Town of Black Mountain provides update on restoration efforts: Lakeview Center for Active Aging

The Town of Black Mountain recognizes the strong community interest in reopening the Lakeview Center for Active Aging. Town Council and staff share this commitment and are working diligently to ensure the facility is safely restored and reopened with as limited financial liability to the Town as possible.

The Town has procured Arete Engineering to lead the Lakeview Center project. Arete’s engineering team has completed a site visit and is developing a detailed damage assessment that will outline the extent of storm damage, requirements for compliance with the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), and the overall condition of the building. This assessment will equip Town Council with the information needed to make an informed decision on the most appropriate path forward.

Town staff are collaborating closely with NC Emergency Management, FEMA Public Assistance, the Joint Field Office, the Interagency Resource Commission, and FEMA Disaster Philanthropy to identify funding solutions and advocate for the establishment of a temporary facility to house senior programs during recovery. Staff have elevated the needs of Black Mountain’s senior community to both state and regional FEMA leadership, making this one of the most strongly advocated recovery priorities in the Town’s portfolio.

Due to recent changes in FEMA Public Assistance funding availability, the Town is now able to move forward with temporary repairs to secure the Lakeview structure. These updates create greater flexibility in how the Town can proceed with short-term stabilization and planning for the building’s future and securing funding.

A special-called meeting will be held on Tuesday, October 28, 2025 at Town Hall beginning at 8:30am to consider a budget amendment for the temporary repair of the Lakeview Center for Active Aging.

In addition, a Town Council work session and special-called meeting will take place at Town Hall from 10:00am to 2:00pm on Saturday, November 1, 2025. The primary focus will be to review recovery projects for grant applications and budget amendments to advance engineering and select construction projects while awaiting FEMA Public Assistance obligations.

Both meetings are open to the public and will be held at Town Hall located at 160 Midland Avenue. Community members are encouraged to attend and stay informed as recovery and restoration efforts continue. There is no public comment section planned for these special-called meetings as these are evolving discussions. The public will have the opportunity to speak on these topics at a future meeting.