byline: Virginia Business

CENTRAL VIRGINIA

In early July, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration put a hold on its order banning Juul Labs Inc. from selling e-cigarettes on the U.S. market, saying it would conduct an additional review of the company’s marketing application. Juul is partly owned by Henrico County-based Altria Group Inc. The Fortune 500 tobacco products manufacturer bought a 35% stake in Juul for $12.8 billion in 2018 but has written down the value of its investment by more than $11 billion, to $1.7 billion. Juul’s dominance in the vaping market invited intense scrutiny from antismoking groups and regulators who feared its products would do more harm to young people than good to cigarette smokers trying to quit. (The New York Times; Reuters)

Chesterfield County‘s former Symbol mattress production plant is set to close in August, laying off 54 employees, owner Corsicana Mattress Co. announced in late June. Production will be absorbed into the company’s plants in Connecticut and North Carolina. The county’s economic development director, Garrett Hart, said he will work with the building owner to find another company to move in, as well as assist affected employees in getting rehired. Corsicana purchased its rival, Richmond-based Symbol, in April 2021, and it has been streamlining its holdings. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

EAB, a direct marketing and recruitment firm for higher education institutions, expects to add at least 200 jobs with a $6 million expansion in Henrico County, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced in late June. Formerly Royall & Co., EAB will relocate from two locations on East Parham Road and consolidate its Henrico operations into a 70,000-square-foot space at the SunTrust building on West Broad Street. EAB was founded by the late Bill Royall, who sold the business in 2014 for $850 million. It has 500 employees in Virginia. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Richmond city officials have made it clear they want to minimize financial commitments to replacing The Diamond. But with developers proposing to replace the stadium and build a new neighborhood around it for upward of $1 billion, the city could agree to siphon new tax revenue to pay for the construction. In July, the city started reviewing three offers for the replacement of the baseball stadium and new development that could give rise to housing, offices, retail stores, restaurants and hotels around it. City officials said they expected to choose one offer by late July and recommend it for approval by Richmond City Council. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Almost 9,900 of 21,314 eligible classified state employees received permission to work remotely at least one day a week under a new telework policy by Gov. Glenn Youngkin. Only 9,866 asked for permission to telework, according to the administration. The governor had imposed strict limits on telework under new agreements that would require approval by his chief of staff for any employee to work remotely more than two days a week. (Agency heads could approve one day, and Cabinet secretaries could allow two.) More than 300 employees from five state agencies quit since the policy was announced, according to records received from WRIC 8News, with some citing lack of telework as the reason. (Richmond Times-Dispatch; WRIC 8News)

PEOPLE

Lori Collier Waran, former chief revenue officer and associate publisher for Virginia Business Publications LLC, was named the first female president of NASCAR-owned Richmond Raceway in June. She joined the organization July 11. Waran replaces Dennis Bickmeier, who left in April to head Henrico County’s new sports and entertainment authority. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

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EASTERN VIRGINIA

Chesapeake-based Fortune 500 discount retailer Dollar Tree overhauled much of its C-suite leadership, the company announced in late June. Dollar Tree Stores Inc., which also owns the Family Dollar chain, is seeking permanent replacements for its chief operating officer, chief strategy officer, chief financial officer, chief information officer and chief legal officer. Dollar Tree CFO Kevin Wampler will transition out of his role when a successor is named and will stay with Dollar Tree as an adviser until April 2023. Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary William Old, COO Thomas O’Boyle, Chief Strategy Officer David Jacobs and CIO Andy Paisley are
no longer with the company. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Massimo Zanetti Beverage USA, the North American operating unit of the Italian coffee roaster Zanetti Beverage Group, will invest $29.1 million to consolidate and expand operations at its Suffolk roasting facility, a project expected to create 79 jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced in late June. Massimo Zanetti roasts, grinds and packages beans for retail brands including Chock full o’Nuts, Segafredo Zanetti and Kauai Coffee. At its Suffolk facility, the company produces proprietary and private label coffee, tea and drink mixes for retail and food service customers. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Norfolk has entered into negotiations with a development team that includes musician Pharrell Williams to revitalize Military Circle mall, city officials said in early July, though they stopped short of announcing the group as the winning bidder. Norfolk City Manager Chip Filer said the city is in “early negotiations” with the development team pitching Wellness Circle, a $1.1 billion proposal that includes plans for a 200-room hotel, more than 1,100 new housing units and a 16,000-seat arena. In addition to Williams, who grew up in Virginia Beach, the development team includes Virginia Beach-based Venture Realty Group and California arena management company Oak View Group. (The Virginian-Pilot)

