regulations and will be holding a public hearing at the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting on February 3, 2021 to present the revised regulations. This proposal includes three primary components, outlined below: New hotel development requirements, restricting hotels to appropriate areas with zoning standards designed to offset impacts and meet key community goals; A strong incentive to incorporate high priority public benefits, such as affordable housing, living wages and green building elements into a hotel project; and, A design review process that promotes (or preserves) quality architecture and building design, and enhances place making. For more information follow this link: Planning and Zoning Commission To review the revised map follow this link: Hotel Districts Map To review the revised Public Benefits Table follow this link: Public Benefits Table Timeline Background Asheville has experienced an influx of new hotel development over the past few years and community concern has been mounting over the impacts resulting from this influx, represented by projects that are currently both under construction and in the pipeline. Concerns include the geographic clustering of development downtown, the quality and design of the construction, the effects on the land use mix, the impacts to City infrastructure and services and a general concern about the impacts of tourism on the Asheville community. The city currently lacks concrete policies, strategies and tools to effectively manage or regulate hotels. The lack of clear direction in the Asheville City Code and the Living Asheville Comprehensive Plan has resulted in uncertainty for developers, staff and community members. Consequently, on September 24, 2019, the Asheville City Council approved a hotel moratorium, pausing hotel development in the city. The moratorium will allow the city time to undertake a professional planning analysis with the help of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) with the purpose of developing recommendations for enhanced land use policies and improved tools and strategies to better plan for and regulate hotel development, and to provide clearer direction to the development community. Utilizing a Technical Assistance Program Panel (TAP) process, ULI evaluated the issues associated with tourism and hotel development, with the goal to quantify the impacts of new hotel development and obtain a better understanding of all the concerns before presenting their findings on best practices tools and strategies to deal with the issues. The TAP process was kicked off with a visit from the ULI panel who toured Asheville before holding a series of listening sessions with the public and stakeholder groups on January 9, 2020. City staff also prepared the following briefing book to familiarize the panel with the issues. The panel returned on January 30, 2020 to present their findings and recommendations. Below is a recording of the presentation: City Council held a work session on February 25, 2020 to discuss the ULI recommendations and provide staff with direction on the next steps. Below is a recording of the work session: The final ULI TAP report is now available with some follow-up thoughts from the panel in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic. Supporting Documents September 2 Planning and Zoning Hotel Development Regulations Presentation October 13 City Council Work Session October 27 City Council Work Session City Council Work Session October 13 Slide Show City Council October 27 Work Session Slide Show Hotel Districts Map (PZC 9/2/20) Hotel Districts Map (post survey) Hotel Study FAQs Hotel Study Background Video Please review this video to learn more about the proposed hotel development regulations. Hotel Study Map Proposed hotel overlay map for public comment. To comment on this map please take the survey at the top of the page. Final ULI Tap Report Post TAP Panel Comments Staff Presentation – February 23, 2020 Staff Presentation – January 30, 2020 ULI TAP Recommendations – January 30, 2020 ULI Presentation – January 9, 2020 Hotel Development Briefing Book Moratorium Ordinance Presentation to Planning and Economic Development Committee – August 29, 2019 Contact Information Stacy Merten, Principal Planner Updated 1/6/2021 Related Services Learn about large-scale development Keep up to date on current projects and applications. Explore city data Public datasets and maps are available on the open data portal at data.ashevillenc.gov. Schedule a mandatory Technical Review Committee pre-application meeting Schedule your required pre-application meeting for Level II, Level III, Conditional Zoning and Major Subdivision reviews. Apply for a homestay permit Apply for a new homestay permit or apply to renew your existing permit. Look up information about a permit Use online tools to look up information about permits Check whether your address is within city limits Search to see if it is within the City of Asheville's permitting jurisdiction. Find what permits and licenses you need for your business Use Asheville's Open for Business wizard to find out what permits and licenses you will need and an estimate of permit fees. Find location and zoning information Find the zoning information for your project. More Related Services Hotel Development Study News City of Asheville staff to present updated hotel development ordinance to Planning and Zoning Commission Posted on January 14, 2021January 14, 2021 by Polly McDaniel Following two City Council work sessions, the City of Asheville Department of Planning and Urban Design has further analyzed the proposed hotel development regulations and will be holding a public hearing to present the revised regulations at 5 p.m. Feb. 3 the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting. At the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting , City [...] Asheville City Council adopts Haywood-Page properties Master Concept Plan Posted on October 27, 2020 by Polly McDaniel After more than three years of community engagement around the future use of City-owned properties on Haywood Street and Page Avenue downtown, a master concept plan for the properties went before Asheville City Council Oct. 27. The plan by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects incorporates a mix of uses, including: A central plaza for community gatherings and [...] Concept plan for Haywood Street and Page Avenue properties headed to Asheville City Council Posted on October 5, 2020October 5, 2020 by Ashley Traynum-Carson For a narrated video of the Haywood Street and Page Avenue Master Concept Plan, visit this link. Following a series of community input and engagement activities this spring, the City of Asheville Department of Planning and Urban Design is pleased to release the Haywood Street and Page Avenue Master Concept Plan. The plan [...] More Hotel Development Study News
Explore city data Public datasets and maps are available on the open data portal at data.ashevillenc.gov.
Schedule a mandatory Technical Review Committee pre-application meeting Schedule your required pre-application meeting for Level II, Level III, Conditional Zoning and Major Subdivision reviews.
Check whether your address is within city limits Search to see if it is within the City of Asheville's permitting jurisdiction.
Find what permits and licenses you need for your business Use Asheville's Open for Business wizard to find out what permits and licenses you will need and an estimate of permit fees.
City of Asheville staff to present updated hotel development ordinance to Planning and Zoning Commission Posted on January 14, 2021January 14, 2021 by Polly McDaniel Following two City Council work sessions, the City of Asheville Department of Planning and Urban Design has further analyzed the proposed hotel development regulations and will be holding a public hearing to present the revised regulations at 5 p.m. Feb. 3 the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting. At the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting , City [...]
Asheville City Council adopts Haywood-Page properties Master Concept Plan Posted on October 27, 2020 by Polly McDaniel After more than three years of community engagement around the future use of City-owned properties on Haywood Street and Page Avenue downtown, a master concept plan for the properties went before Asheville City Council Oct. 27. The plan by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects incorporates a mix of uses, including: A central plaza for community gatherings and [...]
Concept plan for Haywood Street and Page Avenue properties headed to Asheville City Council Posted on October 5, 2020October 5, 2020 by Ashley Traynum-Carson For a narrated video of the Haywood Street and Page Avenue Master Concept Plan, visit this link. Following a series of community input and engagement activities this spring, the City of Asheville Department of Planning and Urban Design is pleased to release the Haywood Street and Page Avenue Master Concept Plan. The plan [...]