BHS Fall Sports Preview, Upcoming Town Council Working Sessions

Fall sports season is heating up for the Blacksburg Bruins. From football under a new head coach to one of Virginia's top cross country programs, here's a look at what's ahead across every fall program.

🏈 Boys Varsity Football

The Bruins enter the season under new leadership. Phillip Reese was promoted to head coach in June after former head coach Zack Leonard departed for William Fleming. A UVa-Wise graduate, Reese served on Leonard's staff as defensive line coach and strength and conditioning coordinator. He's not starting from scratch — Reese he was embedded in the program's vision from day one he told WDBJ7.

The Bruins compete primarily on Friday nights in non-region games before shifting to district rivals later in autumn. Here's the early schedule:

Full schedule: MaxPreps | ArbiterLive

🏃 Cross Country (Coed)

BHS boasts one of the top distance running programs in Virginia, and their premier local showcase kicks off the season at the end of the month with the Blacksburg Relays on August 29. It's a big community event and a great early-season measuring stick.

More info: MileSplit VA — Blacksburg Relays

⛳ Coed Golf

Golf season starts the earliest of all fall sports, with matches already underway through August and into early September. The team plays a mix of invitationals and tri-matches at courses like Botetourt Golf and Swim Club and Olde Mill Golf Club, with frequent matchups against Glenvar, Giles, and Floyd County.

🏐 Girls Volleyball

Volleyball runs a high-intensity weeknight schedule (mostly Tuesdays and Thursdays) against regional opponents including Salem, Christiansburg, and Cave Spring.

More schedule info here: https://www.arbiterlive.com/School/Calendar/1966

It's a big few weeks ahead for Bruins athletics — get out and show your support.

It's a busy week for Blacksburg's local government. The Town Council holds its regular work session tomorrow, Tuesday, August 18 at 11:00 AM at the Blacksburg Motor Company (400 South Main Street), and the Planning Commission is stepping back from its usual Tuesday evening format for its annual retreat — a longer-form session where commissioners take stock of the year's planning priorities and set the agenda for what's ahead.

Here's a breakdown of what's on the table.

A Drive-Through Bank Is Coming to Prices Fork Road

The land-use item on the work session agenda is CUP-26-1: conditional use permit for a financial institution with a drive-through window on a 1.16-acre vacant lot at 1800 Prices Fork Road.

If you've driven past that empty parcel near the Plantation Road intersection, this is what's planned for it. The site was rezoned to Planned Commercial back in 2023, but the original approval specifically required a new CUP before any construction — the idea being that the building design and site layout needed to be nailed down before a shovel hit the ground.

The applicant, Foresight Design Services (on behalf of Craig Stipes of Broad Street Partners, LLC), has now submitted that plan. Along with the CUP itself, they're requesting zoning exceptions for cross-access drive requirements, parking in front of the building line, and increased maximum parking. They also needed a VDOT access management variance for the project's commercial entrance on Plantation Road — VDOT approved that on July 31.

The Planning Commission held its public hearing on August 4, and both the PC-to-Council memo and cover memo were issued August 7, advancing the item to council. If approved, it heads to public hearing on September 8 at 6:30 PM.

South Main Street Houses Could Become Offices and Studios

The second item is CUP-26-2 — a proposal from Bungalow on Main, LLC to convert three residential structures at 700–706 South Main Street and 105 Eakin Street SW into general office, medical office, or fine arts studio space.

The properties sit in the R-5 Transitional Residential zoning district, which is specifically designed to buffer between the heavier commercial corridor of South Main and the neighborhoods behind it. The Comprehensive Plan designates the area as Medium Density Residential, so this conversion would push the boundary between what the zoning envisions and what the market is asking for — a tension that's come up before in this part of town.

Beyond the conversions, the project includes a new 1,200-square-foot single-story building behind 706 South Main, a shared two-way access drive off Eakin Street, a stormwater bioretention system between the two Main Street properties, and demolition of two existing brick garages. The applicant is also requesting a waiver of the required sidewalk installation on Eakin Street. An amended application with updated site and stormwater plans was filed July 10.

This item also heads to public hearing on September 8 at 6:30 PM at the Council Chambers, 300 South Main Street.

Fall Semester Prep

Council will also get its regular fall semester briefing. Virginia Tech classes begin August 24, bringing the annual population surge that impacts traffic, transit capacity, and housing across town. The Board of Visitors approved a 2.9% tuition increase for 2026–27, bringing resident undergraduate tuition and fees to $17,087 annually. Housing pressure remains a running theme: council has previously flagged that the university's growth over the past decade has strained town resources and worsened housing availability.

Planning Commission Retreat — Same Night, Same Building

Later that evening, the Planning Commission holds its 2026 annual retreat at 5:00 PM in the same Blacksburg Motor Company building (400 South Main Street). It starts with a potluck supper at 5:00, with the working session running from 5:30 to 7:30 PM.

This year's retreat agenda tackles some of the bigger policy questions shaping Blacksburg's future:

Cannabis and Vape Shop Regulations — The commission will discuss how to handle cannabis businesses and vape shops in town. As Virginia's cannabis market continues to evolve, local governments are working through what regulations and zoning controls make sense at the municipal level.

ReCode Blacksburg — An ongoing effort to modernize and simplify the town's zoning ordinance. ReCode is a comprehensive rewrite aimed at making the code more user-friendly, internally consistent, and aligned with the Comprehensive Plan. It's one of the most significant regulatory undertakings the town has initiated in years.

Comprehensive Plan Update — Commissioners will review progress on implementing the Comprehensive Plan — the long-range vision document that guides land use, transportation, housing, and development decisions across town.

Planning Commission Goals — The retreat wraps with a goal-setting discussion for the commission's priorities heading into the rest of 2026 and beyond.

Full application documents, staff reports, and amended submissions are available on each project's page at blacksburg.gov/public-hearings.