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Recent Articles from Beth JoJack
Wallops Island lifts off with Rocket Lab addition
Rocket Lab USA is boosting the visibility of one of the United States’ lesser-known spaceports on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. Since January, the California-based aerospace company has launched three successful missions from its Launch Complex 2 at Virginia’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. Rocket Lab selected the spaceport, located within NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Accomack County, a[...]
EarthLink support center approaches completion
By mid-August, construction workers had gotten up a big portion of the steel framework for the 28,000-square-foot, two-story building that will house EarthLink’s customer support center at Project Intersection, a new business and industrial park in Norton. Employees of the Atlanta-based high-speed internet service provider should be able to move into the building by March […]
Blue Ridge festival rocks on — for now
UPDATED SEPT. 11: The Blue Ridge Rock Festival was canceled on Sept. 9 due to severe weather, including storms and hail. The festival’s organizers said they would provide refund details early during the week of Sept. 11. The Blue Ridge Rock Festival is on track to sell out this year, with organizers expecting more than […]
Satellite internet improves mobile health care
The Health Wagon got its start in 1980 when Sister Bernadette Kenny, a nurse practitioner, began dispensing free, much-needed health care to people in rural Appalachia from her Volkswagen Beetle. “She was thinking outside the box,” says Health Wagon President and CEO Teresa Tyson. Kenny served as inspiration, Tyson says, when the health care […]
Big deals
CENTRAL VIRGINIA Appomattox: In November 2022, Virginia MetalFab, a precision sheet metal fabricator, moved from Nelson County’s Gladstone area to nearby Appomattox, where it’s leasing the former Thomasville Furniture plant, which shuttered in 2011. Founded in 2002, Virginia MetalFab manufactures metal parts and assemblies for industries ranging from utilities to transportation and technology.[...]
FloydFest cancelation causes economic ripples
FloydFest, a five-day celebration showcasing more than 100 performers, has had an annual regional economic impact of about $4 million since its 2002 founding, according to festival organizers. Even so, county officials and local business owners seem to be taking a “c’est la vie” attitude to the cancelation in April of this year’s FloydFest, which […]
Riverdale project could be ‘transformative’
Partnering with the city of Roanoke, developer Ed Walker started redevelopment of 100 acres encompassing the sprawling, former campus of American Viscose, a rayon plant that closed in 1958. “This is a chance we have as a community to really do something transformative,” Roanoke Economic Development Director Marc Nelson says. Located in the city’s southeast […]
German auto parts maker revamps Salem GE plant
Most everyone in the Roanoke Valley either worked at the former General Electric Co. facility in Salem or knew someone who had, says Renée Turk, the city’s mayor. “On some level, it meant a lot to the entire community,” she says of the manufacturing plant, which opened in 1955. After employing more than 3,000 workers […]
Westward ho!
Southwest Virginia’s leaders feel confident their region will be home to the state’s next inland port. “The planets are aligning for us right now,” says state Sen. Todd Pillion, R-Washington County. “Our localities are excited about it. The state seems to be excited about it.” During the Virginia General Assembly’s regular session, Pillion and two […]
Dickenson County to develop small industrial park
Work will start on a new industrial park on the site of a former strip mine in Dickenson County in late summer or early fall, says Dana Cronkhite, the county’s economic development director. The Virginia Department of Energy announced in January that the county’s Industrial Development Authority will receive $869,584 from the federal Abandoned Mine […]
Leidos wins $143M DIA contract
Reston-based Leidos won a contract worth an estimated $143 million from the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Fortune 500 contractor announced Thursday. Under the single award, indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract from DIA’s Science and Technology Directorate, Leidos will design and implement a tasking, collection, processing, exploitation and dissemination (TCPED) system for the DIA[...]
