ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Thursday, March 28, 1996               TAG: 9603280027
SECTION: BUSINESS                 PAGE: B-8  EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: S.D. HARRINGTON STAFF WRITER

90-HOME TRACT SET FOR SALEM WORK ON PROJECT TO START IN 6 WEEKS

A 75-acre north Salem tract owned by the Virginia Baptist Children's Home and Family Services will be developed as a subdivision of 90 houses, according to plans announced by an agent representing the developers.

Work on the project is expected to begin in the next six weeks, said Anne Lee Stevens of Gearhart-Stevens, a Roanoke real estate company marketing the project for developers Van Lane of Franklin County and Bruce Clapper of Greensboro, N.C.

This is the first development for either men in the Roanoke Valley.

They expect to build the project in two phases. The first, called The Hill, will contain 31 lots for custom-built houses expected to cost at least $220,000, Stevens said. She expects the first phase of development to be complete in three to four years.

The second phase, to contain about 59 houses, is expected to begin within the next 12 months. That subdivision, named The Lawn, will have single-family homes modeled after the historic architectural style of The Lawn at the University of Virginia, Stevens said.

The developers expect to close on sale of the site soon, she said. The development would be off Carrollton Avenue between Goodwin Avenue and Academy Street.

The homes will be maintained by a homeowners association. An architectural review board will be established.

The size of the development is unusual in Salem, where only about 5 percent of land that isn't already developed can be built on, said Joe Yates, the city's planning director.

"There are not that many large tracts of land left [in Salem] where you will have large developments," he said.

The Salem Planning Commission gave final approval two weeks ago for the first phase of the project. The second phase has been given preliminary approval by the planning commission. But the developers have not yet asked for final approval.

When the subdivision plans were first presented to the Planning Commission last year, the commission denied the proposal because of stormwater drainage concerns.

Nearby residents opposed the plan, saying the development would contribute to what they said were existing flooding problems in that area.

Since then, planners of the development have adjusted their plans to satisfy the planning commission's concerns, Yates said.

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