ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WJHL) – The River Arts District (RAD) in Asheville, North Carolina, is experiencing a revival post-Hurricane Helene.

The district was part of the city heavily impacted by the September storm’s flooding, but now, it’s open for business, ready to welcome back tourists from all over.

“The River Arts District is a district in Asheville, North Carolina that spans about two miles, and prior to the hurricane, housed 750 local artists,” said Jeffrey Burroughs, fine jeweler and President of RADA.

There were originally 750 artists in the district, which has significantly dropped to 350 following the storm. Those are the artisans and businesses that were able to get up and running again, but 400 are still searching for a new space to create, according to Burroughs.

Angela Alexander, of Angela Alexander Art, said she was fortunate enough to be back in her studio just weeks after the storm.

“We had flooding in the warehouse of this building, but not in our studios, thankfully. Our biggest challenge was not having anybody come in and buy art,” said Alexander.

Alexander said she’s been in the RAD for 11 years but has been painting for 21 years. The storm made a huge financial impact on her and other artists within the district.

While not crafting on a canvas, Hi-Wire Brewing, located two minutes from Alexander’s workshop, is crafting beers daily. The facility in the River Arts District is where the brewery stored all of its finished cans and kegs, but that all changed on Sept. 27, 2024.

“We’d seen some water come up from the road and to the brewery that’s in between us and the river, never did we expect the water to keep coming up. It kept raining and the water kept rising,” said Brian Laggis, Chief Revenue Officer at Hi-Wire Brewing.

It took a while, but the facility is now back open after suffering great loss and heavy damage from the storm. Reopening day happened in late May, marking that site’s busiest day of business to date.

If you can’t make it into Asheville this summer, there is an online fund to help businesses in this district damaged by Hurricane Helene. It can be found here.

“It is an incredible way to make an impact in our community directly, and right now, that is the only way to support our community from a foundation perspective, and all of those funds are set here to either help our artists reopen spaces or stay open,” said Burroughs.

Alexander said she received funds through the online campaign, which helped her to stay afloat, but nothing beats the return of in-person tourism.

“In the 11 years that I’ve been here, you learn the trends surrounding what seasons they come and when it can slow down, and this year it’s not even close to where it should be as far as that comparison over the last 11 years,” said Alexander.

Everyone News Channel 11 spoke with in the River Arts District said they believe people are under the impression that Asheville is closed for business.

While the city is still in partial recovery mode, they are open and offering up all kinds of creative pieces, ready to showcase the renaissance of the district.

“When something gets washed away, you have to think of it as a Tabula rasa, a clean slate, what’s possible now? What can we as visionaries and artists create?” said Burroughs.

The River Arts District is an easy day trip for people living in Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia, and it needs visitors now more than ever.

“It’s an economy that’s always relied on tourism, it’s a very special place/ We need people to come back and support us,” said Laggis.

By the end of the summer, Burroughs said the district plans to have more artist spaces activated, with even more to follow in late fall.

There are plenty of fun art-themed events to check out this Summer. To stay up to date on what’s happening in the River Arts District, click here.