A proposed five-story mixed-use project at 290 Depot Street has advanced through Asheville’s design review process—highlighting several issues building owners and business owners are actively navigating. 🏗️🏢
Key takeaways:
- Mixed-use density: Apartments above 8 ground-floor retail spaces, designed under River Arts District shopfront standards.
- Affordability incentives: Additional height tied to setting aside 20% of units at ≤80% AMI—a growing tool cities are using to influence project economics.
- Parking policy shift: No residential parking minimums in transit corridors, though this project still includes on-site, on-street, and leased remote parking.
- Business impact concerns: Local restaurants, artists, and retailers cite challenges around customer access, loading, and spillover parking.
- District identity vs. growth: Support for housing supply exists, but questions remain about coordination with recovery efforts and preserving the area’s cultural role.
Why this matters to owners & operators:
- Retail and restaurant performance remains highly sensitive to access and convenience.
- Development incentives can reshape land values, tenant mix, and competition.
- Parking and transportation strategy is increasingly a core risk factor, not an afterthought.
Projects like this reflect the broader tension between housing supply, policy reform, and on-the-ground business realities—a balance many urban markets are still working through.
