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Hendersonville narrowly missed a major national award for its downtown streetscape improvements and the community did receive a "special mention" for its landscaping overall from a national community beautification program.
America in Bloom judges visited Hendersonville, Flat Rock, Laurel Park and Mills River last June. The judges evaluate the community based on its flower displays, landscaping, trees, environmental efforts, heritage preservation and overall impression, make recommendations and write nominations for national awards.
Presenting a report card to local leaders on Friday morning, America in Bloom judge Jack Clasen said he and co-judge Linda Cromer were disappointed that the national AIB committee chose another city for the commercial streetscape award.
"I've been doing this for 13 years and I'm usually very level-headed. I'm very calm," he said. "I understand how difficult it is (to judge). But I was actually very upset that you did not win that special award for commercial streetscape for Main Street in Hendersonville. Linda and I both felt that the Main Street renovation is first class."
Clasen said he felt so strongly about the award that "a bit of a shakeup" resulted.
Clasen gave the report card at the City Operations Center in a session attended by the mayors of Hendersonville, Laurel Park and Flat Rock, Henderson County America in Bloom Committee members, the Tourism Development Authority and city and county officials.
The judges loved the 220 hanging baskets that line Main, King and Church streets but recommended "hot colors" instead of purples and pinks that "recede into the background."
Clasen returned several times to the theme, saying that because it is a tourism destination, Hendersonville needs "to have these as good as anywhere." The town should plant more yellow and other colors that pop and consider "punching up" the purple by mixing it with white. The judges were "perplexed" by the use of grass in some baskets and recommended pruning the fuller side of baskets that become imbalanced.
A committee launched the local America In Bloom effort last spring with funding from the municipalities. The committee plans to invite AIB judges back for a second evaluation next summer after working on improvements.
In other evaluation and recommendations, the judges said:
In the future, the towns should expand their landscaping, tree plantings and flowerbeds outside the main destinations as much as possible.
"There's a lot more to the municipality than Main Street," he said. "We're looking at the wide swath. We're not just saying we're going to judge Main Street. We're looking at the entire municipality."
To improve its score next year, Clasen recommended the towns "focus on any improvements you make — if for example you plant some flowers. That's what impresses the judges, where you made improvements. There was no recommendations but (judges will react) because you caught the spirit."