Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 28, 1993 TAG: 9403180021
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
$1.9 million to renovate and expand the Blacksburg branch of the Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library.
$2.9 million to construct a new health and human services building.
Both projects are badly needed. They were needed, in fact, when they were first proposed for bond financing and defeated in 1990.
The present Blacksburg library facility is pitifully outdated, overcrowded, even unsafe. It barely meets the fire code. And anytime there comes along a good, drenching rain, the ceiling may collapse, as it did during a storm this past August, soaking books, librarians and patrons.
The decrepitude of this public building might be laughing matter if, say, it were located in Dogpatch, the fictional poverty pocket of "Li'l Abner." That it serves residents of Virginia's largest town, a major university center and much of the county is a disgrace.
Montgomery County's health and social-services departments also operate in inadequate, overcrowded facilities - and under different roofs. This puts an unnecessary burden not only on the agencies, but also on clients who may be ill, who may require services of several agencies, and who, whatever their circumstances, should not be put through extra hassle to get help to which they're entitled.
Housing these departments in a modern and central location would demonstrate concern for those citizens who may be down on their luck. It would also enhance the public agencies' efficiency, which serves the taxpayers' interest.
Montgomery voters - Republican, Democrat or independent; town residents, suburbanites or farmers - ought to join together to approve these bond issues this year, overwhelmingly. Forget the cultural differences, the sectionalism. This should be a matter of countywide pride.
by CNB