Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, November 25, 1993 TAG: 9311250492
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: W7 EDITION: HOLIDAY
SOURCE: LAURA WILLIAMSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The Ridgewood Inn should open by summer pending final approval from Salem City Council, said developer Lewis Jamison, a partner in the Roanoke-based JASE Inc.
Council approved a first reading Monday of plans to amend a city zoning ordinance to allow hotel construction on the Keagy Road site, which is adjacent to the Ridgewood Farms Village Center.
"It will be an asset, very much so," Vice Mayor Mac Green said.
Green called plans for the hotel - which will charge between $85 and $95 per night for a room - "very attractive."
During a brief public hearing before Council cast its unanimous vote, nobody spoke for or against the project outlined by Jamison.
The developers expect visitors to Roanoke College, the Salem Civic Center and local businesses - such as General Electric - to stay at the hotel, which they say should not draw traffic from U.S. Interstate 81. They also predict people who live in the condominium and townhouse portions of Ridgewood Farms will use the hotel for extra space when family members visit during the holidays.
"I feel like this will meet the needs of the community," said Jamison.
Future plans for the still-to-be-completed Ridgewood Farms community may also include construction of an office building, he said.
In other business, nobody challenged Walter R. Franke for his seat on the Salem School Board during a public hearing to review applicants Monday night. Franke, a 51-year-old retired clergyman, has been a member of the School Board for eight years and has been vice chairman since January.
"Chances look pretty good there, doctor," Councilman Alex Brown told Franke when nobody else applied for the seat.
Council will vote on Franke's appointment at its next meeting, Dec. 13.
by CNB