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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 […]
Ridge View Bank hires new SVP for New River Valley
Ridge View Bank has hired Todd Murray as senior vice president of commercial banking in the New River Valley, the Roanoke-based bank announced Wednesday. Murray will lead an expansion of bank’s commercial banking services in the New River Valley and will be responsible for loan and deposit production, collaborating with the bank’s treasury, private banking […]
Jim Price Auto Group sells last dealership
Charlottesville-based Jim Price Auto Group has sold its Chevrolet dealership — its final franchise — to Malloy Auto Group. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Price Chevrolet is located on more than 10 acres on Seminole Trail in Charlottesville, according to a Tuesday news release from auto dealer sell-side adviser Kerrigan Advisors, which […]
Bon Secours VP named American Diabetes Association board chair
Rhodes B. Ritenour, Bon Secours’ Richmond market vice president for external and regulatory affairs, is the 2024 board chair of the American Diabetes Association, the Arlington County-based nonprofit announced Thursday. A former deputy state attorney general, Ritenour has lived with type 1 diabetes since age 5 and served as chairman of the association’s board in […]
SAIC lands $375M Navy contract
Science Applications International Corp. has won a $375 million U.S Navy contract supporting the Naval Information Warfare Center Atlantic, the Reston-based Fortune 500 federal contractor announced Tuesday. Under the five-year contract, SAIC will provide Command, Control, Communications, Computers (C4) Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) fielding and integration on land-based vehic[...]
Groundworks hires CFO
Groundworks has hired Michael Mullican as its chief financial officer, the Virginia Beach-based foundation and water management solutions company announced Wednesday. Mullican will succeed Stephen Fry, who is retiring at the end of March. Mullican was previously president and CFO of sporting goods retailer Academy Sports + Outdoors, which is headquartered in a suburb of […]
Amyx announces new COO
Amyx has appointed Rick Schult as its new chief operating officer, the Reston-based federal contractor announced Monday. Schult will manage more than 600 employees. He succeeds John Selman, who served as COO since 2021. Amyx announced Selman’s retirement on Thursday. Schult joins Amyx from QinetiQ US, where he was most recently executive vice president for […]
Three Norfolk retail buildings sell for $3.3M
Three retail buildings on a portion of a site used for commercial auto sales and service in Norfolk sold for $3.3 million on Dec. 22, 2023. Michael Sifen Inc. purchased an approximately 5.39-acre portion of 7520 N. Military Highway from Freedom Industrial. The site includes a roughly 30,188-square-foot building, a two-story, roughly 3,030-square-foot building, and […]
Virginia Beach retail building sells for $5.5M
A retail building in Virginia Beach sold for $5.5 million on Dec. 18, 2023. Located at 5169 Virginia Beach Blvd., the freestanding retail building is 59,162 square feet, and the plot of land is almost 136,999 square feet, according to city property records. The current tenant is a Havertys Furniture store. 5169 VB BLVD LLC […]
8-story office building in Fairfax County sells for $9.5M
An eight-story office building in Fairfax County sold for $9.5 million on Dec. 19, 2023. Located at 4035 Ridge Top Road, the Crown Ridge at Fair Oaks is a 194,699-square-foot Class A office building near the intersection of U.S. Route 50 and Interstate 66. The previous owner recently completed a $1.1 million upgrade, including a […]
U.Va. receives $5M donation for business ethics professorship
The former president and CEO of Canadian Tire Corp. and his wife have committed $5 million to establish a University of Virginia Darden School of Business professorship focused on business ethics. U.Va. President Jim Ryan announced the donation by Stephen and Phyllis Bachand to the Darden School Foundation on Dec. 19, 2023. The university will […]
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 […]
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 […]
Convenience products distributor to double size in Salem
Layman Distributing, a woman-owned wholesale distributor of convenience and grocery store products, will invest $6.8 million to expand in Salem, adding 42 jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Friday. The company will relocate to a facility at 2157 Aspersion Drive, doubling its current square footage and operational capacity. Founded in 1948, the company is currently located […]
Henrico strip mall, industrial buildings sell for $7.25M
Fernau LeBlanc Investment Partners has sold Wistar Center, a three-building flex industrial and retail portfolio, in Henrico County, to Prudent Growth Partners LLC for $7.25 million, Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer’s Capital Markets Group announced. The portfolio, at 8101-8157 Staples Mill Road, consists of approximately 49,092 total square feet, including a 20,436-square-foot Class A reta[...]
Divaris restructures C-suite, names new execs
Virginia Beach-based Divaris Real Estate announced Thursday that it is restructuring its top leadership amid growth following recent acquisitions and partnerships. David Sutliff, who has worked as an adviser to the company for 12 years, is the new chief financial officer. Tony Divaris, who was previously the company’s international controller and CFO, has been promoted […]
Old Town Business league to upgrade or dissolve
Carla Clarke credits Old Town Business (OTB) league with arranging events that bring new faces into Today’s Cargo, the jewelry and gift shop she co-owns on Alexandria’s King Street. “It’s bringing new people through your door,” says Clarke. The 40-year-old nonprofit business league champions Old Town’s business community through events like an annual cookie crawl. […]
