Much of the debate over the future of the Market Building has focused on the fate of the existing food court vendors. Our mayor has even gone so far as to state that the concerns of the vendors should take precedence over any other aspect of the building’s rehabilitation. “When Chico is happy, I will [...]
“When Chico is happy, I will be happy”. That was the response from Mayor David Bowers to the recently rejected proposal by the Coalition For The Roanoke City Market to renovate the historic Market Building. The mayor was referring to the owner of Chico’s Big Lick Pizza, a long-time tenant of the food court. The [...]
I’ve been waiting for an outpouring of anger and disbelief in the editorial pages and the blogs for the last several days, and it’s amazing to me that it hasn’t materialized. Am I the only one who finds it hard to believe that our elected members of the city council recently voted to reject a [...]
Regular readers of this blog will know that I have been an outspoken critic of a number of recent economic development initiatives in the city of Roanoke. Rather than simply complaining, I’ve always tried to present alternatives that in my opinion represent more effective uses of our tax dollars. I’ve made a sincere effort to [...]
This article originally appeared on the Star City Harbinger website.
The City of Roanoke suffers from a severe case of multiple personality disorder when it comes to economic development issues. We hear a great deal of talk about the need for the city to be hip, cool and green in order to attract young professionals, while [...]
UPDATE: Newly elected council member Court Rosen requested additional financial information at a council meeting on August 18th, leading many Countryside supporters to believe he supports selling the property. His complete comments are available here. Valerie Garner, President of the Countryside Neighborhood Alliance and unsuccessful candidate for city council in 2008 makes her position clear [...]
It appears that Countryside is about to receive a five year reprieve from the threat of development. While this is certainly a step in the right direction, the future of the golf course remains uncertain. The Roanoke Times recently ran an editorial supporting the plan for a five year lease that allows the city to [...]
The Roanoke Times and the local blogs have been abuzz lately with the idea of passenger rail service returning to Roanoke. Most of the arguments in favor of passenger rail are based on the notion that as a former railroad town, Roanoke is somehow deserving of this service. Unfortunately, businesses decisions aren’t based on who [...]
Before moving back to Roanoke in late 2002, I had spent the previous 20 years living in a number of major metropolitan areas, including Richmond, Charlotte, Washington, DC and even Buffalo, NY. I lived for 10 years in the DC area, and while I enjoyed the time I spent there, there are only a few [...]
To say that folks in Roanoke are resistant to change is something of an understatement. In the 5 years since I returned after a 20 year absence, I have been continually dumbfounded by the level of opposition to just about every proposed development or change. Granted, there are many things in our beloved Roanoke Valley [...]