Blacksburg Town Council Regular Meeting – August 25, 2026
Blacksburg Town Council Regular Meeting – August 25, 2026
The Blacksburg Town Council held a brief regular meeting on August 25, 2026, at 11:30 a.m. (EDT) in the Roger E. Hedgepeth Chambers. The agenda included approval of prior minutes, a single citizen comment, one appointment, and council reports. All votes were unanimous.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Town Council Minutes – August 11, 2026: The council unanimously approved the minutes from the previous regular meeting. Motion passed with all members present voting aye.
Public Comments & Testimony
- A resident from Brush Mountain attended the citizen comment period to observe the meeting and inquire about the process for submitting a petition to the town. The resident was invited to speak with a council member after the meeting for further guidance.
Appointment
- Brad St. Clair – New River Valley Emergency Communications Regional Authority: The council unanimously appointed Brad St. Clair as a jointly appointed board member to the New River Valley Emergency Communications Regional Authority, effective September 1, 2026. St. Clair is retired from the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office and previously served as interim director of the authority. He will fill the remainder of the term vacated by retired Virginia Tech Police Chief Kevin Faust. The appointment is made jointly with Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Montgomery County, and Virginia Tech.
Council Reports
- Montgomery County Economic Development Commission: Council Member Coliber reported on the commission's monthly meeting, which included a presentation on Montgomery County Fire and Rescue services.
- Stormwater Advisory Group: Council Member Goodhart reported that the group meets biweekly and is reviewing stormwater utility management practices from other municipalities, completed capital projects, and future needs for compliance with the town's MS4 permit. The committee will continue through December to evaluate the utility rate structure.
- Parks and Recreation Advisory Board: Council Member Cassoff reported that the board is finalizing a community survey on proposed upgrades to athletic facilities at Winfrey and Kipps Soccer and Baseball Fields and the old Blacksburg High School track and fields. The survey is expected to be released in September to guide investment priorities.
- New River Valley Regional Commission: Council Member Set Finn reported that the commission's monthly agenda includes a review of mutual concerns and commissioner reports from all member localities. Upcoming actions include a bylaws update and a vote on a model artificial intelligence (AI) use policy. The meeting is open to the public.
- Blacksburg–Virginia Tech Liaison Group: Council Member Anderson reported on the group's monthly meeting, which covered the start of the fall semester and an enrollment update from Virginia Tech Vice President Juan Espinoza. As of the presentation, there were 7,480 incoming students—slightly above target. The group also discussed recent declines in graduate student enrollment.
- Blacksburg Partnership Board of Directors: Council Member Anderson also reported on a presentation by SAS Builders about the midtown development project. The partnership is organizing a "Shop Blacksburg Saturday" event on October 3, 2026.
Key Outcomes
- Consent agenda approved (unanimous).
- Appointment of Brad St. Clair approved (unanimous).
- Next meetings: Work session on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. in the Blacksburg Motor Company Conference Room; regular meeting on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. in the council chambers.
Meeting Transcript
We will go ahead and get started. Will council come to order and will the clerk please call the roll? Anderson present. Campbell is absent. Coliber? Here. Board is absent. Goodhart. Here. Cassov. Present. Set Finn. Here. We will move on to the consent agenda. We have a light agenda tonight. The only item on the consent agenda is the town council minutes from August 11th, 2026, which we will be approving. What's council's pleasure on the consent agenda? I move approval of the consent agenda. Second. Any discussion? We have a motion and a second. Will the clerk please call the roll? Oliver. Aye. Goodhart? Aye. Cassoff? Aye. Set Finn. Aye. Anderson. Aye. The motion passes. We'll move on to public hearings, but we have no public hearings tonight. So then we will move on to citizen comments during this section of the meeting. Please come up to the podium, state your name and address, and direct your comments to town council with a maximum speaking time of three minutes. This is the section of the agenda where anyone can speak about any topic of interest. So we are now in citizen comments. Would anyone like to speak? Good evening. I live up on Brush Mountain. Do you need an exact address or uh just generals fine, general locations fine? Okay. Um I'm just coming here to see how the meeting goes. Nobody's here and nobody's saying anything. So just seeing how things are going and about um if I want to make a petition to the town, how would I go about doing such a thing? And I guess this isn't the time question and answer thing. So I'll be happy to I'll be happy to talk to you after the meeting. Awesome. Thank you, sir.
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