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byline: Joan Tupponce

Kentucky broadband deal expands Shentel’s footprint

The recent acquisition of a small broadband company is another step in the growth of Shenandoah Telecommunications Co. (Shentel). 

The Big Sandy Broadband deal allows Edinburg-based Shentel to expand its footprint into Eastern Kentucky. The purchase price was not disclosed.

“Big Sandy is in a part of Kentucky where we hope to continue to grow,” says Dave Heimbach, Shentel’s executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Big Sandy had roughly 2,500 customers, but Shentel believes it can attract another 2,000 in the area. “Hopefully, we can grow our penetration rates,” Heimbach says.

Shentel is a “great example of a company that has figured out a way to integrate technology into rural areas,” says Matt Polka, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh-based American Cable Association. “They make strategic acquisitions and revitalize communities.”

Shentel provides cable television, broadband internet and voice services to customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland. It also is a Sprint affiliate with wireless coverage in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio. In addition, Shentel provides fiber services to commercial and wholesale customers along its 5,641-mile network in four states.

Shentel has three lines of business — cable, wireline (landline telephone) and wireless. It is Sprint’s largest affiliate in the U.S.

The company has more than a million wireless telephone customers and operates more than 400 stores under the Sprint brand. “We design, construct and operate the Sprint network across a big part of the East Coast,” Heimbach says. “We cover a wide swath of geography.”

Cable is the company’s second-largest segment. “We cover approximately 200,000 serviceable homes,” Heimbach says.

Wireline is the company’s oldest but smallest division. “We have all of our fiber-optic access in that segment along with traditional phone service,” he says.

Last year, Shentel was named to Fortune’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies list of publicly traded companies. In 2018, the company re­­corded operating revenues of $630.9 million, a 3.1%  increase over the previous year.

“One of the big catalysts for that designation was the regional wireless acquisition of nTelos in 2016,” says Heimbach. “When we did that, we roughly doubled the size and scope of our wireless coverage area and customer base.”

The amount of data being consumed on a daily or monthly basis “has exploded,” Heimbach says. “We have to constantly reinvest in our network so people can enjoy video consumption. That’s also true for the cable segment.”

Company’s wine bottling service is booked until 2021

Wine & Beer Supply is designed to be a one-stop shop for wineries and breweries.

Opened in 2016, the Ashland-based company provides a variety of supplies, including decorative glassware, bottles, cans, cardboard carriers and trays for tasting rooms. The company also has a 53-foot tractor-trailer that travels to vineyards to bottle their wines.

“What takes vineyards two weeks to do will take us one day,” says Casey Werderman, the company’s chief revenue officer, who owns the company with Dave Robertson and Rich Jante. “We do right around 20,000 bottles a day. We can bottle 1,800 to 2,000 cases.”

Wine & Beer Supply works with 200 vineyards and about 100 breweries in Virginia alone. In addition to the commonwealth, the company operates in North Carolina, Maryland, Washington, D.C., and New Jersey.  It has plans for further expansion.

“This year we are going to focus on the Pennsylvania and New York market. They are very large wine-producing states,” says Werderman.

The company’s bottling service is booked until 2021. “We brought an additional truck online in March,” Werderman says. “We also will be launching a mobile filtration unit this spring so we can filter wine before we put it into a bottle along with a mobile canning service for beer and wine.” 

The company’s temperature-controlled warehouse can ship directly to consumers. “We can do wine club fulfillment as well,” Werderman says.

The company recently raised nearly $2.4 million in capital. “We raised $800,000 through private investors and the remaining funds through a Virginia-based equipment leasing facility, CSC Leasing,” Werderman says. “The equity we raised will support further growth outside of our current locations. We will target the market east of the Mississippi.

We’ll also use the funds for equipment and inventory purchases.”

Trolley Ventures was a lead investor in the recent funding round. “Trolley is excited to add Wine & Beer Supply as its [fifth] portfolio investment,” says Nick Pace, Trolley investment committee member. “Their team has a track record of success, and we believe the company is uniquely positioned to grow as the supply and logistics partner of choice for wineries and breweries.”

Werderman says Wine & Beer Supply now has almost 30 employees. “We’re focusing on growing our sales team,” he says. “This year we will bring on six to eight additional salespeople.”

