The Roanoke Times

File April Stained-glass artist Nancy Norton, Montgomery County trail development member and Blacksburg Regional Art Association president, says the artisan trail "is a key piece of making Montgomery County an arts destination."

Artisan trails are getting closer to becoming a reality.

For five years, 'Round the Mountain, a group created to promote Southwest Virginia artists, has worked to develop trails that promote artisan studios, galleries, farms, agritourism sites and venues in 19 counties and four cities, including Montgomery, Pulaski, Floyd and Giles counties and the city of Radford.

The Montgomery County and Pulaski County/Radford trails are still in the development stages, while Floyd County debuted its artisan trail two weeks ago. Giles County's trail is also still in the planning stages, said Pat Sharkey, trail development coordinator for eastern counties.

Each county will have a brochure marking its trail site, and a larger brochure will later show all 19 counties, Sharkey said.

Floyd is the first in the New River Valley to complete brochure, Sharkey said at an interest meeting about the trails last week in Blacksburg.

"It's gratifying to have our brochure complete," said John McEnhill, executive director of the Jacksonville Center and a member of the planning committee for Floyd's trail.

Work on the Floyd trail started in July 2008, he said.

The brochure cost about $7,700 for photography, design and printing, which was split up between a Virginia Tourism Corporation grant, a 'Round the Mountain grant and sponsor donations, McEnhill said.

The next step is getting Floyd's brochures out across the state, he said. A trail Web site is also under construction.

Radford has paired with Pulaski County on what officials are calling the New River Trail, said Deb Cooney, the city's tourism coordinator. Neither locality has enough sites for its own trail, Cooney said.

The New River Trail has received a $4,000 matching grant for trail brochures from the Virginia Tourism Corporation, Sharkey said. The other $4,000 is given by Pulaski County, the Fine Arts Center of the New River Valley, Radford and 'Round the Mountain, and the brochures are "in great shape," Sharkey said.

The two localities plan to hold trail interest meetings Wednesday and July 7 at the Fine Arts Center.

The trail "is a key piece of making Montgomery County an arts destination," said Nancy Norton, Montgomery County trail development member and Blacksburg Regional Art Association president.

But artisans and local officials are working to find ways around or to change ordinances regarding home businesses and signs in residential areas that may present "hurdles" to creating the trails, Norton said.

In Montgomery County, including Blacksburg and Christiansburg, home businesses are allowed with permits filed in the respective locality. But in Blacksburg, home businesses aren't allowed to erect signs, said Anne McClung, the town's planning and building director.

"The one that was problematic is they can't have a sign, and 'Round the Mountain wants to have a sign," McClung said. "We've put out the offer that we'd be happy to sit down and talk to the artists group whenever they're ready."

The sign is 7 by 18 inches with the 'Round the Mountain logo on it, designating sites as a member of the artisan trail.

In Christiansburg, signs smaller than 2 square feet are allowed in most residential areas with a special use permit, said Randy Wingfield, planning and zoning administrator. Signs are not allowed in single-family residential districts.

Some get around the ordinance by putting a symbol or design on the mailbox, which doesn't violate town code, he said.

No one has approached Wingfield with concerns about the 'Round the Mountain trails specifically, he said.

In Montgomery County, signs smaller than 1 square foot are allowed as long as the business fits in with the county's rules, said Kevin Byrd, the county's comprehensive planner who is also on the Montgomery County trails board.

"More of what I'm seeing as a board member is there are already artisans out there and now they have this method of marketing themselves," Byrd said. "I think local governments are embracing it."

Ordinances are meant to protect people's reasonable expectations of residential living while still allowing others to run home businesses, McClung said.

"Most are designed so people can run a business somewhat invisible to the area," she said. "We need to strike that balance while being supportive of the arts community while maintaining people's expectations for a neighborhood."

The trails board "hopes to work on behalf of 'Round the Mountain and the many Blacksburg artists to find solutions that will further the town's goal of becoming an art destination while preserving the intent of the limits on home businesses," Norton said.