Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 7, 1995 TAG: 9503070057
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: TODD JACKSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Case in point: the mid-Montgomery County area on U.S. 460 between Christiansburg and Blacksburg.
Less than a decade ago, a drive through the two-mile stretch was a scenic one with lots of open land and rolling hills. A bowling alley, a manufacturing plant and a few homes were all that dotted the landscape.
Not anymore.
Now there's the New River Valley Mall and Wal-Mart and Kmart and Taco Bell and Burger King and Kentucky Fried Chicken. There are gas stations. And more restaurants. And other spinoff businesses.
The sprawling development includes thousands of paved parking spaces and the traffic to fill them. Highway engineers are struggling with the road's increased traffic load.
Quickened by an unanticipated land swap that opened a large chunk of farmland for development, the U.S. 460 growth spread like kudzu.
While county officials knew some growth was going to happen, they were sacked by the development blitz that occurred. The development also mushroomed while an annexation of the area by the town of Christiansburg was taking effect. Some of the conditions Montgomery County placed on the development - such as a limited number of entrances along busy U.S. 460 - were watered down when Christiansburg took control of the land.
During the rapid growth, the 460/114 Corridor Advisory Council was formed with representatives from Blacksburg, Christiansburg and the county.
It was an attempt at cooperative planning.
The council is now defunct.
``It was too little, too late anyway,'' says Joe Powers, the county's planning director. ``There was no overall master plan in place to start with. So, the development just happened.''
Montgomery County Supervisor Jim Moore says there's no doubt the U.S. 460 sprawl could have been developed in a better way, but he's not surprised it happened as it did.
``I'm afraid that there's going to be a lot more hamburger alleys before any changes are made,'' says Moore, one of only two supervisors who supported a recent failed attempt for an open space initiative in Montgomery County.
Dan Brugh, the resident engineer for the Virginia Department of Transportation district that covers Montgomery County, says there are negatives - and positives - associated with the development.
``Sure, it makes my job harder; but jobs have been created, and it's expanded the tax base,'' he says. ``Plus, the development helps us push for needed road improvements.''
Brugh, however, says many decisions made by town councils and boards of supervisors have a ripple effect that spreads to agencies such as VDOT.
``We set some guidelines, but they must be tailored to fit more than one locality,'' he says. ``It's up to the local governments to supplement them.''
Montgomery County is following a different approach with the Virginia 177 corridor that runs from Interstate 81 into the city of Radford. The city and the county have agreed on a joint planning effort to regulate the type of growth both want along the corridor - an area that's expected to develop when Radford Community Hospital builds a planned new facility off 177 in the near future.
Blacksburg Councilman Mike Chandler says even more regional cooperation is needed. Construction on a new bypass from Blacksburg to Christiansburg is set to begin soon.
``I suggested we [Blacksburg, Christiansburg and Montgomery County] sit down and talk about long-term planning,'' he says, ``and you could have heard a pin drop.''
by CNB