Art center reopens with new name, strategy

The Heartwood Art Center in Abingdon reopened in March after 2½ months of renovations with a new name and a more interactive experience for visitors.

“We knew we had to revamp things,” says Chris Cannon, the center’s executive director. “We had forecasted 360,000 annual visitors” but had been averaging 36,000 per year.

Since opening in 2011, Heartwood had moved away from its mission to be a gateway to 19 counties, four cities and 54 towns in Southwest Virginia.

“We had gotten super-focused on making Heartwood into a business instead of a gateway,” Cannon says.

One step taken to refocus the center was a name change. The facility is now the Southwest Virginia Cultural Center & Marketplace.

“Our only goal now is to get visitors to visit other places in Southwest Virginia and spend money,” Cannon says.

Center visitors will find a new look. “We did not have a map of the region and state before,” he says. “Now, visitors will see a large map that connects to every community in the region and will be a big talking point.”

The center also has closed its full-service restaurant and instead is operating a small café. Regional restaurants and food trucks will provide food at weekly events. 

Another change is the introduction of performances giving visitors a sampling of what they might hear and see on The Crooked Road: Virginia’s Heritage Music Trail, which stretches more than 250 miles.

The center also will re-emphasize regional arts and crafts, hosting demonstrations and workshops.

“It won’t just be retail space like it was before,” Cannon says.

The faclilty also will have space devoted to outdoor recreation where visitors can book excursions such as camping, canoeing, fishing or horseback riding.  

Jim Baldwin, the president of Friends of Southwest Virginia, a nonprofit group that markets the region, sees the revamped center as a necessary change.

“We had to repurpose Heartwood to better perform its mission of a gateway and to make it sustainable,” he says. “I think it will be an economic boost to the area.”

Drone program aids law enforcement rescue efforts

A Falls Church-based company has been recognized for its involvement in a program using drones for rescue operations.

Evans Inc. won the Pro­gram of the Year award at the 2018 Greater Washington Government Contractor Awards for assistance it provided to the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office.

The sheriff’s office wanted to use a drone in its Project Lifesaver program, a rescue project used to search for missing people wearing tracking devices.

PropelUAS, an Evans division, guided the sheriff’s office through Federal Aviation Administration regulations in the use of drones.

PropelUAS’ training enabled deputies involved in Project Lifesaver to obtain commercial drone licenses.

The company also developed and wrote applications for waivers allowing the drone to be used at night.

“The community element and our involvement with projects in the community is our mission,” says Tara Stear­man, senior unmanned systems consultant at Evans and also part of the PropelUAS team. “We focus on what you need to know and how to be a safe operator in the national aerospace system.” 

The Loudoun Sheriff’s Office was the first in Virginia and the sixth agency in the United States to have a drone equipped with the Project Lifesaver antenna, which communicates with a tracking device. The county’s drone program received a 2018 Achievement Award from the Virginia Association of Counties.

A few months after launching the program, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Team rescued a 92-year-old hunter missing in a heavily wooded area in Shenandoah County. The hunter was found safe just 20 minutes after the team deployed its drone. 

“Our drone is a tool that goes out on every call we go out on,” says Loudoun Master Deputy Matt Devaney. “It’s standard procedure now to use drones for search and rescue.”

To have “real-life experiences of our hard work making a difference in the community is really rewarding,” says Stear­man of PropelUAS.

Distillery gets a closeup on Discovery Channel show

Even before the first episode of “Moonshiners: Whiskey Business” ran on The Discovery Channel on March 13, the head of a Virginia distillery was seeing dividends from his connection to the television show.

Word got around that David Reavis, founder of Three Brothers Distillery in Sussex County, was scheduled to appear in one of the show’s early episodes, creating buzz for his business.

“We have seen an expanded awareness of the distillery’s presence locally through the news and newspapers,” Reavis says. “And, we have already seen an increase in traffic at the distillery.”

“Moonshiners: Whiskey Business” is a spinoff from “Moonshiners,” an existing Discovery Channel series. The new show has more than one Virginia connection. It stars Tim Smith, an illegal-turned-legal moonshiner from Pittsylvania County who owns Climax Moonshine. Along with a team of other whiskey experts, Smith uses his expertise to help distilleries.

