OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Blacksburg Town Council Regular Meeting - September 10, 2024

Town Council — Tuesday, September 10, 2024
BodyBlacksburg, Virginia
SessionTown Council
DateTuesday, September 10, 2024
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 25:08

Transcript — Verbatim
0:30

Council please come to order and will the clerk please call the roll.

0:34

Anderson, present.

0:35

Oliver, here.

0:37

Ford?

0:37

Here.

0:38

Hegar Smith.

0:39

Here.

0:39

Addingly?

0:40

Here.

0:41

Sutfin is absent.

0:42

Watson.

0:43

Present.

0:45

Will the former vice mayor please meet us in the pledge?

0:51

Pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

0:56

And to the Republic for which it stands.

0:59

One nation.

1:00

Under God.

1:01

Indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

1:07

We'll begin this evening with the consent agenda.

1:11

And that begins with the approval of town council minutes for August 20 and August 27.

1:17

We also have professional services contract, a change order.

1:21

We'll approve that.

1:22

And ordinance 2060, vacating a sanitary sewer easement on land located at 107 Lucas Drive.

1:29

We're going to introduce that ordinance and schedule a public hearing for October 8.

1:34

What is council's pleasure on the consent agenda?

1:37

I move approval of the consent agenda.

1:39

Second.

1:40

We have uh a motion and a second.

1:42

Will the clerk please call the roll?

1:44

Oliver?

1:45

Aye.

1:46

Ford?

1:46

Aye.

1:47

Eager Smith.

1:48

Aye.

1:48

Mattingley.

1:49

Aye.

1:49

Watson.

1:50

Aye.

1:51

Anderson.

1:52

Aye.

1:53

Public hearings.

1:54

We have none.

1:55

So we will move on to citizen comments this evening.

1:58

And I invite anyone who would like to to come forward and uh speak at the podium.

2:03

Uh we use a little stop light, which begins at green once you begin your comments, and please start with your name and your address.

2:22

I'm very grateful to present to you town council.

2:27

How's it going?

2:28

Thank you very much.

2:29

Uh I'll get to my name in a second.

2:31

Thank you very much for returning a baking pan to me as I um will return the favor next time.

2:38

I've also learned my lesson.

2:39

I will get uh an aluminum baking pan.

2:43

My name is Zachary Weiss, I live at 1711 Whipple Drive, and I want to talk about just for a little bit why we should incentivize electronic recycling.

2:51

Next one.

2:53

So first reason electronic recycling reduces waste.

2:58

If the landfills get all filled up, then where does the electronic waste go?

3:02

First thought, throw it out.

3:04

No.

3:05

Next thought.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Arts And Culture████████████████████████████████████36%
Transportation Safety███████████████████19%
Environmental Protection██████████████14%
Procedural████████████12%
Public Engagement███████████11%
Economic Development████████8%
Summary of Proceedings

Blacksburg Town Council Regular Meeting - September 10, 2024

The Blacksburg Town Council held its regular meeting on September 10, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. in the Roger E. Hedgepeth Chambers. Council approved the consent agenda, received citizen comments on several topics, reappointed Lawrence Spencer to the New River Valley Passenger Rail Station Authority, and discussed the removal of a public piano on Draper Road. The meeting adjourned at 6:54 p.m.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the August 20 and August 27, 2024, Town Council minutes.
  • Approved a Professional Services Contract Change Order.
  • Introduced Ordinance 2060 to vacate a sanitary sewer easement at 107 Lucas Drive and scheduled a public hearing for October 8, 2024. Motion passed 6-0.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Zach Weiss (1711 Whipple Drive) advocated for incentivizing electronic recycling, citing waste reduction and ethical resource use.
  • Christopher Tuck (Montgomery County, former Board of Supervisors member) expressed concerns about Virginia Tech's on-campus student housing plans reducing tax revenue from off-campus apartments. He suggested building a connector road from Fox Ridge to Virginia Tech to encourage high-density development. He noted Fox Ridge has 88% occupancy.
  • Gabrielle Spennacchio-Parker (2428 Ridge Road) voiced opposition to water fluoridation, citing an NTP study showing neurotoxic effects on children at 1.5 ppm and previous studies linking fluoride to cancer. She noted federal MCL is 4 ppm and SMCL is 2 ppm.
  • Rita Brame (16 Blocks Magazine) voiced discontent over the removal of the outdoor piano on Draper Road and pointed out that Blacksburg lacks a public arts policy and procedures.
  • Hart Fowler (16 Blocks Magazine) contested the claim that the piano was damaged during Draper Road construction, asserted it was moved to a cemetery lot, and criticized the lack of reports and transparency. He implied the removal was due to disagreement with the piano's content.

Discussion Items

  • Appointment: Mayor Hager-Smith presented the reappointment of Lawrence Spencer to the New River Valley Passenger Rail Station Authority. Council approved unanimously (6-0).
  • Piano Project (New Business): Councilmember Watson requested clarification about the removed piano. Councilmember Anderson provided a detailed history of the “Piano Project” led by the Downtown Revitalization Committee since 2015, summarizing the placement, vandalism, and volunteer efforts. She noted that all public piano placements require prior town approval.
  • Council Announcements:
    • Councilmember Ford reported that the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority signed an agreement with Norfolk Southern for a new train station in Cambria (Christiansburg), expected completion by 2027.
    • Councilmember Watson noted the Housing and Community Development Board began discussions on addressing homelessness. He reminded citizens that early voting begins September 20.
    • Councilmember Colliver highlighted free online support services for small businesses through the Blacksburg Partnership.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent agenda approved (6-0).
  • Appointment of Lawrence Spencer approved (6-0).
  • No public hearings were held.
  • Council acknowledged citizen concerns about the piano and public art policy; no formal action taken.
  • Upcoming meetings: Work session September 17 at 11:00 a.m.; Regular meeting September 24 at 6:30 p.m.

Meeting Transcript

Council please come to order and will the clerk please call the roll. Anderson, present. Oliver, here. Ford? Here. Hegar Smith. Here. Addingly? Here. Sutfin is absent. Watson. Present. Will the former vice mayor please meet us in the pledge? 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. We'll begin this evening with the consent agenda. And that begins with the approval of town council minutes for August 20 and August 27. We also have professional services contract, a change order. We'll approve that. And ordinance 2060, vacating a sanitary sewer easement on land located at 107 Lucas Drive. We're going to introduce that ordinance and schedule a public hearing for October 8. What is council's pleasure on the consent agenda? I move approval of the consent agenda. Second. We have uh a motion and a second. Will the clerk please call the roll? Oliver? Aye. Ford? Aye. Eager Smith. Aye. Mattingley. Aye. Watson. Aye. Anderson. Aye. Public hearings. We have none. So we will move on to citizen comments this evening. And I invite anyone who would like to to come forward and uh speak at the podium. Uh we use a little stop light, which begins at green once you begin your comments, and please start with your name and your address. I'm very grateful to present to you town council. How's it going? Thank you very much. Uh I'll get to my name in a second.

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