By STEPHANIE A. JAMES
Staff Writer
Preliminary design work of what the Old Courthouse Road corridor could become was presented to the Appomattox Town Council recently.
Officials want to make the one-mile of corridor from Farmer’s Bank at the intersection of Confederate Boulevard to property just before the Surrender Grounds bicycle and pedestrian friendly.
Also, they want to provide alternative ways for people to come into town.
Transportation engineer Bill Wuensch and architect Richard Price, who conducted a one-mile stretch of the road, explained that they compiled ideas for the corridor after soliciting suggests from the public.
Wuensch said that stakeholder meetings attracted 45 people and has received positive feedback.
“This is a rare occasion that everyone was behind it,” he said.
County planner Johnny Roark mentioned a comment of someone who described the setting of how Old Courthouse Road is now.
“Coming into town into 24 feels like you are coming into the back door of the community,” said Roark.
Roark added that he wanted that back door of the community to become the front.
In February and March, there were stakeholder meetings in which the public were invited to attend.
During the meetings, some of the ideas included creating bike lanes and landscaping along the corridor.
Previous suggestions for the area include installing light posts, benches and landscaping along the corridor.
The two presenters described the designs as a starting point.
Price explained that they have been working on the project for months. The initial work began in January when traffic counts were made to determine the travel patterns of those entering in and out of the corridor.
Three themes were developed referred to as gateways, neighborhood greens, and historic villages.
In terms of beautifying the area, Price said that they want to come up with a unified theme of landscaping.
Price recommended that placing nodes in the area so that it would not be a long corridor.
After Price and Wuensch’s presentation, Council members voiced their opinion about the design work.
“It is impressive. I think we need a new look,” said councilwoman Claudia Puckette, adding that a changed appearance is the way to go if the town is focusing on tourism.
Councilwoman Mary Lou Spiggle agreed.
“I think that it is a wonderful beginning to future expansion,” she said.
Mayor Paul Harvey said that he liked that a lot of ideas from the public were incorporated in the designs.
Final designs will be released in June.
At the end of the process, local officials will receive information on what grants are available to implement the ideas presented.
Previously, during meetings the two presenters used such locations as Historic Williamsburg to show how it is an attractive place for walking and bicycling.
During the examination of the corridor, Wuensch and Price incorporated previous studies. Those studies included the Appomattox Heritage and Recreational Trail Plan, Region 2000 Greenways, and the Virginia Outdoor Plan.
The study was funded by VDOT and managed through the Local Government Council.
About a year ago, the study was initiated after developers expressed interest in developing the area after the museum opened in March 2012.
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