members with connections would be a problem. At first blush, it could be perceived as an asset. That is until you get down below first blush. The most recent construction burst has been for student housing (i.e., The Edge, The Hub, The Union, Cedar Pointe, The Retreat, etc.). These were built in response to announced growth in student enrollment to 50,000 by Dr. Sands several years ago. VT can't get funding/authorization from the state for on campus dorms. Now that that student housing burst was completed, the Town wanted affordable housing, to the point of giving over $4MM in federal subsidies to get 24 affordable homes (i.e., Glade Spring Crossing and The Legacy Apts (neither started as of yet). All this was done in response to the planned growth of VT. Much like VT, the Town is reactive, not proactive. The Town has tried for decades to get VT to charge Town meal taxes on campus. VT is adamant they will not (students can live quite comfortably and never leave campus). Center Street is been a problem for years (this is the viewpoint of the Townies, not the students). VT says it's a Town problem to handle, with no assistance from VT. SF homes in Bburg generally start at >$600K, with commensurate property taxes. The new multi-level town homes being built on the old middle school property start at >$1MM. Many on here have mentioned the cyclical business cycles of downtown merchants (football weekend, move in week, move out week, students gone for 3-months a year, etc.). Most full time residents don't go downtown to shop anymore, because they can't find any place to park, (students), or have to pay to park. Now, all these things have to be paid for by homeowners and full time residents, usually through property taxes, sales taxes, meal taxes, etc.). The dichotomy of all this is that VT is the economic engine for not only Blacksburg, but also for SW Virginia. And, because members of Town Council and Town Planning to large part depend on their livelihood to VT, they are very reluctant to fight the hand that feeds them. And, VT knows this. Just once, I would like to see TC refuse a rezoning until they get some sort of concession from VT. VT is going to grow, and the Town is going to bend over for them. And, the Townies, to a large part, are going to foot the bill. The Walmart you mentioned was fought and defeated because of NIMBY and the elitism of Blacksburg residents. What you may not know, is that the then Mayor and the developer denied that the building was going to be a Walmart, until a resident went to Planning, found the plat rendering, and the rendering clearly said the building was going to be a Walmart. In short, there is no trust between the Town and it's residents. In short, they lie to us, and keep raising our taxes. That new multi-use building near the traffic circle at Prices Fork and Main Street, which is mostly empty, was built by the VT Foundation. The Foundation pays no taxes to Blacksburg. There is no real monetary benefit to the Town. As you say, "..,..."it becomes a problem is when the Council members fail to position the town for growth driven by Virginia Tech,..." and you're right. From some of the residents' viewpoint, it appears that the Town is more responsive to VT than to the taxpayers. But, it's the taxpayers subsidizing VT's growth. Just another viewpoint for you to consider.