Blenheim, the 500-acre, mixed-use development project proposed by Pat Robertson and the Christian Broadcasting network, has hit a speed bump: The Federal Highway Administration has rejected an interchange on Interstate 64 that would provide interstate access to the development. Deirdre Fernandes with the Virginian-Pilot has the details.
Federal engineers, writes Fernandes, aren’t convinced that the interchange would alleviate increased traffic resulting from the new development and the already congested interchanges at nearby Indian River Road and Greenbrier Parkway.
The federal agency also disputes VDOT’s projection that traffic in the area will increase only 3 to 5 percent by 2028 without the Blenheim project. Federal planners estimate a 20 to 25 percent growth in traffic, and under those circumstances the new interchange would cause gridlock on I-64, [FTA official Michael] Canavan said.
“In 20 years you don’t want to basically have a parking lot out there,” Canavan said. “From a design standpoint, it’s a tough place to put an interchange.”
CBN officials insist that the interchange eventually will win approval. The parallel road system suggested by the feds would cost $100 million — nearly $38 million more than the interchange, said CBN consultant Lowell Morse.
Update: Lowell Morse, the CBN consultant, has apologized for characterizing a FTA official as a “stumbling block” to the interchange project.