Smithfield Foods will pay restaurants and caterers $42 million to settle a lawsuit that accused the giant meat producer of conspiring to inflate pork prices, which will likely only add to concerns about how the lack of competition in the industry affects meat prices, according to a settlement in early July. Previously, Smithfield settled with a different group of pork buyers for $83 million, and JBS agreed to pay the restaurants and caterers $12.75 million in the pork lawsuit. Earlier this year, JBS also said it would pay $52.5 million to settle a similar beef price-fixing lawsuit. (Associated Press)

Australian online auto sales forum
Carsales.com Ltd. plans to acquire the remaining 51% of Norfolk-based Trader Interactive from Eurozeo and Goldman Sachs Asset Management for $839.14 million, the companies announced in late June. Carsales.com bought 49% of Trader Interactive in August 2021 for $624 million and will now own the company in its entirety, funding the latest transaction through a combination of equity and debt. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

PEOPLE

William & Mary has named Todd Mooradian, who spent much of his career at the university, as dean of its Raymond A. Mason School of Business, beginning in August. The university announced the hire July 1. Mooradian served as dean of the University of Louisville’s College of Business since 2017 and prior to that worked 27 years as a business professor at William & Mary, including in the role of associate dean for faculty and academic affairs from 2014 to 2017. Mooradian starts his new role Aug. 15. He replaces Lawrence B. Pulley, who is retiring after 24 years as dean. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

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NORTHERN VIRGINIA

Legislation renewing calls for a new FBI headquarters has the General Services Administration once again studying a 58-acre complex of 16 nearly windowless gray warehouses and storage buildings in Springfield. The site, which could house up to 7,500 workers, was one of three finalists  — two others are in Maryland  — before a previous search was canceled in 2017. Lawmakers are urging for a site to be designated by September. (Washington Business Journal;
Virginia Mercury)

McLean-based tech company ID.me Inc. laid off 54 employees on June 7, months after the Internal Revenue Service said it would drop plans to require taxpayers to submit to facial recognition via ID.me’s software. A Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act was posted on the Virginia Employment Commission’s website. Founded in 2010, ID.me works with 10 federal agencies, 30 states and more than 500 retailers. The Washington Post reported in April that the House Committee on Oversight and Reform opened an investigation into the efficacy and security of ID.me’s software. (VirginiaBusiness.com; The Washington Post)

Arlington-based Leonardo DRS Inc., a subsidiary of Italian defense contractor Leonardo SpA, entered into a definitive agreement to merge with Israel-based Rada Electronic Industries Ltd., becoming a combined public company later this year, the companies announced June 21. Rada will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Leonardo DRS, and the new company will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange and Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Combined, the two entities reported $2.7 billion in 2021 revenues. The deal comes months after Leonardo announced plans to sell off its satellite business. The company was on the verge of going public before its parent company paused the move in March 2021, citing “adverse market conditions.” (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Tysons software company and bitcoin whale MicroStrategy Inc. loaded up on more of the cryptocurrency over the past two months as bitcoin’s price plummeted, reaching a low of $17,560 per bitcoin on June 18. Between May 3 and June 28, MicroStrategy — led by crypto evangelist CEO Michael Saylor — purchased 480 bitcoins. It spent $10 million on those transactions, with each bitcoin costing an average of $20,817, including fees and expenses. That’s a smaller buy by the company’s standards, a sign that MicroStrategy appears to be slowing its pace. Saylor has preached a “buy and hold” strategy since his company began acquiring the currency in 2020. (Washington Business Journal)

PEOPLE

Grant F. Reid, will step down in September as CEO of M&Ms candy maker Mars Inc. Poul Weihrauch, currently global president of Mars Petcare, the company’s pet food and veterinary health division, will become Mars’ new CEO, the company announced June 22. The news comes as the privately held global candy and pet food manufacturer is experiencing major growth; it filed plans in April to expand and update its downtown McLean headquarters. Weihrauch, who is based in Brussels, is relocating to McLean. Reid, who has served in the role since 2014, will fully retire by the end of the year. Under Reid’s tenure, Mars’ revenue grew more than 50% to nearly $45 billion. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

