Roanoke County board approves amended Clearbrook Walmart exterior despite neighbors' objections
Summary
The Roanoke County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve an amendment to the Clearbrook Walmart's special use permit allowing a revised exterior color scheme and a ~7,000 sq. ft. addition; residents objected to corporate blue accents and nighttime lighting.
The Roanoke County Board of Supervisors voted to approve an amendment to a special use permit that allows Walmart Real Estate Business Trust to revise the exterior color scheme and add roughly 7,000 square feet to the Clearbrook store at 5350 Clearbrook Village Lane.
Philip Thompson, Roanoke County director of planning, told the board the store sits on about 29.97 acres in a high-intensity C-2-S commercial zone within the Clearbrook Village Overlay District and that the petition asks to amend conditions tied to architectural plans and colors. Thompson reviewed the site's approvals dating to 2006 and a 2009 amendment, and said the applicant submitted revised elevations after earlier public concerns.
Holly Aluth, who lives directly behind the store, urged supervisors to deny the change. “Walmart has requested a special use permit for a non-earth-tone corporate color that violates the intent of the overlay district and sets a dangerous precedent,” Aluth said, also alleging excessive rear lighting, truck idling and nighttime disturbances that have reduced neighborhood quality of life.
Nate Clark, a project representative with Boulder Engineering speaking for the petitioner, said the applicant revised the designs in response to public feedback. “We reduced the amount of blue and lessened the dark grays,” Clark said, and confirmed the existing brick areas would remain unpainted in the revised elevations.
Several other residents who spoke during the public hearing recounted the overlay’s origins and urged the board to preserve the area’s earth-tone character, citing concerns about light pollution, maintenance and impacts on property values. Petitioner representatives said the new elevations are a compromise between the approved 2009 scheme and Walmart's corporate standards.
During board debate, one supervisor disclosed modest Walmart stock ownership and said the county attorney had advised participation would not violate the Virginia Conflict of Interests Act. Another supervisor framed the matter as whether zoning should regulate color and aesthetics and moved to approve the amendment, noting the application meets county code and design standards in Article 4 and that required screening and buffering would limit visual impact from major roads.
The clerk called the roll and each named member answered ‘yes,’ recording the measure as approved. The board referenced a set of exterior elevations prepared by WD Partners (dated 06/23/25, sheet A2) as the revised plans to be incorporated.
The meeting record does not show additional conditions attached to the approval beyond the revised elevations and the board’s motion; the board then moved to other business and adjourned. The county’s planning staff and the petitioner will follow existing administrative procedures for implementing the revised plan and any permit-level inspections.