“The end result is they helped us improve our processes to make us more efficient and expand the tasting room into the original 1830s farmhouse adjacent to the distillery building,” says Reavis. “We tripled the size of our tasting room from 300 square feet to over 900 square feet now. That helped us solve some space issues.”

Three Brothers is one of the first four distilleries featured in the TV series. Another Virginia company in the group is Bondurant Brothers Distillery in Chase City. The other two distilleries are in North Carolina: Broad Branch Distillery in Winston-Salem and Old Nick Williams Co. Farm  & Distillery in Lewisville.

Three Brothers started production in March 2017 with three products — Kablam, a corn whiskey; George, a rye whiskey; and Silk Jacket (rebranded recently to Silver Dolphins), a gin.

“We produce around 500 gallons of alcohol a year,” says Reavis, a retired U.S. Navy submarine electronics technician.

He believes the growing craft distillery industry will mirror the success of the craft beer industry. “The better we are, the better we grow as a community of distilleries,” he says. “It’s important to me to grow the community I reside in.” 

Virginia ABC recorded $1 million in sales of Virginia spirits in fiscal year 2008. Those sales had grown to $11 million last year. 

ABC stores began selling Reavis’ Kablam and Silver Dolphins by special order in January 2018.

Three Brothers products now can be found at 35 Virginia ABC stores. These products also can be special ordered through Virginia ABC or purchased at Three Brothers. This spring, Reavis plans to release an initial production run of unaged and aged rum and will start barreling bourbon this summer.

Ikea to open its second Virginia store in Norfolk

Hampton Roads Ikea customers soon won’t have to trek to the retailer’s Woodbridge store to shop.

The Swedish company will open its 331,000-square-foot Norfolk store on April 10.  The store will be Ikea’s second in Virginia and 50th in the U.S.

Ikea sells ready-to-assemble furniture, kitchen appliances and home accessories.

The company chose to open a store in Norfolk because of its potential customer base. “We already have 35,000 customers in the region,” says Michelle Stephenson, the retailer’s loyalty manager. “Ikea is a destination and regularly draws customers from hours away. We believe that our regional draw will enhance the I-64 retail corridor.”

The Norfolk store, which broke ground in 2017, sits on 19 acres on the northwestern corner of Interstate 64 and Northampton Boulevard. “It has good visibility and access from the highway,” says Stephenson. “It is reachable from many points throughout the area.”

Norfolk Mayor Kenneth Cooper Alexander agrees that Ikea will help attract people to the city. “Visitors are drawn to Norfolk for its concentration of arts and culture, recreation, business and job opportunities,” he says. “Ikea’s visibility from the interstate on the way to and from these major attractions will bring attention to the region’s most notable features.”

The Norfolk store will employ about 250 workers in a mix of full- and part-time positions. “We will also be bringing on another 150 temporary positions to support during grand opening,” Stephenson says.

The new store falls within the average range of most Ikea stores — 250,000 to 400,000 square feet. By comparison, Ikea’s Woodbridge store is 325,000 square feet. The Norfolk store will offer nearly 10,000 items as well as a 354-seat restaurant serving Swedish and American fare.

The store’s roof features a 180,000-square-foot solar array consisting of 3,654 panels. It will produce 1.26 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 215 homes while helping to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

“It is the largest solar rooftop array in Hampton Roads,” Stephenson says.

A sense of momentum

Economic development momentum in Hampton Roads continued last year.

“In 2018, we saw notable growth in expansions and new business investment as well as innovation and collaboration across the region,” says Grig Scifres, a Virginia Beach attorney who is chairman of the Hampton Roads Economic Development Alliance (HREDA).

One highlight of the year was development in Virginia Beach’s 325-acre Corporate Landing Business Park as the result of the completion of high-speed undersea cables from Spain and Brazil.

“Submarine fiber-optic cables encourage opportunities for industry growth and represent a highly valuable, long-term infrastructure and business development opportunity for Hampton Roads,” says Chad Matheson, HREDA’s director of business intelligence. 

Companies attracted to Corporate Landing include Canada-based data center developer PointOne, which plans to invest $80 million and create 60 jobs there. The project will involve construction of two, 31,000-square-foot data centers. The first phase is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter.​

Another company, Assured Communications Advisors International, a business and management services firm, is investing $52 million to open a 130,000-square-foot data center and corporate headquarters. The project is expected to create 30 jobs when completed in the fourth quarter.

