Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 1, 1995 TAG: 9510040034
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-25 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
FORT CHISWELL - The Gateway Visitor Center in the Factory Merchants Mall is the U.S. Forest Service Southern Region's "Interpretive Project of the Year."
The center is a partnership among Jefferson National Forest, Factory Merchants Mall, Virginia's Southwest Blue Ridge Highlands Association, and Virginia Tech, all of which were involved in its creation as a tourism booster in Southwest Virginia.
It is located near the crossroads of Interstates 81 and 77 through Wythe County, near the Wythe-Pulaski county border. Its grand opening and dedication came in May.
The center displays photographs and artifacts on the region, a small theater where a video produced by Virginia Tech takes viewers through four seasons in Southwest Virginia, and a multi-media touch-screen computer on which visitors can locate and learn about attractions in the 19 counties of the region. Virginia Tech worked with the Forest Service in developing the computer screen.
Trash pickup to cost
WYTHEVILLE - Wytheville residents will begin paying $1 per bag for trash pickup in 1996, replacing the free pickup service they have been enjoying.
Rising disposal costs made it necessary to begin charging for trash pickup and disposal. The town will also be making changes in its recycling program, to try and keep the amount of trash to be buried at a minimum.
"While the Acme Shopping Center has been very generous to donate space for our current facility, it appears that we will need to relocate our existing recycling facility," Public Works Committee Chairman Jimmy Gleaves told the rest of Wytheville Town Council last week. "Tentatively, we believe that the use of an area in the jail parking lot would be the most convenient location for most citizens. We are in the process of evaluating this site."
Gleaves said the committee is looking at a variety of ways to distribute information on the new system, including newsletters and paid advertisements in the media.
by CNB