Seeing the Light in Grundy, Virginia

By Patrick Miller, PhD, FASLA, FCELA, and Hooman Koliji

The rock cliff (top) will be lit with a series of flood and spotlights manipulated from a control center at an overlook at the base of bridge tower. Residents and visitors will be able turn the lights off and on, change the intensity of the lights, change colors and direct the location of the spot lights on the rock wall from the control center.

Grundy, Virginia, located in the heart of Appalachia, was in dire need of some creative ideas about what to do with a large, unsightly rock wall that was created when a level building site was cut from the side of a mountain. The building site is the location to rebuild a portion of the downtown outside of the flood plain. The development of a plan to use lights to turn an ugly rock wall into something beautiful was a pro-bono effort undertaken by the Land Design and Simulation Lab at Virginia Tech, and was the direct result of ASLA’s Lobby Day.

Above and Below: The plan calls for a series of laser lights strategically located around the site for light shows on the 4th of July, Heritage Days, festivals, fairs and other special occasions.

Lobby Day is an annual event during which the ASLA’s Board of Trustees and chapter presidents from around the country visit their congressmen and senators on Capitol Hill. The purpose of Lobby Day is to encourage support for legislation that will have a positive impact on the environment and people, as well as raise legislator’s awareness of landscape architecture. When meeting with their congressmen or senators, Lobby Day participants were encouraged to offer assistance to their legislators in landscape-related matters. Terry Clements, ASLA, and Patrick Miller, FASLA, both faculty members at Virginia Tech, did exactly that when the meet with their congressman, Rep. Rick Boucher, Democrat, 9th District, Virginia. He responded by asking if they would take a look at the “wall” in Grundy and provide some ideas on how to make it more attractive. Lobby Day is a wonderful way to participate in our country’s democracy!

The Town of Grundy, Va.

As one drives to Grundy in southwest Virginia it is easy to see why parts of Appalachia remained isolated until the early part of the last century. It is an extremely old and dissected landscape, carved over the millennia by small streams and rivers, the result being very little level land. An important coal mining region, communities were typically built along streams. Grundy grew up along the Levisa River. This unfortunately made Grundy susceptible to flooding. A particularly devastating flood occurred in 1977. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Virginia Department of Transportation teamed to develop a $28.8 million flood proofing plan called for the creation of a 13-acre flood-safe redevelopment site, carved out of the adjacent hillside to replace a portion of the town that was in the flood plain and could not be protected in other way. Enough earth and rock were removed to fill 68 football fields to a height of 20 feet.

Unfortunately, it also created a 240-feet high rock wall or cliff behind the redevelopment site.

To tie the redevelopment to the historic town district, a series of strategically positioned sculptural light features is proposed. There would be two major light features anchoring each end of the linear unifying element, one at the historic downtown area and the other at the top of the rock wall.

Initially the project was conceived of as placing colored lights on the rock wall. However, when the design team visited the site it was clear more was needed. While the new location is safe from flood waters, it also presents some challenges for the town. An older, historic section of the town outside of the flood plain is now cut off from the redevelopment site by the river and Highway 460. The flood control plan did not provide pedestrian connections between the redeveloped district and the old, historic district. In addition, the river bank had riprap and was not aesthetically pleasing.

This plan shows the road relocation and the unifying concept of a proposed pedestrian and lighted visual axis to the new business district for Grundy, Va.

The design team saw several potential opportunities to use light in ways that was more than a mere superficial treatment of the rock wall. Could the lighting be dynamic? Could the light change during the year to mark certain cultural and natural events? Could light be used to reveal something about the natural or cultural heritage of the site? Could residents and visitors interact with the lights, as a part of an interpretive interactive lighting display? If so, could this be an attraction for tourists and an opportunity for local residents celebrate important occasions? Lastly, could the river be turned into a more aesthetically pleasing feature in the landscape?

A pedestrian suspension bridge would unite the historic downtown with the redevelopment area. The lighting plan calls for interactive light controls located at the crossing of highway 460 and the river. The main tower will be the lighting focal point. The lights will change according to the seasons. Other lights will go on and off to reflect the level of the river. Lastly, the lights on the tower will change to reflect certain special occasions during the year. This central light feature on the bridge tower will always be changing, providing passerbys with something new to look at.

