Public offers input on Southern Gateway, Falmouth

FALMOUTH — A Falmouth and Southern Gateway Area Public Workshop was conducted Monday evening at Belmont.

The meeting was an effort to gather public input on priorities concerning the redevelopment of the Falmouth “Village” and the U.S. 17 corridor near Interstate 95.

Should Falmouth Village and Southern Gateway be combined? If so, where? What do you like most about Falmouth village? What do you like least?

A recap on the “vision” plan of 2006 was presented. Following that was a consultant’s findings regarding “cultural, market-economic, infrastructure, and transportation issues” and a PowerPoint presentation by John Crouse, chief operation officer at CMSS Architects.

Later, several groups looked over maps and defined both Southern Gateway and the Falmouth areas. They identified “challenges, strengths, and opportunities” on those maps.

One group identified Falmouth’s strengths as its historical landmarks. Members of the group saw the biggest hindrance in the Falmouth area as the intersection at U.S.17 and U.S. 1, and felt that any improvements done at that section would be a detriment to the aesthetic appeal of the area.

Some discussed the possibility of a traffic circle as an alternative.

Crouse stated that the historical appeal of the Falmouth area has “been hampered by private ownership that has altered properties enough to make them less viable as historic structures.”

He suggested alternative uses for Falmouth properties, such as overnight spaces for visiting artists to the University of Mary Washington and galleries.

Another problem with Falmouth is the flood plain, he said. Amy’s Café sits nearly in the middle of it. Using that structure as a frame of reference, the flood plain sits at about its second floor. Because of this, new construction is prohibitive, though renovation of existing properties is not.

But, Falmouth tourism’s monthly average numbers 15,000-30,000 per month, August being its peak month, he noted.

In contrast to Falmouth, there are no “historical structures” in the Southern Gateway sector. It is presently about 35 percent commercial space. Industrial space is expected to quadruple by 2010 and another 540,000 square feet of retail space is expected by 2012.

A “visual preference survey” was completed as participants viewed photographs of buildings to determine what they preferred as architectural preferences.

Regarding the U.S. 17 area, Crouse envisioned buildings being replaced and built closer to the highway with parking in the back of the buildings, making U.S. 17 a “grand boulevard.” The area would enjoy open spaces and would be “pedestrian friendly,” something it lacks at the present moment.

Kathy Baker, a county employee, said that effects of today’s changes may take “20 to 30 years to see.”

Jim Lawrence is a contributing writer at the Stafford County Sun. Reach him at info@staffordcountysun.com.