Welcome > Project Overview > Amenities Overview

Roanoke has spent the last decade investing heavily into the Carilion Innovation Corridor, building one of the strongest healthcare and education ecosystems in the region.

What’s missing isn’t infrastructure; it’s lifestyle integration.

We’re proposing to transform a currently condemned 38,000-square-foot property along the Roanoke River Greenway into a shared wellness community hub, a space that brings together fitness, education, healthcare, and local business into one unified environment.

This site is uniquely positioned. It sits at one of the busiest intersections in the city, with direct access to U.S. Route 220, and is physically embedded within Rivers Edge Park and the Greenway system.

Within five minutes, you have thousands of Carilion employees, students from Radford University and Virginia Tech, and a strong base of health-conscious consumers already supporting businesses like Earth Fare, Fresh Market, and multiple boutique fitness studios.

What doesn’t exist today is a centralized, multi-use wellness destination that ties all of that together.

This project would include boutique fitness studios, classroom space for university-led wellness programs, a locally driven café in partnership with Covenant Coffee, nutrition and recovery services, and flexible community and event space, all integrated directly into the Greenway experience.

It’s not just a gym, it’s an urban wellness retreat designed to serve healthcare workers, students, residents, and visitors every single day.

From an economic standpoint, this activates a distressed property, supports small businesses, increases daily foot traffic, and strengthens Roanoke’s identity as a health and outdoor-focused city.

This is a project that aligns directly with the city’s existing investments and fills a gap that currently doesn’t exist in the market.

MARKET, LOCATION + ECOMOMIC ANALYSIS | GREENWAY HABITAT, ROANOKES WELLNEES HUB

Layering a missing lifestyle component into an already funded growth engine.

The proposed development sits within one of the most active and intentionally developed districts in Roanoke, the Carilion Innovation Corridor, anchored by:

• Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital

• Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine

• Radford University Carilion

Over the past decade, this corridor has received hundreds of millions in public-private investment, positioning it as:

• A healthcare and biomedical hub

• A student and research-driven ecosystem

• One of the fastest-growing economic zones in the city

This is not a building near the Greenway...This is infrastructure that becomes part of the Greenway experience.

The site is uniquely embedded within:

• Rivers Edge Park

• Smith Park

• Roanoke River Greenway

• Wiley Drive recreational corridor

This creates something rare:

A commercial wellness hub that is physically integrated into a park system

Competitive Advantage:

• Outdoor + indoor hybrid fitness model

• Natural foot and bike traffic

• Destination appeal for:

  • Locals

  • Tourists

  • Events

Within a walkable and 3-minute drive radius, the site is surrounded by high-performing, wellness-aligned businesses.

Retail + Food + Wellness Cluster

• Earth Fare (health grocery anchor)

• First Watch (premium breakfast/health-forward dining)

• Mellow Mushroom

• The Fresh Market

• CAVA

• Tropical Smoothie Cafe

Fitness & Wellness Benchmarks Nearby

• Club Pilates

• HOTWORX

• Planet Fitness

Local Culture Anchors

• Sweet Donkey Coffee

• Fork in the Market

What the data tells us

This area already supports:

• Premium-priced fitness concepts

• Health-conscious dining

• Boutique experiences

Conclusion:

The market is not unproven, it is undersupplied in integrated, multi-use wellness environments.

Directly across from the site:

• SpringHill Suites by Marriott Roanoke

Tourism Implications:

• Business travelers (Carilion, conferences)

• Greenway cyclists and outdoor visitors

• Event attendees

Opportunity:

• Day passes

• Coffee + recovery stop

• Event hosting

• Wellness tourism positioning

Primary User Bases:

Healthcare Workforce

• Thousands of employees from Carilion Clinic

• Long shifts → high demand for:

  • Recovery

  • Stress relief

  • Convenient wellness access

Students & Academic Population

• Virginia Tech

• Radford University

• Medical and health science students nearby

Office + Professional Class

• Nearby business complexes and office space

• Remote + hybrid workers

Key Insight:

This is one of the few areas in Roanoke where you have:

• High-income professionals

• Students

• Healthcare workers

• Tourists

All within the same 5-minute radius

1. Demand is already proven

• Existing fitness + wellness businesses thriving nearby

2. Location is unmatched

• Greenway + hospital + retail + highway access

3. User density is unusually high

• Medical staff + students + professionals + tourists

4. Product gap exists

• No integrated, shared wellness campus in Roanoke

5. City alignment

• Fits directly into:

  • Health initiatives

  • Economic development

  • Outdoor branding

A core component of the Roanoke Greenway Habitat is the intentional integration of public safety infrastructure directly into the development itself. Rather than treating safety as an afterthought, the project is designed to create a visible, community-oriented environment that promotes:

• Public trust

• Greenway safety

• Emergency accessibility

• Active community engagement

• Crime reduction through activation and visibility

Dedicated Emergency Vehicle Parking

• The site plan includes multiple designated emergency access and staging areas strategically positioned throughout the property.

Proposed Features:

• Dedicated EMS parking adjacent to the primary Franklin Road entrance

• Emergency pull-through access lanes

• Roundabout maneuvering system for:

  • Ambulances

  • Fire apparatus

  • Police vehicles

• Secondary emergency access points connected to Wiley Drive and Greenway pathways

Public Safety Vehicle Staging Area

A newly designed parking and circulation area would include:

• Reserved Roanoke Police Department parking

• EMS overflow capacity

• Temporary event emergency operations staging

• Community event response capability

The roundabout circulation system allows:

• Faster emergency response times

• Easier vehicle turning radius

• Reduced traffic congestion during events

• Safer pedestrian movement

Proposed On-Site RPD Presence

The project proposes a dedicated: Roanoke Police Department Community Safety Kiosk

This would serve as:

• A visible public safety anchor

• Community engagement station

• Officer wellness/rest stop

• Greenway patrol support location

• Bicycle patrol checkpoint

• Community policing hub

Strategic Importance of Location

The development site sits between:

• Rivers Edge Park

• Smith Park

• Roanoke River Greenway

• The growing Carilion Clinic innovation corridor

This creates a unique opportunity for:

• Increased patrol visibility

• Rapid emergency access

• Enhanced park and Greenway monitoring

• Stronger officer/community interaction

“Activation Reduces Crime”

One of the strongest urban planning principles supporting this proposal is:

Highly active public spaces naturally discourage criminal activity.

This project dramatically increases:

• Daily foot traffic

• Evening activity

• Community presence

• Recreational engagement

• Positive use of public space

Proposed Safety Features:

• SMART surveillance systems

• Emergency call stations

• Integrated lighting systems

• Greenway monitoring cameras

• Outdoor event security infrastructure

• Access-controlled operational areas

The RPD kiosk is envisioned not as a traditional “police station,” but as: A community-integrated safety hub

Potential features:

• Public seating

• Information desk

• Bike patrol operations

• Water/rest stop

• Safety outreach programming

• Community wellness partnerships

This aligns with modern:

• Community policing

• Urban activation

• Public trust-building initiatives

Safer public environments directly improve:

• Tourism

• Property values

• Retail activity

• Event attendance

• Outdoor recreation usage

• Institutional investment confidence

This proposal therefore supports:

• Economic growth

• Public safety

• Healthcare integration

• Outdoor recreation development

• Community engagement

simultaneously.

The Roanoke Greenway Habitat aims to become:

• A wellness destination

• A community gathering space

• A Greenway anchor

• A public safety partner

• A model for sustainable urban redevelopment

Most importantly:

It transforms an underutilized and condemned property into an active, monitored, community-centered environment designed around health, safety, recreation, and civic engagement.