Asheville City Council has opened the public hearing on the Ellington hotel/condo proposal and they’ve heard from the developer and a group opposing the development.
There’s already been news made. First, Lou Bissette, speaking for the developer, announced that the Ellington would go for LEED certification, a major step in cementing the building’s place as a landmark in the city. The architect showed a new, more squat design for the building with two floors lopped off to make it 21 stories tall. If you drew a straight line from the top of the Ellington to the top of the BB&T building, the Ellington would be 7 feet taller than the BB&T even though it’s on a downslope.
The opposition group who’s name we missed (Asheville Voices?), persented a shoebox design and about 1,000 signatures of people they said were against the Ellington. We didn’t get the presenter’s name, but we did recognize his assistant – a campaign worker for Asheville City Council candidate Elaine Lite. The group presenter said his group was working on getting a petition up for a referendum on building height restriction in the city and a moratorium on new building.
Public comment has started. The Eagle-Market Development Corp. has come out in favor of the Ellington. Meantime, a new downtown resident says she’s dismayed by the height of the Ellington.
We’ll keep you updated.