About Asheville
Asheville is about 15 minutes from our door. With a population of only about 75,000, it is ranked among the top 25 cities nationwide for tourism, arts, retirement, quality of life, etc. and as one of the top 15 tourist destinations in the world by Frommer. Asheville is known for the rich array of cultural activities. There is a lively downtown with shopping at many unique shops including the Grove Arcade and some of the country's finest regional theaters. Even in such a small town, there is a symphony and Broadway shows, international ballet troupes, and other live entertainment are frequently found in Asheville. Some of the world's finest artists live here. There are galleries galore and an impressive collection of regional art at the Folk Art Center off the Blue Ridge Parkway. The Biltmore estate is a world class tourist destination.
We're a mixed bag politically. Dennis Kucinich won the Democratic nomination in our county. Some of our ministers have refused to perform legal marriage services for anyone until they can marry everyone. On the other hand, there is a large conservative community. One group took out a full page newspaper ad in support of a ski lodge who fired an employee when they discovered she was gay. The city of Asheville is reflected in their progressive city council and the county tends to be more conservative. My neighbors are some of the nicest self-proclaimed rednecks you'd ever want to meet.
Spirituality is an important value in this area. The mountains are said to carry transformational energy and there are many church retreat centers (including Billy Graham's home and headquarters) in the region. In addition to a mosque, several Buddhist retreat centers, two synagogues and churches of virtually ever denomination, Asheville has two active Science of Mind congregations, over 1,000 members of the Matthew Fox-based Jubilee Community, a Unity Center, and several other new thought churches.
We're a relatively white community with only 17% African Americans and less than 5% of other races. Our diversity seems to be mostly age, income, and lifestyle related. I can't find any believable official statistics but there is a local saying that "9,000 lesbians can't be wrong" about Asheville as a good place to live. Downtown condos are selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars and we have a large population of low-income service workers. We're a popular location for "trust babies" and many of the kids on the streets who look homeless are driving expensive SUV's. We do also have a small but visible homeless population downtown. There is a popular bumper sticker that says "Keep Asheville Weird." Somehow, our interesting mix works for most people. Street festivals are great people-watching locations where you can see middle-aged white men in business suits dancing near dreadlocked androgynous (or transgender) young people.
A lot of us are well-educated. The University of North Carolina has an Asheville campus and there are a dozen small colleges in the area. A lot of the graduates fall in love with Asheville and stay. When I graduated from Warren Wilson College, there was a saying that you had to bring your own job to Asheville, meaning that good jobs were scarce. It is still true. Some of our well-educated people are also our low-income service workers. There are many highly educated people who are piecing together a living through a series of part-time jobs.
Some of the top alternative health practitioners in the world live here or close-by. Healthy food is abundant. There are three large natural food grocery stores, a coop, and farmers markets with organic produce in addition to roadside stands. Asheville is consistently at the top of the best vegetarian cities and we have several restaurants and caterers that specialize in vegetarian and/or organic foods.
As a community, we do like to gather. We have a lot of festivals, street dances, free concerts, and other community events here. There are lots of meeting places around town, each with a special personality. Mystic Journeys offers special showings of new independent spiritual movies. A new Center of Unlimited Possibilities (CUP) offers space for activities, products and services within their 30,000 square foot new age spiritual community center. The YMI Cultural Center is an African American community center. International Link is an international community center. Outdoor cafes and coffee shops are popular gathering places. We hold a lot of meetings at the natural foods groceries and at their cafes.
Live music is a big part of our culture, too. We can dress up and go to symphony and we have lots of rock, country, blues, jazz, bluegrass, and hip hop. (Did I mention bluegrass and mountain music? Of course I did but you can't overlook it here.) We probably have more Grammy winners per capita than most cities. Music is in the clubs, on the streets, in parks, and on front porches. We have the most eclectic radio stations I've ever heard. The same station plays regular shows of the Grateful Dead, Frank Zappa ("Friday with Frank"), blues, and bluegrass.
We're in the Blue Ridge Mountains, on the edge of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We love our mountains and we don't take them for granted. We have access to thousands of acres of forests and protected lands. It is a wonderful place for hiking, river rafting, kayaking, mountain biking, sight-seeing, mountain climbing, soaking in hot springs, garden tours, relaxing.
Visit the following link for more information about Asheville: http://www.exploreasheville.com/index.aspx
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