Capital One to buy Discover in $35.3B deal
UPDATED 8:35 P.M. Feb. 19 McLean-based Capital One Financial is buying Discover Financial Services for $35.3 billion in an all-stock deal that marks Capital One’s largest ever acquisition, the two credit card giants announced Monday evening. Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, Discover shareholders will receive 1.0192 Capital One shares for each share of […]
NoVa, Hampton Roads housing markets show positive signs
The Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads housing markets showed encouraging signs in January, despite the seasonal slowdown. Northern Virginia In Northern Virginia, January closed home sales dipped 0.9% from January 2023, with 771 units sold last month, according to the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors. Homes sold faster than in January 2023, though, with houses […]
Mack Trucks will expand Roanoke County facility
North Carolina-based Mack Trucks, a division of Sweden-based Volvo Group, will invest $14.5 million to expand its Roanoke County manufacturing operation, a project expected to create 51 jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Friday. Mack Trucks, a medium- and heavy-duty trucks producer, will add 72,000 square feet to its current facility to increase capacity for its […]
Smithfield Foods hires two C-suite execs
Virginia-based Smithfield Foods named two C-suite executives Monday. The nation’s largest pork product manufacturer and hog producer has named Brendan Smith its chief marketing officer and Allyson Bouldon its chief ethics and compliance officer. Smith is returning to Smithfield Foods, having previously served as senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the company and […]
Virginians wager $633M on sports in December
Virginians bet about $633 million on sports in December 2023, up 25.9% from December 2022, according to data released by the Virginia Lottery on Feb. 1. December’s handle is a 0.88% decrease from November 2023, when Virginians bet $638.8 million on sports. Virginia bettors won more than $569.57 million in December 2023 and $595.8 million […]
Historic Richmond apartment building sells for $5.25M
A 32-unit apartment building in Richmond sold for more than $5.52 million on Jan. 16, according to city property records. Located at 3003 Parkwood Ave., The Parkwood was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016. Built in 1941 and designed by well-known Richmond architects J. Binford Walford and O. Pendleton Wright, the […]
Northrop Grumman breaks ground on $200M Waynesboro facility
Falls Church-based Fortune 500 defense contractor Northrop Grumman broke ground Friday on its $200 million-plus facility in Waynesboro. Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced the planned facility, which will hold advanced electronics manufacturing and testing, in November 2023. Northrop Grumman anticipates creating an estimated 300 jobs — varied engineering and manufacturing roles — over the next five [...]
Franklin apartments sell for $18M
A 244-unit apartment community in Franklin sold for $18 million on Dec. 28, 2023, according to a news release from S.L. Nusbaum Realty. Located at 201 Forest Pine Road, the Forest Pine Apartments have traditional and garden-style one-, two- and three-bedroom units. The 23.27-acre property has a community swimming pool and playground area. Forest Pine […]
DXC makes Raul Fernandez permanent pres., CEO
Raul Fernandez is now the permanent president and CEO of DXC Technology, the Ashburn-based Fortune 500 IT company announced Thursday. DXC appointed Fernandez interim president and CEO in December 2023, replacing Mike Salvino in two of his three roles. David Herzog, DXC’s lead independent director, replaced Salvino as chairman of the board. Fernandez has been […]
Va. Kaiser employees set to picket in Springfield
More than 75,000 Kaiser Permanente workers across the nation are threatening to strike beginning Wednesday morning if union leaders cannot come to an agreement on a new labor contract with the health care company, but Kaiser says it would only minimally impact “a few optometry departments and pharmacies in Virginia.” Unlike other recent labor actions, […]
Virginia Natural Gas names chief admin officer
Virginia Natural Gas has named Shannon Pierce as its vice president of strategy and chief administrative officer, the Virginia Beach-based utility announced Monday. Pierce, a native of Surry, most recently served as vice president of growth and chief external affairs officer at SouthStar Energy Services, a subsidiary of VNG’s parent company, Southern Company Gas. She […]
Sentara Halifax plans new, smaller hospital
Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital in South Boston is investing $70 million to construct a new acute care hospital to replace its aging predecessor, with completion set for late 2025 or early 2026. The new hospital will be about a third the size of the existing 300,000-square-foot facility, which is licensed for 192 beds. Sentara Health […]
Building equity
When BB&T recruited Thomas Ransom, a Black economics student at Hampden-Sydney College, to join its management development program in the late 1990s, he quickly had to pick up the world of banking and its culture. The Urbanna native says he’d never met a banker before starting at BB&T and certainly didn’t know what moves to […]
CBN, Regent University founder Pat Robertson dies at 93
Christian Broadcasting Network founder Pat Robertson, a one-time GOP presidential hopeful and also chancellor, founder and CEO of Regent University in Virginia Beach, died June 8 at age 93. Robertson started CBN in 1960, revolutionizing religious broadcasting with its flagship program “The 700 Club,” a syndicated evangelical newsmagazine show he hosted for 60 years. During […]
Norfolk purchases struggling MacArthur Center
In early June, Norfolk City Council members approved plans for the city to purchase the struggling MacArthur Center downtown mall for up to $18 million. The 23-acre mall is owned by Wells Fargo & Co., which holds the mall following a loan default by MacArthur Center’s previous owner, Connecticut-based Starwood Property Trust. MacArthur Center was […]
Not by coincidence
Norfolk Mayor Kenneth Cooper Alexander has a vision for his city that includes increasing revenue without creating additional taxes for residents. His focuses in achieving that goal include tourism, hospitality and entertainment — familiar parts of neighboring Virginia Beach’s economy. However, unlike Virginia Beach, he points out, Norfolk doesn’t have a reliable seasonal tourism base. It [[...]