“We see Corporate Landing emerging as a data hub,” says Steve Harrison, business development and research manager for Virginia Beach Department of Economic Development.
Virginia Beach

The city last year made more than 50 economic development announcements that involved the creation or retention of about 1,000 jobs and more than $270 million in capital investment.

Bcause LLC, for example, is moving to a bigger headquarters, an 84,000-square-foot facility in the city. The digital currency company, founded in Virginia Beach in 2013, is investing $64.8 million in the project, which is expected to create 100 jobs.

“They will have 16,000 computers operational in their facility and utilize a lot of power,” says Ray White, the city’s business development manager. “The key element to getting the project was reasonable power. We are working with Dominion Energy to get a reasonable rate for their operations.”

Other major city projects included the opening of Town Center Phase VI, a $42 million investment that includes Zeiders American Dream Theater and 120 apartments as well as new restaurants and retail space. Last year also saw the reopening of the 91-year-old Cavalier Hotel after a $260 million renovation.

In addition, Tournament Sports is spending $68 million on construction of the almost 285,000-square-foot Virginia Beach Sports Center. The facility “will make us the leader on the East Coast for tournament sports,” says Taylor Adams, the city’s interim economic development director.

Chesapeake
Chesapeake is seeing expansion from existing companies. Fortune 500 discount retailer Dollar Tree has finished construction on its 12-story, 320,000-square-foot office tower. The building is part of Dollar Tree’s Store Support Center in the Summit Pointe mixed-use development.

About 700 workers in Matthews, N.C., (former home of the company-owned Family Dollar store chain) received offers to relocate to Chesapeake. The  consolidation will be completed this fall.

A second phase of construction at Summit Pointe will include at least 600 residences, more than 100,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, at least 100,000 square feet of office space and a boutique hotel. This expansion represents a $300 million investment in multiple phases.

Sumitomo Machinery Corp. of America, meanwhile, is investing $10 million to expand its Chesapeake manufacturing operation, adding 100,000 square feet at Cavalier Industrial Park. The project will retain 20 existing jobs and create 26 new positions.

Suffolk
Expansions were the main economic development focus in Suffolk as well. Wanchese Fish Co. is spending $2.8 million in expanding and establishing new corporate operations for its parent company, Cooke Seafood USA. The project will add approximately 70 employees during the next three years. “They are in the process of working on the project now,” says Kevin Hughes, Suffolk’s economic development director.

TowneBank also has expanded its corporate campus in the city, completing a $9 million, 44,000-square-foot office building. The bank expects to add more than 100 jobs during the next four or five years.

Also in Suffolk, Bluebell Ice Cream is building a 14,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution facility, a $14 million investment expected to create 25 jobs. The distribution center is scheduled for completion this year.

Portsmouth

Portsmouth last year saw $104 million in new investment from expansion projects  expected to create 300 jobs and retain 823 positions.

New York-based Columbia Care, a medical cannabis company, plans to open a dispensary this spring that would create 45 jobs. “They will be renovating and moving into an existing 65,000-square-foot facility,” says Robert Moore, the city’s economic development director.

Exquisite Custom Cabinets Inc., meanwhile, relocated to Portsmouth from Norfolk, purchasing a 15,000-square-foot building in a nearly $1 million investment expected to result in 12 new jobs.

Last year Portsmouth City Council focused on its Crawford Gateway Revitalization Strategy to revamp the waterfront and downtown areas.

Newport News
Last year was as “robust and energetic as ever,” says Florence Kingston, Newport News’ director of economic development. Major announcements during the year totaled $179 million in investments, which are expected to generate 540 jobs.

Huntington Ingalls’ Newport News Shipbuilding division plans to invest more than $750 million and create 2,000 additional jobs by 2023. 

Also, Newport News Industrial, a subsidiary of the Norfolk shipyard, has completed a $20 million expansion project in Oakland Industrial Park, creating 120 jobs and adding 52,000 square feet to its existing facility.

“We are seeing continuing growth in our defense base,” says Kingston.

Ferguson, a wholesale supplier of plumbing supplies, has begun construction on its $86 million, 260,000-square-foot Headquarters Three building at City Center, adding 350 jobs. The project allowed the city to retain 900 corporate jobs.

