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Robin's Presentation for '08 Initiatives |
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Written by Robin Cape
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Friday, 08 February 2008 |
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Here is the document that I gave to council at our strategic retreat. Please give me feedback on what you think about these ideas. Thanks for being interested in our city and thanks to everyone who helped research these items for me. The contents are: Social Initiatives Regional Planning Coordination Downtown City Planning Moratorium Climate adaptation planning City of Asheville Community Peace and Justice Committee French Broad River Bike Festival
Economic Initiatives Environmental Initiatives Certificate of Energy Performance Recycling Program Enhancements Green Infrastructure fund Plastic Bag Ban
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 28 February 2008 )
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Energy, Peak Load and You |
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Written by Robin Cape
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Sunday, 27 January 2008 |
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Recently during the coldest days, our winter peak load (6-9 am) reached record highs. Peak load is how the power company calculates its production requirements. As individuals make minor changes in our energy habits to shift the demand during this peak time and offset the strain to our electrical grid.
Evaluate your morning routine. What electrical energy usage could you shift to another time? For Example:
I've shifted my habit of starting the dryer and dishwasher in the mornings until a later hour.
Thermostats for electric heat can be set to begin heating the home at 5, then cut back down during the 6-9 am period.
Put a jacket on your water heater to increase its efficiency. Consider replacing your electric water heater with solar and gas. Take shorter showers. (I'm talking to my teenagers here!)
If you find that you have to keep turning your electric heat up as the days are colder, chances are your home could use some more insulation or weatherization around the doors and windows. Here is a link to some certified home testers who can help you reduce your energy usage by 15% and earn an additional 5% off your electric bill.
www.progress-energy.com
Energy Efficiency is the number one method by which we can avoid the building of more power plants with their impacts on our air and their high demand for our region's water. It will take all of us to make this work, but individual minor modifications have a massive regional impact. |
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 27 January 2008 )
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Written by Robin Cape
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Thursday, 20 December 2007 |
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The end of the year is a great time to look back and review what I have been a part of as a City Council Member. To compile this retrospective, I went to the city’s web site and reviewed the action agenda items for each week of 2007. If you are interested in doing the same, link here for the full list of agenda items. In retrospect I believe it has been a year well spent. I look forward to another year in service to this city I love |
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Written by Robin Cape
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Sunday, 01 April 2007 |
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 The Overlook Park Project received the unanimous support of both the City Council and the County Commissioners on March the 20th and is moving into the contract closing phase. Both of our local governments will contribute $575,000. toward the purchase price of $2.6 million. Trust for Public Land (TPL) is acting as the facilitator of the process, contributing $375,000. to the Park and the Fundraising team, John Cram, Scott Riviere and Maggie Clancy (of TPL), have raised over $675,000, (that's a full $100,000 over their initial committment of $575,000 to match the city and county. The contract for the property is proposed to close at the end of April and we will kick off the public fundraising campaign at that time. Let me tell you alittle about this park and the process we went through to get where we are today.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 06 April 2007 )
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Beaucatcher Overlook Park |
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Written by Robin Cape
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Monday, 12 March 2007 |
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On Tuesday March 13, a project near and dear to my heart will be presented to Asheville City Council in hopes of winning their support. This project is one that many of us have worked on for over a year now and it is reaching the critical juncture where the City Council and County Commissioners are being asked for their stamp of approval. Contact the City Council. Contact County Commissioners.
The Trust for Public Land has teamed up with Asheville residents to help preserve 30 acres of undeveloped land at the foot and across the lower slopes of Asheville's Beaucatcher Mountain. The proposed site is the largest single undeveloped tract of land remaining within Asheville's city limits and it is threatened with development. We have to act quickly.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 18 March 2007 )
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Written by Robin Cape
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Tuesday, 06 March 2007 |
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On Feb 7th I flew to Los Angeles to participate in the New Partners for Smart Growth Conference. Though LA was, to me, an interesting place to hold such a conference, I learned that nothing is ever as simple as our initial opinions would like us to believe. LA is the "poster child of sprawl" and it seemed appropriate to have the opportunity to look at both the problems and the solutions together. The Conference was action packed: |
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Last Updated ( Monday, 12 March 2007 )
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Council Passes a Municipal LEED Resolution |
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Written by Robin Cape
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Wednesday, 13 December 2006 |
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On Tuesday December 12, 2006, the Asheville City Council passed a resolution to ensure that all new municipal buildings will be built to LEED specifications. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a green building rating system that is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance energy efficient buildings. |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 14 December 2006 )
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