Curious Vinton citizens worked their way around a number of displays at an open-house meeting held by the town recently – examining layout maps and images that provided updates on upcoming capital improvement projects.
While the town introduced a new logo “IN Vinton” the main focus was on the Downtown Revitalization Project and a number of projects related to the Walnut Avenue entryway into Vinton.
The Downtown Revitalization Project, funded by a $700,000 federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and planned with the aid of local design firm Hill Studios, has three main aims: facade revitalization, a redesign of the Vinton Farmer’s Market and improved street lighting that features classic early American style fixtures.
The grant will boost the facade improvement efforts in downtown Vinton by expanding a program already set in place cooperatively with Roanoke County. The federal grant increases the available funds considerably for property owners, to help replace old, worn facades or install one for the first time.
Project architect Hunter Greene of Hill Studios has spoken with seven business owners that own nine buildings in the downtown area. If these owners indicate they want to move forward with improvements the town will review the budget and open the facade improvement portion of the CDBG grant to other property owners (if there is money left over, according to assistant to the town manager Ryan Spitzer.) Work on the facades could begin as soon as this spring. It’s all part of making downtown Vinton more appealing to visitors and shoppers.
The rehabilitation of the farmer’s market may include a possible expansion of the stage area. In addition to updating the general market area in terms of lighting, benches and its dance area, an effort will be made to “green up” the market space with more seeding. Due to upcoming festivals and music events, work may possibly begin as late as September 2014.
A new cast iron teardrop-style streetlight will be introduced on the downtown streets as part of the plan. The new lights, which could be built this summer, will be installed along South Pollard Street from Washington Avenue to Cleveland Avenue and along Lee Avenue from the Farmers Market to Maple Street. “Residents did like the look of the streetlights for our downtown and thought they were unique,” said Spitzer.
Several of the other projects on display at the meeting centered on the Walnut Avenue entryway into Vinton. The Walnut Avenue Sidewalk Improvement Project, funded by the Regional Surface Transportation Program of the Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Regional Commission, will fill in the gaps and rehabilitate the sidewalks on Walnut between the 5th Street low-water bridge and the Farmer’s Market; that sidewalk will connect to the new Walnut Avenue low-water bridge. Excavation of the Glade Creek banks and the placement of concrete forms for construction of abutments is currently underway. The new bridge will have wider travel lanes along with bike lanes and sidewalks on each side.There are also plans to put a bike lane and crosswalks on the road. July 1st is the expected start date for that project.
Vinton Public Works Director Gary Woodson anticipates that the higher elevation of the bridge will reduce instances of water coverage while the single-span construction will eliminate supports that can cause debris build-up. Woodson expects the project to be completed this fall.
Greenway development is also in the works for the town of Vinton. With funding in place from Novozymes Biologicals, VDOT and the town, a ten-foot-wide multi-use paved greenway will be constructed to connect Virginia Avenue to Walnut Ave on town-owned properties. The greenway will be located near the town’s eastern limits, near Cedar Avenue.
Spitzer sees a number of benefits to this new greenway. In addition to connecting the town to the rest of the Roanoke Greenway system and providing a means of staying healthy by walking or biking, there’s a safety aspect: “residents will be able to travel from southeast Roanoke to the Farmer’s Market and other downtown Vinton destinations without having to deal with the dangers of vehicle traffic.”
Planning Director Anita McMillan said that the start of the greenway depends on the completion of the low-water bridge project but hopes to open bids for construction in May or June of this year.
For more information contact Anita McMillan at [email protected]
By Aaron Layman