The long months of campaigning have finally paid off: In January, three citizens will be sworn in to the Blacksburg Town Council for the first time while a fourth holds on to a second term.
The election results, however, are merely the first sentence in the next chapter of Blacksburg history. What remains to be seen is the impact that the newly reshaped council will have on the town.
As the economy continues to fluctuate, a question left in the minds of many is how the council will assist the town’s economic situation. Popular topics during campaigns were job creation, economic help, and the idea of a “big box” store building near to the First & Main development.
“We’re making great economic progress,” said returning council member Susan Anderson. “Our downtown is really starting to explode.”
Anderson said that recent downtown development along with development at First & Main were “quality developments” that she hoped would succeed.
A question in the minds of many, however, is how the council will handle the idea of a “big box” store moving into the First & Main development area.
Anderson, along with others, said that she couldn’t answer that question yet.
Newly-elected member Krisha Chachra said that she would have to wait until the issue arose to give a comment on her opinion, although in a previous Collegiate Times town council Q&A (CT, Oct. 16), she said that she would support “some type of anchor store” in the area.
“So whether it is a movie theater, a store, or high-end office space, I support having something there,” Chachra said.
In the same article, newly-elected member Cecile Newcomb echoed Anderson’s sentiments, saying that she would need to study the potential application to make an informed decision.
Newly elected member John Bush said in the same article that he would like to re-examine the location for a proposed big box store in the future.
It’s difficult for anyone to look into the future, but it’s worth examining how the recent election and a big box store could potentially affect both the politics and economy of Blacksburg.
Associate political science professor Craig Brians said in an e-mail that he doubted the addition of Chachra, Newcomb and Bush would significantly alter the council’s current collective view on big box stores.
“There were candidates running who probably would make changes, but they didn’t win,” Brians said.
The town council that dealt from 2007-08 with the controversial Ordinance 1450, which gave the council greater authority to regulate large-scale retail development in the town, has experienced bumps in the process of filling spots in the First & Main development.
“Right now, First & Main has about 14 empty storefronts,” Anderson said, adding that the council should work to fill those spaces.
“The more there, the more buzz, the more people shop,” she said.
Adding a big box store to the proposed rugby field adjacent to the First & Main development is more controversial, largely because of its proximity to Margaret Beeks Elementary School as well as what she deems to be an unsuitable system of roads potentially unable to support the traffic that would be associated with a large retail store.
The addition of a big box store to Blacksburg would not significantly alter the economy, said Jeff Alwang, a professor of agriculture and applied economics at Tech. It could, however, serve as an anchor to the First & Main development, he said.
“It probably would also lower property values of the surrounding property,” Alwang said.
Other concerns have in the past hampered development in the area. Sonic’s initial application for development was first held back by concerns for pedestrian accessibility because of the lack of a sidewalk in the proposal as well as the potential harmful impact of Sonic radio.
Sonic altered its application and re-applied. This application was approved, but the company decided not to build.
Alwang said that the addition of a Sonic or other fast food restaurant to the First & Main area might slightly help the town’s economy.
“The retail tax is a county tax and half of it goes back to the county of origin,” Alwang said, so the only effect a big box store would have, in his opinion, would be displacement of value coming into Montgomery County from Christiansburg.
However, Alwang said, a large commercial development “might help with the local taxes on restaurants and cigarettes. So if a Sonic were added, it might slightly increase the town’s capture of a food and beverage tax,” he said.
Anderson also said the idea that the town council doesn’t support any big box type of growth is a common misperception.
“We do have big box stores here in Blacksburg,” she said. “For anyone to think that Blacksburg is opposed to big boxes is just silly. We have them, we need them.”
Two notable examples of big box stores that have successfully passed through Ordinance 1450 are the Kroger on South Main Street and the recently-expanded Tech Bookstore, also on South Main.
“We aren’t anti-business or anti-First & Main,” Anderson said.
While Anderson and her colleagues look forward to fostering growth in the town and dealing with applications for change as they come, Alwang is not so hopeful about the economic future of Blacksburg.
“The wellbeing of Blacksburg is closely tied to Virginia Tech, and the state’s budget looks sad,” Alwang said. “I’m not at all optimistic about the next three to four years.
“Small businesses can be a positive agent of growth, but I don’t think the town council can do anything for growth.”
Although there’s no way to predict what will happen in the future, Anderson said the council hopes to continue to “act in a responsible manner to listen and pay attention to citizens and to be fair in making decisions.”