DRAGGING DRUGS OUT OF CITY WON'T COME CHEAP

ASHEVILLE - Asheville City Council on Tuesday took a step toward a
"holistic" approach to fighting drugs in public housing and other
neighborhoods.

In a 4-3, nonbinding vote, council directed the city manager to explore
funding options for a Safe Neighborhoods Initiative in the upcoming budget.
The cost would be $600,000 for the plan, which includes provisions for
hiring four more police officers, boosting community policing and affordable
housing efforts while creating more job opportunities for youth.

Council also once again voted down a proposal from Councilman Carl Mumpower
to attack the city's hard drug problem chiefly through vigorous law
enforcement, even though he had dropped the total budget item from $1
million to $750,000.

"I think council showed great courage in dodging the ball of accountability
on this one," Mumpower said after the meeting.

Mayor Charles Worley and council members Terry Bellamy, Holly Jones and
Brownie Newman supported the Safe Neighborhoods plan, while Mumpower and
Councilmen Joe Dunn and Jan Davis supported Mumpower's plan. Worley
emphasized that both votes were nonbinding and council would have to come
back and formally adopt a plan before approving a budget June 22.

Just a few people besides city staffers attended Tuesday's budget work
session, but one who did - a former resident of public housing for 22 years
- - was not impressed with all of council's discussion about drugs in public
housing. About 3,000 people live in 10 public housing developments in
Asheville.

"The Police Department is going to have to have a rapport with the community
first," Althea Goode, a former resident of Hillcrest Apartments, said during
a break. "It needs to come from the community. That's the first step."

Councilwoman Holly Jones said the city's drug problem has to be addressed
through more than just a law enforcement initiative that comes down from the
top.

"Here's the deal: Not only does the plan need to be comprehensive to work,
it has to have community buy-in," she said.

Hard drugs in public housing have been an issue for years, but Mumpower put
it in the spotlight again May 4 with his original proposal to dedicate $1
million in the 2004-05 budget toward hiring 12 additional police officers
for a drug interdiction task force. The majority of council deemed the plan
too heavy-handed and lacking in community input and social remedies.

Tuesday's vote essentially directed City Manager Jim Westbrook to explore
funding approaches to the Safe Neighborhoods plan. The city manager's
proposed budget calls for $27.4 million to go to public safety, about a
quarter of the overall budget of $103.3 million.

Those behind the Safe Neighborhoods plan offered several suggestions for
funding, including increasing recycling charges to make the program
self-financing, a move that would generate $366,000.

Mumpower had brought back what he called his fifth compromise plan, this
time outlining a 21-point approach that called for tough enforcement, but
also other ideas ranging from seed money for a jobs program to establishing
a volunteer therapist support network for drug abusers.

All the council members agreed drugs are a problem in public housing and
elsewhere, and they all expressed support for the philosophy behind the U.S.
Department of Justice program known as Operation Weed and Seed, which
implies weeding out the drug dealers and seeding neighborhoods with
opportunities.

Mumpower said he likes the idea of long-term seeding but doesn't think it's
realistic if the weeding is not accomplished first. He also said he will
continue to address the issue.

"I think council turned away from the people who are being shot at, who are
being abused and mistreated by hard drugs in our community," Mumpower said
after the meeting. "If you look at the program that's been approved, it is
largely about fluff and very little about substance."

The Safe Neighborhoods initiative suggests:

Hiring four additional police officers for the Asheville Community
Enforcement Team, which is focused on public housing safety ($250,000).

Strengthening neighborhood involvement in community policing efforts,
including community watch programs ($50,000).

Creating jobs opportunities for young people in poor neighborhoods and
improving education performance ($100,000).

Increasing affordable housing and improving quality of life in poor
neighborhoods, partly through improved infrastructure ($200,000).

Improve education performance for children in low-income neighborhoods.