ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, July 10, 1996 TAG: 9607100069
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CHRISTINA NUCKOLS STAFF WRITER
A majority of Roanoke County Supervisors said Tuesday they're inclined to leave a few curves in Hollins Road when it is widened in order to preserve a putting range threatened by the project.
Officials with the Virginia Department of Transportation said they would prefer to straighten out the road as it is widened. Resident engineer Jeff Echols said a straighter road would save about $250,000 out of a total construction cost estimated at more than $5 million.
Although Windsor Hills Supervisor Lee Eddy sided with VDOT, the three other supervisors present disagreed. Catawba Supervisor Spike Harrison was absent.
The three supervisors expressed concern that VDOT's preferred route would wipe out the Big Lick Golf Driving Range & Learning Center, located near the intersection of Hollins and Plantation roads. Because owner Wayne Holley leases the land, the state will not compensate him for his losses if the road runs through the property. Holley, a former club pro at the Roanoke County Country Club for 25 years, has collected 1,600 signatures on petitions asking that the business be preserved.
"You're talking about eliminating a livelihood," said Vinton Supervisor Harry Nickens.
Arnold Covey, director of engineering and inspections for the county, said retaining the curves in Hollins Road will not create a safety hazard because the speed limit is unlikely to exceed 35 mph, whether or not the road is straightened.
The 1.6-mile project is intended to widen Hollins Road from two lanes to five from Plantation Road to the bridge at Tinker Creek. The road would then narrow to three lanes, with the far left lane designated as the entrance to the Hanover Direct mail-order warehouse, which employs 1,000 people. Hollins Road would then drop back to two lanes, but VDOT's plans call for road improvements to continue to the AMP plant.
Supervisors suggested that the project instead end at Hanover Direct, and Echols estimated the change could reduce the total construction cost by $1 million to $1.5 million. He said the total cost of the project - including construction, right-of-way purchases and utilities - will cost an estimated $6.5 million.
VDOT has $1.9 million set aside for the Hollins Road project. At least some of the $2.7 million in road funds the county will receive this year will be added to that amount. By state law, construction cannot begin until 70 percent of the construction costs are available.
Echols said VDOT will hold a public hearing on the project in six to seven months. He predicted construction would not begin until the spring of 1999 and would take 12 to 18 months.
Although keeping the curves could save Holley's driving range, Echols said the new road would take out at least part of Evelyn's Greenhouse No.2 and a section of the grounds in front of Central Fidelity Bank on Hollins Road. The road project would eliminate the offices for Resort Condominiums International no matter which path is chosen, he said.
Also Tuesday, supervisors heard a report from County Administrator Elmer Hodge about complaints that volunteer firefighters were slow to reach a fire Saturday on Oakland Boulevard that destroyed a house. Hodge said crews from Vinton arrived 10 1/2 minutes after a neighbor dialed the 911 dispatcher, although neighbors have said the response time was 20 minutes. Hodge said firefighters based at the Hollins station, however, were slow to reach the fire and that volunteers there are looking at how they can improve their response time.
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