ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, April 25, 1996 TAG: 9604250004
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG
SOURCE: ELISSA MILENKY STAFF WRITER
It will be the first time since 1988, the year Virginia Tech professor Waldon Kerns ran, that an election assuredly will not be swept by incumbents. Kerns announced in February that he would not run for re-election after serving two terms, guaranteeing an open slot.
Though Halwas and Rordam are newcomers to Town Council elections, both have held visible positions within the community and are quick to point out that they are not rabble-rousers.
Rordam, a local business owner, is vice chairman of the Blacksburg Planning Commission who wants to continue the council's current direction. Halwas, past president of the Greater Blacksburg Chamber of Commerce, is an associate broker at Raines Real Estate who says he can offer a different perspective on Town Council as a businessman.
Incumbents Chandler and Parsons each want to continue years of work on council. Parsons has been re-elected consistently since she first ran in 1972; Chandler has served on council since 1984.
There is no single, controversial issue defining this year's election. Instead, the ongoing focus on maintaining a balance between Blacksburg's small-town character and allowing it to grow is a major, overlying theme.
It has been a topic present during every election in recent memory, but this year marks a particularly important chapter in the annals of Blacksburg's planning issues. The council will vote on a revamped comprehensive plan this summer, a document that maps out the town's vision for future growth in everything from population and the services it needs to economic development.
In the fall, the council will vote on a rewritten zoning ordinance, which tackles everything from Greek housing to subdivisions, after nearly four years of work on the document by the town's staff.
LENGTH: Short : 42 lines KEYWORDS: POLITICS CITY COUNCILby CNB