We are writing in support of Brownie Newman’s candidacy for Buncombe County commissioner. Newman exemplified leadership as an Asheville City Council member and vice mayor for environmental initiatives by slashing the city’s carbon footprint through LED bulbs for streetlamps, hybrid engines for buses and the expanded household-recycling program. More significantly, Newman demonstrated time and time again that he cares deeply about Asheville residents and neighborhoods.
Last year, our West Asheville neighborhood faced an extraordinarily difficult challenge with a neighbor who wanted to make a personal driveway out of a 90-year-old unopened alley resting between 14 properties. When the neighbors got together and reached out to City Council for help, Newman took our concerns to heart. After hearing both sides of the dispute, he championed saving a piece of land that makes our old neighborhood so special. He did not shy away from the issue because it wasn’t big enough or important enough for the city’s concerns. He believed that our neighborhood was worth saving and that what matters to neighborhoods matters to city leadership.
With his leadership, City Council voted to save our neighborhood by closing the alley, thereby rendering it private property as a small extension of each of our back yards. It proved to us that Newman’s leadership is invaluable for our community. Our neighborhoods need Brownie Newman as Buncombe County commissioner.
— Evan and Julia Schafer
Asheville
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