Redistricting Reshuffles Roanoke's Congressional Race, Big Changes at Virginia Tech, and a Saturday of Festivals

Full Transcript

Intro

Alex: Welcome to The Roanoke Weekly. I’m Alex, and this is your locally curated, AI-narrated rundown of the news and events shaping the Roanoke Valley. Every week we cover the biggest local stories, then hand it off to Morgan for what’s happening around town.

This week, we’re leading with Tuesday’s redistricting referendum and the immediate fallout for Roanoke’s congressional seat. Plus, big leadership changes at Virginia Tech, a credit union merger that’s leaving longtime members without access to their money, an I-81 widening project getting underway, and a beloved Catawba restaurant reopening its doors after five years. Then Morgan’s got a packed week of events, including two big festivals back-to-back next Saturday.

Let’s get into it.

The Lead: Redistricting Referendum and Roanoke’s Reshuffled Congressional Race

Alex: Last Tuesday, Virginia voters narrowly approved a constitutional amendment redrawing the state’s congressional map. The “yes” side won by about 2.9 percentage points, with roughly 1.56 million votes in favor and 1.49 million against. It was a stunningly large turnout for a spring election, though still about 20 percent below what Governor Spanberger pulled in last November.

Under the new map, Virginia’s congressional delegation is projected to shift from a 6-5 Democratic split to 10 Democrats and one Republican. The change is a direct response to mid-decade redistricting in Texas, Missouri, and North Carolina, where Republicans redrew their maps at President Trump’s encouragement.

Here’s where it gets local. The 6th District, which currently includes a chunk of southwest Virginia, gets reshaped significantly under the new lines. The Roanoke Times reports that under the current map, voters in the 6th favored Trump by 24 points in 2024. Under the proposed new boundaries, those same voters would have favored Kamala Harris by three points. That flips the seat from heavily red to slightly blue, almost overnight.

That shift had a real, immediate effect here at home. Within 48 hours of the vote, Roanoke Delegate Sam Rasoul announced he would not be entering the Democratic primary for the redrawn 6th. Rasoul had formed an exploratory committee earlier this year and would have been a natural contender. In his statement, he said he wanted to keep focusing on his work as chair of the House Education Committee in Richmond.

The same day Rasoul stepped aside, former Congressman Tom Perriello announced he’s running for the 6th. Perriello had originally been eyeing the 5th District, but pivoted after the new map passed. He served one term in Congress starting in 2008, was U.S. Special Envoy for Sudan, and ran for governor in 2017. He joins a crowded Democratic primary that already includes author Beth Macy and several others. The winner will face Republican incumbent Ben Cline in November.

Now, the whole thing isn’t quite settled. A Tazewell County Circuit Court judge halted the results late last week, ruling that the process used to put the amendment on the ballot may not have followed Virginia law. And the Virginia Supreme Court is hearing arguments Monday on whether the amendment itself is constitutional. Republicans, including state Senator Glen Sturtevant, are holding out hope that the courts step in. Attorney General Jay Jones, in his response brief, said his office “stands ready to defend the will of the voters.”

The bottom line for Roanoke: barring a court reversal, the congressional seat representing this region is about to look very different, and the field of people running for it is already reshuffling. We’ll keep you posted as the courts weigh in.

The Rundown: News & Notes

Alex: Now to the rest of the week.

Big leadership changes at Virginia Tech. Athletic Director Whit Babcock announced Thursday that he’ll retire June 30 after more than 12 years on the job. He’s the second-longest-tenured AD in the ACC. Babcock will move into an advisor role through 2029. His announcement comes just two weeks after President Tim Sands said he’d be stepping down later this year. In his statement, Babcock said, “when you can’t continue to give 100 percent every day, it was just time.” Tech is now in a presidential search and an athletic director search at the same time.

And speaking of that presidential search, Governor Abigail Spanberger named four new appointees to the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors on Monday. The four — Sharon Brickhouse Martin, Christopher Ramos, Jane Cady Rathbone, and Mehul Sanghani — won’t officially start until July 1, but they’ll be included on the committee searching for Tech’s next president. That shifts the board’s makeup from 11 Republican appointees and 2 Democratic ones, to nine and four. According to Cardinal News, the rector said last week he expects the search to wrap up by August or September.

