Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 26, 1995 TAG: 9503270016
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: PAUL DELLINGER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: DUBLIN LENGTH: Medium
The need for the federal government to expand the Dublin post office is providing an opportunity for a new town hall and other developments in a brand-new part of the town.
No timetable has been set for construction of the Dublin Town Center, but the planning process is under way. The next step is to survey the property and pinpoint the placement of access roads.
The 14 acres where modernized facilities are planned once belonged to Burlington Mills, and are part of an industrial park developed after Burlington conveyed the property and its buildings to the town.
On Dec. 19, Dublin and Pulaski County negotiated a voluntary boundary adjustment making the town-owned Burlington property, then located in the county, part of the town and adding other commercial property between the former town limits and the industrial park to link them. The addition nearly doubled the geographical size of the town.
Now, town officials stand ready to take advantage of their wider spaces.
The existing town hall near the post office, once a car dealership and later a fire house, has reached its limits in space and wiring needs.
The planned 7,000-square-foot new town hall would include space for Pulaski County to lease, and save people in the eastern part of the county from traveling to Pulaski for county services. Lease revenue along with money from the rent of former Burlington buildings to nine industries will repay construction costs.
Also planned are greenways and a public park, to provide an eye-catching entry to Dublin.
``It's going to be fantastic. And the greenway is going to be pretty much a natural thing,'' Mayor Benny Keister said.
Space would be set aside for some commercial development such as restaurant, retail or office facilities. Town Manager Gary Elander noted that space within the previous town limits was 90 percent developed, and this would provide room for future development.
The enhanced facilities near the industrial park may attract more tenants to rent existing buildings for shipping or storage, or even build their own. The park has about 300,000 square feet of space under roof already in the former Burlington buildings, more than perhaps any industrial park in Southwest Virginia.
Key to all this is the post office move, since that would bring with it a federal grant to pay for 60 percent of the utilities and road access to the new area.
``The post office is a priority problem that needs to be solved,'' Elander said. ``This is a good location to expand.''
The planned new 14,000-square-foot post office would replace the existing 4,000-square-foot building, and a large parking lot would replace the now-limited eight parking spaces.
``Most of the people want the post office expanded,'' said Postmaster Jack Long. ``Only a few people walk to the post office, maybe less than 20, I would guess - maybe a few more on a pretty day.''
But the nearly 1,600 postal boxes at the present facility are all rented, and more than 2,200 people use the post office on a daily basis, he said. The traffic and people congestion has become too much of a problem to ignore.
``We really do need a new location for the post office,'' said Diane Blair, owner of Dublin Hardware in the downtown area. ``My concern is we really do have a lot of elderly people who walk to the post office.''
Another concern of downtown business people is that the move might change traffic patterns, she said.
Colbern Linkous, a retiree and former Dublin Town Council member, agrees that the more distant new post office might be a problem for elderly people used to walking to it. ``But the post office definitely has to be moved somewhere, and that seems to be the best we can get,'' he said.
Cecil and Doris Willard, former area residents who now live in Haymarket but plan to retire here, have expressed concerns about the move. Cecil Willard said there would be no reason for people to come downtown and business would be lost.
``It's just going to make a big change,'' Doris Willard said.
But most of the comments locally seem favorable. ``I've heard nothing but positive,'' Councilman Sam Gregory said.
``People are really excited about it,'' said Councilman Benny Skeens. ``I think we're on the right track.''
by CNB