From the Asheville Street Sentinel blog:
There have been rumors that people were getting tickets for standing on the sidewalk across from Firestorm Cafe. (Firestorm’s Commerce St. entrance) This has led to questions about the public’s use of sidewalks, including people who go across the streets around Pritchard Park to smoke a cigarette, now that smoking in city parks and the immediately adjacent sidewalks is illegal.
I heard one of the owners of Firestorm expressing concern about the rumors after someone came in and reported that someone outside just got a ticket. Jerry, the president of AHN, decided to invite Asheville Police Sergeant Mike Lamb to an AHN meeting at Firestorm to discuss this, to see if they would explain this and answer some questions. (AHN has meetings at Firestorm.) Sgt. Lamb agreed to come, and he brought 3 more officers with him.
Sgt. Lamp explained the problem with loitering is when people block the sidewalk or block access to a business. He said the law requires that a warning be given before a ticket can be issued. He said the warning can be a business owners request to not stand immediately outside their business entrance, a sign that serves the same purpose, or the request of a police officer. (Note: my own reading of the statute is that an officers warning is required in all situations – see the statue below – 11-17(b)(3) – “any of the conditions in this section.” I’m not an attorney.)
Sgt. Lamb said it’s not loitering for someone to stand on the sidewalk across the street from Firestorm, as long they allow for people to pass. (That sidewalk is adjacent to a parking lot, and doesn’t really go anywhere, so it seldomly has foot traffic.