Roanoke legislative committee hears public priorities for 2027: opportunity zones, tenant protections, transit and data-center rules

Vice Mayor Maguire convened the Legislative Committee's first public hearing July 20 and outlined a timeline: the committee will collect public and staff feedback in July and August, aim for a draft legislative agenda in August and target finalization Sept. 8 so council can begin meetings with state legislators in October.

Public speakers emphasized several priorities. Alicia Grubb, president of the Mountain View Neighborhood Association, urged the city to prioritize a Qualified Opportunity Zone designation for Census Tract 10 (Mountain View and Hurt Park) to spur investment while protecting longtime homeowners. Grubb highlighted local assets—including proximity to downtown and the Greenway—and asked the city to urge the governor's office to include the tract in the September designation process.

Dr. Virginia Sweet urged the city to press for stronger statewide tenant protections and building-code enforcement. She proposed amending the Virginia code governing housing and the statewide building code to increase fines for repeat violations, limit continuances that allow landlords to avoid penalties, and require demonstration of sustained progress before judges grant extensions.

Speakers representing transit and riders asked the city to seek dedicated, recurring funding at the state level for operating and capital needs. Laura Hartman (Bus Riders of Roanoke) and Amit Patel urged regional funding mechanisms and consideration of a transportation improvement district or tax-increment financing to support buses, bike infrastructure and airport improvements; Hartman said inadequate funding has left transit on the "back burner" and cited staffing and contract questions for bus operators.

Data-center regulation and transparency drew sustained attention. Din Vershore of the Southwestern Virginia Data Center Transparency Alliance outlined bills from the prior session (including HB1515 and HB496) and urged the city to support a moratorium on approvals, require public disclosure of water usage, demand public hearings on large land disposals, and consider treating data centers more like utilities with clearer end-of-life requirements. Catherine Lee, a former large-scale developer, urged better local application requirements and warned the council to prepare for developer litigation challenging denials.

Jack Left urged greater local authority (noting Virginia's Dillon Rule), expansion of housing tools, and broader support for collective bargaining and education funding. Several speakers said they would follow up with written comments and that staff had already identified priority tracts for the Opportunity Zone question.

Vice Mayor Maguire thanked speakers, noted recent legislative successes the city helped secure (land bank acquisition tools, expanded solar allowances, and civil-liberties priorities), and said staff will consolidate comments and return with a draft legislative program. Committee meetings were scheduled for Aug. 3 (legislative committee) and a final Sept. 8 council meeting to finalize priorities for outreach to state legislators.