Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, August 27, 1994 TAG: 9408290033
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By RICK LINDQUIST STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
During a historic preservation workshop Thursday, Giles, who works in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources' Roanoke Preservation Office, outlined the findings of a preliminary architectural survey she did in March and predicted that the honorary historic designations would boost economic development and tourism.
"I believe there is very definitely an historic district in the east end of town," she told a small gathering of preservationists, planners and business people. That potential district would stretch from the industrial Backtracks area across the Norfolk Southern tracks, through the Norwood Street commercial district to the adjacent residential areas to the south.
Giles said a second possible district in Radford's west end probably would stretch from Second Street to Sixth Street, possibly further. That area is largely residential.
Halwick, where former Gov. J. Hoge Tyler once lived, and an 18th-century, two-story log structure on Plum Creek are among individual structures Giles thinks the city could submit for the Virginia Landmarks Register. She called Halwick, on Tyler Avenue, "one of the best examples of domestic architecture from the 1890s in Radford."
The public gets a chance to hear Giles' presentation Sept. 25. The time and place have not been announced.
Property owners would face no additional restrictions if the districts and structures are designated as historic. In fact, some properties may be eligible for certain state preservation grants.
Giles said her survey of about 50 structures "was only the tip of the iceberg," and speculated that further investigation could reveal as many as 500 historically noteworthy buildings in the city. Main Street Radford and the Radford Heritage Foundation cooperated in the survey and helped sponsor Thursday's workshop.
Two commercial building owners told the workshop that historic revitalization can be rewarding.
Jeff Jarvis - who opened Alleghany Cafe in an older Norwood Street building just over a year ago with help from a low-interest loan from Main Street Radford - said his historic revitalization "has really been an asset" that also has given the city a piece of its past.
While he conceded the project wound up being much more extensive - and expensive - than anticipated, he credits the cafe's historic charm with helping to attract more than $1 million in business this past year.
Helen Dickens said fixing up the Central Depot building on the East Side brought "a tremendous amount of satisfaction." She said the building - formerly the Radford Trust Co. - was "very dilapidated on the outside" when the Chuckatuck Inc. - of which she is a partner - acquired it in 1984. The structure now houses 19 upstairs apartments and businesses, and offices downstairs. "Maintaining the old ambiance has been a good thing," she said, although "this was an awfully, awfully big undertaking."
Radford Community Development Director David Ridpath said that the city provides some property tax relief for building owners who take on massive historic revitalization projects. If a commercial project increases the building's value by at least 60 percent, the building's tax valuation remains at its original level for 10 years. Similar provisions are in place for residential historic revitalization projects that increase a building's value by 40 percent but don't expand its area by more than 15 percent. In those cases, the tax valuation would be frozen for eight years, he said.
Giles said placing properties or neighborhoods on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places is "meant to be of educational value," but can have commercial and promotional value as well. She cited The Oaks, a Christiansburg bed and breakfast that's on the state and national registers. "They're using these designations as part of their promotions," she noted.
"Heritage tourism ... has arrived," she said. "It's one of the prime reasons people come to this state. I think communities that don't jump on that bandwagon will be sorry."
by CNB