Amazing! There is actually a Virginia resident who moved from Blacksburg to Midlothian not because of family or due to employment. This resident stated he moved from his hometown of 27 years because there was no Sonic restaurant. (This resident could have simply moved to Christiansburg or Roanoke, if this were truly the reason.) When I was a kid growing up in a semi-rural area and the first McDonald’s showed up, I had no idea fast food joints would one day weld such influence on consumer choices.
Just imagine how many people will now put their homes up for sale if an Arby’s isn’t approved by Blacksburg Town Council. If a WalMart (or a Costco or Sam’s Warehouse) is placed at First & Main, Blacksburg might actually become a ghost town. Because of the mortgage foreclosure crisis (brought on by an industry’s greed offering people far higher credit limits than what they should have qualified for)? No. Because “those” stores may not attract the “right” clientele.
Looking at Radford, citizens feel their rights are being infringed upon due to restrictions on the number of yard sales that can be held annually. Who knew this activity was an economic engine? Critics appear oblivious to public and private investment which has occurred over the last decade in a formerly depressed area adjacent to a major university campus. Today one sees traditional brick-and-mortar retail, a coveted farmer’s market and residential living. Outrageous! Citizens should be able to sell their useless stuff whenever they clean out their basements and garages! And here I was getting upset because the “Bill of Rights” has been severely eroded.
Over in Christiansburg, with a “10 year plan” spanning more than a decade, the town invested heavily in recreation facilities and gave its downtown a partial facelift. If the percent of eligible residents using these facilities isn’t known, who cares? If recreational events don’t break even and cover associated costs, who cares? Maybe there is some benefit (for restaurants or hotels, with the collecting of related taxes) providing some return, yet no one can be certain as there are no metrics. But who cares?
Scheduling “special events” doesn’t showcase development opportunities, creating an ability to attract or retain businesses for the tax base. Again, no metrics. (Unless you count the retailers who don’t like the disruption to their normal slow days, or the number who work to thwart these efforts instead of joining in to support them.) And here I thought community goodwill had a bookable value.
An issue that arose many years ago with the decision to build two new middle schools in Montgomery County lingers like a bad odor. Supervisors and the school board remain in a stalemate. Or is that the county and the Town of Blacksburg? Nineteen acres of prime real estate already zoned for residential use, adjacent to one of the largest universities in Virginia, yet it remains in limbo. Why not just put it on Ebay?
Meanwhile, a couple of hills away, the Roanoke Valley Economic Development Partnership is slimming down and renaming itself the Roanoke Regional Partnership (RRP). With members including the counties of Alleghany, Botetourt, Craig and Franklin, cities of Roanoke, Salem and Covington, and the Town of Vinton, this organization is ready to launch four new strategies and works seamlessly with the state’s Fifth Planning District Commission. (The NRV has a PDC and the Blacksburg Partnership, but one doesn’t have the momentum of this neighboring group and the other is focused on supporting only the town whose name it uses.)
The RRP strategies are part of a four-prong effort to pull together and package itself. These include: Business Growth and Development (recruitment and retention); Asset Development (retail recruitment and quality of life initiatives); Image Building (regional and national marketing); and Strategic Development and Metrics (engaging stakeholders and building consensus while identifying specific measurements). Direct, yet complex. Broad, yet collaborative.
These strategies focus on attracting and retaining a “creative class” as defined by Richard Florida, which is required to bring about successful outcomes in today's global market. Florida is given credit as an economic genius, yet he is actually a human geographer detailing how regions become stronger when they build relationships based on values. This affects people’s choices and attitudes which then develops a new economic class. Cultivating this talent, regions become stronger, attracting more investment and expanding opportunities.
With Radford, Virginia Tech and NRCC developing young minds right here, and enjoying a diverse economy that includes strong retail, tourism, education, research and manufacturing – why isn’t the NRV (and specifically Montgomery County and its towns), ahead of the RRP on this curve? Why aren’t we retaining these graduates, growing the business base already here?
These four strategies could be applied in almost any community.
If the shoe fits, why not wear it? Because here it’s more entertaining to bicker about yard sales, free summer festivals, and fast food stores.