OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Blacksburg Town Council Meeting - March 26, 2024

Town Council — Tuesday, March 26, 2024
BodyBlacksburg, Virginia
SessionTown Council
DateTuesday, March 26, 2024
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:46:50

Transcript — Verbatim
0:37

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

0:41

Anderson, present.

0:43

Oliver, here.

0:44

Board?

0:45

Here.

0:45

Anchor Smith.

0:46

Here.

0:46

Addingly?

0:47

Here.

0:48

Slet Finn?

0:48

Here.

0:49

Watson.

0:49

Present.

0:53

We'll begin this evening with the consent agenda.

0:56

But before that, I have been asked to let you all know that the restrooms are not working, except in the basement.

1:04

So you've been standing in the rain, I noticed.

1:08

And if you need to use the restroom, it's down the stairs right outside here.

1:14

So a sewer problem, apparently.

1:18

Correct.

1:19

We're fixing that.

1:21

We'll move on to the consent agenda.

1:23

And tonight that includes town council minutes approval of March 5 and March 12th.

1:30

And also a change order for $4,000 and additional survey work for the MMTF project.

1:38

And we will contemplate approving that.

1:42

Do I have a motion on the consent agenda?

1:45

I move approval of the consent agenda.

1:47

Second.

1:48

I have a motion and a second.

1:49

Will the clerk please call the roll?

1:51

Oliver.

1:52

Aye.

1:52

Ford?

1:53

Aye.

1:55

Aye.

1:58

Step Finn?

1:59

Aye.

1:59

Watson.

2:00

Aye.

2:01

Anderson.

2:01

Aye.

2:03

Thank you.

2:03

This evening we have no public hearings, but we have uh a good number of agenda items in the form of citizen comments.

2:11

So we're going to take these in a particular order.

2:15

We have people here in chambers tonight who are presenting agency funding requests for the nonprofits that they belong to.

2:23

So I would uh like to ask those speakers to make their presentations first, and then any other speakers who have come to talk on other topics can follow the agency funding requests.

2:36

Um I think that everybody knows that the uh ordinary procedure is to come to the podium and state your name and address.

2:45

Uh direct comments only to town council, please, and to limit your speaking time to three minutes, which uh the little uh stop stop light can help you.

2:56

So the town manager will hit the button as soon as you begin your comments, and uh it will be timed for three minutes.

3:03

Uh and this evening, because we have so many speakers tonight, uh I'm going to ask each person to speak only one time during a specific hearing or comment period.

3:15

Okay.

3:16

Uh so let us begin with agency funding.

3:19

And it could be beneficial.

3:21

There you go, John.

3:22

There's somebody comfortable on town town chambers.

3:25

Good evening, Madam Mayor, distinguished council, professional staff, and fellow Blacksburg citizens.

3:32

I don't know if we have a slideshow or not, but um your job?

3:37

Yeah.

3:39

I'm here tonight to do two things.

3:41

I'm sorry, who are you?

3:46

There we go.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
International Relations████████████████████████████████32%
Arts And Culture██████████████████18%
Public Engagement██████████10%
Procedural██████6%
Food Security██████6%
Literacy Programs████4%
Community Engagement████4%
Historic Preservation███3%
Education███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Blacksburg Town Council Meeting - March 26, 2024

The Blacksburg Town Council held its regular meeting on March 26, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. in the Roger E. Hedgepeth Chambers. The agenda included approval of the consent agenda, citizen comments on FY2025 agency funding requests and a ceasefire resolution related to the Israel-Palestine conflict, and council announcements. No public hearings, unfinished business, or new business were on the agenda.

Consent Calendar

  • Town Council Minutes: Approved minutes from March 5, 2024 (work session) and March 12, 2024 (regular meeting).
  • Change Order: Approved a $4,000 change order for additional survey work for the MMTF project.
  • The consent agenda was approved unanimously on a roll call vote (8-0).

Public Comments & Testimony

FY2025 Agency Funding Requests – 13 speakers representing local nonprofits each requested continued or increased funding for the FY2024/25 operating budget. Speakers included:

