The big item on Asheville City Council’s agenda tonight was an attempt to amend the city’s code of ordinances to require any significant development occurring adjacent to Pack Square Park to undergo a Level III review. Planning Director Judy Daniel said the review would delay projects 5-6 months. After considerable vetting, the ordinance was whittled down to where it would only impact two properties. the property for which the ordinance was crafted and property owned by the Biltmore Company, which had slipped through the cracks in the city’s notification process.

Three citizens vociferously demanded that the city impose the most stringent of practices against Stewart Coleman’s attempts to build condominiums next to city hall. Two of them led the protest to prevent Coleman from cutting down the now historic magnolia tree on his property. They argued that the city was misguided in allowing the person who purchased, paid taxes on, maintained, and tried to build on a parcel more say in how he used the land than passersby.

In the end, council was unable to come up with a motion that happified a majority, and so the matter was left in limbo until staff can get some ordinances in motion to honor the recommendations in the Downtown Master Plan.