Photos: Banks Street on Asheville’s south slope

Banks Street is a forlorn avenue full of decrepit buildings. You’ll miss it if you’re not looking for it. But as development in downtown Asheville creeps ever southward, look for this area to be reborn.

One redevelopment project is already planned – a new restaurant called Buxton Hill by well-known local restauranteurs – will bring traffic to the empty street. And more development is sure to follow.

Development on Buxton Avenue, which runs parallel to Banks Street, has already been humming along for the past five or so years. There, you have The Prospect bar, the new French Broad Chocolate Factory, an expanded Green Man Brewing operation, Eagle’s Nest Outfitters and Asheville Hardware. That’s incredible change for Buxton, which just a few years ago was just as down and out as Banks.

Here are a few photos from my recent walkabout along Banks Street: