Black Mountain elects new mayor and town council member

Incumbent Bill Christy retains seat, challengers Sobol and Berry win big

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
November 8, 2022

Mike Sobol, seen here speaking at a candidate forum in September, was elected mayor of Black Mountain in the 2022 General Election. Photo by Fred McCormick

The Town of Black Mountain will have a new mayor this December, when Mike Sobol will be sworn back into the office he last held in 2017, after the former mayor defeated incumbent Larry Harris in the 2022 General Election. 

The race to fill two seats on the town council was won by newcomer Alice Berry and incumbent Bill Christy. 

Sobol received 61% of the vote, with 2,476 ballots cast in support of mayor-elect, while Berry’s 2,197 votes accounted for 29% of the ballots cast in the town council race that featured five candidates. Christy, who was appointed to the council in July of 2021, received 1,539 votes, surpassing Rick Earley by 33. 

Sobol was “stunned” by the margin of victory, he said as the unofficial results came in. 

“I hoped to win, worked to win, but it’s very gratifying to know two-thirds of Black Mountain want me to be mayor,” he said. 

Sobol campaigned on completing the town’s greenway system, addressing stormwater concerns and accountability in town hall. 

“We, the nominative plural, will be dealing with the town, meaning myself and the board,” he said. “And, we have to work together because we are a team now. This is ‘Team Black Mountain.’

“Some of my views may not be what this board wants to support, but I’m hoping we can work together, deal with town hall and plan for the future,” he said. “It’s not complicated.”

Sobol, who was elected to the town council in 2003 and served 10 years before serving as mayor from 2013 through 2017, emphasized his desire for the board to exercise more oversight with town staff. 

“The town council needs to have more control and supervision of the town manager and those working under him,” he said. “We have gotten into trouble with stormwater and the greenway because the board did not follow through with making sure the town manager was supervising things correctly. I’m not saying get rid of people, I’m just saying we need better accountability.”

Berry, who was “honored by the support of local residents” during her campaign, plans to prioritize projects like the upcoming Unified Development Ordinance in her first term on the council. 

Alice Berry received 2,197 votes in the Black Mountain General Election, Nov. 8, winning her first term on the town council. Photo by Fred McCormick

“A lot of our priorities will be determined by timelines that are already in place, but the first thing on my mind is the UDO, which will come before the town council in 2023,” she said. “That’s a big project and will help define how we move forward with growth and development. So, I know that will be a big town project that we will need to work together on, and it’s something that will involve a lot of community input.”

Berry is also hopeful that Black Mountain can have a “seat at the table” when it comes to discussions around the $40 million Buncombe County Housing Bond and $30 million Open Space Bond that were approved through a referendum in the election.

“I would really like to see us be collaborators with the county on both of those things,” she said.

Christy, who did not actively campaign to retain his seat, relied on his record in the position in the race.

Incumbent Bill Christy retains his seat on the Black Mountain Town Council with 1,539 votes in the 2022 General Election. Photo by Fred McCormick

“I spent $5 on the filing fee and that’s all,” he said. “I really didn’t want to campaign heavily because I wanted to let my work speak for itself. I trusted that if that was good enough, the community would vote for me and if not, then I would be OK with that.”

As he looks ahead to his first full term on the board, Christy plans to continue focusing on town business.

“Nothing changes,” he said. “We have to continue to try to support our town employees in all divisions, and carefully consider things like the upcoming Recreation Master Plan. I think the board needs to continue discussing priorities and weighing options while being fiscally responsible.”