Oct
06
Roanoke and New River Valley MSAs - How do we Promote Regionalism? Part 1 of 5
Posted (admin) in Uncategorized on October-6-2008

We were recently asked to talk to a group about regionalism between the Roanoke and Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford MSAs. What would it take for the two to operate more like one region?

The simplest answer is to have more people working in one sub-region and living in the other.Attached is the formal process to combine MSAs… combine-msas. Other ways of making it happen include, but are not limited to:

  • Participate in the NewVa Corridor Technology Council - Probably the most regionally focused organization in the two valleys.
  • Complete the Smart Road- This will eliminate about 7 minutes from the commute and essentially moves the Corporate Research Center to the Shelor Motor Mile.
  • More funding for the Smart Way Bus - Some current routes are at capacity with people standing on the commutes. This alternative public transportation model is the future. Invest now.
  • Development between Salem and Christiansburg- Terrain is an issue, but there are some opportunities around Dixie Caverns and Ironto. Plus, the new Intermodal facility should foster this growth.
  • Expand Interstate 81 - Add more lanes for a more enjoyable and safe drive.

The earliest an official join MSA would occur would be 2020. There are at least four other ways in which regionalism can be achieved. We will look at these in the future.
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    A concept that has been around for, oh, about a quarter century. And the funding for all this will be detailed in parts 2, 3, 4 or 5?
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    Regionalism is smart business. It allows the combination of populations which translates hard numbers into financial sources for upgrading and maintaining infrastructure with a forward-looking vision. One such example
    of how the region and the state should view things would be I 81. While the push has been for a singular
    mega-project the length of the state, what should be happening is a 2 Phase design and build for specific urbanized regions first...and then extend that into low population regions once Phase One is complete. What might this look like? Blacksburg - Christiansburg to Hollins (or Daleville) has an additional lane (perhaps two closest to Roanoke) built, along with any exit upgrades that would be required. You would see a similar focus on widening in the Stanton to Harrisonburg (and on I 64) to Waynesboro. And again, north in the region near the
    interchange with I 66 in Northern VA. The Bristol area has already been upgraded as have the immediate couple of miles at Christiansburg. Longer-term, areas from Buchannan to Lexington, etc... would be upgraded.

    Similarly, the Smart Road - I 81 spur from 460 at Blacksburg should be completed. The present 'research' stretch
    is wholly generating income based on exactly what it was intended (and those who nay say should understand that it is a real regional income generator).

    Roanoke needs Blacksburg - VT and the VT Research center are two main reasons, the other being that the NRV with nearly 180,000 residents is now playing in the population field with the Roanoke Valley (at roughly 250,000). On the map, not so much by the curves of the roads stringing the two together - these population
    centers sit a mere 20 miles apart (as the crow flies) - and together they represent nearly 450,000 people - that's a hefty urban figure. The NRV needs Roanoke - with its airport, cultural amenities, industry and overlap of citizens who reverse commute from each area.

    The Smart Way Bus - a great move to bring them effortlessly together - an effort that with growing ridership must be enhanced with more rolling stock and frequency of service. The 'dream' would be 20 years forward with a high-speed lightrail service from Christiansburg depot to Roanoke - running every half-hour...park in Cburg, hop on lightrail and be at Roanoke Airport or downtown in under 30 minutes.

    VT Carillon Med School in Roanoke, research and invention in Bburg and Roanoke - another step in the right direction.

    It can be done - but regardless of momentary economic conditions - the vision must always see to the 10 year horizon and the 20 years that exist just beyond.
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    Complete the smart road? Get real. Look, it's Roanoke that needs the connection, so let them pay for it. They want the benefit but want Montgomery County to pay for it. The new road construction around Bburg and Cburg has so reduced the traffic problems that the need to spend tens of millions of dollars to cut 7 minutes out of the travel time between the NRV and Roanoke is just not warranted. Traffic projections show that it will be at least 20 years before that should be considered. It's unfortunate that years of poor planning and economic development decisionmaking in Roanoke have resulted in them losing the leadership in the local economy to the point where they need the connection to VT to maintain the perception of vibrancy. But Montgomery County is not going to bail them out single-handedly.
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    Google’s Blog alert sent me to this post because of the term “regionalism.” This post and site should be useful to the subscribers of Regional Community Development News, so I will include a link to it in the October 10 issue. It can be found at
    http://regional-communities.blogspot.com/ Please visit, check the tools and consider a link. Tom
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