ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, April 16, 1997 TAG: 9704160084
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG
SOURCE: TOM ANGLEBERGER THE ROANOKE TIMES
Some residents want to hold on to the downtown building after the new post office opens near New River Valley Mall.
Christiansburg's attempt to buy the historic post office building and site appears to have come up short.
The U.S. Postal Service has rejected the town's bid for the property, according to Pat Ferrari, real estate specialist with the agency. But the town is being given one last chance to make a higher offer, she said.
Ferrari said there is very little flexibility in the asking price of $295,000. The Postal Service decided not to accept bids from the public until it had negotiated with Christiansburg, but will begin taking bids in early May if no deal can be made with the town.
Council members will meet in a special closed-door session April 22 at 7 p.m. to discuss the issue. However, they do not appear enthusiastic about raising their offer.
Council also voted to deny a request to allow a trash transfer station to be built near the Marketplace shopping center.
The Postal Service says Christiansburg has outgrown the old 1930s post office, which stands in the heart of downtown. The old post office is being sold and a new one is being built behind Christiansburg's Marketplace shopping center, in the retail area surrounding the intersection of U.S. 460 and Peppers Ferry Road.
If the downtown building and site are sold for commercial use, the outward appearance of the building should change very little, since it is listed as a Virginia Historic Landmark and protected by law.
But some residents and council members say the building is too important to the town to let someone else own it. Because of the building's prominent location and historic importance they say the town should own the building. Not only would this prevent it from being used for commercial purposes, it would give the town a good place for a Chamber of Commerce office, museum or other public use.
Town Manager Lance Terpenny said council had originally given him two numbers, a low bid and a high bid and instructed him to work something out between those numbers. As negotiations progressed, both bids were rejected by the Postal Service. Terpenny will not disclose either bid amount until all municipal and public bidding is completed.
Councilman Jack Via, who was active in persuading other council members to make a bid on the building, said he was "thunderstruck" by the rejection of the high bid.
Also at issue is a 1930s mural, funded by the Works Progress Administration, which depicts the town's history. The Postal Service plans to move the painting to the new post office, but some residents had hoped the mural could remain in the building if the town purchased it.
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