Ardine Williams, vice president of
HQ2 workforce development for Amazon.com Inc., has retired again. Williams was one of Amazon’s most high-profile Virginia executives and was leading the e-tailer’s effort to hire 25,000 workers by 2030 for its multibillion-dollar East Coast headquarters in Arlington. Just five months into her retirement from Intel in 2014, Williams was lured back to work by Amazon Web Services. She was promoted to the HQ2 position in 2018. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

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ROANOKE/NEW RIVER VALLEY

Amtrak added a second daily departure from Roanoke on its Northeast Regional route beginning July 11, adding daily 4:30 p.m. trains to Washington, D.C. Amtrak service returned to Roanoke in 2017. The Virginia Passenger Rail Authority supports Amtrak Northeast Regional service in Norfolk, Richmond, Newport News, Lynchburg and Roanoke. (Virginia Business)

The Supreme Court’s June 30 ruling limiting federal authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants does not directly impact Appalachian Power Co., which for years has relied predominantly on coal but more recently is accelerating a transition to renewable energy. The utility’s parent company, American Electric Power, has retired or sold more than 13,700 megawatts of coal-fueled generation over the past decade, Hall said. In Virginia, the Clean Economy Act mandates that all 500,000-some customers of Appalachian receive all carbon-free electricity by 2050. (The Roanoke Times)

A new National Park Service report shows that 15.9 million park visitors spent an estimated $1.3 billion in local gateway regions while visiting the Blue Ridge Parkway in 2021, according to a release from the parkway released in early July. That spending supported 17,900 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to local economies of $1.7 billion. The
peer-reviewed visitor spending analysis was conducted by economists at the National Park Service and the U.S. Geological Survey. The report shows
$20.5 billion of direct spending by more than 297 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 322,600 jobs nationally; 269,900 of those jobs are found in these gateway communities. The cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy was $42.5 billion. (Cardinal News)

With a snip of scissors at a late June event, the Montgomery Museum of Art & History reopened for business. After being closed for two months, the museum has a completely new look and feel. Its operations have moved to downtown Christiansburg, now spanning 15,000 square feet inside a former bank building. The event included an interactive exhibit for kids to make their own art to put up in the museum, as well as a ‘design your own museum’ activity. The museum plans to switch up exhibits often to keep people coming back and to make its mark on the New River Valley. (WSLS 10 News)

Virginia Tech in late June announced that it will establish a new learning accelerator at the university’s Pamplin College of Business through a $1 million gift from an alumnus and his wife. Omar Asali, a 1992 Virginia Tech graduate and chairman and CEO of Ohio-based Ranpak Holdings Corp., made the gift with his wife, Rula, through their family foundation. The Asali Learning Accelerator will “provide a dedicated space for Pamplin undergraduates to receive and deliver academic coaching services that are tailored to support students’ individual academic goals,” according to a news release. It will be housed in the second building at Tech’s Global Business and Analytics Complex (GBAC), which is under construction and expected to be completed by 2025. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

PEOPLE

Roanoke County Economic Development Director Jill Loope announced in early July that her 23rd year of working for the county will be her last. Loope, who joined the county as public information officer in 2000, was promoted from acting to full-time director of the economic development officer in 2013. She plans to retire July 1,
2023. “It’s been an honor to serve the people of Roanoke County,” said Loope. “I have enjoyed working with our business partners and seeing the positive growth and development that’s occurred in our community and region over the past two decades.” (The Roanoke Times)

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY

Three Shenandoah Valley projects will receive GO Virginia grants, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced July 1. Frederick and Shenandoah counties and Winchester will receive $530,000 for the Accelerating Advanced Manufacturing Workforce program, an advanced manufacturing training initiative from Laurel Ridge Community College and the National Coalition of Certification Centers. Page, Shenandoah and Warren counties will receive $306,000 for NextGen Nurses, a nursing training program from Shenandoah University, Valley Health System and the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association. Nine counties and three cities also will receive $100,000 for Shenandoah Valley Small Business Resiliency Teams, an initiative to help small businesses with e-commerce, finance and operational systems. (The Winchester Star)