Liebherr completed its $31 million mining equipment expansion project in Newport News. The company also announced a $45 million headquarters project, which is expected to result in 25 new jobs. 

Building One of a planned 850,000-square-foot campus at the Tech Center Research Park is nearing completion. The nearby Jefferson Lab completed a $400 million federally funded upgrade, doubling the power of the existing facility.

Norfolk
Norfolk last year announced projects involving $368 million in investments that are expected to generate 1,311 jobs.

“Eastern Virginia Medical School, Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters, Sentara Cancer Center and Sentara Norfolk General are all in the midst of large-scale development projects,” says Jared Chalk, the city’s interim economic development director. “Also, Optima Health is expanding 45,000 square feet and adding 200 new jobs.”

In addition to the 230,000-square-foot, $93.5 million cancer center, Sentara Healthcare is building a 60,000-square-foot, $24 million musculoskeletal and sports medicine office building at Sentara Leigh Hospital.

Eastern Virginia Medical School, meanwhile, is building an $80 million, 138,000-square-foot education and academic building, and Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters is constructing a $60 million pediatric mental health facility scheduled for completion in 2022.

Meanwhile, Tegra Global invested $4 million in an expansion expected to create 300 jobs. In another development, a 20-story, $80 million downtown office tower being built by HL Development is scheduled to open in 2020.

Last year also saw approximately $40 million in improvements in downtown Norfolk hotels and the announcement that Miami-based Carnival Cruise Lines will begin two departures to Cuba in 2020. This year the cruise line will offer a series of trips from the city’s terminal.

Hampton
Hampton recorded $102 million in new capital investment last year with 558 new and retained jobs.

Developer WVS Cos. is buying nine parcels from the city for a redevelopment project that will include more than 215 condominiums and apartments, around 17,000 square feet of commercial space and a restaurant. The initial investment is estimated at more than $35 million.

In addition, Hampton’s Phoebus area is turning out to be “one of the most eclectic areas in Hampton Roads,” says Chuck Rigney, the city’s director of economic development.

Phoebus is home to a number of new restaurants and shops as well as Fort Monroe, “one of the most unique real estate opportunities in the country,” Rigney says.

A $17.3 million Element by Westin hotel is under construction in Peninsula Town Center, and a $16 million Hyatt Place hotel has opened in the Coliseum Central area.

The area near the Hampton Coliseum will be a “huge focus of mine for 2019,” says Rigney. “We have 20 acres we will be marketing this year. We want to make it a destination location.”

Eastern Virginia’s recent deals

Company Location #Jobs
Newport News Shipbuilding Newport News 2,000
Tegra Global Norfolk 300
Target Corp. Suffolk 225
Serco Inc.* Virginia Beach 118
Virginia Natural Gas Virginia Beach 110
Avis Budget Group Virginia Beach 100
Bcause LLC Virginia Beach 100
Standard Calibrations Chesapeake 89
Wanchese Fish Co.* Suffolk 69
PointOne* Virginia Beach 60

*Company has headquarters in another country                             Source: Virginia Economic Development Partnership

Long-held dream takes shape

In January, Virginia Beach took a major step toward turning a longstanding dream into reality.

City Council approved the terms of a deal submitted by Venture Realty Group for the development of property known locally as “The Dome.” One of the partners in the development is entertainer and producer Pharrell Williams, a Virginia Beach native.

The project will help turn Virginia Beach “into something instantly recognizable along the East Coast and across the United States,” the entertainer said in a statement. “We have renamed this project Atlantic Park — a name that lives up to the potential I hope we are all starting to feel. We want Atlantic Park to offer growth and opportunity for our community to help Virginia Beach reach its fullest potential.”

The 10.35-acre site for Atlantic Park has been a “priority for the city,” says Deputy City Manager Ron Williams.

One of the main parcels of the property was the site of the Virginia Beach Civic Center, affectionately called “The Dome,” which was demolished in 1994.

In early 2017, the city sought out potential developers for the property and by May of that year had received four competing proposals. “By fall [2017], we selected Venture Realty Group,” Ron Williams says.

The city was interested in the creation of a mixed-use development. “We wanted new and authentic restaurants and retail as well as programming that would bring in people,” Ron Williams says.

