Friday, January 25, 2008
Sides pitch visions for use of Mill Mountain
An advisory council voted to ask about land-use guidelines linked to a proposal for a new restaurant.
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What had the makings of a contentious face-off among residents over locating a new restaurant on Mill Mountain turned into more of a plea for understanding by both sides on Thursday.
Passionate letters to the media and blog postings by both sides preceded a meeting of the Mill Mountain Advisory Committee, which both sides hoped would move the issue forward.
But there was no decisive action at the standing-room-only meeting, and it will now be months before the committee will vote on whether the city should entertain the restaurant proposal.
The committee instead voted to ask Roanoke's parks and recreation officials to do a preliminary examination of the proposal for a 10,000-square-foot facility near the footprint of the old Rockledge Inn, to determine if it meets the city's land-use guidelines for the mountain.
Valley Forward, an advocacy group made up primarily of young professionals, unveiled its latest plan in December for a two-story building on Mill Mountain near the site of the old inn, which burned in the 1970s. The proposal calls for a building certified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.
A previous proposal for an 80,000-square-foot project was quickly rejected by the committee last year.
Thursday was also the first time that committee members received a hard copy of Valley Forward's updated $2.75 million, 38-page proposal. Because of that, committee Chairman Steven Higgs said it was premature for the committee to vote on whether the proposal should move forward before members had time to digest all of the plan's details.
Higgs said the committee most likely won't take the matter up again until its March meeting, at which time it will call for a public hearing to allow more residents to comment on the plan.
About 50 people attended the afternoon committee meeting at the Discovery Center on Mill Mountain, where residents spoke for more than two hours. The crowd seemed to be evenly split on whether the project would be an economic and cultural boon or an intrusion on one of the city's most beloved landmarks.
While the meeting remained civil, residents on both sides of the issue expressed concern about the way they've been portrayed by the other side.
"There's a lot of implications that if you're not with Valley Forward, you're somehow backward" and against change, said Julie Alexander, who lives at the foot of Mill Mountain and thinks a restaurant on top of it will only worsen the traffic on Walnut Avenue.
Susan Highfill encouraged the committee to preserve the peace and solace that people seek out by walking on Mill Mountain and not cater to the "wealthy and politically influential" who she said favor building a restaurant.
Greg Terrill took exception to those who have accused Valley Forward's members of being greedy, deceptive and wealthy elitists, saying the group is composed of "young people who are committed to our community."
Gretchen Weinnig, a young professional who favors the plan, echoed a number of Valley Forward members' view that the restaurant would be an image builder and a way for the Roanoke Valley to attract and retain young people.
"We see our friends leaving this region to find other places to live," she said. "This is more than just a conversation about a restaurant."
Both young and older residents spoke on both sides of the issue Thursday, but all passionately agreed that protecting Mill Mountain was a top concern.
"Nobody's talking about putting smokestacks up here," said Matt Bullington, whose family has operated the Texas Tavern restaurant in downtown Roanoke for decades. "It's about having a can-do spirit, being progressive."
Higgs said he would like the committee to take the proper time to evaluate this latest proposal.
"I want to be thoughtful," he said. "I, for one, have an open mind."
A final decision will be made by the Roanoke City Council.
