Last night at Council: More money for renters, business owners

The City of Asheville has already allocated millions of dollars to help renters and small businesses survive the economic fallout of Hurricane Helene. At last night’s meeting, Asheville City Council voted to allocate $1.2 million in additional funds to help the many people who are struggling to make ends meet.

City leaders said details on how to apply to the new aid will be made available soon. Some aid has already been distributed to two nonprofit organizations- Eblen Charities and Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church.

The money comes from a newly granted pot of federal funds totaling $1.7 million, provided through the Community Development Block Grant program. The grant will support $624,000 for business restabilization grants, $624,000 for rental assistance, $250,000 to support emergency homeless shelter and $250,000 for program administration fees.

In a presentation, City Community Development Division Manager James Shelton explained why the city should target help toward individual business owners and renters, based on the latest housing and economic data.

The Asheville metro area lost 8,200 jobs in October. In its previous round of funding, the city authorized $704,000 for small business grants through its partnership with Mountain BizWorks.

This funding, plus $3 million in additional resources, was only able to serve a small fraction of the 619 applicants who applied for grants. The total request for assistance from these businesses was $13.2 million.

Businesses that applied reported that they employed 5,332 people, pre-Helene jobs – and now employ 3,585, reflecting a decrease of 1,747 jobs.

Many of those workers rent and face a dual crisis of employment and housing – but, as Shelton pointed out, would not be eligible for any FEMA aid granted only to property or homeowners.

“There is a primary need for rental assistance to families in our community who are economically impacted by the storm, but may not have had physical housing impacts and aren’t receiving FEMA aid,” Shelton said. “Local advocacy groups place rental assistance and business grants at the top of their priority.”

The two largest rent relief organizations in town, Grace Covenant Church and Eblen Charities, have distributed $1.1 million and $219,000 in rent relief, respectively, according to the presentation. This money has served 946 families thus far.

The $250,000 in emergency shelter funding approved Tuesday will support homelessness efforts in the coming year. American Red Cross funding for the the Rescue Mission’s existing shelter at Gold’s Gym in South Asheville expires at the end of the year. Leaders with Asheville’s Continuum of Care, the group tasked with addressing homelessness in the region, are “pursuing options” for what will happen next, Shelton said.

In order to process funding in a timely manner for all of these initiatives, the final $250,000 will go towards program administration fees, Shelton added.

As part of the funding approved, council members also re-allocated $380,000 – originally intended for outdoor improvements to Stephens-Lee Community Center – to disaster recovery for parks damaged by Hurricane Helene.

“Parks and Rec facilities were severely impacted by the storm. These funds may be used to replace some of the lost fleet and or facility relocation,” Shelton said.

Another tidbit

• Council members tabled a vote on a change to the city’s zoning ordinance. The ordinance proposes a change in some zoning requirements for redevelopment of substantially damaged properties in floodplains. Council will revisit the item at its Jan. 14 meeting. 

Every second and fourth Tuesday, Asheville City Council meets at the Council Chamber on the 2nd Floor of City Hall, 70 Court Plaza, beginning at 5 p.m. Due to the holidays, council will not meet again until Jan. 14. See the full recording of the Dec. 10 meeting and the agenda.