City must act to reel in investors

The News Virginian / News Virginian
Published: February 10, 2008

The plans unveiled last week by Waynesboro's land-use consultant to transform the city's downtown core and riverfront district offers a level of vision that long has been lacking in the River City. A conference center, hotel and retreat off Route 250 entering town would provide a gateway not only into Waynesboro but also into a robust economy that could fuel Waynesboro for decades to come.

The rub is in realizing the vision. Already, we have heard reasonable skepticism from at-large Councilman Frank Lucente. "Plans are one thing, but you have to have somebody to make the investment," Lucente told The News Virginian's Jimmy LaRoue, "and before people make investments, they have to have a return on investments."

Lucente is correct. The dynamic plans presented by Charlotte, N.C.-based LandDesign to the city planning commission would cost millions of dollars to implement, and the city already expects to pay on debt of almost $70 million over the next 20 years.

More important, Lucente also is correct about the need to reel in what he referred to as "some big player to do some of these things." This, however, should not translate to city officials sitting idly by awaiting the proverbial manna - or in this case, Lucente's "big player" - to descend from heaven.

The task for the city is not to find money it does not have but to find people with pockets deep enough and vision strong enough to see the great financial promise of a transformed Waynesboro. To do that, we suggest, the city needs to identify one of its own as the point person for finding investors and selling them on the real potential that lies along the South River and in downtown.

Among the more telling models for growth provided by LandDesign is Pittsburgh's Lawrenceville section. A decade ago, boarded windows lined Lawrenceville's streets, crime had seeped in along with the decay and property values had dwindled.

Now, the neighborhood is vibrant, businesses have taken up residence on the main thoroughfare, old homes are being restored and hope has been renewed in a place where it had long since been lost. Similar success stories abound, not only in cases where LandDesign has played a part, but also in towns large and small where the gaze of visionaries pierced the decline and ostensible despair.

With retail already pumping life into the west end, plenty of nearby recreational attractions and strong growth in neighboring communities such as Stuarts Draft and Fishersville, Waynesboro is further ahead than many of its counterparts. The challenges Lucente cites are real, but not insurmountable. We urge our city leaders to get started on the serious business of overcoming those challenges.

That starts with appointing someone to lead the charge. We eagerly anticipate the city's next move.