The Eccentric Throwback
WEST ASHEVILLE/ ASHEVILLE, NC
There are some residents of Asheville who aren’t just wary of suburban sprawl and unchecked development; they’re downright pathological about it. And for this very vocal slice of the population, the downtown revival, via a slick new Grove Arcade and pedestrian mall, was a worrying step forward. So they fled to West Asheville, set up a perimeter, and dug in. Brandon Mise, owner of custom letterpress Blue Barnhouse, pointedly refuses to recommend his favorite hiking trails to nonlocals, and no one seems all that ashamed of the vandals who did nearly a million dollars’ worth of damage to an under-construction Wal-Mart back in 2004.
With a population of slightly more than 70,000, growth in this city cradled by the Blue Ridge Mountains is hardly careening out of control, and it still retains the rough edges and cool factor it’s known for, but downtown’s reinvention cost it some character. After being priced out of the hundred-year-old homes encircling downtown in the 1990s, a few pioneering young professionals decided to cross the French Broad River and take this formerly run-down part of town from dangerous to desirable. And they had a unique vision: Even after nearly two decades of growth, West Asheville is still basically what downtown Asheville was like a decade ago, when it had four good restaurants instead of 12, and old-school drugstores and paint-chipped storefronts sat alongside clothing boutiques. Keeping it funky was a priority for a population young enough to not yet care about saving for retirement.
Just like downtown itself, there are side streets of attractive bungalows with deep front porches, and a single commercial strip, Haywood Road, where all the basics are within walking or cycling distance. Spots that would be considered unique and progressive in most cities of this size are a given in West Asheville, with its anchors being the Haywood Road Market health food co-op on the west end and the Appalachia School of Holistic Herbalism and its al fresco front-yard yoga studio on the east. Between the two, equip yourself for your first kayak lessons at Second Gear, where the French Broad stink is infused in the spray skirts. Or go for a tune-up at Pro Bikes, which caters to commuters as well as fat-tire freaks. (Asheville is your base of operations for camping in the Pisgah National Forest, whitewater weekends in Hot Springs or Bryson City, and outdoor music at the biannual Lake Eden Arts Festival just east in Black Mountain.) And even though this is the Bible Belt, most West Ashevillians worship at the West End Bakery on Sunday mornings, before hitting the Lucky Otter for lunch.
No one expects to find everything he needs in West Asheville — the coffee shop is closed on weekends (no joke), and aside from funky-smelling thrift stores, forget shopping for clothes — but the locals have spoken: If convenience follows progress, they’re having none of it.
- Britta Waller
Median Home Price: $131, 810
Cost of Living Compared to Rest of U.S.: 15% lower
Sunny Days Per Year: 212
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12-Hour Test Drive: The Triangle’s Quiet Corner
WATTS-HILLANDALE/ DURHAM, NC
Chapel Hill gets more press, and Raleigh has more heft, but Durham is where sweet tea sidles up to espresso. 8 am: Stroll down Ninth, the strip serving Duke University, and stop at Elmo’s Diner. It’s great for gossip and a heaping plate of biscuits. 11 am: Clear your arteries with hoops in Oval Park, and note the park bulletin board’s for-sale-by-owner houses. Plenty of early-20th-century bungalows change hands this way because of the locals’ DIY ways. 6 pm: Head downtown for a Bulls game. Since Bull Durham the team has gone Triple A and gotten a swish stadium.
- Timothy Gray
Median Home Price: $161,710
Cost of Living Compared to Rest of U.S.: 2% lower
Sunny Days Per Year: 217
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Inner City Mash-Up, Revived
OLD FOURTH WARD/ ATLANTA, GA
Think downtown Atlanta is tall, sleek, and shiny? Not where I live. The Old Fourth Ward, right next to downtown, is none of those, and history is why. Ever since the ‘96 Olympics brought throngs back to the city center, the old “intown” neighborhoods filled in with condo towers, and 90-year-old bungalows were remodeled and sold for twice the price. The Old Fourth Ward, on the other hand, is a neighborhood whose identity, people, and architecture are too jumbled for it to ever become trendy.
During segregation, it was both industrial and residential. Martin Luther King Jr. grew up and preached here, and families have occupied the same shotgun houses for generations. But there’s also industry here — a commercial laundry, a welding shop, a heavy equipment yard – which gives it a look of mild clutter and commotion. There’s even a southern food spot with a Japanese sensibility.
And well after the last of the dirt and funk is cleaned up, if it ever is, we’ll still have our edge. If the industry gets pushed out, the huge variety of housing types and sizes means there will always be different kinds of households. There may not be much new paint, but there’s plenty of promising energy.
