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| All route proposals for I-73 are still in play | ||
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WESTERN CORRIDOR | OTHER VIEWPOINTS By JON CAWLEY ROCKY MOUNT — Denim-clad Art Boothe sat in his used-car lot on a recent afternoon, dragging on a cigarette held between oil-stained fingers and loosely quoting Henry Ford's philosophy about the color of his Model T car: "We'll give you a choice. Choose black." That's how Boothe, owner of Sky Ridge Motors on U.S. 220, explains his perception of Virginia's decision-making process concerning Interstate 73. Boothe, who supports the project even though it could pave over his business, said he thinks the decision has already been made to build the proposed highway along U.S. 220. He is not alone. Many folks have expressed similar sentiments. But no decision has been made, not even on whether to build the road, say officials at the Virginia Department of Transportation. "No corridor is being favored," said Rob Cary, a VDOT engineer in Salem. Even when public hearings begin, probably this fall, VDOT won't recommend a specific route. The project is expected to remain in its study phase throughout the hearings, which could take until the end of this year. Not until January, when public comment has been received on VDOT's environmental impact statement, will the agency recommend a route. The agency says it considers public opinion when its chief engineer in Richmond, James Browder, makes that recommendation. "Opinion should not be a part of the study work," Cary said. "But opinion should be a part of public involvement — a critical part. We want everyone comfortable that our data is not based on opinion but is scientific." That leaves residents, business owners and local governments to stew with their opinions. Little new information is expected until VDOT releases its study of I-73's possible effects on all the proposed corridors, probably in August. By next spring, the Commonwealth Transportation Board might be ready to decide whether to build the interstate, upgrade U.S. 220 or do nothing. If the board chooses to build, a decision also will be made in the spring on which route to follow. Then, a more specific environmental study would be conducted to ensure that nothing had been overlooked that could block construction — such as historic houses, recreation areas or endangered plants, animals or habitats. Cary and other VDOT officials insist the decision is far from made and that public input will make a difference. "What's important to people varies," said Cary, a VDOT location and design engineer. "To some, it's cost. To others, it is the neighborhood. And for others, the environment. "We need to get a feel for what's important," he said. "It would be presumptuous for us to say what people think." Opponents to I-73 say the project is all about pork-barrel politics. They say the department's decision-making process, including public hearings, has been a "snow job." VDOT officials insist that isn't true and discussed some of the issues they are studying. One obstacle in all the corridors is the Blue Ridge Parkway. Gary Johnson, chief resource planner for the parkway, said the park service is waiting for the environmental impact statement before making its position official. However, he said the park service favors the central route along U.S. 220 because it does not include new-terrain highway cuts. Speaking of the western and eastern routes, Johnson said: "Neither location will have a minimal impact. There will be visual intrusions — with the introduction of road cuts, you'll be able to look down on a four-lane road, where now it's farm or forest land." Cary said each route in the 700-square-mile study area has issues. The western route is shorter but more rugged. With the central corridor along U.S. 220 comes a need for wider rights of way that can be tremendously expensive. The eastern route is longer but may be better for relieving traffic congestion. "The best is in the eye of the beholder," Cary said. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Roanoke, and Sen. John Warner, R-Va., are among numerous advocates for the central corridor along Interstate 581 and U.S. 220. Roanoke has taken a neutral position, but has funded a $29,500 study by a Boston consultant to examine the highway's possible economic benefits. Bob Bengtson, Roanoke's director of public works and city traffic engineer, said the city paid for the study because VDOT is not researching the economic factors. Bengtson said study results are expected to be reported to City Council in mid-July in a dual presentation with VDOT's environmental-impact findings. Roanoke is hoping the economic study will tell it how each corridor might cause businesses to come or go from commercial areas, and about the effect on traffic, Bengtson said. Since the first set of public hearings on I-73 in 1995-96, many people in the study area have formed their own opinions. Debra Didlake, the owner of Cannaday's Save-A-Lot in Boones Mill, says a central corridor for I-73 would not affect her business significantly. However, if the eastern or western routes are chosen, she foresees the possible death of the little town on U.S. 220. "It'll hurt the town's income. We won't get as many travelers. It'll devastate a lot of families that have been here for years and years," Didlake said. She said Boones Mill residents used to talk a lot about I-73 in her store, but that has waned. Many are resigned that the road will follow an eastern route near Smith Mountain Lake, she said. Mahendiza