ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, January 22, 1997 TAG: 9701220032
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: RADFORD
SOURCE: LESLIE HAGER-SMITH STAFF WRITER
Radford City Council unanimously took two steps Monday that may prove to be the beginning of major changes to the central business district.
First, council voted to pursue federal Community Development Block Grant funding for a 74-space parking lot behind existing downtown buildings on the south side of Norwood Street between Third Avenue and Tyler Avenue.
Access to the lot would be from Norwood at the site of the burned-out Carson Drug Store. The building's owners are willing to donate it for demolition, and six other property owners would grant permanent easements to move the project forward.
Second, council also authorized city staff to initiate discussions with the owner of the old Crestar/First and Merchants Bank building a short distance away at Norwood and Virginia streets. If the bank, long vacant and in disrepair, were razed and an agreement could be reached, planners envision a central downtown square at that location with benches, a green area and a clock, as well as an additional 49 parking spaces.
Parking has been a perpetual gripe of downtown business owners and shoppers. David Ridpath, the city's director of community development, cited guidelines which indicate Radford should have between 1,200 and 1,300 parking spaces to serve its 328,000 square feet of commercial space.
That's about double what is currently available to the public, according to a recent inventory by the city engineer's office.
Ridpath presented a master plan for the central business district which city staff have scrambled to organize since Dec. 23, when plans for the Carson Building parking lot were presented to council. Federal funds for the project will rely in part on the city's demonstrating that it has in place a long range, comprehensive plan for revitalization.
That was not hard to produce, because few elements in the plan are original and some have been talked about for decades. In Ridpath's judgment, however, the initiative was lent new energy by the public/private partnership on the Carson Building project and the real possibility of 80 percent federal funding for it through the Community Development Block Grant program. Radford's 20 percent share of the project would amount to $194,000.
The Virginia Street central square and parking lot will not qualify for federal funding because it would entail razing the old bank building and starting from the ground up. Block grants are designed to revitalize neighborhoods by creating jobs and by reinforcing existing infrastructures. The project shows promise as a public/private venture, however, because the building's owner is receptive.
Businessman Jeff Price, a resident of the city, bought the building at auction last fall because, in his own words, it was "an eyesore." His intention was to renovate it as he has the Jefferson Building, but he is equally willing to work with the city to develop the new parking lot.
Though the Carson Building parking lot would require demolition of the former drug store for which it has been named, it would leave an entire block of stores largely intact. Existing businesses would not only become more accessible, but with CDBG funding, the undeveloped second floors of most would be reclaimed for commercial spaces, as well.
Other features of the master plan are improvements to Pickett Street for pedestrian safety and to allow better flow between Grove Avenue and Norwood Street; a redesign of the underused Third Avenue public parking lot, to include a Farmers Market; and aesthetic improvements to Norwood Street and Grove Avenue.
Ridpath said the plans sacrifice a handful of parking spaces in order to gain green areas. The envisioned improvements also call for repeating elements such as brick paving in sidewalks and decorative lighting fixtures.
In a rare show of partiality, City Manager Bob Asbury rose to his feet and exhorted council to vote favorably. "We have people here in Radford, who have a stake in the city, and who are saying they're ready and now is the time - and I'm inclined to agree with them," Asbury said.
The council chamber was comfortably full with business people and representatives of the Chamber of Commerce and Mainstreet Radford. Some have spent years working on downtown improvements and they gave the plan a particularly warm reception. Charles Wood, vice president for Radford University advancement, also commended the city staff's efforts and urged council to move forward with the plan. No one spoke against the plan.
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