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Record of Proceedings

Blacksburg Town Council Meeting - April 11, 2023

Town Council — Tuesday, April 11, 2023
BodyBlacksburg, Virginia
SessionTown Council
DateTuesday, April 11, 2023
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:55

Will council please come to order and will the clerk please call the roll?

1:00

Anderson?

1:00

Present.

1:01

Bush?

1:02

Here.

1:02

Oliver.

1:03

Here.

1:04

Board?

1:04

Here.

1:04

Anger Smith.

1:05

Here.

1:06

Mattingley?

1:06

Here.

1:07

Setman.

1:08

Here.

1:08

Will the Vice Mayor please lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance?

1:13

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

1:18

And to the Republic for which it stands.

1:21

One nation under God.

1:23

Indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

1:35

And that is item A, the approval of minutes for March 28.

1:41

Also, ordinance 2022 to amend the zoning ordinance to update the accessory apartment permit program.

1:49

And we will set a date of May 9th for a public hearing on that.

2:25

What is council's pleasure?

2:27

I move approval of the consent agenda.

2:29

Second.

2:30

We have a motion and a second.

2:32

Will the clerk please call the roll?

2:33

Bush?

2:34

Aye.

2:34

Oliver.

2:35

Aye.

2:36

Four?

2:36

Aye.

2:37

Mayor Smith.

2:38

Aye.

2:39

Aye.

2:40

Sutton?

2:41

Aye.

2:42

Aye.

2:43

Tonight we have three public hearings.

2:47

The first one, item A, concerns a conditional use permit.

2:52

Second public hearing, which is item B on our agenda tonight, is limited to the town's proposed tax rate for fiscal year 2023 to 24.

3:02

The last item, item C, is for the annual budget public hearing.

3:13

Requesting to combine previously approved conditional use permits at Kent Square at 202 and 250 South Main Street.

3:47

It was located at 202 and 250 South Main Street, Kent Square and Kent Square North.

3:53

The parcel size is two parcels combined, just a little over one acre in size.

4:24

It's on the west side of South Main Street.

4:27

Between Lee Street Southwest and Washington Street Southwest.

5:00

This is another depiction from the street view of the South Main Street, Washington Street Southwest location.

5:06

And then this is the other corner street view from South Main Street and Lee Street Southwest.

5:13

For the Kent Square development, there's a total of 18,769 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor.

5:19

Of that, 40% is commercially rented, non-office space.

5:23

40% is not rented, which is the vacant Osmo and Maldir spaces.

5:28

And then 20% is currently office on the ground floor, which includes the point west management and the Thompson Dennis location.

5:38

On downtown commercial, often multiple story buildings with a mix of uses within the buildings, active pedestrian oriented uses on the ground floor with offices and residential and second floors and above.

5:48

In general, all medical offices are allowed by right on all floors, except the ground floor and downtown commercial.

5:55

So they're allowed in the upper levels and also like in the lower basement level.

5:59

The district is intended for predominantly pedestrian activity.

6:04

This is a depiction, a table showing the ground floor along South Main Street in the upper table, and then the remainder of the Kent Square development along Lee Street and Washington Street.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Fiscal Sustainability█████████████████████████████████████████████55%
Zoning Ordinance████████████████████24%
Procedural██████████████17%
Personnel Matters██2%
Community Engagement██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Blacksburg Town Council Regular Meeting – April 11, 2023

The Blacksburg Town Council held its regular meeting on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. in the Roger E. Hedgepeth Chambers. The meeting lasted approximately 43 minutes, adjourning at 7:13 p.m. Council unanimously approved the consent agenda, held three public hearings (on a conditional use permit, the real estate tax rate, and the FY23/24 budget), and heard one citizen comment regarding a proposed development. Key actions included approving a combined conditional use permit for Kent Square, introducing an ordinance to permit detached accessory apartments, and scheduling final votes on the tax rate and budget for April 25, 2023.

Consent Calendar

  • Town Council Minutes (March 28, 2023): Approved unanimously.
  • Ordinance 2022 (Accessory Apartment Program): Introduced and scheduled for a public hearing on May 9, 2023.
  • Resolution 4-A-23 (National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week): Adopted, acknowledging April 9–15, 2023.
  • Resolution 4-B-23 (Aquatic Center Fees): Adopted, increasing fees.
  • Resolution 4-C-23 (Parks and Recreation Facility Rental Fees): Adopted, increasing rental fees.

