OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Blacksburg Planning Commission Meeting - July 6, 2023

Planning Commission — Thursday, July 6, 2023
BodyBlacksburg, Virginia
SessionPlanning Commission
DateThursday, July 6, 2023
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 36:48

Transcript — Verbatim
0:10

Welcome to the Thursday, July 6th, 2020 meeting of the Planning Commission regular meeting, which are held here on the first Tuesday of each month at 6 30 at the Rogery Heads Chambers of the Blacksburg Municipal Municipal Building.

0:27

Due to the July 4th holiday occurring on the first Tuesday of the month in July, the Planning Commission hearing is today.

0:34

Thursday, July 6th.

0:36

Citizens may address the Commission during specific specified times on the agenda and are requested to hear to the following.

0:43

Please speak at the podium.

0:45

Please state your name and address.

0:48

Direct comments only to the commission.

0:50

Please limit speaking time to a maximum of three minutes.

0:54

And speak only once during a specific hearing or comment period.

0:58

A wireless microphone is available to anyone requesting the assistance.

1:02

Please silence your cell phones, show respect for all speakers, and allow all opinions to be expressed in a tolerant atmosphere.

1:12

With that, we'll call the meeting to order.

1:14

May we have a roll call, please.

1:16

Mr.

1:16

Ford?

1:17

Here.

1:17

Mr.

1:17

Herbine.

1:18

Here.

1:18

Ms.

1:18

Jones.

1:19

Here.

1:19

Mr.

1:19

Castle.

1:20

Ms.

1:20

Reinhardt.

1:21

Here.

1:21

Ms.

1:22

Walker.

1:22

Here.

1:23

Mr.

1:23

Watson.

1:25

Here we have a quorum.

1:27

Thank you.

1:28

The consent agenda is very brief.

1:31

This meeting, which is the only item is the approval of the planning commission minutes from June 6, 2023.

1:40

The proposed action is to approve.

1:44

Do we have a motion?

1:46

I move we approve the minutes.

1:50

Aye.

1:52

Moving on to public hearings.

1:53

We have one tonight.

1:55

That is CUP 23003, a conditional use permit request for hotel use and additional height in the downtown commercial zoning district at 501 South Main Street.

2:08

By Balzern Associates, the applicant for midtown redevelopment partners.

2:13

And we have a staff presentation by Kinsey O'Shea.

2:17

Thank you.

2:19

In this presentation, I'll cover the request and the site first and then the analysis and the criteria for evaluation.

2:26

The parcel is located in the 500 block of South Main Street.

2:29

It is part of the midtown development.

2:31

It's approximately one acre and is zoned downtown commercial with the midtown conditions.

2:39

The midtown development was originally rezoned in 2019, which included a conditional use permit for a hotel on this parcel as it was a desired mix of the as a desired part of the mix of uses for the development.

2:51

There was no limitation on the number of rooms in the CUP approval.

2:55

An amendment to the rezone in 2020 to allow additional height to be requested by conditional use permit.

3:01

DC parcel number one, the police department and parking garage, DC parcel number five, the mixed use building, and the hotel on DC parcel number six were all granted additional height through a conditional use permit.

3:14

The timeline for this is before you on the screen.

3:17

As you can see, we are here at the Planning Commission public hearing on July 6th.

3:21

Your town council plan uh public hearing will follow your action.

3:27

This aerial photo was taken prior to any construction.

3:30

This was taken as the entire site was being graded and initial infrastructure was being installed.

3:34

You can see the parcel outlined in blue.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning Ordinance█████████████████████████████████████████████60%
Urban Planning█████████████████22%
Procedural█████████12%
Public Engagement███4%
Parks and Recreation██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Blacksburg Planning Commission Meeting - July 6, 2023

The Blacksburg Planning Commission held a regular meeting on Thursday, July 6, 2023, at 6:30 PM in the Roger E. Hedgepeth Chambers. The primary agenda item was a public hearing on Conditional Use Permit (CUP) 23-0003 for a hotel and additional building height at 501 South Main Street. The Commission also approved the consent agenda and received reports on committee activities.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the Planning Commission minutes from June 6, 2023, by a unanimous vote of 7-0.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were made during the public hearing for CUP 23-0003 or during the citizen comment period.

Discussion Items

  • CUP 23-0003 – Midtown DC Parcel 2 Hotel and Building Height: Senior Planner Kinsey O’Shea presented staff analysis, recommending approval with five conditions, including limiting height to 75 feet from the Commons entrance and requiring additional streetscaping. Applicant Steve Semones of Balzer and Associates described project revisions made in response to prior feedback, such as reducing rooms from 155 to 144, adding red brick, and improving the corner plaza interface. Commissioners expressed satisfaction with the changes, particularly the widened setback on South Main Street (approximately 35 feet from the road), the stepped-back upper floors to mitigate visual impact, and the inclusion of meeting space. Commissioner Jerry Ford Jr. noted concerns about the change from office to hotel use but was satisfied with the inclusion of office space and design improvements. The motion to approve with staff conditions passed unanimously (7-0).

Key Outcomes

  • Consent Agenda: Approved unanimously.
  • CUP 23-0003: Approved and recommended to Town Council with five staff conditions, all voting in favor.
  • Upcoming Meeting: The July 18 work session was cancelled. The next Planning Commission meeting is August 1, 2023, which will include a consent agenda only and two new commissioners (Brian Britt and Michael Ermann).

Meeting Transcript

Welcome to the Thursday, July 6th, 2020 meeting of the Planning Commission regular meeting, which are held here on the first Tuesday of each month at 6 30 at the Rogery Heads Chambers of the Blacksburg Municipal Municipal Building. Due to the July 4th holiday occurring on the first Tuesday of the month in July, the Planning Commission hearing is today. Thursday, July 6th. Citizens may address the Commission during specific specified times on the agenda and are requested to hear to the following. Please speak at the podium. Please state your name and address. Direct comments only to the commission. Please limit speaking time to a maximum of three minutes. And speak only once during a specific hearing or comment period. A wireless microphone is available to anyone requesting the assistance. Please silence your cell phones, show respect for all speakers, and allow all opinions to be expressed in a tolerant atmosphere. With that, we'll call the meeting to order. May we have a roll call, please. Mr. Ford? Here. Mr. Herbine. Here. Ms. Jones. Here. Mr. Castle. Ms. Reinhardt. Here. Ms. Walker. Here. Mr. Watson. Here we have a quorum. Thank you. The consent agenda is very brief. This meeting, which is the only item is the approval of the planning commission minutes from June 6, 2023. The proposed action is to approve. Do we have a motion? I move we approve the minutes. Aye. Moving on to public hearings. We have one tonight. That is CUP 23003, a conditional use permit request for hotel use and additional height in the downtown commercial zoning district at 501 South Main Street. By Balzern Associates, the applicant for midtown redevelopment partners. And we have a staff presentation by Kinsey O'Shea. Thank you. In this presentation, I'll cover the request and the site first and then the analysis and the criteria for evaluation. The parcel is located in the 500 block of South Main Street. It is part of the midtown development. It's approximately one acre and is zoned downtown commercial with the midtown conditions.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com