U.S. District Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon granted a joint motion on June 27 to reschedule the criminal trial of former Front Royal-Warren County Economic Development Authority Executive Director Jennifer R. McDonald from October 2022 to May 2023. McDonald faces fraud, money laundering and identity theft charges. On July 7, a jury found that a co-defendant, April D. Petty, must repay the authority $125,000 used in the sale of a property, implicating Petty as a beneficiary of actions by McDonald, who the authority claims embezzled more than $21 million over several years to conduct real estate schemes. (The Northern Virginia Daily)

James Madison University, Virginia Tech and Virginia Commonwealth University entered into a systemwide agreement for telehealth and remote mental health services with TimelyMD in late June. TimelyCare serves as a 24/7 virtual extension of campus counseling center resources, with a goal of improving student well-being, engagement and retention. The service will be available for students starting in the fall semester. Students can select
care options from licensed counselors and mental health providers on their phones or via other devices and receive 12 counseling visits at no cost.
(Daily News-Record)

The state’s biennium budget, which went into effect July 1, allotted $93 million for multiuse trails, and some funding is allocated for the acquisition of the corridor for the proposed 48.5-mile Shenandoah Rail Trail between Broadway and Front Royal. Officials will begin negotiations with Norfolk Southern Corp. to acquire the corridor, after which construction will begin. The track is no longer used for freight service. Part of the federal funding will establish a State Office of Trails, and the state will also receive $14 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Transportation Alternatives Program. (Daily News-Record)

Tim Davey with Timmons Group and Lee Downey with Hunton Andrews Kurth’s public affairs group presented a new marketing plan for Staunton Crossing to the Staunton Economic Development Authority on June 23. The plan calls to market the site for advanced manufacturing, data centers, retail and office/flex space, with an aim to develop 1.8 million square feet, attract $264 million in capital investment and create 3,250 jobs. The marketing plan could cost the city more than $102,000 and would focus on showcasing the site readiness of Staunton Crossing, emphasizing its unique characteristics, showing its overall development timeline and workforce and training availability. (News Leader)

On July 5, Woodstock Town Council approved a special use permit request to construct a building at 752 S. Main St. with 48 apartments, ground-floor retail space, a rooftop common area and 134 parking spaces. The building will be on the site of Naked Bear RV Service and Repair. Including the rooftop area, the building will be 55 feet high. The developer had previously made changes to its plans based on public comments, including giving the project a more traditional exterior design and adding landscaping and patios. (The Northern Virginia Daily)

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SOUTHERN VIRGINIA

The Danville Industrial Development Authority is seeking a $26.5 million loan for its portion of the White Mill project. The IDA voted 5-0 to make the move during a special called meeting in early July. The vote authorizes the IDA to seek the loan from American National Bank but does not commit either party to the transaction. The $26.5 million would finance the renovation and redevelopment of 110,675 square feet of retail and commercial space in the building and 84,773 square feet of parking space. (Danville Register & Bee)

A 10.6-megawatt Danville Utilities battery storage facility constructed by Arlington-based Delorean Power is expected to begin operating by September. Delorean, which develops similar systems across the mid-Atlantic, Northeast and Midwest, will own and operate the facility at 864 Monument St. under a 20-year agreement with Danville Utilities. City officials expect it to save the city $1.2 million in transmission and capacity costs in the first year. COVID-19 restrictions in China delayed shipping of the batteries for the facility, which was initially expected to be operational in May. (Danville Register & Bee)

After years of swirling debate, the Long Mill Dam is coming down in Danville. Danville City Council voted on July 5 to demolish the dam located on the Dan River between the White Mill building and the Danville Area Family YMCA. Removal of the dam would bring state and federal permitting advantages to the two projects, Danville City Manager Ken Larking told City Council during a recent work session. (Danville Register & Bee)

The Henry County Board of  Zoning Appeals in late June approved a special use permit to allow for the construction of a 18.8 megawatt, 268-acre solar energy facility in Ridgeway. Eliana Ginis, senior analyst of project development for Shifting Sands Solar LLC, presented the matter to the board and only one person spoke in opposition to the proposal. In response to the complaint, the board conditioned its approval with a requirement that extra evergreens be planted to obstruct the view of the solar panels from the road. (Martinsville Bulletin)

