Wednesday, December 12, 2007
On top o' Mill Mountain
From the RoundTable blog
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Herb Detweiler
Detweiler is retired and lives in Roanoke.
When my wife and I came to the Roanoke Valley 13 years ago upon my retirement, we quickly became convinced that we had chosen the best of all worlds (well, perhaps with the exception of the sometimes bad air, which is Roanoke's dirty little secret).
The one thing the Roanoke area lacked was that very special restaurant with a view -- the place where you would go for special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries, and to which you could proudly take visitors. Almost every large city has its "restaurant in the sky" situated on top of one of the tallest buildings in town or on a nearby mountain. From the "Top of the Pru" in Boston and similar locations in Philadelphia and Atlanta to the restaurants on Mount Washington overlooking Pittsburgh, we always seek out such places that offer nourishment for the soul as well as the body. But there was no such place here.
There seems to be an inner urge for man to climb to a high point and be able to survey the vastness and beauty of nature. As we would drive up Bent Mountain or climb Catawba Mountain on the way to the Homeplace, or make the trip up Sugar Loaf Mountain road to the vineyards and winery on top, we would comment to each other, "Boy, what a great place for a restaurant." We could never understand why someone had not created such a place for the residents of our valley to enjoy.
So it is with great anticipation that we see the efforts of Valley Forward to do just that on our own Mill Mountain. With all due respect to those who want to keep Mill Mountain wild, we think that replacing what was once there for Roanokers to enjoy will bring a unique benefit to our area. There is no one who respects and enjoys the great outdoors more than this old Boy Scout, but I fail to see how such a restaurant will ruin the mountain for nature lovers like myself. It seems that we especially need such a place of respite, refreshment and inspiration in today's hectic pace more than ever.
One of the criticisms of a projected restaurant on Mill Mountain is that it might be seen from the valley. But the map accompanying The Roanoke Times article on Dec. 1 ("Group scales down its vision for Mill Mountain") indicates that the building would not be on the side facing downtown, the one with the Star and the viewing platform. It would be off to the side and around the corner in the same location as the original inn and restaurant.
Recent research at the library into our legendary Star revealed that there was much opposition to it in the beginning, too. Moreover, how many people today know that at one point in its relatively early history, there was a strong push to move the Star to neighboring Roanoke Mountain because it was deemed to be in the way of planned development on that site? Thus, the idea of development on the mountain is far from a new and revolutionary idea. In fact, J.B. Fishburn's deed to the city uses the words "developed" and "improved" in describing what should happen to his gift to the city. That would certainly seem to include the thoughtful proposal of Valley Forward.
Finally, in the Old Original Bookbinders chain, Valley Forward has chosen one of the best. We have had the pleasure of dining in the original Old Bookbinders in Philadelphia, truly one of the great old restaurants in the nation.
What an inspiring joy it would be to watch the sun set and the lights sparkle in the valley below while enjoying a wonderful meal at the "Top o' the Mill" restaurant. It is an experience we could all look forward to, and it would be a rousing success.