Pharrell Williams became involved in the project early in the process. “Pharrell had seen a marketing video through a mutual friend, and that turned into him wanting to be involved because the project was visionary,” says Donna MacMillan-Whitaker, Venture Realty’s founding and managing partner.

Having Pharrell Williams join the development team “was attractive” to the city, Ron Williams says, and a big plus for the project.

The estimated $325 million Atlantic Park project will include more than 200,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, 150,000 square feet of office space, parking for more than 1,900 vehicles, a surf park, 426 residential units and a 3,500-seat live entertainment venue.

“The size of that venue is what the market is missing. The city will own the venue, and Oak View Group along with Live Nation will be the operating entity of the entertainment venue and tenant of the city,” says MacMillan-Whitaker.

Douglas Higgons, senior vice president of Oak View Group, a Los-Angeles-based sports and entertainment company, says the entertainment venue will bring major touring acts to Virginia Beach.

“We will have the ability to also play to an outdoor capacity of 5,000,” he adds. “The programming will be something for everyone. We will have varied genres of music and events. The venue will also be available for private and corporate events, and we can scale it down to as little as 500 to 1,000 people.”

The surf park will be the “first urban surf park in the United States,” MacMillan-Whitaker says.

The city will provide money from its Tourism Investment Program (TIP) Fund to develop the entertainment venue ($30 million), public parking facilities ($58 million) and streetscape improvements ($7.5 million).

“Our TIP Fund generates about $40 million a year,” says Ron Williams. The fund was established in 2011 to use revenue primarily paid by out-of-town visitors to finance major tourism projects. “It’s been 20 years since we had a major investment so we built up capacity.”

The city expects Atlantic Park to result in first-year tax revenues of more than $8 million, exclusive of parking, leases and other indirect revenues. City officials anticipate the project will generate $65 million for its general fund and $44 million for public schools over 20 years. Atlantic Park also is expected to employ 3,600 people during construction and create 2,000 jobs once it begins operation.

Venture Realty now is creating a development agreement that City Council will consider in June or July. “If that is approved, we will have another 12 to 18 months of full design and permitting and then start construction. The project would be opening its doors 24 to 36 months from now,” says MacMillan-Whitaker.

Atlantic Park will help the city achieve its goal of being a year-round destination, says Ron Williams. “This complements our other activities such as the Tournament Sports Center. It offers something for locals as well as visitors. It gives them a reason to come to the oceanfront even in the off-season.”

A more diverse economy

The Southern Virginia region is pushing past its legacy of tobacco production and textile manufacturing to recruit a diversified group of companies.

“When the city of Danville was a mill and tobacco-processing town, we had two industries, and those got wiped out, and we got wiped out,” says Linwood Wright, a former Danville mayor who serves as a consultant to the city’s office of economic development. “Today we only have one tobacco processing plant, Japan Tobacco Inc., and it is state-of-the-art.”

Danville scored two huge economic development projects last year with Essel Propack’s expansion and PRA Group Inc.’s decision to establish a call center. The two announcements alone amounted to $46.2 million in capital investment and 545 new jobs.

The city had worked with PRA on the call center deal for some time. The Norfolk-based debt recovery company is investing $15.1 million in the call center and expects to create 500 jobs. Danville competed with several states for the project.

PRA bought an Airside Industrial Park building that had housed a Telvista call center. About 300 people lost their jobs when Telvista closed the call center in March. “PRA will pay their employees close to twice what Telvista was paying their employees,” Wright says.

Essel Propack, an India-based specialty packaging company, plans to spend $31.2 million in expanding its Danville manufacturing operations. The project will allow the company to double production at the Danville facility.

The city competed with Brazil and Argentina for the expansion project, which is expected to create 45 additional jobs. Essel Propack has more than 2,850 employees worldwide, including 252 in Danville, its only U.S. manufacturing operation.

Joint effort
Meanwhile Danville is trying to attract more advanced-manufacturing companies. “We are not specific to any one type of product,” Wright says. “We have had several announcements of that kind of business recently. We are also beginning to develop a strategy to attract cybersecurity firms and IT businesses but not necessarily data centers because they are not huge employers.”

The city also continues to look for food-processing businesses because “we have excess water and wastewater treatment capacity which lends itself to food processing,” Wright says.

