Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
New Belgium Brewing CEO Kim Jordan herself was part of a Q&A session and design presentation that shared New Belgium’s plans to not only install a brewery with trails and bike paths, but to accommodate visitor traffic and 60 truck deliveries daily, and change West Asheville infrastructure forever.
Full house for New Belgium Brewing presentation Tuesday night.
Jordan presented with a group of core upper-level New Belgium employees including Jennifer Vervier, New Belgium’s director of sustainability and strategic development.
The brewing company shared plans for major changes that seemed to have a far greater effect on West Asheville than the River Arts District, including proposed DOT infrastructure changes to the Haywood Road/I-240 interchange, the primary truck route the brewery will need to handle 60 trucks per day, according to presenters.
Other impact will be from visitors to the brewery complex. Jordan stated that the Fort Collins, Co. location receives 100,000 visitors a year, an average of nearly 300 per day. New Belgium Brewing is the main tourist attraction in Fort Collins, so it isn’t easy to compare its visitor numbers to a city like Asheville, with much more to offer tourists. But this influx of visitors will be driving in, too.
Artist’s rendering of what the new brewery might look like.
Craven Street will also change to accommodate the brewery’s needs, and will likely be widened and graded. New Belgium’s plans for the road include bike lanes and sidewalks. The company is also exploring trails (including the possibility of trail connecting Haywood Road and the brewery), walkability along the French Broad, river access at the brewery (possibly via a dock), and an outdoor event space the size of a sports field.
New Belgium also plans a meeting space that will be available for local nonprofits to use.
New Belgium slide showing proposed infrastructure changes in West Asheville and the River District. Click to see original size.
As for the brewery itself, Jordan promised no dumping of bottles after 10 p.m. and said that New Belgium is seeking LEED certification with its Asheville buildings.
According to the presenters, Asheville can expect 140 new jobs over 10 years, most of which will not be available until after the brewery is built and closer to running.
Asheville City Council member Marc Hunt briefly stole attention from Jordan’s closing Q&A to publicly thank the brewery for its community-friendly practices, noting that it’s invested $5 million in Fort Collins.
New Belgium has added an Asheville-centric new page to its website: newbelgium.com/ashevillebrewery. The page offers a roundup of local news articles related to the brewery and includes a feedback form.
Welcome to Asheville, New Belgium. Nothing will ever be quite the same here again.
Welcome New Belgium! Long loved your beer have enjoyed seeing your positive influence on the community on my trips to CO. Very confident that you will be a great addition to our region. Looking forward to the work on a continuous river trail and would love to be involved in creating a white water park or feature on the French Broad.
I really like that there are these nice newsy reports interspersed with short AVL tidbits. Even though I’d already read what the CT reported on it I still found new bits of info in this coverage. Keep it up Ashvegas!
Thank you, Sarah!
I am excited about New Belgium coming to West Asheville and the RAD. I think it was just a matter of time that businesses (local or non-local) came to this specific area as it is underutilized and full of potential. I am happy they are incorporating local opinions and going to create things like trails, sidewalks and bike lanes. Growth is nothing to complain about because it is inevitable and the opposite is definitely not what you want for your community.
You realize that her last name is Jordan, not Gordan?
Fixing now, had it right and then incorrected myself!
Still at least one up there you missed . . .
My hart is pounding with anticipation! For me it’s more about the whole cycling and trail part of New Belgium that excites me. Being a Boulder, CO boy the one thing I miss about CO is the cycling. Its a way of life! Trails all over town and and every other road has a bike lane. I love Asheville , but think they could do more with alternative transportation. It’s a good day!! i