Take a break from pulling weeds and attend one of the public meetings springing up all over the NRV this week.
Monday and Tuesday: Virginia Tech’s Board of Visitors to review a resolution and building project related to housing
The Board of Visitors, which is the 14-member governing authority for Virginia Tech, will hold its quarterly meeting at The Inn at Virginia Tech on Monday and Tuesday.
The board has published 970 pages of “open session materials” for the meeting, including the “Resolution on the Impact of the Living-Learning Program on the Affordability of Higher Education at Virginia Tech.” If the board adopts this resolution, 20 Living-Learning Programs will be eliminated and all on-campus residential hall beds will be allocated to first-year undergraduate and transfer students.
Blacksburg Mayor Michael Sutphin wrote a letter to the board last Thursday expressing his concerns that the resolution suggests “the university may substantially increase its freshman class size…[and] absent a commensurate expansion of upper-class housing, many of these students will enter Blacksburg’s limited private housing market…placing growing pressure not only on rental supply but also on transportation, utilities and public safety services planned and financed by the Town rather than the university.”
In the letter, Sutphin requests that the board provide a clear statement of whether the university plans to increase first-year enrollment and how that increase would affect off-campus housing and infrastructure.
Also related to housing and first-year enrollment, the board will review the design of four new dorms with a total of 1,200 beds. The project is currently in the bidding phase with construction anticipated to start this June. The new residence buildings will be located near the Duck Pond. Plans for the dorms are outlined in pages 560-575 of the meeting materials. Page 561 of the materials includes the statement, “Institutional data demonstrate that students who live on campus—particularly during their first year—experience higher academic engagement and persistence.”
The public may attend open sessions of the meeting as outlined in the schedule on page 2 of the meeting materials and in the news release. Attendees will need to present a Virginia Tech Hokie Passport or government-issued photo ID and all bags will be searched. Signs, banners or any other activity that would obstruct the view of others are prohibited. The full board meeting on Tuesday at 1:15 pm will also be livestreamed on the BOV website.
The two-day, multi-session meeting will be held in The Inn at Virginia Tech and Skelton Conference at 901 Prices Fork Road. The full board meeting on Tuesday at 1:15 pm will be in the Latham Ballroom and livestreamed on the BOV website.
Monday: Radford City Council to review cooperative agreements with the Heritage Foundation, Chamber of Commerce and Radford Army Ammunition Plant
The Radford City Council meeting on Monday at 7 p.m. will include presentations on the city’s Memoranda of Understanding with three local organizations. The MOU with the Radford Heritage Foundation includes an agreement for the city to pay the foundation $15,000 for general operational expenses, $2,000 for the Mary Draper Ingles Festival and $3,000 for increasing the executive director’s pay. The foundation agrees to operate the Glencoe Mansion Museum and Gallery as a historical and cultural center of the community.
The MOU with the Radford Chamber of Commerce includes an agreement for the city to pay the chamber $14,000 for annual chamber membership. The chamber will expand its role in providing resources, such as internships, that support local economic development. The chamber will also host a variety of city events, including an annual golf tournament, educational seminars and the Festival of Lights.
The MOU with the Radford Army Ammunition Plant (RFAAP) focuses on emergency planning and response. The MOU states that the plant and Radford “commit to providing reciprocal emergency support to mitigate the impacts of disasters and emergencies.” The “unified response to threats facing the workforce at RFAAP and the residents of Radford” includes the exchange of fire, rescue, security and medical resources as well as joint training exercises, communications interoperability and coordinated disaster planning. The plant, according to its website, is a government-owned, contractor-operated facility that is the only active military propellant manufacturing center in the U.S. It produces mortar, artillery, and tank ammunition.
The council meeting is open to the public and will be held in the Council Chambers of the Radford City Office at 10 Robertson Street.
Tuesday: Blacksburg Town Council to hold a public hearing on the budget, including utility fee increases
On Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., the Blacksburg Town Council will hold a public hearing on adopting the fiscal year 2027 budget. FY 2027 begins on July 1, 2026, and ends on June 30, 2027. The recommended budget is balanced and allocates $125,655,488 across 12 funds, including a new Rescue Fund to track all rescue squad revenues and expenditures. The recommended budget includes upgrading the local emergency radio communications system; funding The Local @414; increasing town employee compensation by 4%; and continuing to fund the New River Valley Housing Trust Fund.
The budget also includes utility fee increases. Water and sewer rates are increasing by 6%; solid waste and recycling rates are increasing by 7%. The budget document states that the increases are “driven primarily by inflation in electricity, fuel, labor, and operating supplies and equipment.” Overall, the average Blacksburg utility customer with 6,000 gallons of monthly water usage can expect an increase of approximately $8.40 per month, according to page 4 of the recommended budget.
The recommended fee increases are published in Ordinance 2114.
Copies of the recommended budget are available at the Blacksburg branch of the Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library, as well as in the town clerk and town manager offices. The digital version can be accessed at www.blacksburg.gov/budget.
The council meeting is open to the public and will be held in the Roger E. Hedgepeth Chambers of the Blacksburg Municipal Building at 300 South Main Street.
Tuesday: Christiansburg Town Council to hear three presentations related to the nation’s 250thbirthday
The Christiansburg Town Council meeting on Tuesday at 7 p.m. will include three updates on town preparations for the 250th anniversary of Independence Day. Montgomery County VA 250 Committee chairs Sherry Wyatt and Jen Harris will introduce local organizations’ activities. Executive Director of Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Montgomery County Regional Tourism Samantha Livesay, who is also a chair of the VA 250 Committee, will present tourism initiatives related to the 250th anniversary. Finally, Christiansburg Parks and Recreation Director Brad Epperly will provide an update on plans for the Fourth of July celebration.
In addition, the council will vote on the Kiwanis Club’s request to close several streets for the Wilderness Trail Festival on September 19, 2026. The club requests that the following streets be closed from 5:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.: Main Street (between Montague Street N.E. and Hickok Street), Roanoke Street (between E. Main Street and First Street, S.E.), Pepper Street (between Hill Street, N.E. and the Montgomery County Courthouse Pepper Street, S.E. parking lot exit), Marvin Jarels Circle, N.E. (in its entirety) and Franklin Street (between First Street and Commerce Street, N.W.).
The council meeting is open to the public and will be held at the Christiansburg Town Hall at 100 E. Main St. The meeting will also be livestreamed on the Town of Christiansburg’s YouTube channel.
Thursday: Floyd Town Council rescheduled for next week
The Floyd Town Council meeting scheduled for Thursday has been rescheduled to Tuesday, April 21. The meeting will take place in the Profitt House Community Room of Floyd Town Hall at 203 East Oxford Street.