VDOT is moving forward on a major I-81 widening project in Botetourt and Roanoke County. The work covers mile markers 143 to 150 — exits 143, 146, and 150. Survey and prep work is underway now, with barrier wall installation expected late fall or early winter. If you drive that stretch, expect southbound traffic shifted to the right shoulder between exits 150 and 146, periodic overnight lane closures from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., and a reduced 60-mile-per-hour speed limit through the work zone. Estimated completion: summer 2031. So, settle in.

Some local credit union members are still locked out of their accounts a full week after the Member One and Virginia Credit Union merger went into effect. WDBJ7 has been reporting on the fallout all week. One Vietnam veteran in Roanoke, Robert Smith, told the station he’s been a Member One customer for 38 years, and his Social Security deposits — the family’s only income — are stuck in an account he can’t access. His son told the station, “we’re living on a prayer.” Mortgage and car payments are due within days. Virginia Credit Union says branch wait times were down to about 18 minutes by Thursday, and they’re directing affected members to call or come in. If you bank with Member One and you’re seeing issues, that’s the path.

And in some better news to round things out: Homeplace Restaurant in Catawba reopened its doors Wednesday afternoon. The family-style spot had been closed since 2020, a casualty of the pandemic. New ownership took over with a goal of reopening by Easter, and they made it. Hours are Wednesday through Friday, 4 to 8 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 11 to 8. So if you’ve been missing those long farmhouse tables, they’re back.

That’s the news. Morgan, what’s the week ahead look like?

The Week Ahead: Events

Morgan: Hi Alex. Yeah, this is a really fun stretch — a couple of small mid-week things, and then Saturday is, honestly, kind of a choose-your-own-adventure day with two big festivals running at the same time.

Alex: Yeah?

Morgan: Tuesday night, Lake Street Dive is in town. If you’re into that kind of indie soul-pop sound, it’s a good show on a Tuesday.

Wednesday, the Short Track Preview is happening at Elmwood Park from 5:30 to 8 p.m. It’s a mountain bike race — actually a preview event for the USAC National race coming this July. Two thirty-minute races. Worth a look if you’ve never seen short-track mountain biking up close.

Thursday’s the night for theater fans. Mill Mountain Theatre opens The Lightning Thief, the Percy Jackson musical. And the World Ballet Company is at the Berglund Center performing Swan Lake. Two pretty different vibes, both Thursday.

Alex: That’s a good lineup.

Morgan: Friday is where things start to pick up. First Fridays at Five is back — that’s down on Franklin Road Southwest, between Jefferson and Williamson. Five to nine, ten dollars at the gate. The band this month is 80z Nation, an 80s cover band coming up from North Carolina. Beer, bands, all the proceeds go to local charities.

And also Friday: Community School’s 46th Annual Strawberry Festival opens at Elmwood Park. That runs Friday from 11 to 6, and Saturday from 10 to 4. Volunteers are whipping up something like 10,000 shortcakes. Plus chocolate-covered strawberries, food trucks, around 20 artisan vendors, and live local music on Saturday. Free admission — you just pay for what you’re eating.

Alex: 10,000 shortcakes is a lot of shortcakes.

Morgan: It is a lot of shortcakes. And that brings us to Saturday, which is the big day. Strawberry Festival is going all morning into the afternoon — that’s your daytime, family, sunshine vibe. But starting at 1 p.m., Taco ‘Ritas is at the Berglund Center. That runs until 6. Eight dollars in advance, ten at the door, and as of right now tickets are still available. Local taco vendors, margaritas, salsa dancing, a live set from The Chupacabras, a DJ on the Flex Party Truck, and a kids’ zone if you’re bringing the family.

So Saturday, you can really do both. Strawberries downtown in the morning, tacos and margaritas in the afternoon. Different energy, same general neighborhood.

Alex: That’s a strong Saturday.

Morgan: And if you only do one thing this week — I’d point you at Saturday. Either festival on its own is great. Doing both is kind of the move. Strawberry Festival for the daytime, Taco ‘Ritas to close it out.

Sunday’s pretty quiet on the calendar, which is fine — you might need the recovery time.

Back to you, Alex.

Close

Alex: Thanks, Morgan.

So that was your week: Roanoke’s congressional seat is being redrawn and the field is already shuffling, big changes at Virginia Tech, a credit union merger causing real pain for longtime members, and a beloved Catawba restaurant back open. Plus a busy Saturday of festivals to round out the week.

If you found this useful, share it with a friend who lives in the valley. We’re a small show trying to make local news a little easier to keep up with. New episode every Monday morning.

I’m Alex, and we’ll see you next Monday.