After a traumatic 2022 fire that destroyed two prominent buildings at Vinton’s center, the town is taking steps to fill that hole with a new purpose.
It is seeking development proposals for a higher-density boutique hotel or a mixed-use commercial and residential project for the land it bought in May.
It’s the newest development for the town that’s trying to maintain an economic revival.
A town press release called what was left after the fire a “visible scar” within one of the “most important blocks in the heart of downtown Vinton.”
The July 2 fire four years ago at the intersection of Lee Avenue and Pollard Street destroyed the former DR Music building, four adjacent apartments and a building that once housed Edward Jones Investments.
Since then, the town has worked to acquire the parcels to revitalize them. The combined parcels make up almost a fifth of an acre, and the town paid $450,000 for the whole property, Town Manager Richard “Pete” Peters said in an interview.
Surveys, evaluations and concept plans were paid for using funding from the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s brownfields program, Peters said — which doesn’t mean the land was contaminated, he said. The grant is fairly open-ended in which types of land apply.
“The town has gone through a kind of renaissance over the last decade with new businesses opening and activity, and whether this caused a real setback, I can’t say, other than direct revenue, but I think it just kind of dampened the mood a little,” Peters said. “It’s just kind of a blow that you have to adjust to; I think just that emotional damage that perhaps it caused was probably the biggest setback for the community.”
Peters said this part of town is so important because it houses multiple municipal buildings, the library, the post office, retail and restaurants, residential buildings, proximity to the farmers market and a performance stage, and it’s walkable. That piece of downtown produces a lot of revenue, he said.
“You’ve got sidewalks, you’ve got roads, so it makes a great deal of sense to develop something with all that infrastructure surrounding it,” Peters said. He said downtown Vinton recently received a historic designation from the state.
Peters said over the past four years, the town has been working with property owners who were dealing with insurance processes and completing evaluations on the surrounding buildings to see if they were salvageable — which the owners’ insurance ultimately decided they were not.
He said the town created a few concept plans to show the property owners, who ultimately “weren’t really willing to take on that big of a risk at that point in their lives,” Peters said.
Peters said just cleaning the area up over the past year has made a difference in “perceptions and attitudes” of patrons and business owners.
Travis Obryant, who is a manager at a nearby restaurant, Pollard 107 South, said that he would be a fan of either a boutique hotel or a mixed-use building.
He said he’s been working at the restaurant for the last three years and that he’s seen steady growth in business over that timeframe, especially in the past year, he said. He said he sees patrons whom he recognizes from neighboring localities who are choosing to bring their business to Vinton.
Peters said it’s been a goal of the town’s to be more proactive in development.
“For many years we had a lot of decline in the town,” Peters said. “Businesses are closing up, and that’s because of a lot of things: online retail, changes in the market. So by being more proactive, we can work with local entrepreneurs.”
Some of Vinton’s most notable economic development from the past decade include the opening of Twin Creeks Brewing Co. in 2019 and Rosie’s Gaming Emporium, which opened in 2019.
Late last year, the town broke ground on its first hotel, an Extended Stay America Premier Suites, which is expected to have 92 rooms and be completed in November with a grand opening in December, said Jill Loope, special project assistant to Peters.
Peters said the town supports small businesses through supporting additional parking, utility connections or facade improvements, as well as staying in communication with businesses from the start.
“Development is very hard,” Peters said. “We’re not accepting anything other than our standards, but we can help progress those processes along and kind of be a partner with the developers and the private sector, and it tends to make a smoother project and one we can support, in the sense of meeting zoning, revenue goals, looks and aesthetic desires.”
The town is also in the midst of developing a new multifamily housing project on 10 acres of land, known as the McGimsey property, on Washington Avenue, adjacent to the River Park Shopping Center.
The town will work with River Park Properties and Dale Wilkinson, who is expected to build 150-200 new housing units, Loope said. The town is holding a public design charette on the project on Oct. 28 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Charles R. Hill Community Center.
Peters said he sees pros and cons to the sought options for property recently acquired on Lee Avenue.
The region always has a deficit of workforce housing, he said.
“By creating additional housing, it frees up some of those large residential structures that are maybe underoccupied,” he said. “A one- or two-bedroom apartment allows an empty nester or a young professional to get into the housing market, live and work downtown.”
On the other hand, the taxes that would come with a new boutique hotel would create direct revenue for the town.
“We’re facing the same cost increases as our residents. Fuel is higher, it takes more to do your business,” Peters said. “So any revenue increase that we can generate that doesn’t put a burden back on the residents helps.”
The deadline for developers to submit a proposal is Nov. 20 at 3 p.m.
