VtR: Setting and Character Options

[Yora]

But that raises the question of why NOW is the Prince expanding? Why hasn't someone - ANYONE - taken over College Town before now?

Someone did. They've recently been destroyed, and the older vampires who did it have declared the town to be cleared out. But they have better things to do than the long busywork of actually taking control of the area. Now that the main threat os gone, that's work that can be delegated to younger vampires.