ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Asheville City Council on Tuesday, Jan. 13, approved a resolution tied to Tropical Storm Helene recovery efforts and heard updates on park restoration projects and a projected budget shortfall during a work session preceding its regular meeting.
Council members unanimously approved a consent agenda item authorizing the city manager to apply for a Helene Recovery Recycling Infrastructure grant. If awarded, the city would enter into a contract with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality as a subrecipient of a federal Environmental Protection Agency grant.
The funding would be used to strengthen the city’s waste reduction programs as part of ongoing recovery efforts, officials said.
“This grant would provide support to improve the city’s waste reduction programs and ensure that our community can continue recovering from Tropical Storm Helene by improving the resiliency of our waste reduction infrastructure,” Sanitation Division Manager Jes Foster said in a news release.
Before the council meeting, members held a work session to receive presentations on recovery projects for Azalea and French Broad River parks, as well as an early financial outlook for the city’s fiscal year 2027 budget.
City staff summarized feedback gathered during the first phase of community engagement for the park and infrastructure recovery projects. The presentation followed a Jan. 12 meeting of the Infrastructure Recovery Board, which prioritized design themes to guide consultants as they develop project concepts within time and funding constraints.
“The incredible community feedback from the comprehensive engagement around these projects underscores how deeply these parks, greenways and public infrastructure are woven into the fabric of Asheville,” said Parks and Recreation Director D. Tyrell McGirt, who serves as staff liaison to the Infrastructure Recovery Board.
He said residents emphasized the importance of a resilient riverfront connected to multimodal transportation and preserved public gathering spaces.
ASHEVILLE OFFICIALS WARN OF $30M BUDGET GAP AS FY27 PLANNING BEGINS
During the same work session, city officials also provided an early update on the FY27 budget process, projecting a roughly $30 million gap between revenue and expenses.
“We have a balanced budget for FY26, which ends June 30,” Finance Director Tony McDowell said in the news release. “Sharing this early projection of a FY27 budget gap now maximizes the opportunity to address this imbalance.”
McDowell cited factors including rising health care costs, slower statewide sales tax growth and financial impacts from Hurricane Helene. He also said the county’s ongoing property value revaluation could affect future revenue estimates.
City staff began the FY27 budget process about six weeks earlier than usual, McDowell said, to allow more time for review and public transparency. Staff will continue working with council members as the process continues through June.