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DOWNTOWN’S SIX DISTRICTS

CHAPTER 5

Catalyst The catalyst for a more walkable, vibrant, and architecturally beautiful Downtown Northwest is the redevelopment of its southern half. Its very high land costs (even by Downtown standards) will require greater density to initiate redevelopment that is of high architectural quality. Upscale student housing is the most logical, and likely the only economically viable redevelopment option. With high design standards and a ground-floor retail requirement, this portion of Downtown can be remade in ways that will better integrate it with the university on the western end, and with Main Street on the eastern end. Through assembly and coordinated master development, a series of new buildings could be added, along with new streets that provide better connectivity—especially from campus to Main Street and the Bennet Hill-Progress neighborhood beyond. A new civic plaza or green could add meaningful public space to Downtown.

POTENT I AL CATALYST

preservation

new construction & redevelopment

open space & streetscape

DISTRICT DEVELOPMENT SUMMARY

107 Downtown Blacksburg Strategic Plan

40k square feet

1.2 acres

20k square feet

1600

beds

Student Housing

Ground-Floor Retail

New Town Park

Retail Anchor