From Staff Reports

HENDERSONVILLE  — The historic Seventh Avenue area in Hendersonville is set for a $3.5 million revamp, which began earlier in January.

In December, the city opened bids for the Seventh Avenue Streetscape project “and then authorized the spending for it,” Asheville television station WLOS (News 13) reported on Dec. 19. 

To that end, Hendersonville City Council authorized a contract with Harper General Contractors to lead the project in December. 

“Work will include paving, landscaping, demolition and new traffic signals. Seventh Avenue was the original commercial district in Hendersonville,” News 13 noted.

“The renovation project was first proposed in 2017, but the COVID-19 pandemic and supply-chain problems have caused delays.

According to the city’s website, the Seventh Avenue Streetscape project is an investment into pedestrian and stormwater infrastructure and landscaping in the business district. The project area includes part of the intersection at 7th Avenue and Grove Street, 7th Avenue from the intersection to Maple Street, as well as a portion of Locust Street. 

Since 2020, 11 businesses have opened in the Seventh Avenue district, and $1.5 million in private investments have been spent for improvements and acquisitions, city documents show.