Whole neww world - 3/24/2016

Growing up I thought my city was the best thing since sliced bread. However, since moving to Blacksburg I have changed my tune. Amazing community and atmosphere.

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Blacksburg pros & cons - 11/21/2011

Blacksburg is a very nice place overall, but like others has its pros and cons. It's a small, clean, quaint college town amid rural farmland and forested mountains. The downtown blocks recently received a nice face lift with brick paving, trees, and streetlamps, and are now a bit more pedestrian friendly. The town revolves around Virginia Tech. The university unabashedly invests heavily nowadays in name branding, marketing, and appearances, building a lavish new Visitor Center to impress parents and other investors. Hokie football also commands heavy money, attention, and traffic. In the fall and spring, town is full of mostly white privileged college students, their vehicles, and their driving habits. Holidays and summer are quieter. Arts and festivals are fairly well represented, considering the town size and tech bias of the university, and nearby Floyd county has excellent bluegrass. Townspeople in Blacksburg are generally liberal, friendly, and educated. Things get rural and poor quickly beyond town. Blacksburg lacks the cultural and ethnic diversity and urban vibe of larger towns and cities. Downtown has a handful of interesting local stores, but national franchises (Moes, Chipotle, Ritas, McD's, Coldwater Creek, Ann Taylor, Talbots, etc.) are gradually turning Blacksburg like the rest of the country into Anytown USA. Nearby Christiansburg (10 min away) already sold out to all the big box stores. About 45 minutes drive, Roanoke is the nearest larger town (not quite a city) and has an airport. Blacksburg is a good place to raise kids at was rated #1 in the nation in 2012 by Businessweek.com for Best Places to Raise Kids. However, it can be hard to find good daycare, with long waiting lists at the better university affiliated centers, and lots of turnover with college student sitters and daycare helpers. Other daycares in the region are being bought out by a profit-oriented CEO. There are lots of fitness centers and parks with plenty of outdoor recreation opportunities, a bit of a local green movement, and little pollution or crime.

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blacksburg, va climate - 4/21/2011

4 great seasons without extremes

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Nice place to raise a family - 6/1/2010

Close to 2 Universities and 3 Community Colleges, Blacksburg has beautiful scenery, small town feel, some arts and good schools.

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Best little college town in the land - 12/29/2009

You can't beat the combination... the beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains, three colleges, world-class research and development sector, diverse employment base, and multiple recreation and entertainment options. A small-town atmosphere with urban amenities for young and old alike.

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Great Place to Be - 11/11/2008

Blacksburg is an awesome community in a gorgeous region of Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. With the university here, VT, and the growing metro area there are now about 150,000 in the SMSA. And Roanoke stands just a half hour east with it's new acclaimed Museum of Art, downtown lofts, shopping and City Market. But, back to Blacksburg. Men's Health, Places Rated, Forbes, Outdoor magazine and more have all ranked the area high in its rankings over the past few years. STeady high-tech job growth, strong retirement community, the energy of the 25,000+ college students and all of the people who accompany these segments create a tight knit community with lots to offer residents and visitors, alike. Downtown, the restored Lyric Theatre plays first run art films, hosts concerts and performance. A new 'Black Box' Theatre in a fully modernist building is being built across the street and VA Tech will break ground downtown on a massive Performing Arts Center and parking garage in the near future. Downtown improvements are about to be under way, a new boutique inn opens in the fall, and new downtown residences are all bringing new life to downtown. And we're eagerly anticipating new restaurants and local galleries and shops as these projects are completed. There's quite a bit happening throughout the area. The former University Mall adjacent to campus has been upgraded to host offices, new service retail and other amenities from Panera Bread to Starbucks, a bookstore, expansive gym, and other features. South Main Street-accessible by walking, bike, public transport and by car is in the process of opening and brings retailers from Talbot's, Coldwater Creek, Ann Taylor Loft, Jos A Banks, Books A Million, Blue Ridge Mountain Sports, a full-service Day Spa with Aveda, and many, many more shops and restaurants as well as a 12-screen stadium seating theatre now join Kroger and other retailers in a rapidly emerging high-end retail district. Go 10 minutes further to the malls between Blacksburg and Christiansburg and you've got everything from Old Navy, Best Buy, Target to Bookbinder's Grill - it's an expansive district with hundereds of goods and services to choose from. Blacksburg's schools are new and well run with a growing student population. Housing is wide ranging and much of it is built within recent years. The town sits on a vast plateau at about 2,000 feet surrounded by mountains. The views are insane and there is great golfing within minutes. Blacksburg Country Club, Va Tech Golf Course, the public town course and the Pete Dye River Course all provide great golfing. Hike the Appalachian Trail, go rafting on the New River, hike to Cascades Water Fall, Pandapas Pond or just stroll the phenomenal grounds of Va Tech campus and the Duck Pond and Smithfield Plantation. Va Tech hosts a new medical School, College of Veterinary Medicine and the Va Tech Airport is planning for it's coming expansion upgrades to host more corporate and private jet travel. Va Tech Corp Research Center hosts more than 2,000 employees in 24 buildings housing over 130 new technology companies. It's worth the visit. It's definitely worth moving here if you can swing it.

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Just moved here... - 10/24/2007

Blacksburg is a great little town. While it lacks some big-city excitement and is short on good restaurants, it more than makes up for it in natural beauty, low cost of living, and easy living.

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Small town feel in largest VA town. - 9/16/2007

Blacksburg is fantastic. You have to go.

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Commute to Roanoke - 7/28/2006

The statistics suggest that Blacksburg is a tiny, remote town with a limited economic base. Don't be fooled! It's about a 35 minute drive to downtown Roanoke--well within commuting distance, which several of my neighbors do. While technically "separate" metro areas, there is an effort to offically merge the two into a larger MSA of about 500,000 people, officially linking Roanoke with a major University in Virginia Tech. Once that's done, watch out! This region will economically explode ala Raleigh-Durham as Northern Virginia continues to be plagued with high costs and extensive gridlock as companies set up operations elsewhere.

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Blacksburg, VA - Up and Coming - 6/6/2006

With a triving high-tech economy, one of the best public school systems in Virginia, low cost-of-living, and virtually no crime, it's a New Englandesque area without the harsh winters. It's a beautiful mountain setting with a well-educated population, probably the highest quality-of-life of anywhere I've lived. Great golf courses and a ton of winerys nearby as well! I suspect this entire region will explode with retiring Baby Boomers from high-dollar areas like DC, Philly, NYC, and Boston. Thankfully, there's enough open land around with room to grow.

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Virginia Tech - 3/30/2006

Blacksburg is great- you cant beat it.

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This Place... - 2/28/2006

This place is okay for a college town, however suprisingly there arent that many jobs available that pay a good amount.

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