Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, November 18, 1993 TAG: 9311200253
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-11 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By PAUL DELLINGER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PULASKI LENGTH: Medium
Most of the money will go for advertising downtown Pulaski's shops and stores in national magazines, state and regional publications and billboards.
The total also includes $9,892 to cover an executive director's salary through June 30, 1994, and some money for printing, postage, travel, telephone and accommodations for visiting business prospects.
Downtown merchants will pay for cable television advertising of Pulaski in a package deal.
The money will come from the town's Urban Development Action Grant funds, earmarked for the creation of new jobs in Pulaski.
In moving for approval of the appropriation, Alma Holston likened the downtown development that has happened during the past year to reaching a mountain top: it could either move forward with momentum already generated or fall backward into the empty storefronts that previously dominated downtown.
``I want to see Main Street stay alive. There are a lot of good things down there,'' she said.
Councilman Don Crispin thought that UDAG money was better spent encouraging larger businesses to come to town. Since the Main Street program started about six years ago, he said, ``we have spent roughly $500,000 on it and we keep getting promises saying `One more year.'''
``He has a point,'' Councilman Andy Graham said, ``but I really feel that the Main Street program is really on a roll at this present time.'' He said perhaps the merchants could pick up its cost next year.
Even Crispin gave credit to Roscoe Cox for reviving Main Street since he became the program's direct or last year.
``I think he will continue to do a tremendous job if he gets the support of the merchants,'' Crispin said. Otherwise, he added, no amount of money will help.
``I'm about to make everybody mad, I think,'' Councilman Nick Glenn said.
Glenn disagreed with Crispin that Main Street would ever be totally self-supporting. People opening stores and shops in downtown Pulaski are investing far more, he said, but it will be years before they know if they are successful.
Glenn opposed the appropriation because, he said, there was no plan or goal-setting for the program and no way to measure its progress.
Junior Black voted with Crispin and Glenn, but lost to Holston, Graham, J.R. Schrader and Vice Mayor Rocky Schrader. Councilman Roy D'Ardenne and Mayor Gary Hancock had been unable to attend the meeting.
The Finance Committee, which met earlier Tuesday, had asked the town staff to draw up an analysis of the program's economic impact. Town Manager Tom Combiths reported an estimate of $13,850 per year as a direct return on the town's investment in Main Street - $1,500 more in property taxes from building improvements, $12,000 more in meals taxes from new restaurants and $350 more in business license taxes.
New downtown businesses also have created 40 full-time and 21 part-time jobs so far, adding an estimated $516,000 in annual aggregate personal income. Based on those jobs, it is estimated that Pulaski is seeing $45,000 more annually in retail sales, $206,000 in personal disposable income and $103,000 in additional bank deposits.
In other business, council referred to its Ordinance Committee the controversy over whether to ban the sounding of train whistles in town, have no restrictions on them or limit the hours they can be blown.
Council has passed several different ordinances, first allowing unlimited soundings as safety measures but then restricting them as citizens complained of being disturbed or awakened by the constant train whistles. The current ordinance leaves it up to the train crew's discretion as to whether a safety problem exists.
Hancock and Combiths met last week with Norfolk Southern Railway officials on the problem, and learned that it is NS policy to sound whistles unless a local ordinance bans it.
by CNB