Answer Man: Tree 'denuding' in the RAD? Local food at UNCA?

Today’s batch of burning questions, my smart-aleck answers and the real deal:

Question: Why are the trees along Lyman Street all the way down to 12 Bones being hacked away for a bare look? Why are they denuding this area?

My answer: Why do I always miss all the good denuding around here? First, I didn't even hear a peep about the topless rally this year, and now this.

Real answer: "Many trees will be removed as part of the River Arts District Transportation Improvement Project," said Polly McDaniel, a city of Asheville spokeswoman. "The trees and other vegetation will be cleared in order to make way for needed improvements."

The work going on right now is for utility line relocation and is not being done the by the city.

The city, as well as private developers, does have huge plans for the River Arts District, formerly a largely industrial area that is now home to a mix of restaurants, studios, business and industry. Public monies being spent on the overhaul will reach $50 million in the next six years, although 44 percent of public money is coming from federal and state sources.

The RADTIP, according to the city's website, is "a city of Asheville multi-modal transportation project that includes the installation of sidewalks, street trees, public art, bike lanes and greenways."

McDaniel said, "When the construction is finished three years from now, the community will have a roadway that has been realigned for safety purposes and includes these now-missing elements:

• An on-street stormwater management system that makes the roads safer.

• Off-road stormwater collection areas that support wildlife and mitigate sediment flow to the river.

• Safe bicycle and pedestrian corridors including crosswalks and a greenway

• Street trees that provide shade to those pedestrians."

I drove down Lyman Tuesday afternoon, and the tree cutting is pretty severe. One stretch right by the river has been cleared out near 12 Bones Smokehouse, and farther south, closer to the Norfolk Southern entrance, a longer stretch has indeed been denuded.

The city is working to ensure that nudity is not permanent.

"The city is working with a variety of not-for-profits to create a landscaping plan to implement after the construction project is completed," McDaniel said. "The plan will include replacing removed trees with more ecologically appropriate species. The city is committed to creating a better riverbank buffer area in this section of the French Broad River."

Who owns the River Arts District?

City project calls for demolition at 12 Bones, RAD warehouses

Question: With another college school year about ready to start, I started wondering about the feeding of hungry college students. How much food is required to feed students at the UNC Asheville for the year? In addition to total amount, do they have information by different food categories? Does the Food Service do anything that educates about healthy eating and about not wasting food? How much of the food that is purchased is locally grown?

My answer: As the father of two teenagers, I suspect they buy cereal and milk by the trainload.

Real answer: While UNCA didn't offer up tonnage, they did provide an interesting snapshot of the food scene.

"UNC Asheville’s Dining Services provides a full dining experience to more than 1,500 students every day in Brown Hall,"  said Brooks Casteel, director of dining services at UNC Asheville. "Additional retail facilities are available on campus, too. The menu includes multiple stations including a grill station, at least two made-to-order entrée stations, made-to-order deli, a salad bar and continental-style area."

As far as their largest purchase categories, Casteel said grocery items account for 27 percent, followed by meat, produce, beverages and dairy. Frozen items and bakery goods make up less than 12 percent of the total, each.

The university partners with Chartwells Higher Education for its dining services, and the company "prides itself on offering a healthy, balanced plate, including vegan and vegetarian options," Casteel said.

UNCA provide educational opportunities through themed events such as National Nutrition Month, Women’s Weightlifting Week and Eating Disorder Awareness Month, and it uses "a variety of platforms to educate our students including in-person education and consultation for nutrition-related problems, tabling events, and group lectures," Casteel said.

"We also use signage and icons to label balanced menu choices and local foods, which tend to be our healthiest options because of the freshness and quality of the foods produced locally in the area," he said. "One of the highlights of the year is when we take our locally grown menu, with some items straight from the campus gardens, to the Quad for the annual Farm-to-Table Dinner, coming up on Sept. 14."

Casteel said UNCA has a "great relationship with our local purveyors, such as No Evil Foods, Imladris Farm, Hickory Nut Gap Farm and Sunburst Trout Farms."

With all this eating going on, some leftovers "are unavoidable but we do not waste them," Casteel said.

"We partner with Food Connection to donate approximately 100 pounds of unserved, nutritionally prepared food daily for distribution to Buncombe and Madison County organizations in an effort to reduce hunger and food insecurity," he said. "This partnership was encouraged by students, particularly the Student Environmental Center. In addition, through their “AsheFILL it Up” program of reusable cups, we offer 15 percent off of any drink purchase, plus 15 cents donated to Food Connection."

This is the opinion of John Boyle. To submit a question, contact him at 232-5847 or jboyle@citizen-times.com