While the City of Asheville has restored potable water to its 63,000 customers, it’s still struggling with high turbidity at its main reservoir, North Fork.
Filtering that cloudy water remains a challenge, but major assistance is on the way this week in the form of a $39 million six-month project spearheaded by the Army Corps of Engineers to install a mobile filtration system at the reservoir. The city and the Corps planned to start testing the system this week, and Asheville Water Resources spokesperson Clay Chandler said it should be operational by Friday.
Chandler addressed the plan at the Monday Tropical Storm Helene briefing and then answered followup questions via email. Plans call for the system, which will be run by a contractor, to run continuously at North Fork Reservoir, which is located outside of Black Mountain and provides water to 80 percent of the city’s residents.
“Its production will start small, around 5 million gallons per day, and ramp up from there,” Chandler said. “Eventually, the Corps of Engineers system will do most of the heavy lifting, with North Fork’s existing processes providing support, to produce the average daily demand of 20-25 million gallons of water.”
The city restored untreated water to most customers in mid-October and potable water Nov. 18. But turbidity remains a concern.
“While North Fork has been able to meet system demand on its own for several weeks, we’re still one snowstorm or other especially windy weather event from the turbidity becoming unmanageable for our existing treatment processes,” Chandler said. “The Corps of Engineers system will provide a critical layer of security that will keep our customers in water should that happen.”
Chandler said the Federal Emergency Management Agency will cover the cost of the project.
Army Corps of Engineers spokesperson Patrick Moes said the North Fork Reservoir Turbidity Reduction Project contract was awarded to Ahtna/CDM Smith on Nov. 8.
“With respect to the design of the project, we provided the holistic performance requirements such as a gallons per day requirement (25 million), pumping requirements, etc., and the contractor executed the plan,” Moes said via email.
“The $39.2 million contract is for six months, with options to extend the work beyond the initial performance effort. The extension options include two additional six-month intervals, but we have not had those discussions at this point.”
Ahtna and CDM Smith have worked together on other projects. Ahtna’s website states the corporation is “one of 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations established by Congress under terms of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971.
“Based in Glennallen, Alaska, Ahtna, Inc. is owned by more than 2,000 shareholders, the majority of whom are of Ahtna Athabascan descent,” the site continues. “Many Ahtna shareholders still reside in the Ahtna region, the traditional homeland of the Ahtna people.”
Nearly a month after Tropical Storm Helene knocked out the City of Asheville’s water system, North Fork Reservoir remained a murky brown. The city restored untreated water to most customers in mid-October and potable water Nov. 18. But turbidity remains a concern. // Credit: City of Asheville
Ahtna’s subsidiaries provide a range of services across many industries, construction and government contracting, according to the website. It works in all 50 states.
CDM Smith is a privately owned engineering and construction company that offers service in “water, environment, transportation, energy and facilities,” according to its website. Its world headquarters is in Boston.
After Helene caused extreme flooding and heavy runoff into North Fork, on Sept. 27, essentially turning the 350-acre lake upside down, the measurement of turbidity, Nephelometric Turbidity Units (NTUs), stood at 79. The raw water coming into North Fork, which is surrounded by a largely undeveloped 20,000-acre watershed, usually has a measurement around 1. By Monday it had dropped to 12.7.
The city has taken several measures to reduce turbidity, including three rounds of in-lake chemical treatments to help sediment coagulate and sink, and the installation of “turbidity curtains” designed to help still the water and foster coagulation of clay particles.
With the Army Corps’ help in constructing a pilot plant at North Fork to see what level of turbidity the reservoir’s direct filtration system can handle, the city discovered it was able to filter and treat higher turbidity water than previously thought. Initially, the city said turbidity would have to drop to the 1.5-2.0 level before treatment began, but it realized via the pilot plant that it could treat water with NTU levels in the teens.
The three in-reservoir treatment applications at North Fork involved dispersing aluminum sulfate, a coagulant, and caustic soda, which regulates the water’s pH levels to ensure optimum coagulation and sinking of clay particles. The turbidity improved, but it has been slow going: It remained in the 20s through October before dropping into the teens in November.
The water coming to customers’ taps is potable now and has a very low turbidity level, about .1, the city said previously. That’s well under EPA requirements.
‘Seasonal flip” may help turbidity
On Monday, Chandler noted another phenomenon that could help with turbidity: “the seasonal flip.”
“So, when the water gets really cold, like it’s about to get because it’s really cold outside, it does exactly like the term ‘flip’ sounds. It takes everything that’s on or near the bottom and puts it near the top, and takes everything that’s at or near the top and puts it on the bottom,” Chandler said.
The city is fairly certain that a seasonal flip occurred at the Bee Tree Reservoir in the past few days.
