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Recent Articles from Tim Thornton
Healthy and wealthy
Roanoke County’s main street — Electric Road (state Route 419) — is getting a big boost from the region’s largest employer. Carilion Clinic announced in September it had leased 150,000 square feet at Tanglewood Mall to accommodate Carilion’s growing children’s outpatient practices. Carilion, the Roanoke nonprofit that operates seven hospitals and more than 200 practice […]
Moving beyond coal
In 1923, the number of people earning a living mining coal in the United States peaked at 862,536. Now, that number is around 52,000, and many people and companies who relied on coal for income have fallen on hard times. That’s one reason the 2019 expansions of Paul’s Fan Co., which has been tied to […]
A multifaceted strategy
Catching the big one matters, but a lot of little successes can mean a lot, too. In Southwest Virginia, small triumphs have accumulated over the past year, in addition to larger announcements. Last April, Polycap LLC, a Toronto-based manufacturer of specialty caps and closures, announced it would invest $7.7 million in Lebanon, establishing its first […]
In St. Paul, renaissance is on the agenda
People once called St. Paul the Western Front. “St. Paul was a coal town, so the railroad would run in and drop people off there,” says Kimberly Christner, president and CEO of Williamsburg-based Cornerstone Hospitality. “One side of the railroad was dry and … the other side was wet with alcohol, and that was the […]
Finding its vibe
Lynchburg is cool, and people are starting to notice. The Hill City still has its big, well-established players, such as Liberty University and BWX Technologies. Liberty, with its 7,000-acre campus and its online programs, has more than 2,500 faculty teaching more than 111,000 students. Its operations are estimated to generate more than $1 billion in […]
Despite setbacks, Mountain Valley Pipeline inches forward
The Mountain Valley Pipeline is three years behind schedule, $2 billion over budget and has lost four required permits it needs to continue construction. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stopped work on the pipeline to review a lawsuit over one of those permits, and another suit over environmental violations ended with MVP paying […]
New Appalachian School of Law dean faces challenges
Retired Supreme Court of Virginia Justice Elizabeth McClanahan grew up in the Buchanan County community of Garden Creek, about 12 miles from Grundy. “Grundy was the big city,” says McClanahan, who retired from the state’s highest court on Sept. 1. “It’s the county seat. It’s the only town in the county.” Grundy’s also the home […]
New Appalachian School of Law dean faces challenges
Buchanan County native Elizabeth McClanahan became the dean of the Grundy-based Appalachian School of Law in September, one day after retiring as a Virginia Supreme Court justice. She immediately faced a challenge: the American Bar Association’s tightened law school accreditation requirements. At least 75% of graduates now must pass a bar exam within two years […]
Despite setbacks, Mountain Valley Pipeline inches forward
The Mountain Valley Pipeline is three years behind schedule, $2 billion over budget and has lost four required permits it needs to continue construction. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stopped work on the pipeline to review a lawsuit over one of those permits, and another suit over environmental violations ended with MVP paying […]
Excella Extension Center plans expansion
The spinoff company, set to open by the end of this year, will be based at the Corporate Research Center in Blacksburg.
