Opponents Turn Out for Meeting on Proposed Truck Stop

MEADOWVIEW, Va. – More than 80 people arrived at the fire hall Thursday for the first of two public information meetings about the truck stop proposed for Exit 24.

Rick Shuffield, director of real estate and development for Love’s, provided some details and answered questions in an effort, he said, to eliminate unfounded fears about the Love’s Travel Stop and Country Store project.

Displaying plans and a drawing of the proposed facility, he said it would cost between $7 million and $8 million to build and could open as early as next year, drawing 400 trucks and more than 1,200 cars each day.

The complaints and questions were varied, but most of the people who spoke Thursday opposed the project.

“Do you see how nice and quiet the community is here? Well, that will stop when the truck stop comes in here,” said Doris Quintana, of Meadowview, who volunteers at Meadowview Elementary School less than three-tenths of a mile from the proposed site.

“I’ve been in the traffic jam up at that Petro [Exit 29 truck stop] … it’s non-stop 24 hours a day,” said Jim Tracy, of Emory, who has three grandchildren attending the school. “I think what you’re doing here is bringing risk to every child that rides a school bus up and down that road. And I don’t think it’s fair to do that to this community or these children.”

On the flip side, Tom Wilcox, of Meadowview, spent 44 years as a truck driver – and he said the truck stop here would help the community.

“We need it in this area because this area’s dead,” Wilcox said. “We need jobs here badly.”

Shuffield said the facility would provide between 50 and 70 jobs – and would remain an employer here for 40 or 50 years.

“Trains go by here every day. You get more noise from a train than you would a truck,” said Susie Becker, of Glade Spring, who pointed out that trucks bring products to all the stores where people shop.

Shuffield answered questions about the effect of runoff on pasture land by saying all water from the site will stay on the site, where it will be collected in a retention pond and filtered.

Steve Fisher, who represents the area on the Washington County Planning Commission, was concerned the project would max out the development potential around Exit 24 without major rebuilding of the interchange; Shuffield said that was untrue.

When Fred Hebard, who works at the chestnut research farm in between the site and the school, said he’s concerned about “drug dealers, hookers and so forth,” Shuffield called the crime issue “an industry-wide perception problem.”

Most of the concerns raised, however, were about the site’s proximity to the school, from traffic and school bus safety to the effect of diesel fumes on the playground and disruptive noise during the school day.

Shuffield said laws and technology have eliminated much of the harmful emissions and how the site is situated will mean “negligible” noise pollution. Also, he said, the traffic issues will be mitigated with road improvements and traffic lights.

“The stark reality is this is an Interstate location,” Shuffield said. “The vast majority of the property is commercial, and there will be development here whether it’s us or somebody else.”

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