Town council approves safety enhancement measures to downtown intersection
Black Mountain and Sutton Avenues to be converted to three-way stop, officials explore potential bear-related regulations
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
June 9, 2026
The Town of Black Mountain will change the traffic pattern at the intersection of Black Mountain and Sutton Avenues in the coming weeks, following the June 8 regular monthly meeting of the town council. Photo by Fred McCormick
A downtown intersection, the subject of discussion among Black Mountain officials since the beginning of the year, will feature a new traffic pattern, pedestrian enhancements and signage, following a unanimous decision, June 8, by the town council.
Changes to the convergence of Black Mountain and Sutton Avenues are expected to be in place by mid-August, according to the town planning director. The topic was one of many agenda items considered during the regular monthly meeting of the governing board, which moved forward with consideration of possible regulations intended to address black bear activity in the town.
A proposal to place additional stop signs at all entrances to Black Mountain Avenue, from Sutton Avenue and the adjacent parking lot, while repainting street markings and adjusting the position of an existing yield sign, is designed to calm traffic around the intersection.
The town council, last January, approved a traffic study for the intersection, following a public hearing that included public comments from a resident citing safety concerns. Officials directed staff to pursue an agreement with a traffic engineering firm and repaint the associated striping. A formal proposal to conduct a study for $4,500 was presented the following April, when elected leaders chose to forego that process, tabling the discussion in favor of staff recommendations.
A plan that would retain a stop sign for vehicles exiting the parking lot north of the intersection, while placing one facing westbound traffic on Sutton Avenue, and another for motorists turning right onto Black Mountain Avenue, was presented by planning director Michelle Kennedy.
“We also discussed updating the signage and the yield installation on Black Mountain Avenue,” she told the town council. “We need to install ‘no stopping on tracks’ signage, anyway. Earlier today, we had a small train come through and it gets a little tricky.”
The town will repaint markings at the intersection, increasing visibility and pedestrian safety, Kennedy added, with additional traffic-calming measures, including painting the curb extensions with high-visibility striping to reduce the width of the travel lane on Black Mountain Avenue,.
Traffic traveling north on Black Mountain Avenue will be directed by a newly positioned yield sign, while stop signs will be placed to maximize visibility, Kennedy added.
The town council voted unanimously to approve the recommendation.
The first agenda item of new business called for a discussion of “possible bear-related action plans,” at the request of Mayor Michael Sobol, following a public forum he hosted on the topic last May.
“The meeting was well-attended, probably around 35 folks came to the library and offered lots of ideas and discussions,” said Sobol, who included wildlife-related ordinances from the towns of Highlands and Montreat. The policies, he added, were recommended by N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission Biologist Ashley Hobbs.
Highlands, the first municipality in the state to be recognized as a BearWise community, explicitly prohibits the feeding of bears, and “leaving food, garbage or any other substance in any manner” accessible to the animals. Violations of those codes result in a $250 civil penalty, enforced by the town’s police department or N.C. Wildlife officers. Montreat requires residents to utilize bear-proof containers.
A group of Black Mountain residents, represented by Jill Bielawski, is working with BearWise, a national program that offers resources for reducing conflict with back bears. The ”Black Mountain, N.C. BearWise Community,” which includes Kiersten Hall, who led efforts to have her neighborhood earn compliance with the program in 2021, is working with Hobbs.
“As I was walking in tonight, there was a young bear running around the parking lot,” Bielawski told the town council, as she read a public comment.
“Thank you for recognizing the critical and urgent problem of conflicts with bears today,” she said, adding she encouraged the town to move forward with ordinances to reduce conflicts between humans and bears.
“I’m sure you’ve followed the news and social media posts about the recent killing of five healthy bears in Black Mountain, who were killed because they were trained to find food at human homes,” Bielawski said. “You also may be aware of the public outcry that ensued. The overwhelming consensus of the commenters was that people are upset about the bear killings, and they blame irresponsible human behavior, not the bears.”
She urged the town council to address the growing concern.
“At the meeting with Mayor Sobol, (Hobbs) stated that if Black Mountain already had ordinances in place around securing trash, these killings could have been prevented,” Bielawski continued.
Sobol recommended the town form a committee to address enforcement of bear-related ordinances in Black Mountain. Town staff will explore forming a citizen task force or advisory board and present elected officials with more information in the July meeting. The Black Mountain, N.C. BearWise Community will host a meeting at 6 p.m., Tuesday, June 23, the Black Mountain Library, where attendees will organize a committee educate the community, continue working with Hobbs and advocate for town ordinances.
“I would hope council members could show up there, too,” Sobol said.