Kyle Turner
Why are you running for Asheville City Council and what do you think distinguishes you as the best candidate?
I am running because Asheville’s challenge is not a shortage of individuals with ideas or compassion, but a persistent failure in execution and accountability. Across multiple Council terms, the City has commissioned studies, launched initiatives, and reorganized processes, yet measurable progress in housing access, recovery, and service delivery has stalled or regressed.
What sets me apart is my experience as a senior federal contracting and procurement official, where I focused on the critical stage at which public policy either delivers results or falls short: defining scope, managing timelines, enforcing accountability, and achieving outcomes. At a time when Asheville faces significant structural constraints—including a substantial budget gap and reduced financial flexibility—I believe the City needs leaders who understand the connection between policy decisions, fiscal discipline, and long-term results. SUPPORT YOUTH IN TRANSITION
Please briefly describe your experience and qualifications that will enable you to be an engaged and effective member of the Asheville City Council, including other elected or appointed offices that you’ve held:
– Retired federal civil servant and veteran with decades in procurement, grant oversight, contract execution, and program management.
– Experience spans federal, nonprofit, and local government, turning policy goals into projects under tight compliance, audit, and reporting rules.
– Skilled in parliamentary procedure, public budgeting, risk management, and cross-sector collaboration—key for City Council work during recovery and fiscal challenges.
– Trusted public service background with a strong record of accountability.
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What do you believe are the most pressing issue(s) for our city? What specific policy changes would you propose to address these issues?
The most pressing issues facing Asheville are housing access, post-disaster recovery execution, and the equitable distribution of city services.
Attainable housing exists if everything goes right; obtainable housing exists when systems are designed for how life actually works. Much of our current housing policy focuses on attainability on paper, not obtainability in practice—and that gap is where people get stuck. The City’s housing guidance provides listings and tips, but largely stops at directing residents to call, check, and follow up on their own. That approach assumes time, stability, and administrative capacity and routinely fails the people who need housing most.
Policy must shift toward assisted navigation, clearer sequencing, accountability, and supply-side reforms that reduce friction for well-designed housing projects, so outcomes improve. These challenges are compounded by limited and fully allocated housing and recovery resources, which makes disciplined prioritization and clear justification for every policy decision essential. SUPPORT YOUTH IN TRANSITION
The Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce has a policy agenda, which focuses on four key areas: housing, infrastructure, workforce development, and resources and support for businesses. Based on those key areas, how would you prioritize these and are there policies that you would move forward to address these issues?
Affordable and available housing should be the top priority, because without accessible options, attracting workers and keeping businesses stable just isn’t possible. Next in line is infrastructure—especially water, transportation, and dependable broadband. Workforce development should align with the needs of local employers and support recovery goals. Business support should focus on reducing uncertainty from delays, complicated processes, and stalled projects.
These areas all work together as part of a system. Policies should be evaluated on how well they strengthen the whole, not just advance isolated initiatives.
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Specifically, how would you propose that the City of Asheville allocate its resources to grow the economy, attract workforce, and support businesses?
Restore fiscal stability to enable the City to plan and invest with confidence. Implement a short‑term strategy to address the $30 million structural deficit, rebuild the General Fund to policy levels, and transition to multi‑year budgeting. Stable finances allow businesses to plan, lenders to fund projects, and the City to avoid last‑minute cuts.
Prioritize workforce housing and renter support, recognizing housing as a driver of growth. Take swift, targeted actions such as establishing a Renter Rescue Fund for unaddressed repairs, expediting missing‑middle and infill projects with defined timelines, and leveraging local matches to unlock state and federal housing grants.
Accelerate critical infrastructure improvements—water, stormwater, transportation, and broadband—focusing on projects with significant economic impact and resilience benefits, while maximizing local dollars through matching funds.
Support small businesses with practical, timely measures: launch a Recovery & Permitting Fast Track staffed with dedicated personnel and a public status dashboard, create a rapid‑response grant pool for stabilization and tourism marketing, and streamline regulations to enable faster openings, growth, and hiring.
Align workforce development with actual employer needs by funding training programs, apprenticeships, and supports such as childcare and transportation, with measurable placement results and strong partnerships with local employers.
Enhance governance and transparency by requiring boards and commissions to provide costed, data‑driven recommendations with clear KPIs and timelines. Strategic KPIs track long‑term organizational outcomes (e.g., unemployment rate); operational KPIs monitor daily performance (e.g., permit processing time); leading KPIs forecast future results (e.g., housing permits issued); and lagging KPIs reflect past performance (e.g., housing units completed).