Danville and Pittsylvania County worked together to recruit BGF Industries Inc., a subsidiary of the France-based Porcher Industries Group. The company is spending $7 million to build a 25,000-square-foot facility in the Cyber Park, a 330-acre technology park in Danville’s enterprise zone. (The park is owned by the Danville-Pittsylvania County Regional Industrial Facility Authority.)  The investment is expected to create 65 jobs over three years with an average annual salary of $75,000.

Other major announcements in the Danville-Pittsylvania area include Harlow Fastech, which will be the first U.S. precision sheet metal fabrication plant for United Kingdom-based Harlow Group Ltd. Harlow provides precision engineered, fabricated, machined and 3D printed additive components.

The company is investing $8 million in the project, which is expected to create 49 jobs at an average wage of $55,000. Harlow also will establish in the Cyber Park its U.S. Training Center of Excellence, a facility focused on additive manufacturing.

“The company is hiring now,” says Matt Rowe, Pittsylvania County’s economic development director. “They are planning to break ground in the spring. It will be a very fast-tracked project.”

In another project, Micro Blenders, an additive feed manufacturer, expects to spend $3.5 million to create at least 15 jobs in Gretna. The company bought a long-vacant 90,000-square-foot building in the Pittsylvania town and plans to add 25,000 to 30,000 square feet to the structure. 

Also in Gretna, Amthor International, the largest tanker truck manufacturer in North America, is spending $2.5 million to expand its manufacturing operation, creating 90 jobs over five years while retaining 110 existing positions.

“They have already hired 72 of those 90 folks,” says Rowe, noting the project is under construction. “Amthor is still very much a growing company. Hopefully there will be additional news from Amthor in 2019.”

Other expansions involved Eastern Panel Manufacturing, which is adding 15 jobs as part of a $1 million investment, and personalized medicine and nutrition solutions provider Panaceutics, which is making a $5.8 million investment involving 70 new jobs.

Industrial parks
“I think [2018] has laid the foundation for what looks to be a promising 2019,”  Rowe says.

The county filled so many buildings “to the point that we have no building product left,” he adds. “We were able to continue our mission to diversify the economy in the county.”

Additionally, the Berry Hill megasite park, which has been rebranded as Southern Virginia Mega Site at Berry Hill, is now shovel ready. “We have had numerous site visits on that site,” Rowe says, noting the county has a contract for a 163-acre site that would result in an investment of at least $200 million.

The county also has its new site, the Southern Virginia Multimodal Park in Hurt. The Staunton River Regional Industrial Facility Authority — which includes Pittsylvania, Danville and the towns of Hurt and Altavista — is recruiting companies to the industrial park.

“We have a lot of momentum,” Rowe says. “It’s about keeping the momentum. We are slowly moving up the food chain of project types and sizes. It always takes time to get momentum, but once you get it, things start to come to you, and that is what we are seeing.”

‘Big hurdle for us’
Martinsville and Henry County also saw solid growth throughout 2018. Last year the city and county brought in 548 jobs and more than $79 million in investments.

One of the biggest wins involved Poland-based Press Glass, which is investing $43.55 million in a 280,000-square-foot manufacturing operation in Commonwealth Crossing Business Centre. Press Glass is the first company to locate in the park. The project, which is under construction, is expected to result in 212 jobs (see story on Page 34).

“That was a big hurdle for us to get over after working for 10 years to develop the park,” says Mark Heath, president and CEO of the Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corp.

Another big win: Memphis-based Monogram Food Solutions LLC announced it is investing $30 million to expand its manufacturing operation, Monogram Snacks, in Henry County. Virginia competed against six other states for the project, which will create an additional 300 jobs. The project represents Monogram’s fifth expansion since 2009.

“We have solid job and investment numbers,” Heath says. “We are actively recruiting higher-paying companies. We are seeing an upward movement in the average wage. Press Glass and Monogram are over $16 an hour in wage.”

Last year foreign investment and company expansions helped to boost the economy. “We average two-thirds expansions and one-third new companies,” Heath says. “The vast majority of companies we talk to are international.”

Like Monogram in Henry County, Microsoft has expanded employment at its data center in Mecklenburg County many times since 2010. The sixth expansion, announced at the start of this year, will add 100 jobs to the company’s Mecklenburg workforce. The data center currently employs 300 people.

