Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 1, 1995 TAG: 9501040121
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: HOLIDAY
SOURCE: BETH MACY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Roanoke needs one of those little photo booths where you get a strip of four black-and-white photos for $1 - and you always look skinnier in the pictures than in real life.
Roanoke needs a downtown movie theater, to get over its identity crisis, a statue, a Thai restaurant, a place for teen-agers to go at night besides the City Market parking lot and Valley View Mall.
As retiree Marie Akers put it one recent morning over coffee at Krispy Kreme Doughnuts: ``Roanoke needs more places like this. My son is 29 years old now, and he cut his teeth on ice from the Cokes in here.
"Roanoke needs more places where you come to solve the problems of the world.''
I am fascinated by Roanoke's inferiority complex. Fascinated, because never before have I lived in a city that spends so much time and energy wringing its hands, trying to figure out how to be something it's not.
``Roanoke is a Western-Sizzlin'-go-out-to-the-movies kinda town,'' said a city official. ``But don't quote me on that.''
Translation: Roanoke is a great place to raise a family, but it's boring. And that's bad.
Gary Ballard, a morning radio announcer, ran into that attitude recently during his last-minute Christmas shopping at the quintessential Roanoke store: Wal-mart.
"They ran out of gift certificates, and somebody said, 'Only in Roanoke.'"
What does Roanoke need to spice itself up?
About five years ago, a bunch of newspaper reporters were at a bar (surprise). Somewhere around the fifth pitcher of beer they formulated a list, called What Roanoke Needs.
An all-night bar was on there (another surprise). So was a Banana Republic store, a good women's shoe store, movies after 9:30 p.m., an outdoor cafe on Mill Mountain and a Chinese restaurant with home deliveries.
While the list sat dormant on someone's Story Ideas file, several things on it sprang to life: a good bakery, a coffee shop with cappuccino and espresso, gourmet ice cream and frozen yogurt downtown, a sidewalk cafe not on an ugly street, fresh bagels. ...
``A real yuppie list so far,'' wrote the one reporter at the bar who could still take legible notes. ``Needs some multi-class, multicultural beefing up.''
I ran across the list a few weeks ago and decided to update it for the new year. For three straight days, I did nothing but accost people - on the phone, in the streets, at Krispy Kreme, at the company Christmas party, even at a breakfast restaurant (but after brushing my teeth).
There were the familiar retail refrains: ``The missing link is still a Gap store,'' argued Beth Doughty, director of the Economic Development Partnership of the Roanoke Valley.
``A second TJ Maxx store!'' enthused Frances Little, a graphic designer whose own list features more orchards and fewer suburbs, more downtown apartments, a beltway, a live-bluegrass club and the re-opening of Lakeside Amusement Park.
Two themes surfaced. First, most Roanokers I talked to actually like Roanoke the way it is - but admitted it so begrudgingly and only after the requisite trashing of civic offerings.
And secondly, what Roanokers want most isn't just another chain store at the mall, or a second entrance ramp to get there - although both items came up frequently.
They want both adults and kids to get out of the car and away from the TV screen and come together in new and interesting gathering spots.
They want to get to know each other.
by CNB