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The City of Asheville is planning to update the Unified Development Ordinance, with a process anticipated to begin this year. How important is this issue? And how will you, as a member of Council, support the success of this project?
The UDO update is crucial because past efforts haven’t always turned good intentions into real results. As a Council member, I’d back a transparent, inclusive process with clear goals: boosting housing supply—through infill, missing-middle options, and smart density along key corridors—while preventing displacement and managing growth in established neighborhoods, and making sure changes get implemented instead of stalled. Protecting legacy neighborhoods isn’t about stopping growth—it’s about making sure it happens without pushing people out. The success of this effort will also hinge on strong, well-supported recommendations from Planning and Zoning, with clear reasoning, documented tradeoffs, and practical implementation plans so Council can make solid decisions that align with the Charter and adopted policies. SUPPORT YOUTH IN TRANSITION
It’s been 16 months since Hurricane Helene devastated our region. What are the most important issues/priorities for Asheville when it comes to recovery? How do you plan to address those issues/priorities?
Sixteen months after Hurricane Helene, recovery efforts must shift decisively from planning to implementation. Key priorities include repairing and replacing housing, strengthening infrastructure resilience, and providing stability for displaced residents and small businesses. A significant unresolved issue concerns renters, as much of FEMA’s assistance is designed for owner-occupied homes, while many Asheville residents rely on rental housing. When landlords fail to repair damaged units, tenants are left in deteriorating conditions without direct access to recovery funds. Since FEMA dollars cannot be used to improve private rental properties in ways that boost a landlord’s asset value, and local governments have not addressed this gap, recovery policies must ensure renters are not excluded from support. SUPPORT YOUTH IN TRANSITION
While there are always competing priorities, the safety of our community is always top-of-mind. How will you prioritize investments in and policies that promote and enhance public safety?
Public safety investments should be balanced, data‑driven, and focused on both immediate response and long‑term stability. Supporting first responders is essential, but lasting safety also depends on housing stability, mental‑health access, and coordinated services that reduce the conditions that lead to crisis. When housing systems fail, the consequences show up on our streets and in our neighborhoods. Effective public safety policy recognizes that enforcement alone cannot compensate for gaps in housing access, behavioral‑health support, and service delivery.
A critical part of this work is supporting youth in transition—young people aging out of foster care, experiencing instability, or navigating major life disruptions. Without stable housing, mentorship, and access to opportunity, they are at higher risk of entering cycles that strain both public safety and social‑service systems. Investing in these youth is one of the most effective long‑term safety strategies a city can pursue.
My priority is a public‑safety approach that strengthens first responders, stabilizes the systems that prevent crises, and ensures every resident—especially our most vulnerable youth—has a safe path forward. SUPPORT YOUTH IN TRANSITION
What is your vision for Asheville in the next 5-10 years?
Success means a city that moves beyond announcing intentions to delivering tangible results—where budgets align with outcomes, housing is attainable for the workforce, recovery funds translate into repaired homes, and businesses operate with confidence because decisions are clear, consistent, and defensible.
Within the next five years, Asheville’s River Arts District has the potential to become a national—and possibly global—leader in arts-driven tourism, drawing visitors, supporting working artists, and bolstering the local economy.
Equally, within the next five years, Asheville must remain a true place of refuge. People arrive seeking safety, stability, opportunity, and the chance to recover or start anew. It is our responsibility to ensure that the systems designed to support them are functional, humane, and accessible, so Asheville remains not only a destination beneath its storied sky, but also a city that embodies the possibility, dignity, and belonging that sky has long represented.
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If elected, how would you engage with the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce?
If elected, I would engage the Chamber as a strategic partner—listening early, sharing information transparently, and working collaboratively on policies that support economic stability and growth. Better outcomes come from early engagement, shared information, and honest conversations about constraints before decisions are finalized.
Is there anything else that you’d like to share with our members that would help them to evaluate you as a candidate?
I strongly support ensuring that every dollar of Helene recovery funding allocated to Asheville is delivered, tracked, and translated into real results for residents, businesses, and neighborhoods.”
I also look forward to working alongside candidates like Jeffrey Burroughs, a small business owner in the River Arts District and chair of the City’s Economic Recovery Board, and Drew Ball, a community advocate, environmental policy professional, and volunteer firefighter. Each brings lived experience, grounded service, and a commitment to strengthening Asheville’s future. I believe Council is most effective when members bring complementary strengths and work collaboratively toward shared outcomes for residents, workers, and local businesses.
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