Buncombe County Operations, Local School Updates & Permits and Inspections Guidelines

On Sept. 25, Buncombe County Commissioners declared a local state of emergency. The County will remain under that state of emergency and likely will for many more weeks to come. 

“It gives me a great deal of hope to share that we are looking to start bringing some County operations online next week,” Buncombe County Manager Avril Pinder said. “We’ll have more details to share once they are confirmed.”   

The Town of Weaverville water no longer needs to be boiled for any purpose. Town of Weaverville water only can be used straight out of the tap. The boil water notice across the county remains, with the exception of the Town of Black Mountain, where water can only be used for flushing toilets, that water should not be consumed. 

Disaster Unemployment Assistance Lines 
Disaster Unemployment Assistance is available at 919-629-3857 for English speakers and 919-276-5698 for Spanish speakers from Monday - Friday 8 a.m.-7 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday 12-4 p.m.  
Early Voting Starts Today 
Today is the first day of early voting, and IDs can be obtained in 10 minutes at the Elections Office, 59 Woodfin Place. Voting is now open through Nov. 1, seven days a week anytime between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. at one of our early voting locations:     

• Black Mountain Library 
• East Asheville Library   
• Enka-Candler Library 
• Fairview Library 
• Leicester Community Center 
• South Buncombe Library 
• UNCA Health & Counseling Center 
• Weaverville Community Center   
• Dr. Wesley Grant Southside Center 
• West Asheville Library 

On Nov. 2, hours are 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. Click here for FAQs regarding this year’s election. 

Power Outages 
As of this morning, 1,048 customers in Buncombe County are without power. These customers will require very specific restoration practices to get back online, but Duke Energy is using helicopters to get poles into these locations to restore service. For those without power, register with FEMA at disasterassistance.gov, as hotels may be provided for impacted individuals.   

Spectrum 
Spectrum has restored service to 70% of their Buncombe customers, and they have updated the full restoration date to Oct. 21. About 28,000 customers remain offline.   

Debris Pickup  
Yesterday, 18 trucks moved 2,700 yards of vegetative debris from the Woodfin unincorporated area and the Fairview area. There was also 452.5 yards of debris removed from the Swannanoa area. Today, 21 trucks are running in the Woodfin, Barnardsville, and Fairview areas. 

Shelter 
Our shelters are open and have capacity. An update for people with pets – pets are allowed at the Gold’s Gym shelter at 1815 Hendersonville Road in addition to the WNC Ag Center. The AB Tech shelter at 16 Fernihurst Drive is also open. 

Food and Water Distribution  
Food and water distribution continues, but as more people get water and schools set to reopen, these are changing. Locations for today are:   

• AC Reynolds High School 1 Rocket Drive, Asheville Noon-4 p.m.  
• Buncombe County Sports Park Complex 58 Apac Dr., Asheville, NC 28806 Noon-4 p.m.  
• Black Mountain Ingles 550 NC-9, Black Mountain Noon-4 p.m.  
• Fairview Elementary School 1355 Charlotte Highway, Fairview Noon-4 p.m.  
• Swannanoa Ingles 2299 US 70, Swannanoa Noon-4 p.m.  
• Leicester Elementary School 31 Gilbert Road, Leicester Noon-4 p.m.  
• Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center (Food and drinking water only) 121 Shiloh Road, Asheville 9a.m.- 7 p.m.  
• North Windy Ridge Intermediate School 20 Doan Road, Weaverville Noon-4 p.m.  
• William W. Estes Elementary School 275 Overlook Road, Asheville Noon-4 p.m.  
• Sky Lanes Bowling 1477 Patton Avenue, Asheville 7 a.m.- 7 p.m.  
• At Home 980 Brevard Road Asheville Parking lot: 98 Sulfur Springs Road, 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.  
• Pack Square Park 70 Court Plaza, Asheville 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.  
• William W. Estes Elementary 275 Overlook Road, Asheville Noon – 4 p.m.  
• Innsbrook Mall (old Big Lots) 85 Tunnel Road, Asheville 7 a.m.-7 p.m. 

Permits and Inspections 
Buncombe County Permits and Inspections staff have performed 1,461 damage assessment inspections and processed over 1,000 applications. They ask the public to be patient with the permitting process and staff who are processing applications as quickly as possible.  
Inspections: When performing damage assessments, the goals are to determine safety, evaluate the structural aspects and any non-structural risks, and rate the damage of the building. Once these factors are determined by the building inspector, a placard is placed on the building. A yellow placed alerts that the structure has damage, and entry is identified on the placard as to where people can and cannot go within the structure. Yellow may also indicate that a person can enter only for retrieval of personal items. A red placard illustrates that the inspector has determined there are serious issues such as structural or electrical damage and the building should not be occupied. Those with questions about the placards can call the office at 828-250-5360. 

All permits for storm restoration projects are currently free.  

• If a home is located withing a special flood hazard area and significant damage occurred, call the flood plain administrator for guidance at 828-250-4830. 
• A permit is required for a project when the cost is more than $40,000. 
• Always work with a licensed general contractor. 
• A permit is required for any structural repair or for any trade work such as electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling, and gas piping.  
• Be cautious of door-to-door offers of repairs services and flyers. 

Visit buncombecounty.org/permits to learn more about the permitting process or call 828-250-5360.  

Asheville City Schools 
All Asheville City Schools have potable water, and Superintendent Maggie Fehrman said she is confident on an Oct. 28 reopening date. A lot of work is happening now to meet this opening date including testing bus routes, securing sufficient food, time for staff to return and prepare for students, and securing drinkable water. Asheville City Schools is partnering with Buncombe County Schools and other area schools to develop a plan for distributing drinking water to all public schools. Bridge Learning, an enrichment program for kids while schools are closed, will end after Friday.  

Buncombe County Schools 
There has been great progress at Buncombe County Schools. As of today, 44 out of 45 schools have power, 34 out of 45 have water, and 38 out of 45 have internet connectivity. Team members are currently being trained on fire watch in the case fire system sprinklers are not fully functional. While no facilities suffered catastrophic damage, restoration continues in facilities that received flooding damage. Staff is working on transportation, including re-routing routes and establishing community stops and pivoting to prepare meals without potable water to offer free breakfast and lunch. Schools are also getting support from school counselors and social workers from all over the state to support with the emotional wellbeing of students and staff during these times. A reopening date will be announced as soon as schools are able to safely reopen.  

Eblen Charities 
Eblen Charities, a community-based organization at 23 Hamilton St., Asheville, is providing gasoline vouchers, warm winter clothing and other essential items such as hygiene and cleaning supplies, menstrual products, diapers, and more. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. It also provides rent and mortgage assistance, medical needs including prescription costs and copays. Applications can be submitted in-person or online at www.eblencharities.org/programs. For those who would like to donate, Eblen is accepting blankets and hygiene items. To provide comfort to many with the upcoming holidays, Eblen will continue its Thanksgiving turkey giveaway, and its Christmas Toy Drive. For updates on this and more, visit its website at eblencharities.org or at its Facebook page.