Asheville downtown trespassing, intoxication calls rise, merchants report concerns

Downtown Asheville merchants are still confronting a familiar sight on the sidewalks, people lingering where they should not be, customers feeling uneasy, and police trying to show more presence in response.

Asheville Police Department data reported by WLOS shows downtown trespassing calls rose to 628 in 2025 from 474 in 2024. Public intoxication calls also climbed, to 47 from 39 over the same period. Those numbers add to a broader quality-of-life problem that downtown businesses say is still playing out block by block across the district.

The trend sits alongside a larger public safety debate in Asheville. WLOS reported in October 2025 that violent crime had fallen 28% from its 2022 peak, but quality-of-life calls, including trespassing, disorderly conduct and drug-related incidents, were climbing. That same report said APD had logged more than 1,400 quality-of-life calls downtown since 2023.

City leaders launched a 60-day Downtown Safety Initiative on May 1, 2023, after acknowledging complex factors behind downtown public safety problems. The effort brought more foot, bike and vehicle patrols, a Community Responder Pilot Program led by the Asheville Fire Department, and cleanup work aimed at removing litter, needles and biological waste. City pages now describe many of those steps as part of ongoing downtown cleanliness and safety efforts.

For merchants, the issue is no longer abstract. Rebecca Hecht, co-owner of Shining Rock Goods, said, “I feel like the numbers have ticked up,” and said she is writing a detailed letter to leaders in western North Carolina. She described threatening behavior, spitting on people, and customers being chased down the street, a set of complaints that turns statistical increases into direct business and public-safety concerns.

At The Market Place on Wall Street, chef-owner William Dissen said downtown has improved in recent months with more police visibility and community service teams, even as businesses continue to feel the effects of break-ins and disorder. His account reflects the split many downtown stakeholders are navigating, a better-looking street scene in some moments, but not enough consistency to fully calm merchants or reassure visitors.

APD’s public incident portal, which runs back to January 1, 2005, allows users to search incidents by address, neighborhood, date range and crime type. That level of access has made downtown safety easier to measure, and harder for city leaders to explain away. Asheville Downtown Association materials for 2026 also show the issue remains active, with APD working alongside the Asheville Fire Department’s REST team and Vaya Health as downtown stakeholders keep pressing for answers and results.