'Reimagine Hollins' draft plans set for public hearing

The Hollins area of Roanoke County could soon be getting a major facelift.

“We have such a high, strong concentration of businesses in that area, as well as residents, it’s one of the highest population bases in the county,” said Roanoke Co. Director of Economic Development Jill Loope.

Over the past two years, the county has been gathering input from the community and developing plans to make Hollins a more bike- and pedestrian-friendly environment with a mixture of housing and commercial retail options.

“We’ve really been trying to get in front of the community and make sure that their values are aligning with some of our county priorities,” said Roanoke County Principal Planner Bailey Howard-DuBois.

This draft of 'Reimagine Hollins' plans call for a new and improved library, increased trails and greenways, improved intersections along Peters Creek Road at Williamson and Plantation Roads.

“We have some existing transportation projects in the Hollins area right now, which means it’s really important to make sure that we’re connecting to those projects,” said Howard-DuBois.

While these plans are not set in stone, they will provide a framework for county planners for the next two decades.

“We envision Hollins Center as a walkable, mixed use, active community center. We want people to want to come there to visit, to stay and eat, and have some source of entertainment and then be able to ride their bikes home,” said Howard-DuBois.

The Roanoke County Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on these plans March 17 at 7 p.m.

After that, the Board of Supervisors will hold a work session and a public hearing of their own before taking a final vote on the plans.