ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, November 19, 1996 TAG: 9611190052
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
COLUMN: Reporter's Notebook
SOURCE: PAUL DELLINGER
Pulaski County is on the cutting edge of change, both large and small, these days.
Some of the changes in recent years have been obvious. The county has two improved courthouses, one rebuilt after being gutted by fire several years ago and the other expanded with bright new facilities.
Downtown Pulaski has seen marked change with empty buildings being occupied by a variety of businesses. True, some of those businesses have closed or moved, but most of those have been replaced. The designation of part of downtown as a state Enterprise Zone allows some state and local tax perks to encourage new businesses to locate there.
Pulaski is also planning to expand its Train Station landmark and the Raymond Ratcliffe Memorial Museum which it houses. The building, which also houses the county Chamber of Commerce offices, will mark the new terminus of the New River Trail State Park once its two-mile extension into town is complete.
In Dublin, the whole town is on the move. Dublin acquired the former Burlington Industries property in lengthy negotiations ending in a purchase followed by a donation of the rest of the acreage. It reached an agreement with Pulaski County to take in that property, practically doubling the town's size. Part of the property is now an industrial park; the rest is the new Town Center which already has a new bank building nearing completion, a new Town Hall going up, and a new post office in its future.
The county's administrative offices are located in a former school building in Pulaski, and that, too, has been renovated. The most obvious changes are in the repainted, restored and refurnished meeting room used by the Board of Supervisors, Planning Commission, New River Resource Authority and other agencies. Its matching wood window frames, entry divider and meeting table dress it up.
Even the county School Board meeting room upstairs in the county school system's building looked better this month. The tables were rearranged so board members are facing more toward the audience and discussions are more audible. Extensive wiring to the various microphones around the meeting table is now covered by a white drop cloth, which adds a touch of class to the proceedings.
Another change is a 12,000-square-foot playground on land donated by the Pulaski YMCA, scheduled for construction by volunteers April 16-20. A fund-raising drive for the Pulaski Community Playground is under way. Information on tax-deductible contributions is available from David Venne at 980-1723, Jack Leahy at 980-3671, Gloria Venable at 674-0810 and John Harlow at 980-3599.
Once completed, it will be open to the public at no charge. Besides providing activities for kids, it will have seating arrangements for parents, grandparents or baby sitters.
On top of all that, a new Pulaski County flag is on the way. The county is holding a contest to get public involvement on what a county flag should look like.
Entries will be accepted on 8 1/2-by-11-inch paper during November at the Pulaski County Public Library in Pulaski or the Free Memorial Library in Dublin. A $100 Savings Bond will go to three winners in a kindergarten to sixth-grade category, grades seven through 12, and adult. County officials are also seeking public input in what the county's colors should be.
A popular saying is that, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Not in Pulaski County.
LENGTH: Medium: 67 linesby CNB