Public Hearings & Testimony

A. Resolution 4-D-23 – Kent Square Conditional Use Permit (CUP) Combination

  • Zoning Administrator Paul Patterson presented the staff report, noting six previously approved CUPs for office use at 202 and 250 South Main Street. The request aims to allow continued medical and office use on the ground floor.
  • The Planning Commission recommended approval 7–0 with staff conditions.
  • No public comment was offered.
  • Action: Council voted unanimously (7–0) to approve Resolution 4-D-23, combining the prior CUPs with conditions limiting office use to 55% of ground-floor frontage along South Main Street and prohibiting medical offices at the two corner spaces.

B. Public Hearing on Real Estate Tax Rate (Virginia Code § 58.1-3321)

  • Town Manager Marc Verniel explained the reassessment process: Montgomery County reassesses properties every four years. The average reassessment increase was 31.6% over the prior four-year period. The town proposes maintaining the tax rate at $0.26 per $100 of assessed value, which is above the revenue-neutral rate of $0.1975, thus constituting an effective tax increase. One penny of the tax rate generates approximately $491,000 in revenue.
  • No public comment was offered.
  • Action: Mayor Hager-Smith announced that a final vote on the tax rate will occur on April 25, 2023.

C. FY23/24 Recommended Budget Package

  • The package includes three ordinances: Ordinance 2019 (increase cigarette tax by $0.10 per pack to match county rate, generating ~$50,000), Amended Ordinance 2020 (adopt the $97 million budget, set real estate tax rate, and appropriate funds), and Ordinance 2021 (increase water/sewer/solid waste fees).
  • Town Manager Verniel provided an overview: the general fund is $46 million, total operating budget increases 9.8% over the prior year. The average utility bill will increase by about $5.40/month (4.2%). The budget includes a cost-of-living adjustment and step increases for employees, six new general fund positions, and a market adjustment for police salaries.
  • Councilmembers Sutphin and Mattingly made conflict-of-interest disclosures regarding Amended Ordinance 2020 due to their employment with Community Housing Partners and The Lyric, respectively, and stated they would abstain from voting on specific appropriations.
  • No public comment was offered on the budget.
  • Action: Mayor Hager-Smith announced that a final vote on the three ordinances will occur on April 25, 2023.

Citizen Comments

  • Amy Burton (1005 Glade Road) spoke about the Glade Spring Crossing proposed development. She stated that her property was omitted from the rendering used to illustrate the development, giving an inaccurate depiction. She requested that all dwellings impacted by the plan be included in the survey and maps. Council members acknowledged her concerns and suggested she contact the planning director.

Council Announcements

  • Vice Mayor Anderson reminded the public about the Take Back the Night Rally, now rescheduled to Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at 7 p.m. on Henderson Lawn.
  • Mayor Hager-Smith made additional announcements about upcoming community activities.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent agenda approved unanimously (7–0).
  • Resolution 4-D-23 (Kent Square CUP) approved unanimously (7–0).
  • Ordinance 2022 (detached accessory apartments) introduced; public hearing set for May 9, 2023.
  • Resolutions 4-A-23, 4-B-23, 4-C-23 adopted unanimously.
  • Real estate tax rate and FY23/24 budget (including cigarette tax increase and fee increases) will be voted on at the April 25, 2023 meeting.
  • Councilmembers Sutphin and Mattingly will abstain from specific votes on the budget ordinance due to conflicts of interest.
  • Citizen comment on Glade Spring Crossing will be referred to town staff for follow-up.

Meeting Transcript

Will council please come to order and will the clerk please call the roll? Anderson? Present. Bush? Here. Oliver. Here. Board? Here. Anger Smith. Here. Mattingley? Here. Setman. Here. Will the Vice Mayor please lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance? I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God. Indivisible with liberty and justice for all. And that is item A, the approval of minutes for March 28. Also, ordinance 2022 to amend the zoning ordinance to update the accessory apartment permit program. And we will set a date of May 9th for a public hearing on that. What is council's pleasure? I move approval of the consent agenda. Second. We have a motion and a second. Will the clerk please call the roll? Bush? Aye. Oliver. Aye. Four? Aye. Mayor Smith. Aye. Aye. Sutton? Aye. Aye. Tonight we have three public hearings. The first one, item A, concerns a conditional use permit. Second public hearing, which is item B on our agenda tonight, is limited to the town's proposed tax rate for fiscal year 2023 to 24. The last item, item C, is for the annual budget public hearing. Requesting to combine previously approved conditional use permits at Kent Square at 202 and 250 South Main Street. It was located at 202 and 250 South Main Street, Kent Square and Kent Square North. The parcel size is two parcels combined, just a little over one acre in size. It's on the west side of South Main Street. Between Lee Street Southwest and Washington Street Southwest. This is another depiction from the street view of the South Main Street, Washington Street Southwest location.

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