Ashvegas reader: How about an update on $4 million renovation to Asheville’s Reid Center

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Loyal Ashvegas reader Nathan asks the following:

Has anybody asked for an update from the Housing Authority on what they’ve achieved with the $4 million grant they received from Dept. of Housing and Urban Development to rehab the Reid Center on Livingston Street?
How much has been spent already?
How much is needed to finish the job as promised to the residents at various community meetings. Or as promised in the original grant application?
If there isn’t enough money left from the $4 million to meet all the promises, what is going to be left undone?
Who is still planning to move into the Reid Center when it is done?
When will they move in?
How much rent will they have to pay?
If they can not pay the rent, who will move in instead? What is the process for that?

It was August of 2012 that the city of Asheville officially broke ground on the big renovation project on Livingston Street. The Reid Center was built in the 1950s and had been in a slow state of decay. The plan was to demolish the building before several community groups, including the Asheville Housing Authority, Asheville Green Opportunities and others, worked together to secure a federal Housing and Urban Development grant. I’ll be following up on Nathan’s questions.