Last August, in the face of overwhelming community opposition, UNC Asheville put a pause to their plans to clear-cut their 45-acre mature urban forest ecosystem and put in a 5,000-seat stadium on the edge of the Five Points neighborhood.
They hired consultants HR&A Advisors to form a committee that could guide development plans and build buy-in with the community. On Jan. 27, the committee’s members were announced. In place of the neighbors and local elected officials we hoped for, the university has stacked the committee with current and past UNCA trustees, university alumni, real estate developers and financial executives.
We also hoped for a transparent, collaborative process that would consider ecological as well as financial impacts. And to be fair, the UNCA press release announcing the committee uses phrases like “transparent evaluation,” “environmental stewardship” and “responsibility to be good neighbors.” Yet the committee’s meetings will be held in secret, and no effort was made to include any community members or environmental experts who have been critical of the university’s plans…