Blacksburg Town Council Regular Meeting - June 24, 2025
Blacksburg Town Council Regular Meeting - June 24, 2025
The Blacksburg Town Council met on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. in the Roger E. Hedgepeth Chambers. The meeting opened with the introduction of new Police Chief John Claire, followed by approval of the consent agenda, a public hearing on VDOT revenue sharing funds for the Harding Avenue project, citizen comments regarding a development amendment, appointments to town boards and committees, and council announcements.
Consent Calendar
- Approved Town Council minutes for May 20, 2025, and May 27, 2025.
- Adopted Resolution 6-C-25, writing off uncollectible water, sewer, refuse, stormwater receivables, and real estate taxes.
- Adopted Resolution 6-D-25, transferring $370,000 between Water and Sewer Fund capital projects.
- Approved a change order extending the Blacksburg Transit construction management contract.
Public Hearing
Ordinance 2089 – VDOT Revenue Sharing Funds Staff presented the ordinance to amend the FY 2024/2025 operating budget to accept and appropriate $2,397,387 from the Virginia Department of Transportation Revenue Sharing Program for the Harding Avenue project. The project includes nearly 4,000 linear feet of sidewalk, bike lanes, and stormwater improvements from the eastern corporate limit along Harding Avenue past Patrick Henry Drive. No public comments were offered. Council voted unanimously to approve the ordinance.
Citizen Comments
Mark Tobacca (817 Montgomery Street) spoke during citizen comments. He urged council to deny the upcoming 801 North Main amendment, citing three concerns:
- Parking: The proposed 0.5 parking ratio is too low; at a standard of 0.8–1.1, the development would create an overflow of 228 to 456 cars that would likely spill onto public streets, businesses, and nearby complexes.
- Aesthetics: The amendment would bring a zero-foot setback closer to Main Street, reducing the current 10-foot commercial setback requirement.
- Traffic: The development would increase congestion and hamper the ability to install a traffic circle at that intersection. Tobacca also discussed his “street parking is theft” shirt, arguing that street parking should be repurposed for bike lanes, and criticized the town for providing free parking to developers. He noted Blacksburg’s biking infrastructure is inadequate.
Appointments
Council unanimously approved a slate of appointments to town boards and committees. Notable reappointments include Mel Jones to the Planning Commission, Jesse Dubrowski (new) to the Board of Zoning Appeals, and several members to the Historic or Design Review Board, Recreation Advisory Board, Housing and Community Development Advisory Committee, and other bodies. Mayor noted citizen participation is critical and valued.
Council Announcements
- The Fourth of July parade will be held July 4, 2025, at 2 p.m. (lineup at 1:30 p.m.) with the theme "We the People." Fireworks will follow that evening.
- Summer concert series continue: Friday night outdoor concerts (6–7:30 p.m. on Henderson Lawn), Thursday indoor concerts, classic movies at the Lyric, and a Shakespeare workshop on June 26.
- The Community Foundation of the New River Valley’s annual Giving Day is Wednesday; residents are encouraged to give generously.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Agenda: Approved unanimously (6-0; Councilmember Oliver absent).
- Ordinance 2089: Approved unanimously (7-0).
- Boards and Committees Appointments: Approved unanimously (7-0).
- New Police Chief John Claire welcomed; he outlined his background including a 35% crime reduction in Marion and overseeing a $2.1 million budget with 22 sworn officers.
- The meeting adjourned without other business.
Meeting Transcript
Please come to order and will the clerk please call the roll. Anderson. Present. Oliver's absent. Ford? Here. Egar Smith. Here. Addingly? Here. Sutton? Here. Watson. Present. I want to begin this evening's meeting with uh a bit of welcome news and a welcome for our new uh police chief, John Claire. And I want to uh say a little bit about him, and then I'm gonna invite him up just to make sure we can embarrass him while he's in chambers tonight to say a few words to us. Um Chief Claire most recently served as chief of police in Marion, Virginia, where he led a comprehensive department transformation overseeing a $2.1 million budget and a team of 22 sworn officers. Under his leadership, Marion saw a 35% reduction in overall crime, the launch of community engagement programs focusing on local and regional media, area youth, and vulnerable populations, and he also implemented significant advancements in officer wellness and career development programs during his tenure. Prior to his service in Marion, Claire served as chief of police in Quantico, Virginia, where he was instrumental in restoring organizational integrity and launching a new public safety uh some new uh public safety initiatives. He has a bachelor of science degree in religion, philosophy, and humanities, and recently completed a master's degree in executive leadership. He is currently attending the UVA Sorensen Political Leaders Program, and he's a graduate of the Virginia Rural Center's Leadership Institute. Um so I just wanted to express counsel's great pleasure that he uh is our new police chief, and I'll give him a few minutes at the mic. Uh, while he's walking up here, I also just found out that he reads at least 60 books a year. So that's my replacement for being intelligent, right? Is being one I can't uh tell you how much I appreciate your selection of me as the chief of police, incredible opportunity to come to this community. I appreciate the confidence uh that you place in Mark and Mark's place in me, and and I'm excited to get into the agency, get into the community and uh make some impacts. It's gonna take me a while to get to know everybody, uh, but I've already got a great introduction uh to the to the department itself, and it it seems like it's full of just incredible people and uh the town of Blacksburg is uh it strikes me as a community really on the upswing, and uh I'm excited to get on board. Thank you. Welcome, welcome. We will move on now to the consent agenda, and that consists of the approval of town council minutes for May 20 and 27. Resolution 6C25, a resolution writing off the town's uncollectible water sewer refuse service and stormwater receivables, and real estate taxes. Resolution 6D 25, transferring 370,000 hundred three hundred and seventy thousand dollars between water and sewer fund capital projects, and a change order to a Blacksburg Transit contract extension. What is council's pleasure on this consent agenda? I move approval of the consent agenda. Second. We have a motion and a second. Will the clerk please call the roll? Ford. Aye. Addingly, aye. Sutfin? Aye. Watson. Aye. Anderson, aye. Public hearings. We have an ordinance 2089 to amend the fiscal year 2024-25 operating budget to accept and appropriate 2,397,000 dollars in Virginia Department of Transportation revenue sharing funds to the VDOT revenue sharing fund. Uh and we have a presentation on that. Matt Han Rowdy'll give the staff report. Good evening, Council.
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