Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, May 5, 1995 TAG: 9505050075
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: BRIAN KELLEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
But it's not clear if there are four votes on the Board of Supervisors to reverse a January 1994 resolution in support of a route through the county. Blacksburg and Giles County both voted last year to oppose the highway.
It's also unclear if a change of heart will make any difference. State officials made the decision a year ago in favor of a route linking West Virginia and North Carolina by way of Blacksburg, Roanoke and Martinsville, including following the "smart" road to Interstate 81.
This week's I-73 development - a routing compromise between U.S. senators from North Carolina and Virginia that could clear the way for approval in Congress this year - shocked the members of the Informed Citizens Action Network.
The group, which opposes the interstate route, hadn't expected the compromise, engineered by Sen. John Warner, R-Va., to come so quickly.
"This will definitely awake a lot of people," said ICAN's Robin Boucher.
Planning the highway is still a long way off. So far, no money has been identified to plan the exact route through Giles and Montgomery counties. "It has a long way to go until it gets down to that level," said David Clarke, assistant resident engineer in Christiansburg for the state Transportation Department.
Still, ICAN is readying to push the issue back into the local spotlight.
"What we're going to have to do is work on our local governments, Montgomery County specifically, for a statement opposing it," Boucher said.
Fifteen months ago, ICAN rallied hundreds of people to urge the Montgomery board to reconsider its Jan. 10, 1994, resolution of support for I-73. On March 14, 1994, the seven-member board voted 4-3 only to oppose a routing through the Catawba Valley. That route no longer is under consideration.
This week, supervisors Chairman Larry Linkous said some board members may have changed their positions. He said his own opinions have shifted some, though he didn't oppose the road outright.
Checks with five of the six other board members indicated that little has changed since the 6-0 vote in January 1994 in favor of a routing through Montgomery.
Supervisor Henry Jablonski of Christiansburg said studies of interstate highway interchanges clearly show that a new road will bring growth. "I still do feel there's economic benefit," he said.
Supervisor Joe Gorman of Blacksburg said he hasn't seen any alternative to following U.S. 460. "I think sticking to an existing corridor is far less damaging than building a new corridor," he said.
Supervisor Jim Moore of Blacksburg said he hadn't given any thought to putting the I-73 issue back on the table. "Given the current board, I think I'd be wasting my time," said Moore, who led the push to reconsider the January vote last year.
Before the second vote last year, Christiansburg's Nick Rush apologized for supporting the highway without sufficient information. This week, he continued to criticize the proposed route. "It's really a waste of taxpayer's money to come through here," Rush said. "You're talking about really dividing the future of Blacksburg in half with an interstate."
Ira Long of Prices Fork said he hadn't given it much thought recently. "I don't know what I'd do without looking into it more."
Joe Stewart of Elliston couldn't be reached for comment Thursday, though he was the first supervisor last year to agree to reconsider the January endorsement.
by CNB