Asheville plans to rebuild a retaining wall at Montford Park that suffered damage during Tropical Storm Helene, and city staff want the finished work to look like the existing stone wall.
The construction cost is estimated at about $312,000, not including design and related expenses. The city expects the Federal Emergency Management Agency to cover 90 percent of eligible costs.
After inspections by FEMA and engineers and an analysis of the ground under the wall, officials determined that the section closest to the tennis courts is not salvageable. The remaining portions also showed compromise, prompting a full rebuild plan.
The city’s approach is to build a new wall and then apply stone from the existing structure as a facing. Contractors and stonemasons have told the city that reuse brings a real field challenge: The original stones vary in thickness, so crews need to cut them to create a workable finished surface. If cutting waste runs high, the city plans to use an alternate stone facing to keep the project moving.
Even though Montford Park dates to the 19th century, the retaining walls are believed to date to the 1970s. The park sits in the Montford Historic District, where guidelines call for replacement walls to match the original design, texture, color, and appearance as closely as possible. City officials say they intend to follow those guidelines with either salvaged stone or replacement material.
To help control the look and quality, bidders had to submit examples of their stonework, and the selected contractor must build a 3-foot-square sample wall for approval by the project’s engineer and the city project manager before construction begins. Plans also call for any new stone to include a mix of sizes, shapes, textures, and colors that match the existing wall’s appearance.
The contract is scheduled to go before Asheville City Council for consideration Nov. 10. The city expects work on its Historic Parks Recovery project to start before the end of 2026 and last about six months, with fencing and brief closures used to keep park visitors away from active work zones.
Read the full, original article from 828 News Now here.