Sometimes, one hears questions about towns becoming a city or even vice versa. Towns, counties and cities are all legally defined by the State Code of Virginia and as such, each has certain structures and powers granted or limited.
Sometimes, people have asked why the twin-towns of Blacksburg and Christiansburg remain separate rather than consolidating into a city. Since cities provide for public education, that might address the Old Blacksburg Middle School issue pretty quickly, because school properties and related funding for public education would flow to the new city instead of the county.
Has there ever been a serious study on this occurring, and if so, what would a budget and services look like for both residents of the existing towns and citizens residing in the unincorporated areas of the county? Are there advantages or disadvantages to such an action and how do voters know -- where's the data?
Another topic that has arisen is how both Roanoke City and Virginia Tech serve as economic engines in Southwest Virginia. Yet each falls within different state planning districts. Has there ever been a comprehensive study on restructuring PDCs to better reflect today's economic dependencies, align assets and commuter patterns? If so, where's the data showing why this should/should not occur?
The world is changing and resources become harder to attract and retain. Look at how much the NRV and Roanoke Valley have changed in just the last 50 years. There are many types of partnerships where government and business leaders work on overlapping initiatives, yet for the most part often pit our county board of supervisors and two towns at cross purposes for achieving the same goals for their own constituents. This circle of competition widens when you look at the economies of both the NRV and Roanoke Valley vying against each other when seeking the same type of goals.
If anyone knows of an analysis of the pro's or con's of these two topics, shoot us a link or contact name and a summary of that information will be shared here.