At last night’s Buncombe County meeting, commissioners unanimously approved a creative new strategy to increase digital equity for its residents.
For the next three years, the county will partner with Land of Sky Regional Council, a regional government planning organization, to donate the county’s used laptops to households who don’t have a reliable way to access the internet.
The county typically retires between 450 and 500 laptops each year and auctions them on GovDeals.com, earning back between $17,000 to $23,000 annually.
Though Land of Sky works with Buncombe, Henderson, Madison and Transylvania counties, Land of Sky spokesperson Sara Nichols said the laptops received from Buncombe would only be given to residents who live within county lines.
Land of Sky will manage repairs, refurbishment and other laptop maintenance. Buncombe is the first local government to partner with Land of Sky for its laptop refurbishment program.
According to 2021 census data, more than 10% of Buncombe County residents do not have access to a computing device.
During a presentation, Nichols said that people miss out on internet access for a “myriad of issues, not just the wires and signals to their house.” An internet device, such as a laptop, “could be the barrier that keeps them from accessing the world of the internet and what it brings – jobs, healthcare, education,” she said.
Another $300,000 for the Lakeshore Villas project
The county also approved an additional $299,702 from its housing bonds program to help fund Lakeshore Villas, a 120-unit affordable housing project in Arden being developed by Mountain Housing Opportunities. The project is estimated to cost $40.5 million. Buncombe County has already contributed more than $3.3 million to make it happen.
The extra money will allow developers to navigate unanticipated environmental costs of the project, according to the county’s Housing Bond Manager Chloe Donohue.
The commissioners unanimously approved the allocation.
“I think if we're going to continue to be really serious about affordable housing and literally putting our money where our mouth is in Buncombe County, then we're gonna have to take a lot of additional responsibility with these challenges,” Commissioner Amanda Edwards said, briefly before voting to approve the measure.
Around $23 million of the county’s housing bond funds remain.
From public comment: disappointment over Swannanoa Library closure
Several community members, including Swannanoa Community Council Board Member Aaron Ernst, spoke out against the county’s recent decision to close the Swannanoa Library this summer. The library building’s lease expires June 29 and the county has opted not to renew the lease.
During public comment, Ernst said that while “a lot has changed” in Swannanoa over the last 60 years, “something that has remained consistent in that community is the library.”
“We're under no delusions it's perfect. It's much smaller than some of our other branches. It can certainly use some updating and a fresh coat of paint…but it serves the people of Swannanoa, which is why it exists. And it's the only place nearby that can do so,” he said.
The county’s decision to close the library arose after a 2021 condition analysis revealed that the building needed $635,000 in repairs to “maintain life safety and continue providing regular operations,” according to a press release.
The Swannanoa Library serves 20,000 visitors each year and has the smallest footprint of any Buncombe County library, according to the county.
Other tidbits
- Commissioner Al Whitesides read the February proclamation of Black Legacy Month as a “time to celebrate the rich and diverse cultures of Black and African American people, to raise awareness about our shared history, to recognize that truth must come before reconciliation and to acknowledge the important contributions that Black and African-American people have made and are making within our community and our nation.”
- The county’s new finance director Melissa Moore provided a quarterly finance report for the county’s $436.1 million annual budget. This year, Buncombe spent $60.7 million on education, $36.8 million on public safety, $26.5 million on government, $25.3 million on health and human services, $4.8 million on culture and recreation, $2.8 million on debt service, and $600,000 on economic development.
- Commissioners voted to approve the rezoning of a one acre plot located at 1700 Tunnel Road from a residential designation to one that allows business operations.
Every first and third Tuesday, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners meets at 200 College Street, Room 326 in downtown Asheville beginning at 5 p.m. See the full recording and agenda of the Feb. 20 meeting
