ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, June 11, 1996 TAG: 9606110057
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG
SOURCE: ELISSA MILENKY STAFF WRITER
The fate of the "smart" road will have to wait another two weeks - at least.
Because one member could not attend Monday night's meeting, the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to put off until June 24 a crucial vote that could determine whether the $103 million road is built.
The decision came after a closed session and 90 minutes of impassioned pleas during a public address session, which was extended twice to allow both sides to argue their cases.
A parade of supporters, most sporting business suits and bright green stickers that said "Smart Road Just Say Yes!," argued the road would bring crucial jobs and economic development in addition to serving transportation needs.
"This is our greatest opportunity to expand our economic base," said Dan Dodson, president of ERA Townside Realty in Blacksburg.
A stream of opponents also spoke their piece on the road, which many said would damage the environment and waste taxpayers' money. Michael Abraham, a Christiansburg businessman and vocal opponent, said the road would irreparably damage the conservation district and render the state law creating such districts "impotent."
"You have but two choices," he said. "You may reject this project, or you may break the law. Period, end of discussion."
The board was scheduled to vote on the Virginia Department of Transportation's request to take about 140 acres out of an agricultural and forestal district to build part of the first two miles of the smart road.
Agricultural and forestal districts are created to conserve and enhance farm and forest lands. Property owners voluntarily enter the districts, which are renewed every few years, and receive tax benefits as an incentive. Local governments such as Montgomery County ultimately decide whether to create, renew or remove land from these districts.
A vote in favor of the request would continue the road project as planned. But if the board ultimately votes against the request, plans for a smart road in Montgomery County could be scrapped.
The approximately 150 people who attended the meeting at Christiansburg High School were left shaking their heads at the more than six-month process.
Mary Biggs, the newly elected supervisor widely perceived as the swing vote, was absent because her mother was undergoing surgery.
The Board of Supervisors had 30 days to decide on VDOT's request - a time period that ended Monday. But VDOT and the state attorney general's office granted permission Monday for the supervisors to vote on the issue 14 days after the deadline so all board members could be present.
"VDOT agrees that this is a matter of great importance not only to Montgomery County but to the Commonwealth of Virginia," said resident engineer Dan Brugh in a letter. "We also agree that a vote by the full Board is in the best interest of Montgomery County."
Once it takes up the issue June 24, the board could either grant the state's request, or determine that the smart road "might" hurt the state and local agricultural and forestal district policy. If it finds a possible negative impact, the board would have to extend the review process another 60 days to hold a public hearing.
Until Monday, many people, including the board members themselves, thought they could vote against the state's request within the initial 30-day review period, effectively ending all debate. Gregory J. Haley, the acting county attorney, said during Monday's meeting that if the board is considering denying the request, it must extend the process another two months.
There are two questions at issue: the road's effect on creating agricultural and forestal districts, and whether the road is necessary to provide public services in the most "practical and economical manner."
Two of the three advisory committees to the Board of Supervisors recommended VDOT's request be approved. The third committee, which advises the board on agricultural and forestal district issues, recommended the board deny the request.
Monday's vote would have come more than six months after the Board of Supervisors initially took up VDOT's request. In November, the board voted 4-3 against VDOT, but rescinded that vote a week later to gain more information about the project, an approximately six-mile link between Blacksburg and Interstate 81 that is being promoted as a test bed for transportation research.
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: GENE DALTON Staff Montgomery County Supervisor Jim Mooreby CNBholds a notebook containing letters opposing the ``smart'' road
during Monday night's hearing in Christiansburg. color.