Boards and Commissions

Last updated or reviewed on March 12, 2025

Announcements:

NOTICE Advisory Board and Commission Meeting Suspension Update:

Effective immediately, all advisory boards staffed by City employees will remain suspended until further direction from the City Council. We will provide updates as new information becomes available.

All City quasi-judicial boards staffed by City employees will resume their regular meeting schedules beginning January 1, 2025. The following quasi-judicial boards will recommence their operations as of the new year:

  • Planning & Zoning Commission

  • Asheville-Buncombe Historic Resources Commission

  • Board of Adjustment

  • Civil Service Board

Board and Commission 2024 Annual Reports

The 2024 board and commission annual reports are now available for review! Our board members have done tremendous work this past year and have set some exciting goals for 2025.

What are Boards and Commissions?

Alex Smith, Assistant City Clerk, and Michelle Smith, Deputy City Clerk, speak about what Boards and Commissions are and how you can get involved, anywhere from becoming a member of a board, to submitting questions and recommendations as a member of the public.

Be A Local Leader

Have you ever wanted to make a difference? Have you wondered, “Can the City benefit from my experience and knowledge?” Do you want to have a voice in the City’s growth and future? Do you want to be a part of the body that is responsible for making decisions regarding policy, service and education? If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, then it’s time to take that initial step forward and put your perspective, leadership and knowledge to task by serving on one of the many committees we have to offer. Please note, that city residents are given preference; however, Council may appoint a non-City resident to some hard-to-fill seats, seats requiring special skills or expertise, or unless otherwise specified or provided for by law or Council action.

Through a variety of boards and commissions established by Asheville City Council, members of the public may provide input on the policies that shape their government and their city. There are currently more than 30 boards and commissions that advise the Mayor and City Council on an array of issues.

Board members and commissioners generally serve as unpaid volunteers, but the rewards can be gratifying: members meet other residents with similar interests, they learn about the city, and they help shape the future of Asheville. Being on a board or commission requires a significant personal commitment, so applicants should consider their ability to commit their time and personal energy before applying.

Board and Commission Resources

Current and Upcoming Board and Commission Vacancies

Vacantes de Juntas y Comisiones    Board and Commission Vacancy Flyer
 

All appointments to the advisory boards and committees that were scheduled for the January 14, 2025, City Council meeting have been postponed and are scheduled to take place at the April 8, 2025, City Council meeting. 

All board and commission vacancies listed below have an application deadline of March 9, 2025, unless otherwise stated. Consideration of appointments for all the boards and commissions listed below is scheduled for the April 8, 2025, City Council meeting. To view and apply for Buncombe County boards and commissions, please visit the Buncombe County Board of County Commissioners’ advisory boards webpage.

African American Heritage Commission

Audit Committee

  • Applicant must be a CPA or CPA-retired

Board of Adjustment

  • Three alternate seat vacancies
  • Must be City residents

Civil Service Board

  • Applicants must be qualified voters of the City of Asheville (live inside the City limits and be registered to vote) and not employed by the city or serving on the city council.

Design Review Committee

  • At-large seat vacancies
  • Applicants should have a demonstrated special interest, experience or education in architecture, historic preservation, landscape architecture, urban planning, or related fields. Preference will be given to applicants who represent at least one of the following: persons with disabilities, transit users, and/or seniors.

Downtown Commission

  • Applicants must be members of the private sector of the community and shall represent various segments of the greater downtown community such as, but not limited to, property owners, merchants, residents, businesses and institutions; and shall have a willingness to participate actively in commission efforts; and shall possess expertise and interest in the sustainability and development of downtown.

Mountain Community Capital Fund Operating Committee

Neighborhood Advisory Committee

  • One 28805 representative vacancy
  • Two vacancies for at-large seats
  • Must be residents of the City or the City’s extraterritorial zoning jurisdiction and shall reflect the socioeconomic diversity of Asheville

Noise Advisory Board

  • One at-large seat vacancy 
  • Must be a City resident

Riverfront Commission

  • One vacancy reserved for an art advocate/artist/arts administrator
  • One vacancy reserved for a Housing Authority resident/staff or voucher recipient

Sustainability Advisory Committee

Vacancies below are open until filled and are appointed by the Multimodal Transportation Commission:

Active Transportation Committee

Notice: This committee uses a separate application from the boards listed above.  If you are interested in applying, please fill out an Active Transportation Committee Application. For more information about this board, contact Lucy Crown. 

