Monthly Archive for October, 2010

Play Fair Tech Sponsors Downtown Tailgate, Oct. 15

Published on October 6, 2010. 0 Comments

Downtown TailgateCarrying on a tradition that started last year, Downtown Blacksburg Inc. will be welcoming opposing team fans to the community and showing Hokie spirit at “much more than your typical pep rally.” Play Fair Tech is proud to sponsor the downtown tailgate before the Virginia Tech vs. Wake Forest game on Friday, Oct. 15, from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Market Square Park and Farmers Market.

Invite your friends on Facebook to join us.

The family-friendly event includes a beer and wine garden, entertainment, children’s activities, and more. The Rockers All-Star Cheerleaders, the Iron Techtron, and the HokieBird will be there as well.

Volunteers with Play Fair Tech will be on hand to spread the word about the campaign, pass out stickers, and share with interested tailgaters the five reasons Virginia Tech should collect the same taxes from campus visitors that Blacksburg businesses do. We will also have petitions available for anyone who would like to sign.

Although we are sponsoring the event, the downtown tailgate would not be possible without the support of the Town of Blacksburg and the event’s media sponsors, Mix 100.7 and The Bear. Echo Company and Hotel Company from the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets have also volunteered to assist with the event.

Roanoke Times Editorial Favors Collecting Town Taxes on Campus

Published on October 4, 2010. 0 Comments

We are thrilled to report that the campaign and its central issue have received a considerable amount of press coverage in recent months. Yesterday’s editorial in the Roanoke Times, for example, supports collecting Blacksburg taxes on meals and lodging at Virginia Tech:

Blacksburg for years has wanted Virginia Tech to collect the town meals and lodging taxes on campus. University officials have stridently refused, usually unwilling even to discuss it. Now, however, a few campus food sellers have started collecting the meals tax, making this an ideal time for the school do the right thing.

To be clear up front, the town does not want to tax meals plans. Students who eat in cafeterias or burn through their dollars at other campus dining options would not pay it.

Rather, the town wants the school to collect the 6 percent meals tax and 7 percent lodging tax only on purchases made by private citizens.

In addition, the editorial links the meals and lodging tax disparity to an issue of fairness — a central tenet of the Play Fair Tech campaign:

As long as Tech holds out, it adds a little bit to the sense that it is separate from the town, not a full partner with the people who live here year round. With this small effort, it could more fully invest in the community. It could say, “Yes, we are all part of the same team.”

A full list of news articles, op-ed pieces, blog entries, and videos about the meals and lodging tax issue is available on our “In the News” page.