Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, April 2, 1995 TAG: 9504030089
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SARAH HUNTLEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Looking over the results of Roanoke County's phone survey, one conclusion jumps off the pages: Residents want it all.
More than 97 percent of the 500 people surveyed in the county's phone poll in February said they think it is important to preserve mountains and ridge tops, and 88 percent said the natural environment is important to attracting new businesses. But 85 percent said having good roads also is important, and 73 percent said they think the county should be increasing employment opportunities.
All of these opinions and more are being weighed as the county launches efforts to revamp its comprehensive plan. And as the 100 participants at a Saturday morning session quickly realized, charting the future is a process that requires balance - and lots of discussion.
Residents came to the public meeting at Cave Spring High School for many different reasons.
Starkey Road area resident Marilyn Wilson said she hopes the process, which the county calls ``visioning,'' will promote foresight and better planning.
``I've been very dissatisfied throughout the years with the way I've seen Roanoke County develop,'' she said. ``There seems to be a lack of goals, and I feel like they look more at the short-term and the immediate effects. The county doesn't think long-term.''
Mike Murray said he came to see what was planned for the northern part of the county, where he lives. ``They seem to keep putting all the industry up at my end,'' he said. ``I'm concerned about that.''
But they also came to participate.
``Some of you are here to get answers, and some of you are here to give answers,'' Jim Sears, chairman of the steering committee, told the crowd. ``We're here to dream. We're here to learn. We're here to be creative. We're here to hope, and we're here to plan.''
As the 41/2-hour session got started, residents made their way through displays of color-coded demographic maps and charts that illustrated the survey results. Some picked up bright Crayolas, got down on their knees and marked up a floor map with special places and problem areas.
``Bring housing developments to the Clearbrook Section,'' one person had written, with an arrow pointing to that part of the map. ``Starting to look like Williamson Road. Needs water and sewage. Protect natural beauty.''
After a series of opening remarks, the participants broke into 11 focus groups to begin looking more specifically at problems and developing concrete goals and plans. From room to room, people tackled complicated - and controversial - issues.
In the transportation group, for example, Diane Rosolowsky raised her concerns about the proposed widening of U.S. 221 in Back Creek.
``VDOT and Roanoke County are in collusion, I think, to give us a 419 to the base of Bent Mountain. Why do we always have to think in terms of four-lane highways with median strips and unlimited access? I think we ought to encourage the county to consider alternative road constructions.''
Down the hall, a group on housing grappled with ways to provide affordable homes and promote residential growth without destroying the county's natural resources, and residents interested in parks and recreation stressed the need for more open space and regional cooperation.
The focus groups will continue their work for the next two months, and the county is looking for other interested people to join. In early June, at another public session, the groups will present their conclusions and recommendations.
None of the groups will be operating in a vacuum; the secret to good planning is inter-connectedness, said Janet Scheid, senior planner.
``It's an important part of this process for people to realize the linkages between these topics,'' she said. ``You can't look at planning with blinders on.''
How do you boost tourism without preserving ridge tops and mountains? How do you promote growth without developing quality schools? And how do you deal with the population boom that accompanies a good quality of life?
``It's so interesting to note that a lot of the issues we talked about in our group were talked about by other groups as well. There is a lot of natural overlap,'' said Jamie Hendry, who summarized the initial thoughts of the growth-management focus group.
The steering committee, with 15 members, will coordinate the groups and keep them on track. But the most important thing is that Roanoke County residents are thinking and talking about the years to come, county officials said.
``There will be change. You know that, and I know that, so it is important to get ahead of the change and be proactive,'' said Fuzzy Minnix, the only supervisor who attended the session. ``The future starts right now.''
by CNB