-Jonathan Lerner
Median Home Price: $223,530
Cost of Living Compared to Rest of U.S.: 1% lower
Sunny Days Per Year: 217
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FIVE MORE NEIGHBORHOODS
Little Rock, AR
Arkansas’s capital has a practiced charm and an easy embrace of new ideas. Historic Stifft Station is diverse, filled with cheap Craftsman-style bungalows, and is a walk or bike away from unique local cuisine (from whole hog to haute).
New Orleans, LA
The winding waterway where picnickers lounge on grassy banks and kayakers paddle their way up to Lake Pontchartrain creates a pastoral backdrop for Bayou St. John’s bungalows. It’s all within shouting distance of NOLA’s top art museum, a huge city park, and the barbecue shrimp po’boy at Liuzza’s By the Track.
Nashville, TN
For a century the Gulch was just a barren railroad corridor, then redevelopment brought it back from the dead. It also created the first LEED Neighborhood Development certification in the South — all while preserving some history. Don’t miss the Station Inn, the mother church of bluegrass, now flanked by new condos and sushi bars.
Charleston, SC
Left-leaning Park Circle, in the north, has long flown under the radar in the state, and while development tends to change a place, its recent housing boom has left its liberalism intact. Sure, there are lots of new residents, but they seem to have the same unique, character-driven, fun-loving attitudes as the pioneers.
Charlottesville, VA
UVA lends this mountain town its cultural cachet — but that doesn’t mean you want to live next to frat row. Safely tucked away from campus hoopla, eclectic Belmont boasts its own diverse dining hub and fast access to biking and kayaking in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
*All statistics according to Bestplaces.net
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This article originally appeared in the June 2009 issue of Men’s Journal.
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May 27th, 2009 at 10:23 pm
I would love to know where they found a house in West Asheville for 132,000. More like 200 to get in the door. W. Asheville is nice, but it’s more hype than fact for locals.
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Avillebornandraised Reply:
May 27th, 2009 at 10:28 pm
I agree. I’ve lived in Asheville all my life, and the more West Asheville grows, the more expensive it becomes. I love that they are doing the whole eco-friendly housing, but when it costs 500,000, who can afford it other than the ultra wealthy who took over downtown?
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Asheville Realtor Reply:
May 28th, 2009 at 7:55 am
The average price in 2009 so far for a two-bedroom home within walking distance of Haywood Road, which is the main commercial street through West Asheville, is around $185,000. The $132,000 figure is absurdly wrong.
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Allison Frank Reply:
May 29th, 2009 at 3:03 pm
I’m a realtor. It is reprehensible to print unsubstantiated statistics. I think the reporter just made this up. Now if she were here the houses MIGHT look like their value is $131,000 but we are so overpriced and so outside the scope of the rest of the country, that these shabby little 2 bedroom bungalows - and I live in one a block from the pub - are going for upwards of $200K. Inflated? You bet? Bad reporting? Absolutely.
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May 28th, 2009 at 8:58 am
I think they wrote this in 1985-because that was the last time I have seen a house for that price!
Don’t get me wrong I love Asheville, its why I live here… but if your going to write a article like this get your facts rights!
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May 28th, 2009 at 9:00 am
Where’s the love for Sunny Point? The Admiral? Westville Pub?
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May 28th, 2009 at 9:09 am
Wow,too bad I missed it.I moved from West Asheville nine years ago and back then it was not as favored as today.I’m glad they have worked to fix it up,but who can afford to live there now?
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May 28th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Lets get Asheville in a few more magazines and maybe more people can move there. 10-12 years ago you could find some good houses for 130,000, but not really anymore. They must have factored in the apartments at PVA. Growing up in West Asheville was pretty great, but I am not sure I would move back now.
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May 28th, 2009 at 2:54 pm
There’s a spirited discussion about the merits (and demerits) of West Asheville on my Ashvegas blog here:
http://ashvegas.squarespace.com/journal/2009/5/27/west-asheville-named-top-30-neighborhood-in-southeast-by-men.html
I think the notice is well-deserved.
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May 28th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
West Asheville has been known as “Worst Asheville” for years now. It is a down at heels, mostly ugly area with just a few attempts at gentrification. You can put lipstick on a pig…..but zip code 28806 is still a pig.
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28806 is Awesome!! Reply:
June 2nd, 2009 at 11:46 am
Tom, I am very curious to where you live??
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May 28th, 2009 at 4:31 pm
So, the Old Fourth Ward has a commercial laundry, a welding shop and a “heavy equipment yard???” Sounds awesome!! Did you guys just look for the cheapest freelance writer in Atlanta and tell him to make up stuff about how his neighborhood is the best?
