Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 21, 1994 TAG: 9404210200
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By KENNETH SINGLETARY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
So the Town Council in January formed a visual enhancement committee, charging its members to offer suggestions on how the town could be made a better place to look at - and live in.
At Tuesday's council meeting, Kathy Mantz, president of the Chamber of Commerce and the committee's chairwoman, unveiled the plan. And a big plan it is, complete with a town slogan and a two- or three-year blueprint.
"We're going to be the envy of every community around here if we do these projects," Mantz told council.
There are six projects in all, the first of which may get off the ground this spring or summer. Perhaps remembering the adage that first impressions are lasting impressions, it's a plan to landscape the five "Welcome to Christiansburg" signs surrounding the town. Also included in this stage of the project are 45 concrete street planters.
Then the committee wants to landscape the traffic islands at U.S. 460 and Pepper's Ferry Road.
Next up, perhaps next year, are civic club signs near the welcome signs. But Mantz had this warning: "If a civic club does not want to contribute, they won't be allowed to display on the signs."
Indeed, that's a big part of how the committee plans to pay for their ideas. Contributions are welcome, as are volunteers. "We welcome anyone and everyone," Mantz said. Matching funds from the state Department of Transportation may be on the horizon, too.
The town itself will include in its upcoming budget $25,000 Mantz has initially slated to pay for the plan.
"Hometown Proud" is the committee's slogan, which may soon appear on decals and bumper stickers, Mantz said.
The other parts of the project include plantings on the median strips of some of the town's bigger roads, landscaping the banks of Crab Creek at North Franklin and Depot streets, and lights in the downtown pear trees at Christmas and maybe during the Wilderness Trail festival.
Also at Tuesday's meeting, council decided to apply for Federal Emergency Disaster Agency relief funds as a result of the winter's ice storms. Exactly how much money the town stands to receive remains to be seen, said Lance Terpenny, assistant town manager.
Federal inspectors will be in town as early as next week, Terpenny said, when they will inspect storm damage and examine the town's expense records.
Terpenny said he does not know how much money Christiansburg might receive.
"I haven't even looked at the paperwork yet," he said, adding that the inspectors will arrive at a figure.
Terpenny said Christiansburg waited to apply for federal funds because town officials thought only overtime and equipment rental costs would be covered. But when they found out that all equipment costs could be included, they beat FEMA's April 10 deadline by two days.
Storm damage had council's attention in another way, too. The town's annual street paving schedule had to be refigured because of wear on the town's busier roads.
Normally, secondary and subdivision roads are earmarked for paving each year because they are the ones that have not received a long-lasting asphalt coating. But sections of East Main North and South Franklin streets, Cambria Street, Radford Street as well as several smaller streets are scheduled for repaving this year.
by CNB