New Community Resource Officer
Hello everyone, we have some changes happening within the community resource officer division. I will be transitioning to a different district, and Officer Jonathan Fadler will be your new community resource officer starting July 4th. You can reach Officer Jonathan Fadler at JFadler@ashevillenc.gov or by calling our main CRO line at 828-271-6145. Please see the below information to learn more about how APD will be more involved and engaged with the city. Please feel free to share this information with your community and neighborhood groups, and update the contact information on any of your platforms where you have it listed. We are happy to answer any questions you may have about the transition.
What is Changing?
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From One Division to Every Street: Community policing is a department-wide philosophy. We are moving our Community Resource Officers (CROs) out of a centralized office and embedding them directly into your local Patrol Districts.
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Why This Matters to You: This change allows your CRO to work side-by-side with beat officers who are assigned to your neighborhoods. It creates greater ownership at the officer level, provides mentorship for our younger workforce, and ensures we solve localized neighborhood problems faster and more collaboratively.
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Your neighborhood still has a dedicated point of contact. This change is designed to enhance and expand our commitment to you, not reduce it.
To better address specific, high-demand areas in Asheville, we are launching two targeted initiatives.
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High-Activity Corridors: One dedicated CRO will focus exclusively on sustained-demand commercial areas, including Downtown, Tunnel Road, and Haywood Road. This officer will spearhead targeted problem-solving and partner closely with the City’s future co-responder program.
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Housing Authority (HACA) Policing Team: We are launching a brand-new, dedicated team focused entirely on public housing communities. Their mission is to build relationships with residents, property managers and future resident councils to reduce crime and improve quality of life.
Division Realignment: the “Specialized Operations Division”
Effective July 4, 2026, the Community Engagement Division is being renamed the Specialized Operations Division to better reflect its evolving responsibilities. And the Community Resource Officers will fall under the purview of the Patrol Division.
This division will bring together several key teams to maximize safety:
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School Resource Officers (SROs) & Traffic Safety: A major focus of this update is a new partnership between SROs and our Traffic Safety Unit. They will work hand-in-hand to increase traffic enforcement around school zones and launch new traffic safety education programs for youth.
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Continued Programs: This division will maintain full oversight of our community initiatives, including the Citizens Police Academy, Junior Police Academy, Immersion Academy, and Special Events.
Thank you again for allowing me to be a part of your community, and know if there is anything I can do to help, just reach out.
Emergency Preparedness Plan
The purpose of this plan is to outline procedures and resources available to the Burton Street Community in the event of an emergency. A emergency can occur for many reasons, including natural disasters and interruption of transportation networks, weather emergency, or failure of local production. The main intent is to identify transportation requirements, storage capability, food reserves, and the procedures to release, obtain and provide for community residents. In recognition that this plan may only be partially implemented in most cases due to severity or duration of a community emergency, it is designed with many options to facilitate scaling the response as needed. This Plan is meant to be dynamic, with changes and adaptations made as more information becomes available.
Contact Person: Jay at [email protected]
2018 Community Neighborhood Plan
A unique neighborhood planning document born out of a mitigation planning process led by the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT)and supported by the City of Asheville and the Burton Street community. The plan contains 27 mitigation strategies for implementation; some of these strategies have been defined as NCDOT-led, and others are to be led by the City. These strategies are organized into two major themes–(1) A Livable Built Environment, and (2) A Healthy Community–that are further broken down into various goals. Many of the strategies within the Plan are interdisciplinary, and implementation requires coordination among the neighborhood, several City departments, and the NCDOT. Due to the unique nature of this plan, additional tracking and reporting mechanisms are essential to effective implementation. With all of the various stakeholders, partners, and City staff working on this Plan, there is a high level of complexity involved, and comprehensive tracking helps maintain the momentum and logistics surrounding execution. Additionally, staff turnover since adoption by City Council has pointed to a vital need for a mechanism that keeps progress moving forward more consistently and seamlessly: Click on link to review (Add link).
Storm Water Damage: Continued Community Meetings with the City of Asheville Storm Water Damage Team: Led by Derrick Wanscott, Supervisor. Last meeting in October outlined plans with collaboration with the Street Divisions with the City of Asheville and outlining budget support of identified storm water damage throughout the community which was documented by pictures, videos and emails from the community.
Housing Repairs and Recovery: Continued support for displaced residents with housing applications, advocacy and navigation through the complexities of identifying programs, submitting applications with required supportive documentation: Ex: Renew NC which ends January 31st
Traffic Calming: To Be continued in April with the City of Asheville: Chris Collins with the City of Asheville is Engineer we are collaborating with this project:
Burton Street Neighborhood
Petition signed and submitted on behalf of residents on Buffalo Street
Intersections & Speeds: Date: September 16, 2025 City Staff: Chris Cairns, Traffic Engineer
Speed & Speed Limits
- On June 26, 2025 City Council approved fifteen speed limit changes in Burton Street Neighborhood
- Nineteen 20 MPH Speed Limit signs have been installed for the approved changes
Intersection Safety
- Downing Street at Mardell Circle: all-way stop
- Traffic Calming process overview
- Burton Street Neighborhood
- Speed Limits
- On June 26, 2025 City Council approved 15 speed limit changes in Burton Street Neighborhood
- Eleven streets assigned 20 mph, previously with no speed limit
- Four streets were reduced to 20 mph speed limit from 25 mph
- Posting 20 mph Speed Limits
- Downing Street and Buffalo Street installed in early August
- Work Order issued for nine more streets, awaiting utility info
- Final phase will be installed in September
Date: August 18, 2025 City Staff: Chris Cairns, Traffic Engineer
Downing Street at Mardell Circle
- All way stop justified due to limited sight distance and related safety concerns
- Tentative Stop sign locations marked on Downing Street
- Notification of change to be mailed to homes near the intersection – estimated mailing by end of August
- Pending notification, estimated installation September 2025
- Updated information in March 2026
Click here to see the latest Plan updates.
For more information and/or to volunteer your time/talent, please email: [email protected] and a Board Member will respond.
Community Space Uplift Project
The Community Space Upfit Project is a transformative initiative aimed at enhancing community and climate resilience. The project will upfit community spaces with technology to facilitate virtual community meetings and enhanced remote participation. This project focuses on empowering communities with tools for better access to information and decision-making, collaborating with residents to identify and develop spaces that serve as hubs of community engagement and resilience.
The location space to be determined.
For more information and/or to volunteer your time/talent and become a part of a committee or lead a committee, please email: [email protected] and a Board Member will respond.
Thank you