Black Mountain residents endure slog of disaster recovery

Post-flood reality brings significant challenges for small town

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
March 18, 2025

A section of Hilltop Road in Black Mountain remains washed out nearly six months after Helene caused approximately $27 million of damage to local infrastructure and equipment. The town allocated $300,000 to stabilize the earth beneath the road last February. Photo by Fred McCormick

When Helene came to the Swannanoa Valley nearly six months ago, the immediate impact of the massive tropical storm was deadly and destructive. In the days that followed, the word “recovery” became a mainstay in the local lexicon, but it was difficult to imagine just how long it would retain its relevance. 

As the Town of Black Mountain works to rebuild in the aftermath of the natural disaster, it is increasingly apparent the community will be talking about recovery for a long time. 

Approximately 22 inches of rain fell over three days, before and during the storm, resulting in over $27 million in damage to town equipment and infrastructure. As local leaders navigate the path to repairing taxpayer funded facilities, returning to life as town residents knew it before Sept. 27 will involve a lengthy process.  

Flooding is not new to the Swannanoa Valley. A 1962 report, conducted by the Tennessee Valley Authority, Division of Water Control Planning at the request of the Black Mountain Town Council, cited major floods in 1791, 1916, 1928, 1940 and 1949. With continued development in the area, particularly in the flood plains, the potential for damage resulting from such an event increases. 

The small town, which currently provides government services to approximately 8,500 people, experienced steady growth for decades by the time Helene swept through. Many of the facilities, roads and systems used regularly used by local residents suffered significant damage as a result of the storm.

A conspicuous example can be found in a washed out section of Hilltop Road, where the earth beneath the street slid down the steep mountainside below. The area is continuing to erode, according to residents who addressed to the Black Mountain Town Council in a special called meeting last February.

Elected officials responded by allocating up to $300,000 to stabilize the remaining road, but no timeframe to complete the temporary repair was available as of the council’s March 10 regular monthly meeting. The project, which will reinforce the sloped hillside but not restore use of the segment of the street, requires the town to procure an engineer, gain rights of entry and acquire a small piece of adjacent property.

Returning the road to working condition will require a multi-step process, town administrators told elected officials last month.

An approximately $400,000 capital improvement project planned for Cragmont Park, prior to Helene, has been postponed, as the Town of Black Mountain prioritizes storm recovery projects in the upcoming fiscal year. Photo by Fred McCormick

The project is one of several storm-related repairs the town must fund to initiate before receiving reimbursement through FEMA. While the town recently received a $3 million bridge loan through the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality to begin repairing its damaged water system, other efforts, including the restoration of the Lakeview Center for Active Aging at Lake Tomahawk, require identifying funding sources before they can begin.

During its annual budget retreat, March 1, the town council identified the Lakeview Center as one of several “high importance” projects in the coming fiscal year. Other top priorities listed were repairs to the public safety building that houses the Black Mountain Police and Fire Departments, replacing damaged sanitation vehicles and repairing the town-owned golf course.

“It’s all about funding,” Town Councilmember Pam King said during the board’s regular meeting. “If we had all the money we needed, I’d go down there and start fixing the senior center right now. But, it’s super complicated and takes forever.”

The town has completed or initiated a dozen recovery projects since the storm, assistant town manager Jessica Trotman told the council this month. Most of the town’s recreation facilities, including the Lakeview Center, Oaks Trail, Flat Creek Greenway and Riverwalk Dog Park, remain closed to the public. Veteran’s Park has been partially re-opened, while the Cragmont Park tennis courts, Lake Tomahawk playground, walking path and picnic pavilion are available for use.

Volunteer-led initiatives, including Operation Love and Hope, which built three new youth baseball and softball fields, have led to significant progress in Veterans Park. The restoration of the athletic facility was also supported by donations from the Black Mountain Presbyterian Church and Asheville Fence.

Capital improvement projects planned before Helene, including a $400,000 Cragmont Park renovation, have been postponed to support storm recovery efforts.

Veterans Park is partially open, following volunteer-led efforts to rebuild the baseball fields in the facility owned by the Town of Black Mountain. The adjacent Oaks Trail, once connected by a bridge washed away during Helene, is closed. Photo by Fred McCormick

A funding gap is likely, Trotman told the town council last February, as elected leaders and administrators enter the budgeting process for the 2025-26 fiscal year.

“We will not know exactly what the funding gap is until we scope some of these larger projects and we know if they will be improved projects or not,” she said. “If you have high priorities, you can still pursue private loans.”

While no single combination of funding sources will fit everything, Trotman added, some projects can be phased.

Addressing the widespread damage to town equipment and infrastructure is a lengthy process, Councilmember Doug Hay said in a March 16 social media video.

“FEMA is primarily a reimbursement program, which means we first half to pay for the repairs ourselves, submit them to FEMA, and they reimburse us,” he said. “Now, it could take anywhere from six months to two years for us to receive that money, and when you’re a town our size we don’t have $20 million to do the repairs right now and wait for that to happen.”

Recovery will need to happen “piece by piece,” he continued.

“Just like every other municipality in Western N.C., we have to get creative and try to dig up funds wherever we can find them,” Hay said. “That’s why it feels like it’s taking forever.”