todd.jackson@roanoke.com 981-3253

Williamson Road heavyweight Berglund Auto World plans to move and expand its body shop by renovating the old Rainbo Bread Bakery building at Liberty and Plantation roads in Northeast Roanoke.

The $1.5 million facility would be more than double the size of the existing service shop at Berglund's main location on Williamson Road and would add about 20 new jobs, according to the company's proposal, which also points out the potential tax benefit to the city.

Berglund - which will pay almost $500,000 in city taxes this year and has a payroll of $14 million annually, according to information it provided - is already one of the city's major tax revenue-generating businesses.

Its existing status aside, Berglund is leery of possible conflicts between its body shop expansion and a proposed Williamson Road-area neighborhood plan as it prepares to seek a special exception from the city's Board of Zoning Appeals so it can proceed.

Berglund spokesman Bill Tanger said that the company already faced opposition from city officials over a former proposal to do its body shop expansion on Noble Avenue Northeast, which borders its main dealership but also includes a residential area.

The neighborhood plan debate underscores a festering contention surrounding the city's ongoing and sweeping revision of its entire zoning ordinance. Some business leaders have said city hall is pushing too many restrictions that are unfriendly to existing businesses. Those who have criticized the city on that issue in recent months include Berglund President Bruce Farrell, longtime city entrepreneur Vic Foti and members of the Williamson Road Area Business Association.

"We are still learning new and unpleasant things about the proposed Williamson Road neighborhood plan every day," Farrell wrote in an Aug. 25 letter to Brian Townsend, the city's planning director.

The neighborhood plan was set to be approved by Roanoke City Council last month until several business and civic groups expressed concerns. The council delayed a vote until October so discussions could continue.

The major item of discord: a proposal to increase small- and medium-sized commercial zoning, which some city officials believe would help create a more diverse mix of land uses along Williamson Road - akin to the "village" atmosphere that exists on Grandin Road Southwest.

One of the areas proposed for that type of zoning is the Rainbo location that Berglund has purchased. The building, currently zoned for light manufacturing, is in the greater Williamson Road area, which puts it in the jurisdiction of the neighborhood plan. If that plan were to be adopted in its present form, the parcel where the old bakery sits could be scheduled for a new commercial zoning category that would prohibit a body shop.

The proposed plan has its backers, including longtime Williamson Road neighborhood activist Rick Williams, who is a member of the city planning commission. Williams has said that one of the main complaints he's heard in recent years along Williamson Road is the dominance of car-related establishments in that corridor.

Williams said he believes that new zoning patterns will provide a mix of uses that will benefit that area.

But Berglund officials say that the commercial zoning concept in the proposed neighborhood plan makes little sense and actually will hamper business opportunities.

At this point, though, the neighborhood plan - which would be part of the city's overall land-use guide - hasn't been approved, so technically it can't be used to influence any new requests. That could change, however, if the plan is approved without revisions before Berglund's special exception request is heard by the zoning board.

Either way, Berglund is concerned that the neighborhood plan could have an effect on its application, which it plans to file soon.

Farrell said the village concept in the Liberty and Plantation area "needs to die a quick death."

Townsend, the city planning director, acknowledged last week that he had received Farrell's letter, but had no specific comment on it. Townsend did say that his department, as part of its regular function, would study a Berglund application for a special exception should it be filed, and would make a recommendation to the zoning board.

Tanger said that Berglund's planned body shop exposes the shortcomings of the proposed neighborhood plan. He said that Berglund considers its situation a test case. If Berglund's expansion proceeds, it could help protect other businesses that have plans to move or expand into the Williamson Road area after the neighborhood plan is approved, Tanger said.

Tanger said that the neighborhood proposal - which he jokingly refers to as the "village idiot" plan - includes several contradictions and bad ideas that should be amended.

For instance, he said, one section of the draft plan calls for the Rainbo Bread property to be used for future industrial development, while another suggests that the Plantation and Liberty road areas should be designated for a small village center.

"How can you make any sense of that?" Tanger said.