The NC Community College Act of 1957 appropriated funding for Asheville-Biltmore contingent on matching local funds, making it necessary for the college to obtain a public vote of support for a proposed $500,000 bond issue. The vote for the bond issue was on the general election ballot of November 4, 1958, and brochures, flyers and newspaper advertisements campaigning for a "Yes" vote were issued.
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| In 1958, Asheville-Biltmore was a 2 year junior college |
There was a 3 to 1 majority in favor of the bond, but some members of the board of trustees were realizing that, despite the funding, the mountaintop site would limit development of the college. So, in December 1958, the board voted to open negotiations to purchase land for a new campus in north Asheville. The negotiations were successful - UNC Asheville is still on the campus - and, after purchasing the land, sufficient funding remained to construct two buildings. The college clearly needed more than two buildings, so a further bond issue was proposed to fund the construction of additional buildings, as the following flyer illustrates.
The Campus Crier, the college newspaper, showed its support of the bond referendum on the front page of the February 1961 issue.
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| "...our economy can be no better than our educational facilities", Asheville Industrial Council |
Although there were concerns that the public would be unwilling to support a second bond issue so soon after the first, the vote was 7,200 for, and 2,713 against, the bond referendum. Funding to construct the additional buildings and develop the campus was secured, and the college that would become UNC Asheville was on its way!
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