Angelica Ramos
Contributing Writer
BLACKSBURG- The Blacksburg Town Council voted unanimously in favor of amending the zoning ordinance for the town of Blacksburg to permit development on smaller lots of land in Blacksburg.
Kinsey O’Shea, Development Administrator for the Town of Blacksburg, gave a presentation to the council on Ordinance 2053 and what it would do to help develop smaller lots in Blacksburg.
“The comprehensive plan,” O’Shea explained, “identifies two specific zoning actions for implementation that point towards smaller lot development as a strategy for expanding housing options within town. To that end, town staff, along with consultant firm Camiros, have been drafting an ordinance that would allow for the by right development of smaller lots than are currently allowed in the zoning ordinance. There are several residential districts in town that support primarily single-family development. The R4 zoning district is the typical single family residential district for much of the residential areas in town. There are options to reduce lot sizes below the minimum in conjunction with a requirement for additional open space with the open space overlay district. There are a few examples of existing development that have occurred over time with smaller lot sizes.”
Current ordinances allow for a low-density zoning but the new ordinance would allow for a higher density zoning but with smaller dwellings on the lots. This could allow for a few different housing options to be built upon the smaller lots.
“The small lot residential option,” O’Shea explained, “is a development option proposed within the existing R4 neighborhoods. While it wouldn’t require a rezoning to develop under the stand standards, a minimum development size of two acres is required. This is to ensure that standards are applied thoughtfully across a neighborhood, rather than this being utilized as an infill tool. The proposed development option would allow for single family uses by right, as well as two family and town home uses, town home uses by right provided that they’re served by an alley. There are a number of different types of standards for the small lot development option, including standards that govern individual lots such as setbacks and lot coverage development standards, such as open space, street design and unit standards, unit design standards that apply to individual dwelling units. There is also an overall lower occupancy standard of a family plus one or no more than two unrelated persons per unit proposed.”
This would mean that well thought out and well-planned neighborhoods would be able to be built with single families in mind with different types of housing options. The Council and Town of Blacksburg hope that this will provide housing options for people who work in Blacksburg and who want to live in Blacksburg while also building smaller, well thought out communities of families.
Because of many properties in Blacksburg are becoming rental spaces for students as the presence of Virginia Tech increases, residents during public comment shared their worries that Blacksburg will stop feeling like a small town if it is continued to be developed. Citizens also expressed concerns regarding housing costs and would want these homes potentially being built to be more cost effective for young families and young people who seek home ownership that may be able to afford these homes.
