Blacksburg Town Council Work Session - December 16, 2024

This work session of the Blacksburg Town Council was held at Blacksburg Motor Company, 400 South Main Street. Councilmembers present: Mayor Leslie Hager-Smith, Vice Mayor Michael Sutphin, and Councilmembers Susan Anderson, Jerry Ford Jr., Susan Mattingly, and Liam Watson. Councilmember Lauren Colliver was absent. Councilmember Watson left the meeting at approximately 11:59 a.m. Note: The agenda and minutes list the meeting as December 17, 2024, but the user-provided date is December 16, 2024; this summary uses the latter per instructions.

Tourism Agreement Update

• Christopher Lawrence, Deputy County Administrator, presented the proposed Regional Tourism Program, a cooperative effort among Montgomery County, Blacksburg, and Christiansburg to market the area. The program would operate under a three-year contract with multiple renewal options.

Review of Public Hearing Scheduled for January 14, 2024

• Town Planner Matthew Sampa reviewed Ordinance 2068, which would rezone 1.59 ± acres at 402 Clay Street from R-5 Transitional Residential to Planned Residential (PR). This would allow construction of two 3-story multifamily buildings with up to 72 bedrooms. Twenty percent of the units would be income-restricted to households earning less than 80% of Area Median Income (AMI).

Heritage Tree Preservation Discussion/Briefing

• Sustainability Manager Carol Davis presented examples of tree preservation ordinances from other Virginia localities and noted a 2009 county tree cover status report showing declining tree cover in Montgomery County and Blacksburg. Council directed staff to develop a voluntary tree preservation program for future consideration.

Recommended Capital Improvement Program

• Town Manager Marc Verniel reviewed the proposed Capital Improvement Program (CIP), highlighting a significant change: reduction in scale of the Progress Street parking garage to a smaller over/under deck and allocation of funds for major athletic field improvements. Verniel reported that the financial projections stay within normal revenue growth. Due to time constraints, only General Fund projects were presented; enterprise fund projects will be discussed at a future work session.

Historic Property Maintenance Update

• Public Works Director John Boyer presented a slideshow of town-owned historic properties, summarizing maintenance activities over the past decade and outlining future plans for each property.

Council/Staff Exchange

• Mayor Hager-Smith discussed open positions on the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and recent proposed changes to the appointment process for boards and committees. Councilmember Anderson suggested filling a single position on the Parks and Recreation Board. Council overall agreed with the proposed appointment process for Council-appointed boards and committees.

Key Outcomes

• Council directed staff to develop a voluntary heritage tree preservation program.
• Council agreed to fill one open position on the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and endorsed the proposed appointment process for boards and committees.
• No formal votes were taken during this work session.