Council sees possible new directional street signs for Main Street

Salem may soon have signs on Main Street reminiscent of the “M.A.S.H” television show sign post pointing toward various towns back home. Only these would point toward public buildings and – if businesses decide to participate – could include various commercial locations.

Councilmembers and citizens at the Aug. 27 meeting got their first look at an example of the signposts put together by the City of Salem Streets Department, pointing toward Salem City Hall and local businesses.

The subject came up at the Work Session before the meeting, and will be brought back to the Sept. 11 Council meeting with the ideas of putting the signs and 85-pound sturdy, yet ornamental black enamel trash cans out to bid.

The signs and trash cans would be paid for with some of the Main Street Revitalization Grant money.

“I’m a bit frustrated,” said Mayor Randy Foley in the Work Session before the Aug. 28 meeting. “It’s been almost a year since we were in Greenville, [S.C., to look at their revitalized downtown].”

Vice Mayor Bill Jones echoed that frustration on not having anything in place to show, and urged, “Let’s get it moving.”

Estimated costs for the trash cans could be about $1,500 apiece, Director of Finance Rosie Jordan said, but said a bid process could come up with a better price. Perhaps six cans per block could be located in downtown for the project, which starts on East Main Street and goes to the Roanoke College area.

Street Department Head Mike Tyler, Assistant Director Todd Sutphin and Superintendent of Road Maintenance London Lewis told the four council members at the meeting the signs could be configured however council wants, “and really stack them up,” Lewis said.

Tyler said since the Greenville trip, he and Assistant City Manager Jay Taliaferro, who was running the Work Session while City Manager Kevin Boggess is on a motorcycle vacation out west, and City Planner Ben Tripp have been talking about signs  that would “get people to places” in town.

Up to five merchants in a block could have signs, if they chose to participate, Lewis speculated.

Council’s consensus was that city staff would have to talk about the possible signs, how to implement them and who the signage would be opened up to.

As far as the trash cans are concerned, Tyler said the particular slatted, round steel can holders caught his eye because of the ease of washing them and maintenance. “They are heavy gauge and robust to last a long time.”

The 30 current trash can containers on Main Street are both metal and concrete, which have been vandalized over the years, the mayor remarked.

In actions at the council meeting, the four Councilmembers, with Councilman James Martin absent, voted to:

• Appropriate $150,000 in local funding for the Cook Drive section of the Roanoke River Greenway. Community Development Director Chuck VanAllman said using local funding would be less expensive in the long run, and allow Salem to persue federal and state money for some of the bridges along the Greenway. The section between the Roanoke City border almost to Apperson will connect Salem with Roanoke’s Greenway system, and is the last remaining section in Salem not built. It is expected to be completed in 2018, VanAllman said.

A small piece still needs to be built to connect that new section with Salem Rotary Park at Electric Road. That latter portion of the trail runs more than 2 miles and connects with the portion of the Greenway from Apperson near Hammerhead Hardware and on to Moyer Park.

Eventually there would be more than 25 miles of Greenway trails through Roanoke City, Roanoke County and Salem. Roanoke County’s portion now winds through Green Hill Park, and will need to connect along Riverside Drive where there is little shoulder between the road and the river and probably will need some relocation along industrial areas.