“We believe that the reservoir at North Fork is going to do its seasonal flip sometime this week,” Chandler said Monday. “Bee Tree Reservoir did its seasonal flip, we are reasonably certain, last week, which drastically lowered the turbidity there — finally got it under 100 in the lower depths of the Bee Tree reservoir.”
It had stood near 500.
Bee Tree, located in Swannanoa, is much smaller than North Fork, but the seasonal flip results are encouraging for North Fork, Chandler said, because if the larger reservoir sees a similar shift, it could significantly lower turbidity.
The city announced it was awarding the contract to the Army Corps on Nov. 8. Chandler said the Corps is delivering the filtration system on time, “exactly fitting the timeline that they originally gave us.”
Asheville Watchdog is a nonprofit news team producing stories that matter to Asheville and Buncombe County. John Boyle has been covering Asheville and surrounding communities since the 20th century. You can reach him at (828) 337-0941, or via email at jboyle@avlwatchdog.org. The Watchdog’s local reporting during this crisis is made possible by donations from the community. To show your support for this vital public service go to avlwatchdog.org/support-our-publication/.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Alan Wooten | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-08-22 08:31:00
North Carolina’s main route through the Outer Banks, N.C. 12, remains closed on Ocracoke and Hatteras Islands after Hurricane Erin caused flooding and sand buildup. Closures are between the Northern Ferry Terminal and Pony Pens on Ocracoke, and between Marc Basnight Bridge and Hatteras Village on Hatteras Island. Road reopening depends on sand removal and pavement damage assessment. As of 5 a.m., Hurricane Erin was transitioning to a post-tropical storm about 425 miles south-southwest of Halifax, with 90 mph winds and moving at 22 mph. Hurricane-force winds extended 125 miles from the center; tropical storm-force winds reached 370 miles. No coastal warnings remain.
(The Center Square) – North Carolina’s primary driving route through the Outer Banks on Friday morning remained closed on Ocracoke Island and Hatteras Island.
N.C. 12 was washed over by water and sand from the ocean following the pass of Hurricane Erin. The closure on Ocracoke Island is between the Northern Ferry Terminal and the National Park Service Pony Pens; on Hatteras Island, it is between the Marc Basnight Bridge and Hatteras Village.
In addition to sand removal, pavement damage would determine how long sections of N.C. 12 are to remain closed.
In the 5 a.m. update from the National Hurricane Center, Erin was in the first stages of post-tropical transition about 425 miles south-southwest of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and about 700 miles north of Bermuda. Maximum sustained winds were 90 mph, and the movement had increased to 22 mph.
Hurricane force winds of 74 mph or greater were up to 125 miles from the center of the storm, and tropical storm force winds of 39 mph or greater had grown to 370 miles from the center. A gust of 56 mph was reported on Bermuda at Wade International Airport.
No coastal watches or warnings were in effect on the Atlantic Seaboard.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
The article provides a straightforward factual report about the closure of N.C. 12 due to the impact of Hurricane Erin. It relays information from official sources such as the National Hurricane Center without editorializing or inserting opinion. The language is neutral and focused solely on the event and its consequences, without promoting or criticizing any political stance or ideology. This adherence to objective reporting indicates no discernible political bias in the content.
Costco representatives met with Enka community residents to discuss plans for Asheville’s first Costco store at Enka Commerce Park, expected to be submitted to the city within weeks. The 25-acre site includes 839 parking spaces and preservation of the historic Enka clock tower. The city’s planning process may take 9-12 months, with construction lasting about a year after approvals. Residents voiced concerns about traffic congestion, as Costco stores can attract up to 600 vehicles per hour at peak times. A traffic study is underway, and Costco plans traffic mitigation and participation in the stalled Enka Heritage Trail greenway project.
Representatives from Costco and its affiliated development companies told local residents at a Enka community meeting Thursday night that the warehouse retailer plans to submit official plans for its first Asheville store to the city within two to four weeks.
The meeting, in which multiple residents expressed concerns about the prospect of increased traffic because of Costco’s popularity, marked the first significant update on the project since Asheville Watchdogbroke the news in March that the low-cost retailer had submitted plans to the city for a store situated on 25 acres within Enka Commerce Park, with 839 parking spaces.
At the time, The Watchdog had obtained plans that also showed the preservation of the nearby historic Enka clock tower, which officials reiterated was a priority Thursday.
Renee Rutherford, Costco’s director of real estate, told about 25 people gathered in a meeting space by the Enka-Candler Library that the project is moving ahead, but it will take time.
“This is the first part of a long approval process,” Rutherford said. “We haven’t submitted anything to the town yet.”
Nettie Boyle, a project manager with BL Companies, which is handling design and architecture elements of the project, said after the meeting that the entire planning and approval process with the city could take nine to 12 months. (Boyle is not related to this article’s author.)
