Often, growth and development come knocking at our back doors. That’s just what happened to Joe Minicozzi; he became involved with the Coalition of Asheville Neighborhoods, or CAN, after encountering problems with illegal dumping in his own neighborhood.

Trained in architecture and with a master’s degree in urban design, Joe has worked in everything from real estate finance to town planning. He currently works with Public Interest Projects, a real estate development firm in Asheville, but he fills up his spare time volunteering for the city and its neighborhoods. He now serves as president of CAN, as well as secretary for the Asheville Downtown Association. With what spare time he has left in his busy schedule, he also volunteers as secretary for the nonprofit Asheville Design Center, a group working toward livable communities, and their current I-26 connector project.

Are there any conflicts between working in real estate development and serving as president of the Coalition of Asheville Neighborhoods?
CAN isn’t anti-development, but is pro-transparent government, fair process and pro-better development in Asheville. They are very process-oriented and spend an inordinate amount of time getting involved to produce a better UDO (Unified Development Ordinance). CAN serves as a bit of a surveillance camera to the projects that don’t meet the requirements of the UDO, such as Staples or Greenlife Grocery. CAN raises these issues in order to exhibit the impacts that these projects have on a neighborhood and believes you can have positive development that can enhance neighborhoods rather than harm them.

What are some of the main goals of the groups for which you volunteer?
The purpose of my work is to seek an elegant solution. As a person trained in design, you develop a belief that there are better design answers to every problem, like getting a better designed bridge for I-26 to getting a better loading design for Greenlife. We have to be open to accepting that some solutions are better than others. As a designer, you always try to promote the best solution possible to any situation.

What are some accomplishments in your work with community development of which you’re most proud?
Being on the team of folks that put together a grant to study I-26 to seek a better bridge and site design for the area of the connector at the French Broad River was very fulfilling. This one project will impact Asheville for the next 100-plus years, and folks at the Asheville Design Center are doing their best to make that impact positive.

What is your motto?
“What ever you are, be a good one” —Abe Lincoln

What makes you laugh?
Reality.

What do you think makes a great community/a great neighborhood?
To me, this is simple. A well-designed community should be as comfortable for an eight-year-old as an eighty- year-old. A neighborhood should hold all of the things that are life necessities and should be reachable by foot. A mix of uses, a mix of housing options, a range of incomes, parks, retail, etc. We shouldn’t have to purchase a car in order to live a normal life—an eight-year-old doesn’t have a license!

For more information on the above groups, visit www.ashevillecan.org, www.ashevilledesigncenter.org and www.ashevilledowntown.org.

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