Looking back
In November 2021, Gov. Ralph Northam sat down for an interview with Virginia Business, looking back at his eventful four-year term. This is a transcript of the full interview, part of which was used in the January 2022 cover story, “A dramatic shift.” The interview has been edited for length and clarity. Virginia Business: What […]
A dramatic shift
Four years ago, no one would have guessed Gov. Ralph Northam would lead the most progressive Virginia administration in modern memory. A native of Onancock on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, as well as a pediatric neurologist and Army veteran, Virginia’s 73rd governor was eyed by some Democrats with suspicion after acknowledging he’d voted twice for President […]
What will Amazon HQ2 look like? Arlington planners weigh in.
Arlington County Planning Division’s Site Plan Review Committee will review the layout and architectural design for PenPlace, the proposed second phase of Amazon.com Inc.‘s East Coast headquarters, as well as the proposed public space, in its Monday night meeting. Meeting documents show the proposed layout of the Pentagon City site, which puts the would-be 354-feet […]
Pentagon City plan aims for higher density
A major study that will shape the future of Pentagon City is entering its final stages. The Arlington County urban village has grown from empty fields and warehouses in the 1950s to become one of the Washington, D.C., area’s busiest neighborhoods. With construction plans now under community review for Amazon.com Inc.’s HQ2, Pentagon City is […]
Amazon has hired 3,500 HQ2 workers
Amazon.com Inc. has hired 3,500 of its 25,000 planned workers for HQ2, the tech behemoth’s $2.5 billion East Coast headquarters in Arlington. Meanwhile, construction on the two office towers for HQ2’s first phase, Metropolitan Park, is more than halfway complete, company representatives said during a site tour Wednesday. Amazon has added about 500 […]
Stephen Moret to leave VEDP
Virginia Economic Development Partnership President and CEO Stephen Moret will leave VEDP to become president and CEO of Indianapolis-based Strada Education Network in January, Strada and VEDP announced Wednesday. Moret expects that VEDP’s board will appoint Executive Vice President Jason El Koubi to serve as interim CEO and a nationwide search will be conducted for […]
Amazon HQ2 budget, square footage are growing
Nearly three years after Amazon.com Inc. tapped Arlington as the home for its multibillion-dollar East Coast headquarters, construction is well underway, with the global e-tailer already hiring more than 3,000 Amazon HQ2 employees. Since the project was announced, three numbers have stood out: 25,000 jobs, 4 million square feet of office space and a price […]
Amazon has hired 3,000+ HQ2 workers so far
So far, Amazon.com Inc. has hired more than 3,000 of the 25,000 employees it plans to recruit by 2030 for its multibillion-dollar HQ2 East Coast headquarters in Arlington, the global online retailer announced Wednesday. In 2019, the Virginia General Assembly passed an incentive package that would pay Amazon up to $550 million in grants for […]
Virginia snags “Best Business Climate” state ranking
Virginia is the state with the “Best Business Climate” in the nation, according to Business Facilities magazine’s 17th annual State Ranking Report, released Wednesday. Last year, Texas held the No. 1 spot, with Virginia taking second. After falling off Business Facilities’ top 10 list in 2014 and 2015, Virginia placed ninth in 2016, fourth in […]
Loudoun announces major mixed-use development along Silver Line
Loudoun Economic Development unveiled plans Wednesday for Rivana at Innovation Station, a 4.4 million-square-foot mixed-use development adjacent to Metro‘s Silver Line extension on a site Loudoun once proposed for Amazon.com Inc.’s HQ2 East Coast headquarters. Rivana is the first phase of Innovation Station, a 103-acre development to be built on the border of Fairfax and […]
Amazon’s Helix gets green thumbs-up
What is now a quiet, achromatic area of Arlington, the National Landing neighborhood in a few years’ time will be a bustling urban area with distinctive office buildings and large green spaces open to the public. In early February, Amazon.com Inc. released plans for its 2.8-million-square-foot redevelopment of the PenPlace block, including three 22-story office […]
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to step down as CEO in Q3
Amazon.com Inc. announced Tuesday that Jeff Bezos, who founded the e-commerce company in 1994, will step down as CEO and transition to the role of executive chair in the third quarter of 2021. Amazon Web Services CEO Andy Jassy will succeed Bezos. “Amazon is what it is because of invention,” Bezos said in a statement. […]