County highlights well‑attended parks master‑plan open house and New River Valley Food & Farm Guide

County leaders said outreach for Montgomery County’s parks and recreation master plan is moving forward after a well-attended open house and other community events.

County Administrator Angie Hill told the board that the two recent village meetings for Montgomery Matters (Bridal on April 23 and Price’s Fork on May 7) were well attended and produced substantial citizen feedback. The Parks & Recreation open house, she said, provided stations across the first floor for residents to leave input by notes, dots and written comments; staff and consultants will compile that input for the Parks & Recreation Commission.

Chair (who disclosed a role as a board member of Live, Work, Eat, Grow) described the New River Valley Food and Farm Guide, a living directory developed with support from a USDA Strong Food and Farm Future grant and created by Live, Work, Eat, Grow in partnership with the Montgomery County Extension Office and the Roanoke Foodshed Network. The guide, available at nrvlocalfood.org, is designed to connect residents with local food options including honey, beef and agritourism venues; staff said it will be maintained and updated as new producers register.

Why it matters: the open‑house input will directly inform the county’s Parks & Recreation master plan and the food-and-farm directory is intended to help residents and local producers connect, potentially supporting local agriculture and agritourism.

What’s next: consultants will compile open-house feedback and report to the Parks & Recreation Commission; staff will proceed with scheduling public hearings on village plans and the future land use map as part of the Montgomery Matters process.

Chair’s disclosure: the chair said, “full disclosure, I'm a board member of Live, Work, Eat, Grow,” noting the county partnership in producing the guide.