Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, April 4, 1995 TAG: 9504040078
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JEFF STURGEON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
This one envisions college students attending classes in a vacant office building owned by Norfolk Southern Corp.
Acting at the request of Virginia Western Community College, Del. Clifton "Chip" Woodrum, D-Roanoke, asked the legislature in January for $400,000 to study converting the building to an annex for the community college and, possibly, Virginia Tech.
Lawmakers denied the request, but Woodrum said he would bring it up again next year, if he's re-elected.
"We're in neutral," said Mark Emick, assistant to Virginia Western President Charles Downs.
An eight-story building and a five-story building - former railroad offices vacated about three years ago - stand empty along North Jefferson Street across from the new conference center. Beside them is the former Stone Printing Co. plant, also vacant.
The completion of the hotel and conference center project, which opened Monday, could focus new attention on the adjacent block's future. Roanoke has plans for a convention center in several years if the hotel and conference center grow financially strong. The city also has discussed buying the Stone Printing site.
Quietly, Virginia Western has been pushing for 40,000 square feet of space - about two floors - in the taller of the two office buildings, because its facilities are overtaxed, Emick said. The campus serves about 40 percent more students than the 2,300 it was designed for, he said.
It would use the space to expand programs in engineering and business that attract college-age students and also adults who need retraining for new careers, Emick said. The college also would use the space to expand custom training programs for employees of Roanoke Valley businesses or businesses planning to open plants here, he said.
The former railroad offices are centrally located and would allow for interaction between the college and conference center, Emick added. Moreover, expanding in an existing building would cost less than the $5 million to $6 million needed to construct a new facility for the same purpose on campus, Emick said.
Emick said Woodrum took the proposal to the legislature only after NS tentatively offered to give Roanoke the taller office tower on the condition that the building, like Hotel Roanoke, be preserved and returned to use.
As those involved in the discussions saw it, the state would be asked to contribute planning funds to the project and, later, more funds to retrofit several building floors as classrooms. The state community college system would hope to lease the space Virginia Western needs from the city, Emick said.
NS spokesman Bob Auman said the railroad considers the future of the two office buildings an open question. "I don't think we want to discuss publicly any private discussions we may have held," he said.
The real estate taxes paid on the building - which would be lost if it passed into public hands - are difficult to calculate exactly, but probably amount to less than $30,000 annually, according to figures supplied by the city tax office.
Meanwhile, Emick said, those involved in the discussions see some space being made available to Virginia Tech for its Roanoke-based programs.
Virginia Tech architecture students have determined that the pair of former railroad office buildings and nearby land are large enough to someday accommodate a convention center as well as programs such as those proposed by the community college. The students advanced their drawings in hope of countering any intention to demolish the buildings, which are significant historically and architecturally, said Scott Gartner, architecture professor.
by CNB