Patel, owner of the Franklin Motel on U.S. 220 north of Rocky Mount, said he would rather see U.S. 220 improved than an interstate built. But as long as the western or eastern routes aren't chosen, he supports the highway project, he said. Manufacturers of modular homes in Franklin and Henry counties have been some of I-73's biggest proponents, but that view isn't shared by Jesse Rickmond, owner of A-1 Mobile Home Sales on U.S. 220. He said the interstate would hurt his business, but he's resigned that its fate is out of his hands. "There ain't no use to care, they're going to put it where the hell they please," Rickmond said. "We don't need people going by at 75 mph. We depend on people going by and seeing our homes. The interstate would kill that." Rickmond said he would like to see U.S. 220 improved. With an interstate, "I'm afraid 220 would turn into poor Route 11, where the only reason people get on that road is to stay off the 80 mph interstate." Smith Mountain Lake businessmen Ron Willard and Rob Glenn are working to bring the road close to the lake. Many lake-area business people support their efforts. Other people's opinions range from neutral to outright disapproval. Some say the road's a good idea but worry about crowding. Norris Bunn, a 15-year resident of the lake who lives in the Windtree subdivision, says VDOT will do whatever it wants despite public opinion. Bunn says a new interstate would cost the lake its tranquility and make it like the southern New Jersey home he left. The retired surgeon said the interstate would make it easier to get to Roanoke, but a growing population would strain the lake's water and sewer capacity. He also disputed claims by economic developers that the road would bring revenue. "Maybe they can force the highway here, but they can't force people to spend money," Bunn said. Buren McAlexander, also a retiree, supported many of Bunn's opinions. McAlexander built his lakefront home on Tranquility Road in 1972. He favors a western corridor for I-73 because he said it would benefit Ferrum College. McAlexander said an eastern route wouldn't help the lake. "People move here on the lake to get away from thickly populated areas. People move here for the peace and quiet." Becky Dotson sells real estate at the lake and owns Sunflower Studios Gallery on Scruggs Road. She said most of her clients dislike the highway plans because they don't want the noise and urban sprawl that often follow a new road. "I'd like to see the lake develop slowly, not erratically," Dotson said. "If that would be the result of the corridor, I'd be against it." Many business owners, however, say the lake and its permanent population could only benefit from better access to the lake and Roanoke. Roy Enslow, manager of Bridgewater Marina, said, "The general consensus around the lake is it would be one of the best things to happen to us. The lake is developing . . . and there is nothing anyone can do to stop it. "The highway would open up opportunities to get better roads. I definitely think there would be major trickle-down effects." Pat Walsh, owner of the Mouse Trap delicatessen, agreed. "I'd love it. We make our living off of tourism. The place is growing," he said. "It used to be this was the best-kept secret in Virginia — but the secret is out." Whitney "Bunny" Dowdall, a resident of Burnt Chimney who works as an accountant, said she supports responsible growth. She fears the lake could be overbuilt like her former home on Long Island, N.Y. With a home near the proposed east corridor, Dowdall said she would be upset if it were taken by the road. "But I'd be opposed to saying I don't want it because it could take my house — that's selfish." Still, Dowdall is not alone in fearing the loss of her home. Jennie Jamison has lived there all her life and helps run her parents' Boones Country Store, which has operated on Virginia 116 for 25 years. She said an interstate would be good for business, but she fears encroachment on her family home in Burnt Chimney. "It would make it more easily accessible because we are in the boondocks. But that's exactly the way I like it," she said. "My roots are deep in Franklin County. But I'd rather not live beside a big highway." The Franklin County Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution supporting an eastern route for I-73 near Smith Mountain Lake. Farther north, a section of the proposed eastern route has received heavy opposition from governments and residents in Bedford and Botetourt counties. Boards of supervisors in both counties adopted resolutions opposing the road in their counties. Dale Wheeler, a Bedford County supervisor, said hundreds of homes would be taken by road construction, making it difficult for businesses to benefit. He said none of the maps he saw showed an I-73 intersection in Bedford County. "I saw access on 460 in Botetourt County, and I saw access on 220 for Franklin County and lower Roanoke County. I never saw access for Bedford County on any map I ever saw," Wheeler said. "I was assured later that would be taken care of. But you get it in writing up front or you never get it in the rear." Former Bedford Supervisor Bob Crouch said the eastern path is illogical. "I could not understand why you went so far east to go south," he said, adding that constituents told him to "be very vivid and not be misunderstood. They were opposed to it." Botetourt County has seen similar opposition, driven in part by a civic group, Blue Ridge Concerned Citizens. Steve Rossi, its spokesperson, says the group looked for endangered species and historic sites that could be