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

DATE: SUNDAY, December 4, 1994                   TAG: 9501110006
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: F-2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

THE PARKWAY

THE GATT talks could hardly have been more delicate than those going on among members of the Coalition for the Blue Ridge Parkway - between planners, environmentalists and park officials on the one hand and, on the other, Roanoke Valley builders who own property along the scenic road.

Retired Rep. Jim Olin is performing a laudable public service in leading this effort to preserve the beauty of the mountains and farmland that draws millions of tourists to the 470-mile national park each year. Whether a significant portion of that beauty can be preserved in rapidly suburbanizing Roanoke County will be an important indicator of what our scenic valley is likely to become.

The developers can be commended, too, for assuring that they do not want to hurt the scenic drive. Much can be done to maintain the viewscape if, in areas that are developed, design, density, screening and open-space decisions are made with scenic preservation in mind.

Astute businessmen will recognize that, rather than being at odds with environmentalists, it is in their long-term interest to join in protecting the beauty and quality of life of the region. Not only are these its major attractions for tourists, they are major assets for economic development and major determinants of property value.

All sides express agreement on these objectives in general; differences arise over specifics. What might be good for the long-term health of the region and all its residents might conflict with the short-term interests of a particular developer or property-owner.

That is why it is essential that developers and preservationists work together to maintain the parkway's attractiveness, and why it is heartening that they are at least talking about trying.

That also is why local governments should recognize that such efforts to cooperate, gratifying as they are, will not supplant the need for sound planning and reasonable zoning within their jurisdictions.

And that is why the National Park Service must realize it needs an energized program for identifying critical viewsheds - before they are threatened - and then using the tools at its disposal to protect them.

The parkway coalition sprang from a grassroots effort to reconcile the need to protect quality of life and property rights. In the future, the two come together. They sometimes cross each other in the here and now. At such intersections people must meet in good faith to seek solutions that all sides can abide and future generations can hail.

by CNB