Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, July 25, 1995 TAG: 9507250080
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY REED
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
How much per month do telephone subscribers pay in surrounding jurisdictions for the same service?
R.A., Troutville
A: The rates vary, and comparisons don't mean much.
Installing a system in a rural/suburban area that has to name its roads and put up street signs is a lot more costly than upgrading the E-911 system in a place that has had one for years.
However, here are some raw figures:
Bedford and Bedford County charge $2 per month for 911 systems that are expected to go on line in late 1996. They're holding out hope the tax can be reduced after the system is installed.
Roanoke is upgrading its system and increasing its 911 tax from 46 cents to 99 cents per month.
Salem doubled its tax to 90 cents this year.
Roanoke County raised the 911 tax last year from 46 cents to $1.06 a month. Vinton boosted its rate from 46 cents to $1.
Montgomery County charges 35 cents a month; Radford, 55 cents; Blacksburg, 94 cents.
The name's Walrond
Q: Being new to Roanoke, I have a question about the park on Plantation Road in Roanoke County. Its name is Walrond Park, but everyone pronounces it Waldron Park. Why is that?
W.M., Roanoke
A: Name recognition is everything, and high-profile names that begin with the letters "Wal" in Roanoke are likely to be pronounced Waldron. (No disrespect intended to Sam Walton.)
R.L. Walrond, a farmer, once owned the land where Walrond Park lies. While he was an upstanding citizen, like most farmers R.L. Walrond didn't advertise any products.
During those years, another Roanoker was attracting a lot of attention.
Elbert Waldron was building a small real estate business into a major commercial property sales and management company that owned office buildings and nursing homes.
So when the Walrond Farm became Walrond Park, a good many Roanokers mentally connected the name with the one so well-known in business circles for decades.
Countless ads and mentions in the media can have that effect. Politicians love it. Businesses sometimes spend millions to overcome it.
Occasionally you'll also hear someone mix up the Waldron name with Waldrop, another family that's well known in Salem and Roanoke County real estate.
These mixups are not intended; they're just the sort of detail a lot of people wish we'd overlook.
Got a question about something that might affect other people, too? Something you've come across and wondered about? Give us a call at 981-3118. Maybe we can find the answer.
by CNB