The City of Asheville is moving forward with the Neighborhood Sidewalk Improvement program with the installation of a new 6-foot-wide sidewalk on the west side of Wood Avenue in East Asheville. This neighborhood is southeast of the Asheville Mall area.
Residents are invited to attend a community informational meeting about the project from 5 to 7 p.m. July 31 at Murphy Oakley Park, 715 Fairview Road.
The sidewalk construction is anticipated to begin in August and be completed by December. Residents can expect the sidewalk to increase pedestrian safety and comfort by filling gaps in the pedestrian network. The project is part of the Neighborhood Sidewalks Program, meant to expand the pedestrian transportation network. The new sidewalk will provide connectivity to a transit stop. This aligns with the City’s pedestrian plan. This project will also be ADA compliant.
At their July 23 meeting, Asheville City Council approved $498,740 for the Wood Avenue sidewalk project.
About the Neighborhood Sidewalk Policy
In 2014, Asheville City Council allotted funding specifically for building new sidewalks in neighborhoods. On October 13, 2015, the council adopted a Neighborhood Sidewalk Policy for prioritizing construction of neighborhood sidewalks. The policy states which streets will be considered for new neighborhood sidewalks, and what makes one neighborhood sidewalk a priority over another. The policy includes initial considerations like proximity to a transit stop, to community destinations like parks, schools, libraries and grocery stores, whether the zoning is low or high density, whether there are concentrations of low income households or households without a motor vehicle, and safety.