The Virginia Welcome Center on northbound Interstate 77 at the Virginia/North Carolina state line has been relocated temporarily to the Blue Ridge Plateau Visitor Center located off Exit 14 (Hillsville).

The Welcome Center building is expected to be closed for about a year for renovations, but the rest area located at the state line will remain open, so travelers still can use the public restrooms, picnic tables and vending machines.

The Virginia Department of Transportation expects to spend about $300,000 to renovate the Welcome Center building that was built in the late 1970s. Architectural firm Thomas Koontz of Blacksburg will design and oversee the building renovation.

The Welcome Center will be renovated to bring the building up to Americans with Disabilities Act standards and correct a moisture problem.

“The renovation is a result of a great partnership between VDOT and the Virginia Tourism Corporation,” explains Jake Porter, VDOT’s rest area program manager.

VDOT has posted directional signs at Exit 14 to help motorists find the temporary Welcome Center housed in Carroll County’s Blue Ridge Plateau Visitor Center that opened in December.

Page last modified: Jan. 20, 2006