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Swannanoa resident urges Buncombe planners to tighten steep‑slope protections after Helene
Summary
During public comment at the Feb. 16 Buncombe County Planning Board meeting, Dee Dee Stiles of Swannanoa described a large rock that rolled toward her home during Hurricane Helene and urged the board to adopt stricter steep‑slope regulations more quickly to reduce landslide and downstream flood risk.
During the general public comment period at the Buncombe County Planning Board meeting on Feb. 16, Swannanoa resident Dee Dee Stiles urged planners to adopt stronger steep‑slope protections following storm damage related to Hurricane Helene.
Stiles described a large rock on a slope behind her house that she said came from higher on the mountain during storm events and warned that ongoing home construction, new roads and development on steep slopes increase the risk that entire sites could fail. "I think we need more strict regulations about the steep slopes, and I need think we need them sooner," she said.
Board members acknowledged the concern, with staff and the chair noting that while the meeting’s primary agenda item was floodway life‑safety changes, the county commissioners and hazard‑mitigation planning process also consider slope failures and post‑storm acquisition or elevation projects. No formal ordinance action on slope‑specific rules occurred at the meeting; staff suggested Stiles could follow up with the county commissioners and that the board would continue to coordinate with hazard mitigation planning.
