Local Letter Calls on Chancellor van Noort to Protect Enchanted Forest

A letter to the editor published Feb. 14, 2026 asked Chancellor Kimberly van Noort to take immediate action to protect The Enchanted Forest, the urban woodland on the UNC Asheville campus. The writer framed the issue as one of conservation and urged the university leadership to prioritize the forest as part of the campus’s green infrastructure in Buncombe County.

The Enchanted Forest is identified in the letter as part of UNC Asheville’s urban forest and as distinctive green space within Asheville city limits. The writer argued that conservation measures are needed to preserve mature trees, undergrowth, and wildlife habitat on campus, and called on Chancellor van Noort by name to lead those protections. The letter links campus stewardship to the broader environmental health of Buncombe County neighborhoods adjacent to UNC Asheville.

Institutional responsibility is central to the letter’s appeal. As chancellor, Kimberly van Noort is named as the decision-maker the writer wants to see implement specific conservation steps for campus land management. The letter did not enumerate a detailed policy package; it emphasized that university leadership must adopt measures that will prevent further loss or degradation of the Enchanted Forest and integrate community input into any land-use decisions affecting the site.

The writer also pressed for community engagement, asking Asheville residents and members of the UNC Asheville community to participate in deliberations over the urban forest’s future. The Feb. 14, 2026 appeal highlights civic participation as a necessary counterweight to administrative decision-making at UNC Asheville and signals potential public interest in forthcoming campus planning discussions in Buncombe County.

Protecting the Enchanted Forest will require actions by university officials and attention from local stakeholders, the letter contends. With Chancellor Kimberly van Noort named directly, the piece places responsibility on campus leadership to respond and invites Buncombe County residents to follow university announcements and any opportunities for public comment about the Enchanted Forest’s management.