Application Process

On March 14, 2023, the Boards and Commissions Council Committee approved changing the Council Appointment process from monthly to four to five times per year. The extended time-frame allows for longer advertising of board vacancies and more time for review of the applications before appointments are made by City Council. 

Prospective Applicants

First, determine which board or commission interests you. Board and commission meetings are open to the public, so potential applicants are encouraged to attend monthly meetings or watch recordings of previous meetings. Meeting dates, times, and locations vary and are available on individual board and commission web pages.  Interested volunteers must submit an application form to be considered. Please review our FAQ’s for more information.

The City prohibits discrimination on the basis of a disability with respect to all terms and conditions of access to its activities, programs, and services. If you need any reasonable accommodation to make your board service more effective, please contact the City’s ADA Coordinator, Brad Stein, to discuss your accommodations request. The City will consider whether your request can be reasonably accommodated. This will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. For more information about the City of Asheville’s ADA policy and contact information for the ADA coordinator, please visit the Americans with Disabilities Act webpage.

Application

Fill out a boards and commissions application. 

After your application is received, you will receive a receipt of application e-mail from the City Clerk’s Office. If you do not receive that receipt within a day after submittal, please contact boards@ashevillenc.gov to make sure that your application has reached the City Clerk’s Office.

Note: Once an application is received, the city will place your name on the resource list for that particular board. Applications are kept on file for consideration for one year. If you are not appointed within a year, you will need to submit a new application for further consideration.

Qualifications

City residents are given preference. However, Council may appoint a non-City resident to some hard-to-fill seats, seats requiring special skills or expertise, or unless otherwise specified or provided for by law or Council action.

Interview

When vacancies occur, the City Council will review the resource list and may schedule interviews. You will be contacted directly if it is necessary for you to interview for an appointment.

NOTE: Please visit individual Committee pages for more information on the next, upcoming meeting.

The table below includes information for City Managed Boards, for meeting information on Boards/Commissions not managed by the City, but to which City Council appoints members or liaisons, please review the comprehensive Boards and Commissions Meeting and Contact Information document and visit the specific Board or Commission website. Due to the board meeting suspension from October 2024 – present, many boards have not established their 2025 regular meeting schedule, the information listed below is tentative, pending the resumption of board meetings.

 

City Managed Boards and Commissions Meeting Information

Board and Commission

Meeting Information

Contact

Active Transportation Committee

(Subcommittee of Multimodal Transportation Commission)

 This meeting takes place at 3:30 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month in the fourth floor Police/Fire Training Room at the City of Asheville Municipal Building.

Hayley Burton

828-232-4564
Affordable Housing Advisory Committee This meeting takes place at 9:30 a.m., on the first Thursday of each month in the first Floor North Conference Room of Asheville City Hall. Sasha Vrtunski
828-259-5560
African American Heritage Commission This meeting takes place at 4:30 p.m., on the second Thursday of every other month. Meetings are held in odd months.  Meetings are virtual.

Sala Menaya-Merritt

828-232-4517
Asheville Buncombe Riverfront Commission This meeting takes place at 4:00 p.m., on the second Thursday of each month. Meetings are in person at the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce in the second floor conference room. 

David Hazzard
828-417-4306

Asheville City Council Formal Meetings

Asheville City Council Agenda Briefing Work Sessions 

This meeting takes place at 5:00 p.m., on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month, in the Council Chamber located on the second floor of City Hall. These meetings are in-person. 

Agenda Briefing Work Sessions are held the Thursday before the Council Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. in the First Floor Conference Rm of City Hall. These meetings are in-person. 

 Maggie Burleson
828-259-5601
Asheville Regional Housing Consortium This meeting takes place on an as-needed basis.

Sofia Bonilla

828-259-5446
Audit Committee
 This meeting takes place quarterly (January, April, June, October) on the third Thursday of the month at 3:00 p.m. Meetings are virtual. Lauren Brune
828-259-5665
Board of Adjustment 
 This meeting takes place at 2:00 p.m., on the fourth Monday of each month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room.

Sam Starr-Baum

828-259-5609
Board of Electrical Examiners This meeting takes place at 9:00 a.m., on the first Tuesday of the month for January, April, July, and October at Public Works Room A109 located at 161 South Charlotte Street. Misty Lipe
mlipe@ashevillenc.gov
Board and Commissions Committee 
(City Council Committee)		 This meeting takes place at 1:00 p.m., on the second Tuesday of the month.  Meetings are virtual. Michelle F. Smith
828-259-5839
Citizen-Police Advisory Committee
 Not currently meeting. Samantha Booth
828-259-5813
Civil Service Board This meeting takes place at 2:30 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room. 

