Planning Building and Development
City Market District Plan
The City Market District Plan is available on this site and for purchase in the Planning, Building & Economic Development main office, room 166. Spiral bound copies are 100 pp. full color, 11" X 17" and are available for $25 to cover the cost of printing. The plan is available on the links below. Due to the graphics the entire plan is not likely to be downloaded with a dial-up internet connection. If you have a dial-up connection it is recommended that you download individual chapters as needed.
About the Plan
Background of the Planning Process
Download the Plan
The plan is organized into four sections:
Introduction
General Recommendations
Special Projects
Appendix
The links below allow you to download the entire plan, each of the four sections of the plan, or individual sub-chapters (Note:each section is large and will be very slow to download if using a dial-up internet connection) :
Download the entire City Market District Plan
Introduction
GeneralRecommendations
Special Projects
Appendix
About the Plan
The Roanoke City Market District is the geographic and social focal point of the Roanoke Valley. It is recognized as one of the best public spaces in America and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register. Revitalization of the City Market began in the late 1970s and early 80s with the Design ‘79 plan. The Market is a great success story of urban revitalization, but it is now time to make a great place even better.
The planning team of SFCS and Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co. (DPZ) was selected to lead the planning effort. SFCS is a local firm with many years of experience working in Roanoke, with specific experience working on improvements to the City Market area. The other half of the team, DPZ, is world-renowned for its progressive planning ideas and respect for unique urban public spaces.
A great plan is not created in a vacuum; it needs the input of the people who use the space most often. Citizens, especially those who live or work in the Market District on a daily basis or visit frequently, know the issues and have great ideas to share. This plan benefited greatly from the input recieved from a wide variety of people who attended the public workshops. Thanks to all that attended!
Background of the Planning Process
During the week of October 2, 2005, the planning and design firm of Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co. (DPZ) and Roanoke design firm SFCS held a series of intensive design workshops to come up with a new plan for the City Market District. City Market Building tenants, downtown business and property owners, Farmer’s Market vendors, real estate professionals, and the general public provided input during the design workshops. Based on this input, DPZ and SFCS developed the following ideas for the Roanoke City Market District:
- Turn the Market Building Inside-Out: Move the food court seating to the perimeter of the building, where retractable glass doors will allow diners to see and be seen from the street. During summer months, the doors can be opened to allow for additional sidewalk dining. Current interior seating space can be transformed into new vendor locations.
- Move Farmer’s Market Stalls to Center of Market Street: Move the market stalls to the center of Market Street to invigorate the streetscape and increase space for vendors and shoppers. Additional sidewalk dining can be added along both sides of the street and limited street traffic would be allowed during certain parts of the day. Farmers and vendors would be given dedicated parking in the Century Station Parking Garage.
- Add 2nd Story Balconies to Market District Buildings: Add “French-Quarter” balconies along the second story of the Market Building and Center in the Square to be used for outdoor dining and performances. The balconies would be designed to enhance the building façade and increase the feeling of street-building interacting.
- Improve Century Station Façade and Add Residential Floors: Transform the Century Station Parking Garage façade by adding appropriate architectural details. Rearrange the current parking configuration to add a main floor retail space, and add four additional stories of residential units.
- Construct a Staircase from the Hotel Bridge to Downtown: Construct an inviting staircase adjoining the downtown end of the existing pedestrian bridge that leads from the Hotel Roanoke to create a European style entrance into the Market District.
- Market District Marketing/Leasing Plan: Work with Market District participants to develop a marketing plan to share with prospective retail tenants.
A series of follow-up workshops were held on November 3 and 4 at the offices of SFCS, Inc. (305 S. Jefferson St.). The workshops focused on four groups:
Property Owners and Realtors
Farmers Market Vendors
Market Building Tenants
Retailers/Restaurants
Based on the input recorded in these workshops, the planning team tweaked the ideas noted above and DPZ drafted the plan, complete with photographs, illustrations, and historic references.
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