Christiansburg Council Fights The Free Market -- or at least that's what a Roanoke Times editorial is promising to discuss in Sunday's NRV Current. Their blog already received several comments relative to a decision by council at the Oct. 6 meeting for a company that wanted to invest $2 Million in the local economy and locate a concrete ready mix facility in (gasp) an industrial park.
Christiansburg is on record for acknowledging its Town Charter and Town Code are grossly out of date, but Chapter 30 - Zoning, Article XIV - General Industrial District I-2 currently has a couple of phrases which permit council to look at some issues which may otherwise be allowed by-right. Section 30-113 informs the public when industries have characteristics likely to produce serious adverse effects within or beyond the limits of the district, these may require a public hearing at the discretion of the town manager.
Section 30-114, addresses generally permitted uses including concrete products or central mixing and proportioning plants. When in doubt, the town manager may require an engineering report describing the process or use. If any doubts remain, then it is referred to the council for a decision after a public hearing.
Over the past year, this clause has been used on two other occasions. One was relative to the county Board of Supervisors' asking the town to abandon their own Comprehensive Plan, allowing an I-2 General Industrial area to remain unchanged rather than conforming to the Future Land Use Map. Another was relative to a questionable business locating adjacent to a historic district (en route to the new aquatic center), and the potential for environmental problems that could impact Crab Creek.
So while the public hearing had several speakers who said they rely on established concrete-related companies operating in Montgomery County for their livelihoods, council may have forgotten the matter pertained to zoning issues. There was no discussion or question about environmental concerns relative to these existing companies, but it was noted Boxley Concrete used state-of-the-art technology. It was also unfortunate that, once again, a new home buyer in the area had received mis-information. A speaker indicated he was told the industiral park was light industrial, or I-1 zoning. This echoed poor understanding of home buyers in cul-de-sacs who didn't know their quiet roads may be slated to become major neighborhood thoroughfares in the future.
Another echo may have been creating a perception about possible conflicts of interest. One opponent was a former appointee to both the Planning Commission and council. Dan Canada had previously served on the PC, probably when the town was developing this industrial park, and as recently as July 2009. He was chairman of the Planning Commission in 2002, and completed Richard Ballengee's unfilled term on the town council from Sept 2006 until August 2008. According to public records filed with the State Corporation Commission, Canada was a principal in Marshall Concrete up until the summer of 2008. He talked about dust and jobs and traffic, but not about zoning.
And council was convinced (watch the video of this meeting here). Only Councilman Henry Showalter questioned the prevailing rationale of protecting existing business, quoting "Being a single seller, by itself, is not good, nor evil -- it depends on how one obtained that single-seller status. Did one obtain a monopoly by economic competition in the marketplace, or did one obtain it by political pull, i.e., lobbying? If such status is gained by competition in the free-market then the ‘monopoly’ -- the successful business -- is good. If such status is gained by using the government, or Mafia, to force one's competition out of business, then the monopoly is evil."
He pointed out existing tenants in the industrial park enjoyed no special covenants, and landowners had purchased lots based upon an expectation of use related to zoning. Showalter concluded by stating "Any job loss or gain is only speculation right now. If council is concerned about speculative job loss, consider it also for retail businesses like Target, Kmart, Best Buy or other mall stores prior to allowing Sam’s Club to open," followed by his vote to oppose denial of an industry within an area so zoned.
This conversation -- and vote -- made it somewhat clearer on why there is no WTOC and limited cable choices for town residents, a single funeral home, and several other "industries" that enjoy little or no competition in Christiansburg. This is deemed business friendly?
Post script: Read related editorial here and news article here.