New Film on Asheville’s Urban Renewal

In 2023, filmmaker Todd Gragg produced Black in Asheville, a documentary exploring the rich yet often overlooked history of Asheville’s Black community.

During the project, he collaborated with Priscilla Robinson, a dedicated researcher with over 15 years of experience investigating the deep wounds left by urban renewal. Their shared discovery made one thing clear: urban renewal was not just an isolated policy—it was a defining, destructive force that reshaped Asheville and countless Black communities across America.

Gragg’s new film, Urban Renewal Impact, takes a hard look at Asheville’s past through the lens of those who lived it. The film traces how city leaders, long focused on cultivating Asheville as a white-led tourism destination, excluded Black residents from their plans. From convict leasing that forced Black men to build the city’s foundation to federally funded projects that razed entire Black neighborhoods, Urban Renewal Impact reveals a truth rarely acknowledged: progress for some came at the expense of others.

Far from offering neat conclusions, the film opens space for reflection, raising critical questions about justice, memory, and responsibility. It confronts the loss of homes, businesses, and generational wealth, and considers how the legacy of displacement continues to shape the lives of Black Ashevillians today.

Urban Renewal Impact is not just a local story, it is part of a national reckoning with policies that devastated Black communities in the name of progress. Through powerful visuals, community voices, and historical insight, this film challenges us to remember, to reckon, and to act.

Screening

A free screening of Urban Renewal Impact takes place Saturday, October 18, 2025, from 7-9 p.m. at the YMI Cultural Center, located at 39 South Market Street in Asheville.

The premiere of Urban Renewal Impact at the YMI Cultural Center in Asheville is a tribute to the past and a bold statement about reclaiming space, telling the truth, and honoring the resilience of the community.

Historically, the YMI stood at the heart of Asheville’s Black community, a hub for culture, business, and connection. Decades later, after Urban Renewal dismantled much of the community, the YMI has once again become a gathering place to honor that history and spark dialogue.

For more information, and to watch a clip of the film, please visit urbanrenewalimpact.com. For more information on the impact of the Urban Renewal, visit urbanrenewalimpact.org.