The proposed lighting plan, really more of concept, had five key components: 1) a unifying element that consists of a linear series of lights along a pedestrian walkway that visually ties the historic district to the redevelopment district; 2) a centrally located, sculptural light feature that will become the focal point in the town and contain lights that will mark changes in the river’s water level and the seasons; 3) lighting to enhance a proposed river promenade; 4) dynamic lighting of the cliff and 5) a laser light exhibit.

The third key component of the lighting plan is a river promenade along both sides of the Levisa River as it runs through Grundy. The promenade will be a series of pedestrian walks, viewpoints and soft, low-level outdoor lighting.

To tie the redeveloped district to the historic district of town a series of strategically positioned sculptural light features was proposed. There would be two major light features anchoring each end of the linear unifying element, one at the historic downtown area and the other at the top of the rock wall.

To make a shelf for the new town site, enough earth and rock were removed to fill 68 football fields to a height of 20 feet, but creating a 240-ft. eyesore above the redevelopment site. At first, it was conceived to place colored lights on the rock wall, but when the design team visited the site it was clear more was needed.

Dispersed between these will be smaller features similar in character and design to tie the features into a linear, visual element in the landscape. The lights will be part of a pedestrian walkway connecting the two areas of town. A pedestrian bridge will be located where this linear feature crosses highway 460 and the river. The bridge will be a suspension bridge. The main tower that supports the bridge is the sculptural element that will become the focal point for the town (the second key component of the plan). Lights on this focal point will change to reflect three types of time. The first is seasonal change. The color of the lights will change during the different seasons of the year (winter, spring, summer and fall). In addition other lights go on and off to reflect the level of the water in the river. Lastly, the lights on the tower will change to reflect certain special occasions during the year. This central light feature (bridge tower) is dynamic and always changing, providing the passer by, whether on foot or in an automobile, with something new to look at.

The trail system concept would offer sitting shelters and overlooks constructed along benches in the lit rock cliff.

The third key component of the lighting plan is a river promenade along both sides of the river as it runs through Grundy. The promenade will consist of a series of pedestrian walks, viewpoints and outdoor lighting. The lighting along the promenade will be soft, low- level lighting. The promenade will attempt to turn the river’s channel into a town amenity.

Above and Below: A key component of the plan is a river promenade along both sides of the river through Grundy with soft, low-level accent lighting.

The rock cliff will be lit with a series of flood and spotlights. This is the fourth component of the plan. The lights will be manipulated from a control center at an overlook at the base of bridge tower. Residents and visitors will be able turn the lights off and on, change the intensity of the lights, change colors and direct the location of the spot lights on the rock wall from the control center. It is anticipated this will become an evening tourist attraction. The geologic and coal mining history of the region would be told using a series of interactive lights connected to interpretive displays at the control center.

The last component of the plan is a series of laser lights that would be strategically located around the site and can be orchestrated into a light show. It is anticipated that light shows would occur during the 4th of July, Heritage Days, festivals, fairs and other special occasions.

Terry Clements, ASLA, and Patrick Miller, FASLA, both faculty members at Virginia Tech, meet their congressman, Rep. Rick Boucher (D-9th District, Va.) at a Lobby Day in D.C. The congressman asked if they would take a look at the “wall” in Grundy and provide some ideas on how to make it more attractive.
Photo courtesy of C. Crabtree

It is anticipated that the ideas presented in the lighting plan will provide inspiration for Grundy to seek funding for design refinement and implementation of the lighting plan. Grundy will truly be a unique place and tourist destination in Southwest Virginia.

The historic town of Grundy, Virginia in the heart of Appalachia as it looked before it was decided to relocate part of the downtown across the river and uphill on a shelf away from the flood plain.
Photo courtesy of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington District

About the authors

Patrick Miller, FASLA is an associate dean for graduate studies and outreach and a professor in the landscape architecture program, School of Architecture + Design, College of Architecture and Urban Studies, Virginia Tech.

Hooman Koliji is a PhD student in the architecture and design research program, School of Architecture + Design, College of Architecture and Urban Studies, Virginia Tech.