South Boston, meanwhile, is seeing a lot of interest in the market-rate apartments Echelon Resources is developing in the former 135,000-square-foot Tultex Building, now The Imperial Lofts. Thirty-eight of the 42 apartments already are rented. Rents range from $800 to $1,100 a month. “This is a moneymaker for the town,” says Tom Raab, South Boston’s town manager.

Plans for a project to redevelop the former John Randolph Hotel building into a 27-room boutique hotel went out to bid in February. Town officials hope the project will break ground by summer.

 

Southern Virginia’s recent deals

Company Location #Jobs
PRA Group Danville 500
Monogram Snacks Martinsville/Henry 300
Press Glass* Martinsville/Henry 212
Amthor International Pittsylvania County 90
Panaceutics Pittsylvania County 70
BGF Industries* Danville/Pittsylvania 65
Harlow Fastech* Danville/Pittsylvania 49
Essel Propack* Danville 45
Micro Blenders Pittsylvania County 15
Eastern Panel Pittsylvania County 15

1 Company has headquarters in another country                                     Source: Virginia Economic Development Partnership

 

A good start

The announcement that Poland-based Press Glass would invest $43.55 million to establish a 280,000-square-foot factory in Commonwealth Crossing Business Centre marked a milestone for Martinsville and Henry County. The flat-glass processing company will be the park’s first business.

“All the work that went into Commonwealth Crossing set the stage. In our part of the world, having a fully developed site and buildings is job one,” says Mark Heath, president and CEO of the Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corp. “Without Commonwealth Crossing, we would never have talked to them. It was a value proposition for them because it saved them site development and cost.”

The 720-acre park, with graded lots, rail service and full utilities, is the result of a decade of preparation. “We won this project because of the work we’ve done over the last 10 years,” says Heath.

The EDC learned of Press Glass’ desire to expand its U.S. operations from local entrepreneur Bobby Lankford, the owner of Stone Dynamics in Martinsville. He sold his North Carolina company, Glass Dynamics, to Press Glass about two years ago.

Heath and Henry County Administrator Tim Hall traveled to Press Glass’ current site in North Carolina to learn about the company’s needs.

Press Glass’ management had researched Henry County and Commonwealth Crossing and knew exactly what they wanted and “where they wanted to be,” says Hall. “In my first meeting with Maciej Migalski, president of Press Glass, North America, he said, ‘We want to put the facility in Henry County.’”

The company selected Commonwealth Crossing for a variety of reasons, including its location, easy access to interstates and land availability. The Henry County site was larger and better positioned than one the company was considering in North Carolina.

“It is a fully developed site that met all their needs,” Heath says. “Plus, it is relatively close to where they are located in North Carolina, only five miles away.”

Poczesna, Poland-based Press Glass is the largest independent flat-glass processing operation in Europe, with 2,100 employees at 11 manufacturing plants.

The company processes glass for manufacturers of windows and doors, façades, solar and photovoltaic panels and other products. It will produce sections of window glass for high-rise buildings at the Commonwealth Crossing facility.

Heath and Hall traveled to Poland last May to visit the company for about a week. “We wanted to see the company and its facilities so we could see if it would be a good fit,” says Hall. “We were convinced this is a good company that we would have a connection with and the community would, too.”

During their visit, they met with company owner and CEO Tomasz Wozowicz. “We got to know him and his team,” Hall says. “What was so impressive to me was the team’s longevity. All of them had been with the company for 10 to 15 years. They were very tight knit and well versed in what they did.”

Heath and Hall toured a couple of the company’s plants while they were in Poland.  “We wanted to educate ourselves on how they did business there and what their plants were like,” Heath says. “We developed a good relationship.”

The Commonwealth Crossing project, which will create 212 jobs, was announced in September. The site for the plant is being prepared. “We’ve had a horrible fall and winter weather wise,” says Hall. “They are working pretty hard right now and making some progress. They want to be in production by this December, and that is what we are shooting for.”

In late spring, company employees will be trained at the Commonwealth Center for Advanced Training, which is adjacent to the Press Glass site. Patrick Henry Community College is creating the curriculum. “The training is done exclusively for our clients,” Hall says.

Landing this type of project is a real plus for the county and Commonwealth Crossing. “It means a lot. It adds to our international presence,” Hall says. “The company is the first client in our premium business park. They’ve shown the faith to come, and hopefully it will be easier to get a second client.”