The second time was the charm for the 7-Bridges solar project, an 80-megawatt facility that won preliminary approval from the Mecklenburg County Board of Supervisors in mid-July. Reversing an earlier decision, supervisors voted 7-1 to deem 7-Bridges in substantial accord with the county’s comprehensive plan. The project developer, Boston-based Longroad Energy, wants to build the solar energy facility on 499 acres of timbered land northeast of Chase City near Scotts Crossroads, Courthouse Road and the Meherrin River. Longroad Energy must now go back before the planning commission and board of supervisors to seek a special exception permit before construction can begin. (SoVaNow)

Concern about a recession is understandable, but predictions must be tempered by underlying economic strengths, said Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President and CEO Tom Barkin during a July 1 speech at a regional chamber of commerce at South Boston’s Berry Hill Resort. Barkin, who leads one of 12 regional Fed boards in the U.S., Barkin suggested that despite the cooling effects of Fed interest rate hikes, the United States can avoid recession due to current economic signs that are “relatively healthy.” He met with local business, government and agriculture leaders in early July in Brunswick, Mecklenburg and Halifax counties. (SoVaNow)

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SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA

On June 30, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced 18 projects, most of which are in Southwest Virginia, for a total of $8.6 million in funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission. Highlights include: $1 million in water and sewer improvements for the Pure Salmon Virginia LLC aquaculture facility in Tazewell County; $1 million to expand wastewater service capacity at the construction site of the Blue Star NBR LLC nitrile manufacturing facility at Wythe County’s Progress Park; and $582,469 to extend fiber broadband service in Carroll County from Galax to Pipers Gap. (Cardinal News)

Virginia’s first casino, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Bristol, held the grand opening for its temporary casino space on July 8. The space in the former Belk store of the Bristol Mall has 30,000 square feet with 870 slots, 21 tables and a sportsbook. Hard Rock Bristol was the first casino to receive a Virginia Lottery Board license, issued on April 27. The temporary space is expected to create 600 jobs, while the permanent, 90,000-square-foot resort set to open in July 2024 should generate about 1,200 to 1,500 jobs. (VirginiaBusiness.com)

On July 4, members of the United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America Local 2850 went on strike, holding signs outside of General Dynamics Corp.’s Marion plants, which serve the Reston-based defense contractor’s Mission Systems subsidiary. Alan Keesee, the UAW chapter president, said it had been five years since a new contract was put in place and that members were concerned about the cost of living. The UAW and the company negotiated for four weeks until 11:59 p.m. July 1. The union membership rejected the tentative agreement. (Bristol Herald Courier)

Bristol, Virginia-based yarn manufacturer Universal Fibers is among several employers in the region participating in the launch of the Employer-Sponsored Child Care Benefit pilot program made possible by the United Way of Southwest Virginia and a GO Virginia grant. The United Way will match employer contributions to employees’ child care costs. The two-year pilot program could save eligible employees an estimated $5,200 in annual child care costs. Universal Fibers’ Bristol facility employs more than 500 people but lost about 5% of its workers during the pandemic due to workers’ child care needs. (Bristol Herald Courier)

On June 30, the Virginia Department of Transportation and U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Salem) presented information to the Virginia Coalfields Expressway Authority about new federal funding. In its 2022 budget, the federal government allocated almost $2 million to the long-delayed Coalfields Expressway (CFX) project, a proposed 115-mile highway to improve transportation connectivity between Southwest Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky. Seven miles of the expressway overlap U.S. Route 460 and were previously the only funded
part of Virginia’s roughly 50-mile portion of the CFX. A transportation department engineer said the funding would be used for pre-engineering work and environmental impacts studies for the route from Grundy to the West Virginia state line. (news release)

The Virginia Department of Energy will receive $22.7 million in federal funding toward redeveloping abandoned mine lands across the commonwealth, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced July 6. The funding is aimed at redeveloping the sites so that they can attract new development and job opportunities to the region. Handled through Virginia’s Abandoned Mine Lands program, funded projects involve mitigating safety hazards and environmental issues on the sites that resulted from coal mining prior to the implementation of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977. (VirginiaBusiness.com)