A Peek Into Asheville History

Fabulous time Saturday at the Preservation Society gala, with a trip beginning in the 1870s at Fernihurst Mansion atop Vernon Hill. We then continued on to the 1920s, when we visited the Mediterranean mansion Chiles House in Kenilworth. We ended with founding father-inspired New Gunston Hall in Biltmore Forest. All just exemplary places that we felt lucky to get to see.

The fantastic live music and cocktails by The Times at S&W were icing on the cake. Asheville has such a rich and interesting history, and we are proud to be a part of helping to preserve that.

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Preservation Society's Upcoming Gala

Ellington Realty Group is proud to be a sponsor of the Preservation Society’s upcoming Time Traveling Gala on September 29th. Buy tickets now to join us in visiting three historic homes by trolley. Always a fun event filled with great people and beautiful architecture.  For more information about the event, go to https://psabc.org/time-traveling-gala

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Two downtown Asheville buildings sold

Two downtown Asheville buildings that are home to popular food establishments have been sold, but the eateries will remain.

The building at 26 Battery Park, which is home to Kilwins, sold for $2.4 million, a news release from Ellington Realty Group said. Kilwins — a chocolates, ice cream and confections shop — will continue operating out of the main level. The upper level will be rented as office space, and the lower level on Wall Street has another existing retail tenant, Appalachian Natural Soaps.

“This building has been owned by the same family since 1943, and we are pleased that the new owner is a local investor who owns two other downtown properties,” Burns Aldridge, managing broker of Ellington Realty Group who represented the buyers of 26 Battery Park, said in the release.

The building at 48 Biltmore Ave., home to Chestnut Restaurant and Bar, sold for $3.2 million, the news release said. Ryan Israel, who facilitated the sale, said Chestnut will continue its normal operations on the main level.

Asheville-based Ellington Realty Group facilitated both transactions.

 

http://wlos.com/features/all-access-asheville/2-significant-downtown-asheville-buildings-sold

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Chai Pani Owners Expanding Their Indian Street Food Empire

One of the very best parts of our job is working with the innovative, driven and deeply interesting clients that we work with. One of the  best examples of those is long-time Ellington Realty Group clients Meherwan and Molly Irani of the famed Asheville restaurant Chai Pani.

Eater Atlanta published last week:

Chai Pani and Botiwalla chef-owner Meherwan Irani is expanding his Indian street food mini empire. Irani has confirmed he is opening three more metro Atlanta Botiwalla locations in the next year, and as many as eight to ten more locations over the next five years throughout the southeast. Irani’s future plans could include as many as 50 Botiwallas.

Read More:

https://atlanta.eater.com/2018/4/19/17256006/botiwalla-chai-pani-meherwan-irani-expansion?mc_cid=f8587aeb39&mc_eid=%5bUNIQID

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Asheville Mall Sears store to close in July

According to a report on money.cnn.com, between 20% and 25% of American malls will close within five years. That kind of plunge would be unprecedented in the nation’s history.
The reasons are nothing new. People are shopping online more than ever, and that trend is expected to keep growing. Foot traffic at malls has been on the decline for years. The report estimates that as malls close, online sales will grow from 17% of retail sales today to 35% by 2030.

There are also, quite simply, too many stores after years of new mall construction caused a retail bubble.

The closing of the Sears at the Asheville Mall is no surprise. A redevelopment plan is in the works however, to repurpose the space instead of the entire mall closing.

https://www.citizen-times.com/story/news/local/2018/04/17/asheville-mall-sears-store-close-july-2018-heres-what-we-know/520703002/

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The National Register of Historic Places on Douglas Ellington's Asheville Landmarks

The Asheville City Building is a colorful, massive and eclectic Art Deco masterpiece. Douglas D. Ellington, an architect who came to Asheville in the mid-1920s, designed the eight-story building, which was completed in 1928.

Originally proposed as part of a joint City-County Plaza development, the City Hall represents the progressive aspirations of the city in the 1920s.

For more, go to:   https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/asheville/cit.htm

 

 

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Chai Pani Launches New Look

We were proud to have represented the fine owners of Chai Pani when they opened their very first location on Battery Park. Now, that space has just undergone a renovation where the flavors can be bigger and better than ever and the restaurant can better serve it’s loyal customers.

, for the Citizen-Times, tells more:

https://www.citizen-times.com/story/news/local/2018/03/06/gallery-ashevilles-chai-pani-launches-new-look-expands-menu/396153002/

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Livability.com Names Asheville One of Top 100 Best Places to Live for 2018

https://livability.com/best-places/top-100-best-places-to-live/2018/nc/asheville

Livability.com has once again named Asheville to this list, noting our town’s access to quality health care, education, outdoor recreation and arts and music as the main reason’s why. With over 9 million tourists visiting each year and around 90,000 residents enjoying Asheville’s charm, it’s easy to see why we would be a mainstay on this national list.

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Would you live at the Asheville Mall? It may be on possible with this developer's plan.

ASHEVILLE Citizen-Times— In an era when shopping malls are fading into oblivion, the Asheville Mall has no intention of following suit. Part of its strategy? Living there.

A preliminary permit plan submitted last month by Seritage SRC Finance LLC to the city’s development services department details a $45 million redevelopment project in and near the mall’s Sears store.

Plans show the addition of restaurants, retail stores, a 10-screen multiplex movie theater and a six-story structure with 204 multifamily housing units. It likely would be among the largest single investments at the facility since it was built in the early 1970s.

Even in Asheville’s modern development culture — where rental housing is necessary, given a period of sustained demand — the project could be a game-changer, at least as far as the mall’s long-term viability is concerned. Its addition differs from tradition in the shopping-heavy corridor of Tunnel Road, and from enclosed shopping malls, in general.

Read more here:

http://www.citizen-times.com/story/news/local/2018/01/11/would-you-live-asheville-mall-redevelopment-plan-raises-questions-intrigue/1012682001/

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