HR Director 

828-774-8564

Community Entertainment Facilities Commission

(Formerly the Civic Center Commission)

 This meeting takes place at 12:00 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month in the Banquet Hall at Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville located at 87 Haywood Street.

Chris Corl

828-259-5452 ; ccorl@ashevillenc.gov 
Community Reparations Commission This meeting takes place at 6:00 p.m. on the third Monday of each month. Meetings are virtual.

Sala Menaya-Merritt

828-232-4517
Design Review Committee This meeting takes place at 12:15 p.m. on the third Thursday of the month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room. 

Will Palmquist

828-259-5525
Downtown Commission This meeting takes place at 9:00 a.m. on the fourth Friday of the month in the first floor North Conference Room of City Hall. Meetings are in-person.

Dana Frankel

828-273-5248

Environment and Safety

(City Council Committee)

This meeting takes place at 11:00 a.m. on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Meetings are virtual. 

Talia Stepp

828-641-1579

Equity and Engagement 

(City Council Committee) 

This meeting takes place at 1:00 p.m. on the third Tuesday of each month. Meetings are virtual.

Katie Noun

828-259-5721
Historic Resources Commission This meeting takes place at 4:00 p.m. on the second Wednesday of the month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room. Alex Cole
828-259-5638
Homeless Initiative Advisory Committee At the November 12, 2024 City Council meeting, Council adopted a resolution dissolving the Homeless Initiative Advisory Committee. Emily Ball
828-747-8510
Housing and Community Development
(City Council Committee)		 This meeting takes place at 10:00 a.m. on the third Tuesday of the month. Meetings are virtual.

Katie Noun

828-259-5721
Human Relations Commission of Asheville This meeting takes place at 6 p.m., on the third Thursday of every other month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room.

Sala Menaya-Merritt

828-232-4517
Mountain Community Capital Fund This meeting takes place the first Friday of each month. Meetings are virtual.

Rachel Taylor

828.251.4055.
Multimodal Transportation Commission This meeting takes place at 3:00 p.m. on the fourth Wednesday of the month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room.

Lucy Crown

828-259-5805
Neighborhood Advisory Committee This meeting takes place at 6:00 p.m., on the fourth Monday of the month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room. Dawa Hitch
828-712-4229
Noise Advisory Board This meeting takes place at 1:00 p.m. on the second Monday of each month. Meetings are virtual.

Chris O’Brien

828-450-2535
Planning and Economic Development
(City Council Committee)
 This meeting takes place at 4:00 p.m., on the second Monday of each month. Meetings are virtual.

Katie Noun

828-259-5721
Planning and Zoning Commission This meeting takes place at 5:00 p.m., on the first Wednesday of the month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room.

Will Palmquist

828-259-5525

Policy, Finance and HR Committee

(City Council Committee) 

 This meeting takes place at 10:00 a.m. on the second Tuesday of each month.  Meetings are virtual. 

Talia Stepp

828-641-1579
Public Art and Cultural Commission  This meeting takes place at 4:00 p.m., on the third Thursday of every month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room. Karli Stephenson
828-259-5627
Recreation Board Not currently meeting. Recreation Department
Soil Erosion/Stormwater Review Committee This meeting takes place on an as-needed basis. Derek Wainscott
828-259-5548
Sustainability Advisory Committee This meeting takes place at 3:30 p.m., on the second Wednesday of every other month, in odd-numbered months, at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room. Bridget Herring
828-259-5558

Transit Committee

(Subcommittee of Multimodal Transportation Commission)

 The Asheville Transit Committee meets on the third Tuesday of every month from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Meetings are virtual. 

Amber Wagner

828-232-4522
Urban Forestry Commission This meeting takes place at 1:00 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month at City Hall, in the first floor North Conference Room.

Keith Atkin

828-259-5674
  For meeting information on other Boards or Commissions not managed by the City, but to which City Council appoints members or liaisons, please reference the comprehensive Boards and Commissions Meeting & Contact Information Document and visit the specific Board or Commission website.  

Board and Commission Resource Folder

Boards and Commissions Resource Documents – folder containing Board and Commission policies, handbooks, resources, and annual reports, etc.

Contact Information

General questions: boards@ashevillenc.gov 

If members of the public are interested in being on an e-mail list to receive updates on the activities of particular boards they need to contact the individual staff contact for that board.

Have an issue accessing or participating in a board or commission meeting, in person or virtually? Use this form to let us know!