Neighborhood Profile: Five Points

The City of Asheville has many vibrant and diverse neighborhoods, a number of which have registered official neighborhood organizations. Such community groups help bring together residents who might otherwise not meet each other, and cement community ties through shared activities and concerns.

To learn if your neighborhood has an association listed with the city, contact Neighborhood Coordinator Marsha Stickford at [email protected].

Five Points neighborhood

The Five Points Neighborhood Association, formed in the mid-1990s, covers the area from about a mile north of downtown between Merrimon Avenue and Broadway and north to North Street near UNC Asheville.

Many of the houses are historic and beautiful wooden bungalows and Craftsman “four-squares” built between 1900 and 1925. The neighborhood is centrally located, convenient for walking or biking, and adjacent to downtown, the Montford community, UNC Asheville, and local schools. Five Points is also convenient to grocery stores on Merrimon Avenue just north and south of Chestnut Street.

Who lives there

An eclectic mix of neighborly and friendly people lives in Five Points. Some have lived in the neighborhood for generations, and more recently young families are moving in, along with retirees looking for a walkable neighborhood experience. Residents include professionals, craftsmen, teachers, professors, students, chefs, acupuncturists, healthcare workers, artists, activists, musicians, photographers, and many dedicated gardeners.

Five Points was one of the first “bedroom communities” in Asheville. Streetcar service used to run up Broadway Street to Mt. Clare Avenue and end at Hillside, an area known as Little Five Points. The estate of George Pack, known for Pack Square downtown, sat where the new Harris Teeter is located. The estate was called Many Oaks and included a large mansion with a grand stone wall encircling it, parts of which remain along Chestnut Street. The building was demolished in the 1970s and replaced by the former Deal Buick dealership, which in its turn made way for Harris Teeter.

Neighborhood interests and concerns

Many residents are actively concerned about the environment, safety, and helping Asheville be a more progressive city. A number of Five Points residents plan to participate in a new program that will help solarize Asheville neighborhoods by incorporating solar power into homes at low cost, and there is also talk of a community garden.

While the neighborhood is not perfect, residents of the area have been working closely with the city’s traffic department to ease traffic concerns brought on by the supermarket openings flanking Chestnut Street, and many want sidewalks added to streets that are lacking them. Graffiti is also problem, as is the lack of a buffer between the Harris Teeter site and area homes.