Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 2, 1994                   TAG: 9403020201
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-6   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: By ROBERT FREIS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG                                LENGTH: Short

COUNTY REFUSES TO WAIVE SURVEY ORDINANCE FOR LANDOWNER

Robert L. Bratton wants to split a half-acre parcel off his 14-acre tract near Bethel so his granddaughter can build a house.

But Bratton does not want to have the land surveyed, as the county requires.

According to a county ordinance, a survey must be conducted on tracts of 20 acres or less if the land is subdivided.

Bratton called that rule unfair to small landowners, who must bear an expense that larger landowners avoid. The cost could total thousands of dollars.

"Treat everybody alike," he said.

Last month, the county Planning Commission recommended Bratton's request for a variance be denied.

Planning Director Joe Powers told the supervisors that the 20-acre cutoff will be reviewed to see if it is fair.

Meanwhile, Supervisor Joe Gorman told Bratton that surveys are required to ensure that land parcel sizes are accurate.

A discrepancy in parcel size can mean landowners aren't paying the right amount of tax on their property, he said.

Bratton's land has never been surveyed, the county says.

Supervisor Nick Rush recommended Bratton's request be granted. But the board deadlocked 3-3, so Bratton will have to renew his request at the board's next meeting in two weeks.

That delay and the prospect of having to pay for a survey angered Bratton and his family, who left the meeting hurling accusations at the board.