The Buncombe County Detention Facility is located directly across from, and is connected to, the 1920’s County Courthouse which is on the Register of Historic Places.  The County Courthouse and its adjoining City Municipal Building are landmark “object” buildings on Asheville’s skyline, which symbolize Asheville.  Great care was taken with regard to the Detention Facility’s building siting, orientation, massing and elevation to assure that it is a “background” building, subserviant to, but compatible with, the Courthouse.

Each of the three housing floors contains two 46-bed housing units with outdoor exercise, multi-purpose rooms and visiting, directly accessible to the unit.  The facility also contains Buncombe County’s Intake/Release Center, the City-County Bureau of Identification, District Court, Facility and Custody Administration, Inmate Health Care, Inmate Programs and Food and Laundry Service for this jail and the adjoining Work Release Facility. This 6-story facility has 276 beds.