Michael Abraham is the owner of the Threshold Center in the Christiansburg Industrial Park, and Tuesday he told town council he remains disappointed by a decision it made recently.
A year ago, the council denied a request by Abraham and the Montgomery County Moose Lodge to locate the club’s new lodge in the park. Christiansburg said the lodge did not meet the definition of the industrial area.
“My family and I are the biggest losers. The bay in question is 5,000 square feet, and in the intervening months we’ve had only partial occupancy. We’ve lost out on over $25,000 income, and the money can never be regained. Demand for industrial spaces is spotty and infrequent. This bay has not been fully occupied for over three years. Your decision was not theoretical or inconsequential for me,” he said.
Additionally, Abraham cited almost $15,000 lost by the Moose Lodge in preparing for a possible move to the park and the continually increasing rent at its former property—another “loser” from the decision.
The group recently sold its location and is looking for a new home. Now, the lodge might have to look outside the town limits to find another site.
Several members of the council requested staff bring back information on what is currently located in industrial areas across the town, but the report has not been completed.
“Since the park was envisioned and developed in 1986, America has transitioned from an industrial economy, and manufacturing is a far smaller slice of the economic pie than it was back then. Thirty-five percent fewer Americans work in manufacturing than they did 30 years ago. To my knowledge, the park has only attracted a handful of new tenants in the last five years, and I don’t think a single one is a manufacturer. If there were any industrial tenants for me to rent to, I would have done so years ago,” Abraham said.
The businessman also took offense to the remarks made by several council members during the denial a year ago that having the club in the park would somehow cheapen or degrade the rest of the park.
“Actually, your zoning ordinance, already allows for restaurants, retailing, and a variety of other uses in I-2 zones. Furthermore, this logic is hopelessly antiquated. Nowadays, commercial, industrial, office and research parks across America are eagerly hosting cafes, restaurants, fitness centers, day care centers and other businesses that enhance and bring new vitality to the parks and the overall communities,” he said.
Abraham said he has been told not to be bitter, but it’s hard for him as businessman who has lost revenue because of the decision.
“According to your (town) zoning ordinance, you’ll let me rent my space to a dentist, butcher, blacksmith or a drive-in restaurant. You’ll let me rent my space to someone who makes bags, boxes, glass, pickles, sauerkraut, relishes, matches, ink, cigars, barrels, candles or tallow. You’ll let me rent my space, with a conditional use permit, to an adult business, such as an adult bookstore or a porn video store. But you won’t let me rent to the Moose Lodge. Where is the fairness in this?” he said.
He encouraged council to revisit the decision and to possibly reverse it. There council did not respond to any of his remarks.
The town also heard from Andy Shack who lives on Dow Street near a couple that was charged with child abuse after large amount of dogs were being kept in the home with two young children.
Authorities found feces all over the house among other unfit living conditions like multiple unsecured firearms near the front door.
Initially neighbors had complained about barking dogs. Police then discovered several female dogs with multi-litters of puppies.
Shack asked council to consider an ordinance to deal with “puppy mills.”
“You updated your town code to include a better definition of what is an adult dog, but I think you need to take it step further and consider an ordinance against puppy mills like this one,” he said.
Again, the initial nuisance was the barking and the smell. The home has since been condemned by the town.
Shack showed a photograph of one of the occupants who had just gotten out of jail standing in the doorway of the condemned home with a puppy in her hand. According to court records, all the animals had been seized during a search of the home.
Shack asked council to restrict the number of litters to a home to one.
Brad Epperley, the director of the Christiansburg Recreation Department, also presented an update on the New River Valley Bike Share Program. Tuesday, he unveiled details into the jumpstart of bike rentals on July 2.
Bike number 1, which is painted in bright orange, was wheeled into council chambers.
“This is what our bikes will look like that we will rent at five different locations—two in Christiansburg and three in Blacksburg and Virginia Tech,” he said.
The bike share program will be funded through a $200,000 state grant and a local match of $50,000 split between the two localities and Virginia Tech. A total of 75 7-speed bikes will be spread over the five locations.
Epperley said 13 electric assist bikes will be added at a later date. The marketing message for the local program is: “Get wheels spinning and roam the New River Valley.”
Council also approved the town’s upcoming fiscal year budget of $58 million that requires no increase in property or real estate taxes. The measure did include two new funding requests—$10,000 for the Christiansburg Institute and $2,500 for the Blacksburg Children’s Museum, which is planning to move to the New River Valley Mall.
In other matters, council held a public hearing on the request by the Starlite Drive-In for a conditional use permit to allow volume levels above the max in the town’s recently revised ordinance. Only one adjacent resident spoke on the matter.
Roger Venteicher lives near the theatre and said the loud noise at the theater has been an ongoing problem. He hoped council would not allow the CUP.
“There are times in the movie that there are loud gunshot noises. It has been a problem a lot of times,” he said.
The gunshots seemed real and startled him and others.
“I started to call 9-1-1,” he said.
The theatre has taken new measures to control the volume since it opened last month, and Venteicher admitted the problem has gotten better.
Council also passed a measure that will allow the partial closure of Hickok Street on a permanent basis to allow the town’s farmer’s market and a special events area to be located there.
A nearby church expressed concern over the closure and how it would affect their parking lot. The guidelines limit the enclosure to approximately 170 linear feet, allowing continued access to the church.
Editor’s note: Michael Abraham is a part-time columnist for the News Messenger and Radford News Journal.
