Board OKs Greenway bridge plan
By Frank Ruggiero

The town of Boone’s leadership likes to build bridges.  This time, it’s being done in the literal sense.

Last Thursday, the Boone Board of Adjustment approved a special use permit (SUP) application for the town to replace the footbridge on the Greenway trail washed out by the floods from hurricanes Frances and Ivan.

The SUP was required because the area is located in the floodway. The bridge crossed the South Fork of the New River. According to the Boone Development Services staff report, the bridge, known as the third bridge on the Greenway, has been damaged by flood waters five times and was secured with a cable to prevent it from drifting downstream.

The town intends to replace the bridge, which was made of wood and 3.5 feet wide, with a prefabricated structure with abutments to be secured to bedrock.

While the old bridge had a center support, Blake Brown, director of Boone Public Works, told the board that the new bridge will not feature this, preventing any clogging from debris.

Brown said the new bridge will be 9 feet wide, allowing emergency vehicles access, and that it will be handicapped accessible, meeting Americans with Disabilities Act specifications. Sides of the bridge will be elevated to prevent people from falling off, he said.

George Cole, planning supervisor, told the board that the project will incorporate hydraulic studs, and that a hydraulic report was required to do so. He said the town submitted a hydraulic report and no-rise certification, meaning the project will not result in any impact on flood elevations.

“Further, since the project will be a stronger bridge, there will be reduced chance of damage to the bridge and less debris being displaced by floodwaters,” the staff report reads. “This will be an improvement to the flood-carrying capability of the river.”

In voting, the board unanimously found that the application was complete, that it complied with all applicable requirements of the town’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO), and that the permit would be granted provided the town followed one condition, the condition being that approval is subject to the town’s application and the hydraulic report prepared by Vaugh and Melton Consulting Engineers.

In other matters, Cole told the board that impending changes to the UDO, approved in November by the Boone Town Council, will affect the board of adjustment. Cole told board members that in the past, if a member of the board had to recuse his or herself from a vote and an alternate could not be found, request approval had to be done by a 7-0 vote.

Under the new text, Cole explained, if a member disqualifies himself or herself, a four-fifths vote would be permissible. In the past, he continued, a member had to ask the board’s permission for recusal, while under the new text, the vote isn’t necessary unless the board member refuses to recuse his or herself.

Cole said there were additional changes that make several provisions of the board’s rules of procedure obsolete.

He also reminded board members that it will be time to elect officers at the January meeting. Due to business commitments, board chairman Jerry Kirksey will resign from his position, Cole said, meaning the board will have to elect a new chair and vice chair in January.

Board member Earl Keller moved to authorize town attorney Sam Furgiuele to amend the rules of procedure to reflect the changes in the UDO, and the board voted unanimously in favor.

• Frank Ruggiero may be contacted at ruggiero@wataugademocrat.com.