After realizing the city will have a funding gap of $13.5 million for a roundabout project at the intersection of Richmond and Greenville avenues, Staunton is reconsidering options.
Staunton City Council received an update on options at its regular meeting Thursday night and will continue to consider a two-lane roundabout or a one-lane roundabout or just making improvements and creating an alternative intersection.
Staunton received Virginia Department of Transportation SMART Scale funding of $2,245,805 for a two-lane roundabout at the intersection in 2016. However, in November 2024, a new estimate of the project from VDOT came in at $15.8 million, a funding gap of $13.5 million for the city. In February 2025, when VDOT came back with $7.8 million in funding for a single-lane roundabout, some of the funding was in question.
“They are definitely in question,” said Staunton City Manager Leslie Beauregard Thursday night.
VDOT’s $7.8 million is only an estimate of what a single-lane roundabout would cost. The city still has $2.25 million coming from SMART Scale funding.
“But they’ve confirmed that the additional funding would only be, that VDOT could provide through this right now is $1.15 million,” said Staunton City Engineer Lyle Hartt. “So, do the math, the total funding [VDOT] would provide for the roundabout would be $3.4 million.”
The updated funding would create a funding gap of $4.4 million for the city.
“So, if we’re to proceed with the roundabout, obviously we need to figure out where are we going to come up with funding for the $4.4 million,” Hartt said. VDOT suggested its revenue sharing program to fund $1.54 million and the city would still need to provide $2.86 million.
Hartt suggested an alternative to a roundabout design, an alternative intersection that VDOT would design at a cost of $3.4 million.
“I don’t see how we could come up with $2.8 million,” Staunton Mayor Michele Edwards said.
She asked what Hartt recommended. He said he hoped the city could fund an alternative intersection, which would be an improved Richmond and Greenville avenues intersection.
Vice Mayor Brad Arrowood said the situation continues to be frustrating and that he sees the intersection as an unfunded project.
“The intersection itself, to me, has never seemed a problem area,” Arrowood said. He asked if the city drops the idea, could council use the SMART Scale funding elsewhere.
Hartt said the SMART Scale funding must be used for the intersection.
According to Beauregard, VDOT will not concede and the latest offer is VDOT’s “final offer” for the situation.
Councilmember Alice Woods said she thinks the city should take the SMART Scale funding and choose an alternative intersection design.
“Cause we’re not trying to give back any money. We want to use that and that roundabout seems like its not happening at all,” Woods said.
Councilmember Corrie Park said the design for a single-lane roundabout is beautiful, but it’s a matter of wants versus needs and funding is not available for a roundabout. Walkability is needed in the intersection, which her Stuart Hall students use to walk to lunch at Wright’s Dairy Rite on Greenville Avenue.
Councilmember Blake Shepherd said the intersection should be improved and then the city should move forward.
“The cost of waiting is definitely more than the cost of moving forward,” Edwards said. “We see that things just get more expensive every time we come back with something.”
City council asked city staff to go back to VDOT for a design of an improved or alternative intersection with a $3.4 million budget.
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Staunton faces $13.5M funding gap with roundabout project for Greenville Ave.
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Rebecca Barnabi
