Halloween: West Asheville Style ~Part 1

This holiday /event usually runs the spectrum of either being a person’s Favorite holiday or their Most hated. I guess it all depends on who you talk to, who you are, do you have kids, are you home, do you like festivities, etc.

Part 1: Let’s talk about the Kids…

So eons ago, when I first moved over ( to the then “Worst Asheville” ) I had No a Clue about Trick or Treaters or where to go, etc. I had lived in North Asheville for a few years, so I knew…yeah, Kimberly Ave was the place you want to avoid while heading out to the bars….Place was crazy with Trick or Treaters, even though a few blocks South: we never had any. And, yes I was young and self absorbed and super naive…and basically clueless…only looking for the Party! After moving to the West side, I Never had kids come to the house for sweet delights. And, I really didn’t give it a second thought. I only secretly crossed my fingers that my house wouldn’t get egged.

Now, older and childless, it’s still amazing to me how our little Vermont Ave. Has become the Western part of the county’s family Trick or Treating delight: a destination. The place to get your Halloween door to door on. Maybe it’s because the street is wide and tree lined, with sidewalks lining each side, big houses, and resident’s with a flare for embracing Halloween. Or it’s the fact that Vermont Ave is essentially the residential Main Street of West Asheville: beginning at the center of West Asheville on Haywood Rd. and ending at the large city maintained West Asheville Park. Local kids have Always used Vermont Ave. But, it has become something More.

Vermont Ave. 11am Halloween

Vermont Ave residents literally pass out over a 1500 pieces of candy each year. 1500+!!!! That’s not all local kids!!! In fact, so many families from neighboring areas now use Vermont as their go to for their kid’s Halloween fun. And, with this many kids heading out…that my friends, is Expensive!!! Some Vermont residents giving out candy make it a big party, inviting friends for a potluck and asking for candy donations to pass out, others love utilizing live music on their front porches or dance parties, and a few make use of the crowd to promote their cause that benefits kids while they spend their entire evening passing out treats.

Vermont Ave. 6:30 pm Halloween

The latest improvement has been closing the street down. Again, this costs money and utilizes a number of volunteers to ensure the safety of the kids and families. There have been candy drives, donations of jack o lanterns to those that couldn’t do, fund raisers for the street barricades, you name it, and I’m proud that our community has stepped up for the last two years to help those on Vermont Ave that Are giving out candy. Even the local Haywood Rd. Citi-Stop & Brew Pump ( at the top of Vermont ) closed down their gas pumps to embrace Trick or Treaters with a Trunk and Treat and, later, a dance party supplied with a live DJ!

With all of it’s popularity, really West Asheville’s Vermont Ave. Halloween extravaganza could Not be possible without the amazing residents and the growing community support. It’s fun, it’s exciting, it’s Great people watching…even through this year’s rain….it is something, an event that all of us West Ashevillians should be proud of.