Developers present vision for old Blacksburg Middle School
A majority of town council members voiced concerns about the proposal, particularly a 277-unit apartment complex and parking decks along Clay Street.
There’s more at roanoke.com.
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The Bburg Town Council, School Board, and County Board. Three groups with different agendas. None of the groups cooperating together. That land will sit there as the egos and politics block any progress.
Comment by Cindy — October 31, 2012 @ 7:20 am
Based on the photo of the plan posted yesterday, it gets a big FAIL! In the continuing process of making it difficult to get around Blacksburg, Palmer Drive still ends at Eheart St. instead of being extended through to Clay St. There is one street that goes all the way across the site, but it is offset from all the streets on the fringe, so it really doen’t help the flow of traffic avoiding Main St.
There was also a large area of green space in the rear corner of the site. This is all well and good, but that land needs to be owned by someone, such as a homeowners’ association for Fiddler’s Green, so it can be placed on the tax roles and bring in some revenue. There is NO WAY the Town of Blacksburg should accept that as yet another useless park (we already have Wong Park and the undevelopable Brown Farm Park, among other property that can’t be taxed).
Based on the resistance of some town council members (interesting that they have some BURG connection), the old middle school site will be sitting vacant and weed-covered (how are the weeds there not a violation of town ordinances?) when 2020 rolls around.
Comment by Joe Hokie — October 31, 2012 @ 3:12 pm
OK – Roanoke Times – you CAN’T print this kind of story without renderings from multiple angels. This development is importat and we need to see it!!!
Comment by LOVE NRV — October 31, 2012 @ 6:51 pm
Absolutely, the old BMS site should be redeveloped to bring quality office, commercial, civic and residential to the transitional zone of downtown. This parcel is amazing and anything we develop there really needs to be of ‘modern urban integrity’. By this, I mean solid design and construction, not the kind of synthetic siding, three story condo developments we see in the region. I mean something with as much correct aesthetics the renderings we are seeing for The Brownstones next door. We need a real sense of downtown park space, true brick and timber loft style vernacular, a feeling that this is not some new project plopped down but a real sense of the town – think the old Annie Kay building, the old national bank, the buildings you see on Roanoke’s railroad way and those in downtown Alexandria and Richmond’s Shockoe Bottom, Charlottesville’s downtown, too. I applaud anyone coming to the table who is willing to invest $85 million in our downtown. We all should. That does not happen everyday and just about any town in this country would bend over backward to have this opportunity. But we need to be able to work politely and collaboratively to get the best possible product that takes into account our diverse and growing town.
Comment by Quality — October 31, 2012 @ 9:19 pm
I know, plant Giant Redwoods on the site and in a 1000 years charge admission. The town council must realize that this is a college town and development must reflect that. They are the most anti-business group in the country. If a profit can’t be made by developers then there is going to be no development. Economics 101 We would all like to sit on the green and read poetry but I live in Realville and it takes economic prosperity to maintain a decent standard of living.
Comment by Local Guy — November 1, 2012 @ 1:39 pm
Wait a sec…as a resident of Palmer Drive, I really hope the plan NEVER includes a through street on the property. Even deadending into Eheart, traffic on our street is too heavy and too fast….going acroos the street to my mailbox is dangerous at times and the town seems unwilling to address it.
Regaring student housing…look around! Its everywhere. Fiddlers Green is full of students, both in the single family patio homes and the townhouses. And does anyone think that isn’t the goal overall?? Who builds a 4 bedroom 4 bath house with only 1600 square feet?? Only someone looking for inventors to house students. Anywhere housing is built, the students will end up. What I’d love to see is Kent Street development full(with somehting other than Modea, who will vacate anyway once this development in complete), Clay street full, and reasonable shops/restaurants starting at the intersection of Eheart and Main. THe entire town would benefit.
Comment by Noodle78 — November 8, 2012 @ 12:52 pm