  • John Bush (Blacksburg Museum and Cultural Foundation) – thanked council for past support and asked for continued funding, highlighting fundraising, programming, and community partnerships.
  • Jean Haskell (Montgomery Museum of Art and History) – emphasized the museum's impact on Blacksburg, including a recent innovation award from the Virginia Association of Museums.
  • Tina King (New River Valley Agency on Aging) – reported serving over 3,500 Blacksburg residents last fiscal year and requested a slight increase due to rising costs.
  • Kacie Hodges (Blacksburg Community Band) – described the band's free concerts and volunteer operations, thanking the town for support.
  • Erika Slagel-Perry (Community Health Care Center) – noted the center served 677 Blacksburg residents on sliding-scale fees and asked for assistance.
  • Nora Bolte (Wonder Universe) – highlighted free field trips for 4,139 elementary students and 30,000 visitors since December 2023.
  • Erin Burcham (RAMP/Verge) – reported accelerating 52 companies, bringing $30 million in capital and 700 jobs to the region, requesting $5,000.
  • Ginny Ayers (Literacy NRV) – stated 849 Blacksburg adults read at or below third-grade level and requested continued funding; no federal or state funding is received.
  • Ariana Wyatt (Summer Arts Festival) – described six outdoor concerts, movies, and children's events, requesting increased funding for an extended eight-week season.
  • Deb Edwards (Friends of the Farmers Market) – noted over $2 million in sales in 2023, a new food access committee, and plans to pay musicians for 105 music slots.
  • Karim Khan (Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library) – reported 18,953 Blacksburg cardholders, a 92% customer satisfaction score, and ongoing improvements.
  • Tracie Hughes (Downtown Blacksburg Inc.) – presented plans for a downtown rebranding project and requested funds for marketing materials.
  • Laina Schneider (Live, Work, Eat, Grow) – highlighted 109 garden plots, 175 volunteers, and cultural programming; noted a Virginia Municipal League award for the gardens.
  • Ann Cassell (Blacksburg Partnership) – promoted retail revitalization, passenger rail advocacy, and young professional engagement, requesting increased staffing and a visitors guide.
  • Seth Davis (The Lyric) – reported a 25% increase in attendance in 2023, sold-out shows, and expanded educational programming.
  • John Walker (Cayambis Institute) – advocated for funding to support a Latin American classical music orchestra, emphasizing cultural diversity.

Other Comments – Ceasefire Resolution – 15 speakers addressed the council on whether to adopt a resolution calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. Positions:

  • Support (15 speakers): Rosemary Sawdon, Megan Peterson, Stephen Warren, Zachary Weis, Vishal, Susan Delay, Phyllis Albritton, Sarah Wiles (accompanied by child), Joseph Childers, Prairie Jones, Saul Halfon, Keira Cleveland, William Peterson, Julia Stallings – argued that the town should join over 100 U.S. municipalities in passing a symbolic ceasefire resolution, citing moral imperative, local connections (e.g., Radford Army Ammunition Plant, Virginia Tech research), and the need to represent community sentiment. Some emphasized the impact on local Muslim residents and rising anti-Semitism.
  • Opposition (2 speakers): James Hardell and Waverly Evans – stated the conflict is outside the town's purview, noted the October 7 Hamas attack, and argued that Israel should be allowed to complete its military objectives. Hardell, a WWII veteran, equated civilian casualties to those in past wars; Evans, a former military servicemember, urged the council to focus on local issues and include condemnation of Hamas in any resolution.

Council Announcements

  • Councilmember Anderson announced Women's Month events at Virginia Tech and the Clothesline Project if weather permits.
  • Vice Mayor Sutphin announced open houses by the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority on April 18 at Montgomery County Government Center, and tabling events at Blacksburg Farmers Market (April 17), Radford Public Library (April 18 morning), and Blacksburg Fork and Cork Festival (April 20).

Key Outcomes

  • Consent Agenda: Approved unanimously (8-0).
  • Ceasefire Resolution: No vote or action was taken; the council only heard public comments. No discussion or direction was provided on drafting a resolution.
  • Agency Funding: No decisions were made; the council heard requests for the FY2024/25 budget process. The next regular meeting is scheduled for April 9, 2024.

Meeting Transcript

Will council please come to order and will the clerk please call the roll? Anderson, present. Oliver, here. Board? Here. Anchor Smith. Here. Addingly? Here. Slet Finn? Here. Watson. Present. We'll begin this evening with the consent agenda. But before that, I have been asked to let you all know that the restrooms are not working, except in the basement. So you've been standing in the rain, I noticed. And if you need to use the restroom, it's down the stairs right outside here. So a sewer problem, apparently. Correct. We're fixing that. We'll move on to the consent agenda. And tonight that includes town council minutes approval of March 5 and March 12th. And also a change order for $4,000 and additional survey work for the MMTF project. And we will contemplate approving that. Do I have a motion on the consent agenda? I move approval of the consent agenda. Second. I have a motion and a second. Will the clerk please call the roll? Oliver. Aye. Ford? Aye. Aye. Step Finn? Aye. Watson. Aye. Anderson. Aye. Thank you. This evening we have no public hearings, but we have uh a good number of agenda items in the form of citizen comments. So we're going to take these in a particular order. We have people here in chambers tonight who are presenting agency funding requests for the nonprofits that they belong to. So I would uh like to ask those speakers to make their presentations first, and then any other speakers who have come to talk on other topics can follow the agency funding requests. Um I think that everybody knows that the uh ordinary procedure is to come to the podium and state your name and address. Uh direct comments only to town council, please, and to limit your speaking time to three minutes, which uh the little uh stop stop light can help you. So the town manager will hit the button as soon as you begin your comments, and uh it will be timed for three minutes. Uh and this evening, because we have so many speakers tonight, uh I'm going to ask each person to speak only one time during a specific hearing or comment period. Okay.

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