Fairwinds Landing project breaks ground in Norfolk
Developers broke ground Thursday morning on the Fairwinds Landing maritime operations and logistics center supporting Hampton Roads’ offshore wind, defense and transportation industries. The development project at Norfolk Southern Corp.’s Lambert’s Points Docks in Norfolk is being spearheaded by Fairwinds Landing LLC, a partnership between The Miller Group, Balicore Construction and Fairle[...]
TCC expands Skilled Trades Academy
Tidewater Community College has kicked off the expansion of its Skilled Trades Academy, adding more space and more courses to its Portsmouth facility. The academy opened in 2019 with 20,000 square feet of space, and currently has three classrooms at 3303 Airline Blvd., which is enough room to hold three to six courses at a […]
Pembroke Square scales back some parts of project
Pembroke Square, the $200 million redevelopment of Pembroke Mall in Virginia Beach, is moving forward but at a smaller scale, according to the president of Pembroke Realty Group. Pembroke Square Associates LLC first announced plans for the redevelopment of the aging mall’s 54 acres in November 2021, with groundbreaking for its first phase having taken […]
Forvis names new Va. managing partner
Forvis has named Jennifer Wold as managing partner of its Virginia practice unit, the accounting firm announced Monday. Wold’s role becomes effective June 1. She succeeds Tom Hazelwood, who has served as managing partner for the past year. Wold will oversee offices in Richmond, where she will be based, and in Norfolk. She is a […]
Potomac Yard-VT Metro station opens in Alexandria
In its heyday during World War II, Potomac Yard handled freight for six different railroads and employed 1,500 workers to keep trains moving, until it succumbed to economic pressures. On Friday, after decades of planning, the transformed former rail switching yard opened as Metro’s 98th station, serving the Yellow and Blue lines between the Braddock […]
Richmond loft apartment community sells for $14.8M
A 70-unit apartment community in Richmond’s Manchester neighborhood sold for $14.8 million May 12. Putnam Mill LLC, an entity connected to First Priority Management of Washington, D.C., purchased The Mill at Manchester Lofts, a former paper mill and warehouse that now consists of studio, one-, two-, and three-bedroom loft style apartments at 815 Perry St. […]
Shenandoah Valley SBDC names new director
Shenandoah Valley’s Small Business Development Center, based in Harrisonburg, has named Allison Dugan its newest director. Dugan started with the regional SBDC as a part-time program manager in 2014 and became a business adviser in 2015, adding the title of assistant director in 2019. She took on the leadership role May 1, after serving as […]
REC promotes principal engineering manager
Rappahannock Electric Cooperative has named Lee Brock as its principal engineering manager, the Fredericksburg-based utility announced Tuesday, In the new role, Brock will lead and coordinate engineering, design and construction for REC’s large-scale power projects and focus on response and service to new members in the large commercial and industrial space. Her team will also […]
NG receives $244.6M for ballistic missile work
Falls Church-based Northrop Grumman Corp. has received a $244.6 million modification to a previously awarded contract to continue work on ballistic missile defense system capabilities, the Pentagon announced May 9. The indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quality contract continues development, integration, testing and fielding of complex advanced discrimination techniques, operation and sustainment of [...]
Snyder, Harris reach agreement on Washington Commanders sale
Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder has reached an agreement for the reported $6 billion sale of the Ashburn-based NFL team to a group led by Bethesda, Maryland-based billionaire Josh Harris. News of the sale was posted on the team’s website and on Twitter Friday afternoon. “We are very pleased to have reached an agreement for […]
Boeing reaches $40B deal with Ryanair
Irish air carrier Ryanair plans to order as many as 300 Boeing 737 MAX-10 aircraft from Arlington County-based Fortune 100 contractor Boeing Co. in a $40 billion deal, the two companies announced Tuesday. Subject to approval by Ryanair’s stockholders, the deal includes a firm order from the airline for 150 aircraft and an option for […]
IT contractor to add 90 jobs in Fairfax
Reston-based Dev Technology Group will invest $366,000 to expand in Fairfax County, adding 90 jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Monday. The investment includes 10,000 square feet of additional office space. Founded in 1998, Dev Technology Group provides IT services to the federal government, including the Department of Homeland Security, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, multiple [&helli[...]
VCU Health paid $72.9M to back out of development
VCU Health paid nearly $73 million to back out of a $325 million development deal earlier this year, according to Dr. Marlon Levy, CEO of the health system and Virginia Commonwealth University’s interim senior vice president for health sciences. The project, known as the Clay Street Project, included plans for a medical office tower and […]
