Crawford is an artist and writer who lives in Roanoke County.

The young individuals of Valley Forward deserve credit for wanting to do something to improve the quality of life in the Roanoke area.

However, it appears that they are stuck on their first idea — actually a fall-back version of it —that someone would build a nice mountaintop hotel/restaurant on Mill Mountain.

They now want just the restaurant part; presumably, the hotel could be built later. To be precise, we should note that the plan envisions two restaurants, an “upscale” one upstairs of 5,000 square feet, and a casual one downstairs of 2,000 square feet, with a meeting room of 3,000 square feet.

Drawings also show an additional large outdoor patio. The parking lot shown in the facility’s plan has been challenged as being only about 60 percent of code-required size.

The proposed complex would be planted atop Mill Mountain, occupying or dominating the most desirable open natural space in the area of the mountain park’s summit.

The high irony is that Valley Forward’s proposal is presented as promoting the Roanoke area’s quality of life.

It is unfathomable how the effect of this project could be seen as anything but a big net loss in our area’s quality of life.

Not only would the restaurant complex itself destroy the natural ambiance of the park environment, but the substantial daily vehicular traffic necessary to sustain two restaurants — staff, an adequate number of customers and the delivery and waste-removal trucks — would add heavy impact as well, and not only at the mountain’s top.

I would like to urge Valley Forward to regroup and address other ways in which they could make a contribution to the area’s quality of life and further their goals at the same time.

The group’s stated mission is admirable and, beyond stating intentions, they have made some material progress, for example, in a runners’ event that contributed funds to Roanoke’s greenways project.

Valley Forward’s mission statement indicates an intent to support the arts community, downtown Roanoke revitalization, local tourism, making Roanoke a “bike-friendly” community and advocating for an outdoor amphitheater.

Such intentions might also lead to finding ways to support the expansion of area wi-fi zones, creating some enhancement for the monthly Art-by-Night occasions of the market area galleries, developing a weekly informal chamber music lunchtime event at the new art museum’s cafe or outdoor patio, sponsoring an avant garde film series at the Grandin Theater or the new art museum, creating a program of augmenting selected categories of library holdings in the local library system, and the development of aesthetic and sports-use of the Roanoke River, to mention a few possible quality of life enhancements.

Young professionals are not all interested in the very same things, of course, though, in general, they want a variety of social, cultural, intellectual and recreational opportunities — and these readily accessible.

The wish for an upscale retreat away from the activities of the city sounds more like a desire of the senior businessmen’s set than an idea of young, educated professionals seeking to enhance the day-by-day quality of life in the valley for their peer group.

An essential resource by which the Roanoke area qualifies for the “desirable place” category is the area’s natural environment.

Visually and for their accessibility to walk, jog, hike, bike or drive through, our relatively clean and open surroundings are indispensable to our area’s desirability. Our moderate climate, geography and distinctive seasons add their part. If we can continue to enrich our area’s social, cultural and recreational offerings without degrading the quality of our natural environment, “they will come and stay,” to paraphrase the slogan.

As far as concerns wanting to start an upscale restaurant, I can’t resist mentioning that the Billy’s Ritz building, being right in the Market area and beside the new art museum and the walkway from the Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center, would seem to offer a very good opportunity and at a much lower risk than if a building must be built first.

(Disclaimer: I have no monetary or other interest in any buildings, properties or businesses downtown.)

In that location, or nearby, such a facility would fit well with the activities of the downtown vicinity.

It is refreshing to see young Roanokers exhibiting optimistic attitudes toward our area and showing a willingness to contribute to civic life.

When one suggestion does not prevail, let us hope that will not discourage any who wish to help make the Roanoke area a more desirable, zestful place to live.