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May 28th, 2009 at 7:49 pm
Thanks for misleading all your reader snd for get to mention that there are no less then 3 violent projects in West Asheville, Near Haywood Road no less, you know where all these little quaint places are located. Before posting your article you should of investaged the entire 28806 area code and not take word of mouth. You can paint over a rusty area but the rust is still there.
There was a local business owner that was robbed so much in this area he had to close both businesses, for good.
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May 29th, 2009 at 11:03 am
This article is misleading.
Lived in Fourth Ward in Atlanta for 10+ years. It’s laughable and out of touch to say it’s too jumbled to be trendy. Atlanta has a reputation in the U.S. and worldwide as the place of all trends, constantly looking to other cities to develop (i.e. steal) ideas and a cultural identity from other cites (mostly New York) like a silly insecure teenager. From roof top lounges, gastro pubs, dance music, the chocolate trend, and now mixology (uh hello Drink Shop is a Disney version and rip off of Milk and Honey). Atlanta rarely cultivates any original homegrown culture outside of hip hop. The place is Disneyfied and has a huge identity crisis because it is uber trendy and unauthentic. The author clearly lacks a broad enough cultural sensibility to get that. And Asheville houses at his suggested price range?
Huh? Was this based on research from 1995?
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Geoff Reply:
June 2nd, 2009 at 9:15 am
Hey - pump the brakes! What’s with the hating on ATL? If you have not experienced the real culture of Atlanta, you are missing out. Like every other city, Intown Atlanta has its share of problems, but it also has great businesses, great neighborhoods, great dining, great nightlife, great hiking (within and around the city), great weather, and truly wonderful people.
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Atlantan Reply:
June 10th, 2009 at 11:05 am
ummm.. to call Old Fourth Ward Disneyfied is quite a stretch– Its still pretty gritty (junkyards, pawn shops and all)… actually to call much of Atlanta Disneyfied sounds like a comment from someone who REALLY doesn’t live here… plastic burbs, sure, trendy intown neighborhoods, sure…
Disneyfied?, not really… there’s plenty real here and plenty going on… though never being satisfied is the Atlanta way (and maybe the city is better for it(?)…
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May 30th, 2009 at 10:45 pm
Ok so this reporter clearly stated the median home price way under what the average home in West Asheville goes for in 2009, BUT i am appalled by the way that people who have even lived in West Asheville are so willing to critize this reporter and his short and well-deserved (even though he leaves out some great funky businesses such as Orbit DVD and Burgermeister’s- both voted by the Mountain Express readers poll as best in their category multiple times) review of a neighborhood that is rebuilding itself. I would much rather grown up and live in a community that is diverse and represents the many different social class and economic levels of the US, then shut myself in an isolated community with only people like “me.” People LOVE Asheville because it is a diverse city, with growing neighborhoods like West Asheville, that have everything from government projects (which by the way are NOT dangerous in any real sense of a big city government housing community) to large expensive historic and new homes. And yes GREEN is expensive right now, but I’d rather live in a community that strives to do everything it can to integrate it as quickly into itself so that it does become the norm, so that EVERYONE eventually has the ability to make that choice and reap its benefits at all levels, then one that chooses to stay with the old, dirty, oil-based capitalistic energy system that leaves the majority of the population behind suffering the consequences of those who can afford to shut themselves off from the world. And as for West Asheville being overpriced, the whole country has been overpriced- have you people all ready forgotten the housing bubble that lead to the massive economic collapse that this country is currently going through???
Oh and while I may sound like some uber liberal typical of such responses, I just graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill with a double major in Political Science and American History, I was in a sorority- YES GREEK LIFE, I am unabashedly repulsed by people who don’t shower daily, nonetheless have nasty white people dreads, multiple body piercing’s, and massive tattoos, I drive an SUV and I am moving to NYC in the fall to attend law school to become an entertainment and media lawyer. All of this would lead many people to judge me, but thats the problem with so many people in the country, we are to quick to judge people on things that don’t effect whether a person is a good or bad person. And I understand that what this country needs so desperately in order to rebuild itself and prosper for many future generations to come, is more neighborhoods like West Asheville (which is just scraping the surface) that are built around ideas such as those of Van Jones, of eco-equity, that everyone and everything deserves to be treated with respect and provided with the opportunities to live healthy, long lives in which our economy is built upon good jobs that not only enable people to actually support themselves and their families but also that provide people with pride in themselves, their work, their community and so important, the environment. And while I am moving farther away from West Asheville I see it as the type of community that is capable of transitioning toward this model. And this is why this little short article is so great and why I am disappointed in the responses of many of those listed above. West Asheville definitely still has a lot of work to do, and the community needs to be involved to ensure that the right kind of change happens, but compared to many communities in this country and especially in the South, West Asheville and Asheville in general, is definitely a step ahead.
