ROANOKE COUNTY, Va. – Phase two of the West Roanoke River Greenway expansion project is getting underway with the county asking for community input.
Roanoke County, the City of Salem and the City of Roanoke have been working to plan, design and construct segments of the Roanoke River Greenway for many years.
Phase one of the project began construction in November 2023. Now phase two is on the minds of county planners and they want to hear from the community about some potential routes for the greenway since the original plan has some financial constraints.
Phase two of the project has been designed to include two bridges across the Roanoke River to connect phase one with the existing greenway in Green Hill Park. This phase has a high-cost estimate and no construction funding.
Roanoke County Parks, Planning and Development Coordinator, Lindsay Webb, spoke with several residents at a community meeting Thursday afternoon.
“The total project cost they’re looking about 20 million dollars. Before Roanoke County and the City of Salem with this alternative for two bridges, we want to go back to the public to see if there’s any other alternatives supported by the community,” Webb said.
Part of the community feedback is through a survey.
People also gave feedback at the community meeting and there are some mixed opinions on the project.
Chuck Terell who lives near phase one of the project is excited to see the overall project be complete.
“Riding a bike on Riverside Dr. is like Russian Roulette so we’re not going to do that. Having a way to connect the greenway to Green Hill Park would be a huge resource,” Terrell said.
Christy Campbell lives further upstream from the project and won’t be impacted by phase one or two. However, she’s afraid of what’s to come when there are proposals to move further into the New River Valley.
“I’m just concerned my peace and quiet is going to be interrupted by people straggling off the greenway onto my property,” Campbell said.
The survey closes May 10. Afterwards, county staff are planning to meet to come up with a more concrete plan of what phase two will look like.