Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, October 1, 1994 TAG: 9411020036
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: KENNETH SINGLETARY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
The lack of information before the hearing has residents less than happy.
"It's not fair to the public," said Ann Hess, a former chairwoman of the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors and an organizer of the Route 114 Citizens Network. Hess had hoped town representatives would bring earlier versions of the site plan to a network meeting last Tuesday, but they did not.
"We didn't have the corrected copy," said Town Planner Rudy Rasch, who attended the meeting.
Town officials are careful to say that Tuesday's hearing is scheduled to deal only with the question of if the town should relinquish its rights to the parts of Bradley, Patton, and Marshall Drives that run through the 27-acre site. Such a decision is legally required for the project to move forward.
But they also know people at Tuesday's hearing may want to talk about greater issues surrounding the proposed 200,000-square-foot Wal-Mart, such as its impact on traffic, storm water drainage and dowtown business.
Such issues could have been raised during the rezoning hearing in June, officials say. They also say residents can talk about anything they want during the Citizen's Hearing part of every Town Council meeting, and they point out that residents can write letters or inspect the site plan in the town office any time.
Town Manager John Lemley said Wednesday the Planning Commission, which reviewed the site plan in September, will review the site plan for a second time, though only administrative approval is required.
Tim Sorey, an engineer with CEI Engineering Associates, the Bentonville, Ark., engineering firm that drew up the site plan, said he will attend Tuesday's hearing and hopes to bring the traffic report and storm water blue prints, though they may not be ready even then.
"I'm going to hand-carry everything Tuesday ... [but] I don't know for sure that's going to happen."
Sorey said his firm wants to open the project for construction bids on Oct. 14 and would like it to have received approval from Christiansburg before then.
The part of the site plan that deals with traffic lights has changed since an earlier version was filed in August, he said. That version showed that developers, following the recommendation of a traffic consultant, wanted to move the traffic light at Peppers Ferry Road and Marshall Drive in front of the New River Valley Mall down to Bradley Drive.
That idea provoked concern from mall officials and from the Roanoke Times & World-News, which has its New River Bureau on Marshall Drive, and town officials decided they wanted Marshall Drive to extend into the shopping center's parking lot.
"That issue is gone for the time being ... but in the future if it's mandated it may happen later," Sorey said.
"We're pleased to hear that it's going to stay in place," said Chip Harris, director of maintenance and support services for the newspaper.
Tom Sheets, mall manager, was unavailable Friday.
The portions of the final site plan which arrived Thursday show little change, except for the blue print on landscaping.
Originally, developers had wanted to plant approximately 125 trees, but town officials said that figure did not meet Christiansburg's zoning ordinance, which requires that 20 percent of commercial developments be devoted to green space and that there be one tree for every 400 square feet of green space.
In Wal-Mart's case, that means 525 trees will be required, which the site plan now shows. The trees will be at least 6 feet tall, as mandated by the zoning law. The site plan shows most trees will be planted between the shopping center's parking lot and U.S. 460, and in about a dozen traffic islands. Roughly 250 shrubs also will be planted.
by CNB