Editors’ note: This story was updated on Oct. 22 to correct the wording of a quote by Tina Miller.
Lexington City Council voted 4-3 to let Washington and Lee University rent out another downtown property Thursday night. Mayor Frank Friedman cast the tie-breaking vote.
The other three votes in favor came from council members married to university employees. Council members Leslie Straughan, Chuck Smith and David Sigler each acknowledged a conflict of interest but said still they could vote objectively.
Some community members were not convinced. During the public hearing period, Michael Perry of Lexington said the trio should recuse themselves. All three declined to do so.
The issue at hand was the Rockbridge Building on South Main Street, which is owned and under renovation by property developer John Adamson, according to a report from City Council. The building currently contains a few retail stores on its main level, Adamson said. But he said it has been mostly empty for the past 15 years.
Adamson wants to lease out much of the remaining space to W&L for administrative offices. At the City Council meeting Thursday night, he said that the project will benefit Lexington.
“It will be new, updated, safe,” he said. “We believe that that’s a good thing.”
But first, City Council had to approve a Conditional Use Permit allowing an educational facility to rent part of the building.
It is not the first time Adamson has purchased property and leased it to the university. At the same meeting, City Council voted unanimously to renew a different Conditional Use Permit for Adamson’s 2 S. Main St., which means Washington and Lee can continue to hold office space there. The building houses the university’s business office, treasurer’s office and human resources department.
The university’s spread into downtown Lexington evoked fears from some community members. Tina Miller of Rockbridge County called the trend a “creep” at the Thursday meeting.
The university’s “encroaching more into downtown would have adverse impacts,” Miller said. “Once this is allowed, there is no going back.”
She cited the need for diverse restaurants and retail outlets to attract visitors and claimed university dining venues like the Hillel House’s E. Cafe compete with local eateries. She also said the loss of space for small businesses could drive up rent prices.
Perry echoed many of her arguments. He also said that the Rockbridge Building could be used as affordable housing rather than another office space.
“We are allowing housing to be taken away,” Perry said.
Straughan said this was an oversimplification. She pointed out that housing downtown is actually quite expensive.
“It’s not affordable housing,” Straughan said. “I don’t think we should fool ourselves.”
Parking also raised concerns. Early in the meeting, City Council heard from representatives from the Parking Enforcement Committee, a group of local business owners and employees frustrated by inconsistent parking enforcement. They said enforcement has been better lately but that it should still be prioritized more.
Perry pointed out that bringing more university employees downtown will not help matters. And, as Adamson later confirmed, the renovations to the Rockbridge Building involved removing spaces from a lot behind the building.
“Right there, we’re already at a net loss of parking,” Perry said.
But Adamson said the new lease agreement would only increase the number of building occupants by a small amount. And he said that there might be other parking options available. For instance, university employees could park on campus and then walk downtown.
“With a collaborative approach,” Adamson said, “we can solve the parking concerns.”
But Council Member Nicholas Betts said the parking issue influenced his vote. “There’s gonna be more people, there’s gonna be less spaces, and we’re already having problems with parking,” he said.
Betts cast one of the three dissenting votes. He was joined by council members Marylin Alexander and J. Charles Aligood. Alexander cited a desire to focus on the economy and preserving small businesses, while Aligood did not explain his decision.
On the affirmative side, Straughan said the new lease will increase foot traffic from university employees and benefit local businesses. Sigler pointed to Adamson’s positive impact on the community. He said projects like the Rockbridge Building renovation preserve historic architecture by installing new safety measures, including sprinklers.
Smith, meanwhile, looked to remain objective by focusing on the impact of the building rather than the user.
“The fact that it’s W&L is a distraction,” he said. He added that the language of the permit only specifies use by an “educational facility,” meaning other colleges like Virginia Military Institute could also rent out offices in theory.
“I don’t care how they’re used,” Smith said. “These offices will put more people downtown.”
