Thursday, March 01, 2007
Study says Roanoke lacks 'urban feel'
The quality of life study compares Roanoke to 10 similar cities around the country.
The latest from The Ticker blog
Roanoke, if it wants to attract young adults, could benefit from a more "urban feel" enhanced by downtown bars with live music that would appeal to members of a creative work force.
That's one finding in the final version of a "quality of life" study by Roanoke College. Another need is more high-end retail options such as a Panera Bread restaurant and Fresh Market foods, which recently had successful openings, the study said.
The key element for vibrant cities is diversity in the things people can choose to do in their central area, and Roanoke is short on live bands playing where drinks are available, according to the final study released Wednesday.
Led by Roanoke College President Sabine O'Hara, the study compares Roanoke to 10 similar cities around the country.
The metro area has some strengths, including quality of education, outdoor recreation opportunities and a clean environment.
But just having streams and trails for recreation isn't enough; they need to be accessible from neighborhoods, the study said.
The study focuses on five elements of urban living and zeroes in on one need in particular: Roanoke's social and cultural amenities.
The valley scores well with its theaters, museums and symphony, the study said. But it's behind all 10 other cities in the study in terms of restaurant diversity, defined as a variety of ethnic foods and multiple price ranges in close proximity to one another.
Roanoke also came in last in its selections of bars with live music, and next-to-last in restaurant density.
It's important for people to go out on Friday or Saturday night and be able to walk from their restaurant of choice to an activity they enjoy, O'Hara said in a phone interview. That's the essence of an "urban feel," she said.
Achieving that feel takes time, according to O'Hara.
Agreed, said Dylan Locke, who as director of programming at the Jefferson Center has booked Grammy-winning artists to appear in Roanoke and still had trouble filling the venue where they appeared.
Roanoke has enough venues, Locke said. What it needs is an active audience.
"For the young business people we're talking about attracting, for making Roanoke a 'cool city,' they're going out on Friday and Saturday nights but I don't see their activities including live music performances," Locke said.
Other cities have advantages that Roanoke lacks, he said. Charlottesville has 20,000 college students who are heavily into liberal arts studies; Richmond is a large city and it has Shockoe Bottom, where bars with live music have been on the scene for many years.
Bars with live music struggle even in Blacksburg, where students outnumber those in Charlottesville but are focused on engineering and technical studies, Locke said.
People with those interests can sit at their computers and download music, among other entertainment choices.
"It's pretty incredible what you can sit at a laptop and have access to. You'd think you would have a more informed public culturally speaking, and I think it's quite the opposite," Locke said.
"The activity of going out to see live music could be slipping away from us," Locke said, but he isn't giving up on a profession he's pursued for 10 years.
"No one is showing strong evidence that they are ready for more" live entertainment, Locke said, but "I'm not down on it."
"I think it's very possible" to build a more appreciative environment," he said. "There are good people around here. It's an attractive place to live, with great mountains, and a clean city generally speaking.
"I don't think we are far away from achieving this."
Locke and O'Hara also agreed on another point.
More venues are not the key to success.
"It would be a mistake to think creating more music venues and bars would do the trick," O'Hara said. Those kinds of establishments need to be within the "urban feel" category of being walkable and diverse.
Said Locke: "You have to build the scene, not the venue. We have great venues that are not being supported" by attendance.
