Community Corner

🌱 Patch AM: How endangered bats could reshape UNC Asheville’s controversial woods development plans

Happening soon: Citranova Space Rodeo on the Asheville Patch calendar

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Friday September 18th Patch AM
Friday September 18th Patch AM (Davidson LeRoy J.)

Cheers Asheville! We're back, helping you stay up to date with what's happening. Let's take on the day together! ☕️️

In today's newsletter:

  • How endangered bats could reshape UNC Asheville's controversial woods development plans
  • Where Asheville's winter turkeys disappear to—and that odd Otis Street water
  • Asheville's top finance official is retiring—here's what happens next

Also on today's calendar: Tanger Outlets Asheville Launches "Back to Play" Sneaker Recycling Initiative, through Sept. 30 and 9 more events.

And lastly, we have a post from a neighbor, Davidson LeRoy J.!

Today's riddle: What day of the year is trucker's day? 🤔 (Answer below!)

From our Partner
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Weather forecast:

  • Friday: An afternoon thunderstorm, with a high of 87 and low of 63 degrees. 🌶 Hot!
  • Saturday: Humid; a stray p.m. t-storm, temps: high: 83, low: 67.
  • Sunday: Humid; an afternoon t-storm, with a high of 82 and low of 63 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Endangered bats are using UNCA woods, researchers say • Asheville Watchdog (avlwatchdog.org) — Endangered gray and tricolored bats are now confirmed using the UNC Asheville south-campus woods, potentially adding new federal protections that could complicate the university's development plans. Local scientists, neighbors, and activists have quietly gathered bioacoustic evidence, strengthening the "Save the Woods" campaign to preserve one of Asheville's last large urban forests near downtown.
   

2. Answer Man: Wild turkeys gone missing? Mystery water leak downtown? • Asheville Watchdog (avlwatchdog.org) — If you've wondered where North Asheville's big turkey flocks vanish each summer, wildlife biologists explain how hens hide with their young while small groups of males roam more discreetly. Another reader's question about a mysterious water flow on Otis Street downtown has city and sewer officials still monitoring, but so far they've found no leak or infrastructure failure.
   

3. City of Asheville announces retirement of Finance and Management Services Director Tony McDowell in December (ashevillenc.gov) — Asheville's longtime Finance and Management Services Director Tony McDowell will retire at the end of 2026 after nearly three decades overseeing the city's budgets, audits, and major bond programs. He'll stay through year-end to ensure a smooth transition as Asheville launches a competitive search for a new finance chief to guide future investments and resilience.
   

4. HCA CEO pledges to do better at Mission in closed-door meeting • Asheville Watchdog (avlwatchdog.org) — HCA's CEO quietly met with Asheville health leaders to acknowledge Mission Hospital's serious performance problems and promise new investments and staffing improvements. Local officials, nurses, and UNC Asheville faculty welcomed the dialogue but stressed that trust will depend on visible changes in care quality, staffing levels, and transparency at Asheville's primary trauma and specialty hospital.
   

5. Through the lens: Photographer Isaiah Rice preserves a misplaced chapter of Black Asheville (fooshya.com) — A remarkable trove of 1950s–60s photographs by Asheville beverage distributor Isaiah Rice is helping restore a missing chapter of Black Asheville's history. Now preserved in UNC Asheville's Special Collections, the images highlight a vibrant Black middle-class community and give residents a richer, more nuanced picture of local life during segregation in Southern Appalachia.
   

📸 Around Asheville

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📸 Playing Pickleball In Weaver Park —Davidson LeRoy J. Like

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🗓 Upcoming Events in Asheville

Add your event to our calendar and newsletter!

★ Featured events ★

    Friday September 18
  • Citranova Space Rodeo →
    Meadow at Highland Brewing Co., 12 Old Charlotte Highway, Suite 200, Asheville
    6:00 pm

Want to see your event featured? Click here!

Other local events

Have we missed something on our calendar? Add an event yourself! As always, before attending confirm event details to ensure accuracy.

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💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

  • The NC Wildlife Resource Commission agreed to a nonlethal option for Dolly—so you could say we got her pardoned.
    More details to come, but I'm pretty speechless and overwhelmed with the relief and hope. Thank you to all who championed this cause. The real… (Nextdoor Beaverdam)
  • Hello, neighbors--We have a friend coming to visit next month who is gluten-free.
    For her it's a medical condition rather than a dietary choice, so we need to be super-careful if we go out to eat. I know that Posana's is GF and has… (Nextdoor South French Broad)
  • Boys & Girls Clubs of America posted a job opening for Club Services Coordinator in Asheville. Apply here.
  • Cinemark USA, Inc. posted a job opening for Server - Beer and Wine in Asheville. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Asheville here.

Ok Asheville! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: 10-4, good buddy! (Thank you Jean H. for sending it in!)
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Submit it here!

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