Controversial housing development narrowly approved in Blacksburg

BLACKSBURG, Va. (WDBJ) - A controversial eight-story housing development is moving forward in Blacksburg after a narrow vote from the town council Tuesday night. The Blacksburg town council voted 4-3 to approve a rezoning that allows a developer to build an eight-story development consisting of townhomes and apartments.

The development could have up to 759 bedrooms and will be targeted at Virginia Tech students. During a public hearing, people shared several concerns about its potential impact.

“It disrespects the character of Blacksburg. An eight-story building, the largest in town, does not fit here. It is out of scale with the surrounding neighborhoods, and it ignores the community’s values,” said Leslie Harwood, who lives in Blacksburg. “We, not the developer, will deal with the long-term consequences. This project will increase traffic congestion, reduce parking in existing neighborhoods, and fail to provide basic necessities for people who live there.”

The project will be built off Kabrich Street, Winston Avenue, and a part of Progress Street. In addition to the sheer size and scope of the development, Blacksburg residents voiced major concerns about the lack of parking being built alongside it.

“We’re already dealing with issues over off of North Main Street. At any given time, if you go down Lucas Street, there are cars parked everywhere. There are signs there that say no parking, but yet there they are,” said Ronnie Collins, who lives in Blacksburg. “You want to put 759 bedrooms there? We’ve already got an issue on North Main Street and all over town. It’s a bad idea, this a Virginia Tech problem, not ours.”

A representative for the developer said that the location is within walking distance of Virginia Tech’s campus and the downtown area, so it doesn’t believe all the students living there will bring their cars. The developer also discussed incentivizing residents not to bring their vehicles, however, Blacksburg residents were still very concerned about the parking impact.

“The wealthy kids from Northern Virginia are going to come down here. They’re going to fill up our parking spaces, fill up our areas, and they’re going to leave their cars there,” said Brian Wheeler, who lives in Blacksburg.

Wheeler and others also expressed concerns about the traffic impact the project will have.

“That intersection is already problematic. If you’re going to put an eight-story building there with several hundred more people and bikes and everything else, the idea that nothing more needs to be done as part of this project to address where Kabrich Street meets Main Street seems absurd to me,” he said.

Several residents said it is not the town’s job to provide housing for Virginia Tech Students.

“It is not our responsibility as the town. It’s the responsibility of Virginia Tech, and they have plenty of land that this development could go on. I feel like it’s time for the town to say ‘Enough is enough’ and we need to start standing up to Virginia Tech,” said Karen Everheart, who lives in Blacksburg.

The council members who voted in favor of the project said it was not an easy decision but ultimately cited the town’s housing crisis as the reason for their votes.

“We’re number one in the nation for pre-rental commitments. That’s because we have such a shortage of housing that students have to sign up for housing nine to ten months in advance,” said Blacksburg Town Council Member Susan Mattingly, who was one of the votes in favor of the project. “This is not a perfect development. I wish it weren’t so tall, I wish it weren’t so dense, but it is walkable, it is bikeable, this is the solution to our problem as I see it.”

Mayor Leslie Hager-Smith echoed Mattingly’s concerns as one of the reasons she supported the project.

“We are now number one in the country for our low vacancy rate. It is unhealthy,” said Hager-Smith.

Susan Mattingly said she believes the development will help address some of the challenges facing Blacksburg.

“One of the biggest complaints I receive as a council person is student lifestyle conflicts with single-family neighborhoods, it is a chronic problem that we have. The more housing that we build for those students relieves pressure on those neighborhoods in close proximity to the university,” said Mattingly. “If we do not build in close proximity to the university, and we build lower density housing further out, we’re getting traffic. There are no easy solutions to the problems that we are facing density is inevitable if we’re going to solve our housing crisis.”

The developer will contribute money to the town’s affordable housing fund. Work on the project will now move forward.