ROANOKE COUNTY, Va. – The more people live in an area, the more people who will shop, eat and spend money in that area. That's the goal surrounding Tanglewood mall in Roanoke County.
Local leaders have been discussing how to attract business to Roanoke County's largest economic engine for years.
It's an opportunity waiting to happen as 43,000 vehicles drive 419 every day. For Roanoke County economic development director Jill Loope who’s been leading the revitalization effort, the question is how to make them stop and spend money.
"What we want to do is focus on the county's greatest economic engine,” Loope said.
The county's largest shopping and dining area also holds the greatest potential for new retailers, businesses and jobs.
"It is the greatest single demand for any economic development opportunity that we have,” Loope said.
LewisGale is a month away from completing a new emergency room and other construction is underway.
But Tanglewood Mall, once the biggest attraction to the county, has had trouble attracting new retailers, leaving empty store space and consequently missed tax revenue opportunities.
Roanoke County hired a consulting firm to help refocus economic development in that area, and their study found part of attracting new businesses to the 419 corridor is filling a greater demand for housing.
Loope explained commercial retailers and new residential areas go hand in hand.
"The 419 town center could warrant 1,000 new units every year over the next 5 years within the town center model. So there is significant demand potential for new housing development here,” Loope said.
That model means changing the face of development from wide empty parking lots to tall, full buildings.
"We know that we can create greater density of housing and greater density of mixed-use development and we know that the footprint needs to go vertical rather than horizontal so we are really focused on redeveloping this entire area,” Loope said.
Loope said as far as adding living space to some of those vacant spots at Tanglewood, the owners aren’t quite on board yet.
"We don’t have any big announcements yet, but we do have some significant discussions going on with the ownership,” Loope said. But she says their focus remains on attracting retailers both inside the mall and to the outparcels around the mall.
So for now, the hunt for property to build rental apartments continues around the corridor. Other sites have been identified as possibilities. The county is hoping to attract developers to the area to take advantage of the opportunity available.
For more information about the project and the new study click here.