Town of Black Mountain exploring feasibility of public safety building repairs

Officials search for viable options and Cost Estimates to inform long-term plan

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
September 2, 2026

The Town of Black Mountain is exploring the feasibility of repairing its public safety building, with plans for temporary police and fire offices in the coming months. Photo by Fred McCormick

Determining the feasibility of repairing the Town of Black Mountain Public Safety Building, and estimated costs associated with the project, represent the next steps in the ongoing process of addressing structural concerns that prompted the municipality to relocate police and fire personnel last March.

The information will guide town officials, as they consider a long-term plan for the site and public safety facilities.

The town council was presented, Aug. 6, with results of eight exploratory hand auger borings performed at four interior and four exterior locations around the building, which was constructed in 1959. ESP Associates, which conducted the field exploration, concluded the slab-on-grade and exterior veneer distress within the northeastern portion of the structure, noted in the facility condition assessment presented to the council last March, appear to be associated with low consistency fill soils and near-surface water beneath portions of the building.

Samples indicated water within 18 inches of the slab in specific areas of the building. The soil beneath the fire station appeared to be “firm and suitable for foundation and slab support, noting shallow refusal, leaving uncertainty regarding the stability of the soil below. The August presentation did not provide detailed steps and potential costs to resolve the issues, according to interim Town Manager Richard Hicks.

“That’s what we thought we were going to get from our architect; what is the condition of the building and what is it going to take to fix it,” Hicks said. “I think they fell a little short of that.”

The initial Public Safety Building Facility Condition Assessment, conducted by an architect from Mosely Designs, rated the building as a “high priority,” estimating the cost of site and structural repairs at approximately $1.2 million. Excluding the bays, the total cost of demolishing and replacing the remaining 12,000-square-foot structure with a similar facility was estimated to be around $8 million.

The town is continuing to work with Asheville-based engineering firm McGill Associates to obtain a report detailing a possible plan for the building, according to Hicks.

“We would like a report on what the next steps should be, like it will cost this much to fix specific issues, or if it’s worth spending that much money to fix certain things,” he said. “We also really don’t know if there are problems that can not be fixed.”

A report addressing those details, Hicks added, will likely be completed by a different architectural firm. The interim manager expects the document to be available within the next 60 to 90 days.

The Town of Black Mountain, which relocated its police department and fire personnel from the public safety building last March, is working with engineering firm McGill Associates to determine potential next steps to repair the structure. Photo by Fred McCormick

“We have all the reports with data, which is everything I think we need,” Hicks said. “We now need a professional in the business to say here is where everything stands right now, these are the things you can do next and this around what that will cost.”

While elected officials were presented, Aug. 6, with plans for a proposed 23,000-square-foot public safety facility on North Fork Road, at an estimated cost of $20 million, no decisions related to the presentation have been made, according to the town manager. The proposal came as the town prepares to receive a donation of 11 acres of land, north of Old U.S. 70, from the state.

The property on the western edge of town limits was offered to the town in August of 2025, according to Hicks.

“We haven’t actually received the deeds for the property yet,” he said. “They are either on their way to the governor’s office or on his desk to be signed, but we haven’t received them yet.”

The donation specifies the parcel must be used for the purposes of public safety, but does not indicate a time frame for potential construction on the site, according to Hicks. The town has no plans to relocate its public safety headquarters from downtown at this time, he added.

“That would be a decision the council would have to make,” Hicks said. “Right now, we don’t have funding to fix the old building or build a new one.”

The municipality is currently exploring grant opportunities for all funding options related public safety facilities.

“With the old building, FEMA originally denied the damage to it was storm-related. We have since filed an appeal and provided additional information that it got a lot worse after the storm. We should hear from them in the next two or three months,” Hicks said. “For the new building, we have requested funding from Chuck Edwards’ office, as a special legislative appropriation. We may or may not get that, but it could take a while. We have also filed a (Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities) application for around $15 million.”

While officials consider potential long-term plans, the fire department continues to operate out of the public safety building bay, which was determined to be structurally sound. The police department is stationed in an unused facility at Givens Highland Farms through at least October. The town purchased a triple-wide mobile unit from the City of Hendersonville to function as a long-term temporary office for the fire department, according to the town manager.

“The state is purchasing, and will deliver, a double- or triple-wide to house the police department,” Hicks said. “Both of those units should be here in around 60-90 days. Once those are set up, that will give us time to evaluate all of the other options.”