Blue Ridge Marathon Returns, Roanoke Closes a Budget Gap, and the Dogwood Festival Takes Over Vinton

Full Transcript

Intro

Alex: Welcome to The Roanoke Weekly. I’m Alex.

Morgan: And I’m Morgan.

Alex: It’s Monday, April 20th, 2026 — here’s your week in the Star City. Every Monday, we cover the biggest local news and then run down what’s happening around town this week. Just a reminder — this show is locally curated and AI-narrated. We pull from great local sources like the Roanoke Times, WDBJ, WSLS, and Cardinal News, and we encourage you to support them.

Morgan: This week — the Blue Ridge Marathon brought thousands of runners downtown, Roanoke closes a big budget gap, and the Dogwood Festival takes over Vinton.

Alex: Let’s get into it.

The Lead: The Blue Ridge Marathon Returns

Alex: Saturday morning, a few thousand runners lined up on South Jefferson Street for the 2026 Foot Levelers Blue Ridge Marathon. Organizers bill it as America’s toughest road marathon, and the course backs that up — more than 7,400 feet of elevation gain and loss, most of it up and down Mill Mountain.

Rob Perkinson of Williamsburg took the overall win in 2 hours, 49 minutes, 11 seconds. Emily Sharp of Germantown, Maryland, was the first woman across the finish in 2:53:36 — her time was good enough for third overall.

The morning started cool, but organizers were urging runners to hydrate by mid-race. Temperatures climbed into the upper 70s within four hours of the start.

Beyond the race itself, this weekend is one of the biggest economic events on Roanoke’s calendar. Event organizer Kait Pedigo told WDBJ the marathon is projected to bring in about 2 million dollars in economic impact this year — up from 1.7 million in 2025. Around 3,500 runners registered, plus an expected 10,000 to 12,000 spectators. Pedigo told WDBJ runners came from 40 states, and WSLS reported at least one traveled from Honduras.

Local businesses felt it. The newly opened Colony House Motor Lodge was running near capacity. Salvatore Russo, the general manager at Corned Beef and Company, told WDBJ the foot traffic during marathon weekend is a noticeable difference — and it’s largely spectators. Families, repeat visitors, people who come back year after year.

After the race, Elmwood Park kept going. The post-race celebration rolled straight into the Freedom First Down by Downtown music festival, which ran into the evening at the same spot.

All told — a good weekend for downtown Roanoke.

The Rundown: News & Notes

Alex: Alright, let’s run through the rest of what happened this week.

Alex: Some big news for Roanoke’s biotech ambitions. The city and Carilion Clinic have approved a memorandum of understanding to establish a biotechnology incubator called RoVa Labs. It’ll be located at Carilion Clinic, with partners that include Virginia Tech, the Roanoke Blacksburg Innovation Alliance, and Virginia Western Community College. The goal is to support research spinoffs and startups working on medical devices, health technology, and pharmaceuticals.

WDBJ reports the project has been in development for about five years, and is projected to create 250 jobs over the next five. Economic Development Director Marc Nelson told WDBJ it won’t be one big employer — it’ll be a series of companies creating jobs along the way. Ribbon cutting is scheduled for May 6th.

Alex: The City of Roanoke has closed most of a 19 million dollar budget gap — and they did it without raising taxes. WSLS reports the city trimmed the shortfall down to about 5 million through a combination of modest revenue increases and spending cuts.

What got cut — roughly 100 to 115 vacant positions were eliminated, and annual pay raises for city staff were reduced. About 50 million dollars was pulled from the city’s five-year capital plan, including work on the Fishburn Mansion, upgrades to the Belmont Library, and several park projects. Council member Peter Volosin told WSLS the priority was keeping taxes flat, especially for residents on fixed incomes.

A public hearing on the budget is set for April 23rd, with final adoption planned for May 11th.

Morgan: It’s also going to cost more to go to Virginia Tech next year.

Alex: It is. The VT Board of Visitors approved a 2.9 percent tuition increase for the 2026-27 school year — the second year in a row at that rate. For in-state undergraduates, that’s about 561 dollars more. Out-of-state students will pay over 1,200 more, pushing their total past 40,000 a year. Room and board is also going up almost 7 percent.

Mandatory fees are up another 160 dollars, and 100 of that is athletics. University officials pointed to inflation, state funding levels, and required pay raises. Emma Roshioru, the undergraduate student senate president, told Cardinal News that students are now trying to graduate as fast as possible to avoid further increases — taking the maximum 18 credit hours a semester.