damaged if the road were built in the eastern corridor. Two species and a historic church were among the sensitive issues the group reported to VDOT for inclusion in the environmental impact statement is is preparing for the federal government. In July 1998, the Botetourt County Board of Supervisors voted to oppose the eastern corridor that would pass through Daleville at Interstate 81. A month later, the board voted to ask VDOT to stop studying a route through the county. At least one Botetourt official supports the road. Jimmy Stevens, zoning administrator for Troutville, said the eastern route would cure Botetourt's through-traffic woes and ease the tax burden on property owners. He said the county needs stimulation because of a financial crunch. "The good thing about an interstate is that people come through, stop and eat, fill up with gas, leave their money and not their children," Stevens said. This route is also heavily opposed by residents, government officials and an organized group: the I-73 Regional Impact Network. Alan Gleiner, the group's spokesman, said it hired a consultant, Barry Whitt, who found an endangered species of plant called the piratebush along the western corridor near Poor Mountain and 12 O'Clock Knob. The plant, which grows as a parasite on pine trees, already has caused VDOT to adjust the corridor around its habitat. Roanoke County and Salem both oppose the western route and support building the road on U.S. 220 and I-581. Alex Brown, Salem's vice mayor, said: "I think it's absurd . . . it needs to go down I-581 or even farther east than that. I'm not sure Interstate 73 is all it's been cracked up to be as far as economic development is concerned. If it fails to touch Roanoke County at all, that wouldn't be a great loss. I might even venture to say I'm not sure it's needed." Jim Vasik, a neurosurgeon with Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, said he just wants to save his property. If the western corridor is chosen as a route for Interstate 73, he will lose a $2 million investment in a mountaintop winery he and his wife founded near 12 O'Clock Knob in Roanoke County. But he supports any other route that avoids his vineyards. "I would like to see the road come nowhere near us, he said. "Up here, how's it going to benefit the valley? It may help the national picture, but not us." Vasik said he doubted he would be compensated fairly for his property because a dollar amount can't be put on his and his wife's work or in the five years of grape development that have gone into his 21 acres of vineyards. He said losing his winery would probably put him out of business, making it impossible to recoup costs of yearly visits to Europe to work at French and Italian wineries to perfect his trade. It's arguments like Vasik's that real estate broker Bob Copty can't understand. Copty says it would be absurd to run I-73 along the Interstate 581 corridor in Roanoke. He supports the western corridor because of its development potential. He says he doesn't understand why there is even a discussion concerning other routes. The western route would eliminate additional traffic from U.S. 220/I-581 while providing for expanded growth. "Is Roanoke going to build the road when quality of life is at such a miserable level because you've put so much traffic on a corridor, or when you have the unique opportunity of federal and state funds to do it now? Copty asked. "It may not be popular, but it's what's in the best interest of the community. It's a political decision. Is the logical conclusion that the road goes not where it functionally helps . . . but where you have the least people object? I don't think that makes for good decisions." For all the opinions that are being formed, there are still many people in the study area who are neutral on placement of the road. Most local governments have supported a particular route. Henry County and Martinsville support the interstate in any of the three corridors, said Tim Hall, Henry County spokesman. Those localities hope the interstate will help the troubled Southside economy rebound. Capt. Robert Strickler, with the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, also serves as chairman of the Franklin County Transportation Safety Commission and the Blue Ridge Transportation Safety Board. He said his concern is for safety. "An interstate is supposed to make it safer. It would appear new construction would enhance safety," Strickler said. However, "it's well known that most problems out here are driver error, not the road. We're all guilty of daydreaming some." Patsy Martin, owner of Mountain Near Antiques on U.S. 220, says she doesn't really care where the road goes as long as it doesn't take her well, which is just 25 feet off the road. Martin is sick of the traffic that makes turning into and out of her driveway dangerous. "I wouldn't cry" if a highway required her to move, she said. "I've never gotten attached to a place." Martin has lived just a few feet from U.S. 220 since 1977 and opened the store in 1985. She'd like to see the road improved but thinks that won't happen because the state would have to purchase too many homes. "I know the state is broke. Until they steal more from us taxpayers, it won't be built," she said. "There's no problem with 220 now, except impatience and the road needs to be widened." Staff Writers Tad Dickens, Joanne Poindexter and Todd Jackson contributed to this story. |
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Local content copyright © 2000 The Roanoke Times |
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