Nettie Boyle, a project manager with BL Companies, which is handling design and architecture elements of the Costco project in Enka, said after the Thursday evening meeting that the entire planning and approval process with the city could take nine to 12 months. // Watchdog photo by John Boyle
“So this is the first process — the neighborhood meeting — and then I believe it’s 14 days later, we can submit our preliminary site plan to the city,” said Boyle.
Costco has not finalized the purchase of the land from the owner, Martin Lewis, but it has signed a nonbinding letter of intent to buy the property, Rutherford said. After the permitting and design process, construction could take another year, Rutherford said.
Will Palmquist, principal planner with the city’s Planning & Urban Design department, said previously that Costco had scheduled an early July review meeting with the city’s Technical Review Committee. Palmquist said the project would require a conditional zoning, as it’s more than 100,000 square feet.
Once plans are submitted, it will next head to the Planning & Zoning Commission. The commission’s recommendation would be forwarded to City Council for the final decision.
Traffic a huge concern
Many locals expressed joy following the initial announcement last spring, as the current nearest Costco to Asheville is in Spartanburg, South Carolina, about 70 miles away.
But multiple residents at the meeting expressed concerns about Costco’s potential impact on traffic because it will likely draw customers from a wide area. Rutherford said Costco stores, which are open seven days a week, can draw about 600 vehicles an hour, although she stressed that occurs at peak shopping times.
The Biltmore Lake neighborhood, which has more than 800 homes, sits just across Sand Hill Road from the proposed site.
“It’s gonna be quite devastating for Biltmore Lake residents to have 600 cars an hour (going there),” one resident said, adding that it seems “really irresponsible to add” thousands of vehicles a day onto local roadways.
“And I understand everything about the jobs and all that — all that’s great for the city, and I agree with that,” he said. “But there also needs to be something that’s going to be done about the increased traffic.”
Another resident voiced similar concerns, saying, “It seems grossly inappropriate to throw all the traffic from Asheville proper and all the surrounding areas — because everybody loves Costco — and plop it down right here in the middle of this beautiful area where they’re already struggling with development.”
Plans provided by the City of Asheville to Asheville Watchdog in March show the location of a proposed Costco.
Rutherford and Boyle said 80 percent of the traffic coming into Costco will enter off Smokey Park Highway, turning onto the former “bridge to nowhere” that opened earlier this year after years of dormancy. They also said the Costco would likely have two other entrances, one off of Sand Hill Road and another off Jacob Holm Way.
Rutherford said Costco stores typically hire about 200 employees to start, “and then it grows from there.”
Barbara Mosier, an associate engineer with Kittelson & Associates, said her firm is conducting the traffic study, which should be complete within about a month. The study will encompass the area around the commerce park, including multiple intersections and Smokey Park Highway east to the I-40 interchange, she said.
The methodology for traffic studies is fairly standard, but Mosier said allowances are made for Costco’s popularity.
“We have Costco-specific traffic rates, because we know that Costco is a very intense use,” Mosier said. “We know that there’s a lot of people who like it. It generates more use than a similar-sized other warehouse club. So we do have Costco specific rates that we use to make sure that we are fully capturing that impact, and we will reflect that in the study.”
Rutherford, Boyle and Mosier said Costco will consider mitigation efforts to make traffic flow smoother.
Costco also offered assurances that it plans to participate in a greenway project at the Enka Commerce site. Known as the Enka Heritage Trail, it’s supposed to span 2 miles of asphalt, starting at Sand Hill and Enka Lake roads, proceeding along Hominy Creek to its intersection with Sand Hill Road, south of Warren Haynes Drive.
Construction was supposed to start in 2023, with completion due this year. But the project has stalled.
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Asheville Watchdog is a nonprofit news team producing stories that matter to Asheville and Buncombe County. John Boyle has been covering Asheville and surrounding communities since the 20th century. You can reach him at (828) 337-0941, or via email at jboyle@avlwatchdog.org. The Watchdog’s local reporting is made possible by donations from the community. To show your support for this vital public service go to avlwatchdog.org/support-our-publication/.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
The content presents a straightforward, fact-based report on a local development project involving Costco, focusing on community concerns such as traffic and planning processes. It avoids partisan language or ideological framing, providing balanced coverage of both the benefits and challenges of the project without favoring any political perspective.
SUMMARY: On October 29, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to allow the Trump administration to cancel $783 million in NIH grants focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). The Court set aside lower court rulings that had blocked the cancellations, citing jurisdictional issues and aligning with a prior decision involving the Department of Education. Democratic attorneys general and the American Public Health Association opposed the ruling, warning of harm to research and public health. Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett supported the administration, while Roberts, Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson dissented, criticizing the Court’s rushed intervention and its consequences.