Alex: An update on the Rail Yard Dawgs. Per the Roanoke Times, Evansville took Game 1 of the President’s Cup semifinal Friday at the Berglund Center, 3 to 1 — Roanoke went 0 for 10 on the power play in that one. The team reported that the Dawgs bounced back Saturday with a 4-3 win, with Noah Finstrom scoring the game winner in the third period. The series is tied one-to-one, shifting to Evansville for Game 3 on Wednesday. If it goes the distance, Game 5 would be back at Berglund on Saturday.

Alex: And a quick update on the Google data center project in Botetourt. The Botetourt County Chamber of Commerce formally endorsed it this week. The chamber cited an estimated 30 million dollars a year in local tax revenue once the project is built out — more than twice what the county’s top three companies contribute combined. Chamber president William Nelms told WDBJ the investment signals the region is competitive. Opposition is still active around water use and transparency. Groundwork is expected within months, with the first data center targeted for 2028.

The Week Ahead: Events

Alex: That’s the news. Let’s talk about what’s happening this week.

Morgan: Busy week. Let’s get into it.

Morgan: Tuesday night, if you’re up for a drive down to Rocky Mount, Melissa Etheridge is at the Harvester Performance Center. Doors at 7, show at 8. Two dollars from every ticket goes to her foundation, which funds research into treatments for opioid use disorder.

Alex: Melissa Etheridge at the Harvester. That’s a big booking.

Morgan: It is. And Thursday, also at the Harvester, the Bellamy Brothers are rolling through on their 50th Anniversary Tour. 8pm, doors at 7. If you grew up on “Let Your Love Flow,” this one’s for you. Regular tickets are 66 bucks.

Morgan: Over to sports. The Salem RidgeYaks have a full homestand against the Fredericksburg Nationals at Carilion Clinic Field — games every single day, Tuesday through Sunday. Most weeknight games are 6:35 first pitch, but there’s a few wrinkles. Tuesday is an early start at 5:05. Wednesday is a rare 11:05 morning matinee. Thursday night is Blue Collar and Agriculture Night. And Sunday’s a 2:05 day game.

Alex: A whole week of baseball in Salem. That’s a good deal.

Morgan: And one more on the sports front — the Rail Yard Dawgs. Like Alex mentioned, the series is tied one-to-one, heading to Evansville for Games 3 and 4 this Wednesday and Thursday. If it goes to a Game 5, that one would be Saturday night at Berglund. Worth keeping an eye on.

Morgan: Okay, Saturday. Two things to flag. First, the 74th annual Ernest “Pig” Robertson Fishing Rodeo at Lake Spring Park in Salem — that’s for kids ages 3 to 8, running 9 a.m. to noon. And then the big one — the Vinton Dogwood Festival.

Alex: 71st year for the Dogwood Festival.

Morgan: 71st year. It’s free on Saturday, it takes over downtown Vinton starting at 10 in the morning. More than 150 craft and food vendors, a car show on Walnut Avenue, live music, a petting zoo, kids zones. The Dogwood Queen coronation is at noon. And the walking parade — with local groups and marching bands — steps off at 2 p.m. sharp.

Morgan: There’s also a Friday night kickoff — gates at 6, music at 7, 5 dollar cover — with Camel City Yacht Club doing 70s and 80s covers.

Alex: If you only do one thing this week?

Morgan: Vinton Dogwood Festival. Saturday morning through afternoon. Catch the parade at 2, grab something from one of the vendors. It’s a nice way to spend a spring Saturday.

The Closer

Alex: One more to leave you with. The Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center in Roanoke released a beaver back into the wild this week. She’s about two years old now — rescued as a young kit, spent her first year at the Blue Ridge Wildlife Center, then a second year in Roanoke.

That two-year timeline is about how long beaver kits normally stay with their mothers before heading off on their own. So she left right on schedule. As WSLS put it, she was “shy at first, but quickly took to the water.”

Beavers are tough to rehab — they need a semi-aquatic setup and long-term care. But this one made it.

Close

Alex: That’s your Roanoke Weekly. The Blue Ridge Marathon brought the city to life, Roanoke closed a budget gap, Virginia Tech is raising tuition, and the Dogwood Festival takes over Vinton this weekend.

Morgan: If any of that was useful, share this with someone in the valley.

Alex: See you next Monday.