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tom Reply:
June 2nd, 2009 at 9:49 am
WOW…good points, sister, but chill a bit will ya?
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May 31st, 2009 at 12:14 am
We moved to West Asheville a year ago and had a hard time finding a house that wasn’t decrepit for less than $300,000. That statistic is crazy. Asheville in general is extremely overpriced, and W Asheville—being “desirable” is no exception.
A quick realtor.com search of zip 28806 for homes $100-150,000 (MJ’s median) results in 54 homes—only five of which are in the neighborhood discussed. Searching $200-250 gets 121 results, with dozens in West Asheville, and $250-350,000 get 68 hits —most of which are in West Asheville proper.
$132,000 gets you a 900 sq ft trailer a ten minute drive from Haywood St.
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May 31st, 2009 at 12:15 am
Oh, and it should be noted that the Haywood Market and the jewelry store in the article have gone out of business since this article was “reported.”
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May 31st, 2009 at 8:01 am
west asheville is a lovely little diamond in a rough … i’ve lived here since 91 when it was worst asheville and loved it then. i am from asheville and have lived all over the area (grew up in n. asheville off kimberly).
i believe when people say that diss west asheville that they are really just wanting to keep people from moving in and continuing the gentrification of the area.
so with that in mind: west asheville sux. don’t even check it out, nope nothing to look at ..move along now … just forget it was even mentioned …
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Mr Furious Reply:
May 31st, 2009 at 9:21 am
Tina,
Don’t get me wrong…I love our house and our street and West Asheville in general is fine. I live a block from the Pub and (former) Co-Op, but we had to waaay overpay for our house. You bought when it was cheap, and have seen improvements and your home’s value rise. We see overpriced houses and a neighborhood with way to much “rough” still left at that price.
We looked at over twenty homes, and this one broke the top end of our price range but it was the only house I’d raise my kids in.
Over the last year we’ve been here it’s occurred to me that most people in love with W Asheville (and Asheville, in general) have never lived in other (read: non-South) parts of the country.
What is definitely a shame is the fact that when we moved in, I could see this area being a few steps away from making the leap to meeting its hype (mainly improvements along Haywood), but this crashed economy is going to set it back years.
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June 2nd, 2009 at 8:48 am
Please do not pay attention to articles like this. At one point, they said Miami was a great place to live. This data is not compiled scientifically and any economist is respectable will tell you that this article is full of it. Just the other day an article came out listing Asheville as part of the Sunbelt problem that will take years to recovery. Who is telling what truth anymore. I think these articles are written with the support of the Realtors Associations. These guys are the worst form of human beings. They say lawyers or politicians are horrible but now you have to add realtor’s who are driving the price up on properties even though in some areas there is nothing to economically sustain housing prices. If you don’t believe me read the book Freakeconomics…tell me if the Realtor works for you or for themselves. I suggest you do your own research and dont be persuaded by these types of articles. Miami is a perfect example.
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June 2nd, 2009 at 8:51 am
I will tell you though that having driving through some of these areas, they are beautiful and unfortunately I can tell that the snobs of the world are moving in to many of these areas for the perception. I was impressed by Asheville and some of the surrounding areas. I think overall NC, TENN, GA, KENTUCKY are much better places to live then the swamp called Florida. PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM FLORIDA…AT ALL COST
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June 5th, 2009 at 8:54 am
Where did all the poor people who lived in West Asheville go?
I can’t stand Asheville. I was there several years ago and it seemed like nothing but a big commune. All the shop were stupid hippie crap from the 70’s (indian print skirts, shells, crystals, incense, etc.)
I would be tempted to go back now that I hear decent people with money have moved in and moved the hippies out. That is good for the city. Let’s hope they keep them moving until they live in Urtes in the woods somewhere.
The entire city should be punished for damaging that WalMart. What a bunch of hippie aholes!
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How Dare You Reply:
June 8th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
I am a resident of Asheville and I’m not a Hippie. All I can say is Daddy Yo you should just stay away. It is people like you that have ruined a big part of life in this city. Asheville was once a creative hub for quality art and music and now it is an overly gentrified soulless city for those who already have the money to move here.
The city a majority of the long time residents used to love has been madd less palatable by people such as yourself. I don’t know where you live now and don’t really care to know. But do all of us a favor and stay there. That means there would be one less idiot buying a trendy condominium in this town.
Narrow minded people making such statements as you you did about the WalMart is what’s taking the little joy that I have left in my home city.
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