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Virginia 500 Spotlight: ERIK H. NEIL
FIRST JOB: Busboy at Washington Golf & Country Club in Arlington HOBBY/PASSION: Traveling, especially to Italy HISTORIC PERSON I WISH I COULD MEET: [Chrysler Corp. founder] Walter Chrysler, who created this great collection and gave it to the people FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: Princeton Tigers basketball RECENT BOOK READ: “Stay [...]
Rising alarm
Over the years, scientists have warned about sea-level rise, especially in Norfolk, which has the highest rate on the East Coast. “Norfolk is very flat. When you see a small increase in water levels, a wide part of land floods in response,” says Molly Mitchell, a researcher at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, which [...]
Spies in the sky?
High-level federal concerns over Chinese-made ship-to-shore cranes ramped up in February after President Joe Biden issued an executive order addressing cybersecurity and espionage risks the cranes pose at U.S. ports. Then in early March, a congressional investigation revealed cellular modems had been found on some Chinese crane [...]
Submarine sandwich
Hiring and retaining workers remains a challenge everywhere, but it’s particularly urgent in the submarine-building industry. The Navy is aiming to transform its submarine fleet, with the first nuclear-powered Columbia-class sub primed to arrive in 2028, along with production of more Virginia-class vessels. That’s bringing p[...]
Prime for development
In the past year, Amazon.com continued its march across the commonwealth, announcing plans to build a 650,000-square-foot fulfillment center and a 219,000-square-foot delivery station in Virginia Beach, which are collectively expected to produce more than 1,000 jobs. About 60% the size of the Pentagon, Virginia’s second larges[...]
Subs going Down Under
A 2021 agreement between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States should reap benefits in Hampton Roads soon. Dubbed AUKUS for the three participating nations, the international agreement calls for the U.S. and the U.K. to share nuclear propulsion technology with Australia, with the Royal Australian Navy set to acquir[...]
Riding the silver tsunami
As a registered nurse unit coordinator and charge nurse at Sentara CarePlex Hospital in Hampton, Andrea Samuel spends her days communicating with doctors and nurses in addition to administering direct bedside care. A Miami native, Samuel entered nursing school at age 19 and has worked for Sentara since 1991. She celebrated her 7[...]
The Lake takes shape in Chesterfield
The first wave of commercial tenants is coming to The Lake, a long-planned, 105-acre mixed-use development that’s slated to bring a surf park to western Chesterfield County. The Lake’s centerpiece will be a 13-acre artificial lake with a tow cable. It’s expected to be ready by summer 2025 for wakeboarding, kayaking, standu[...]
FOR THE RECORD May 2024
CENTRAL VIRGINIA Richmond-based Atlantic Union Bankshares completed its acquisition of Danville-based American National Bankshares, parent company of American National Bank and Trust, on April 1. Based on the $35.31 per share closing price of Atlantic Union common stock on March 28, the transaction value was approximately $507 million. The deal was announced in July 2023, […]
Carter Bank vs. Justice family saga continues
Martinsville’s Carter Bank & Trust says a Feb. 12 federal lawsuit filed against it by GLAS Trust Co. contains “false and misleading” allegations as part of a complex financial dispute over debt repayments from loans to West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, his family and their businesses. GLAS filed suit in the U.S. District[...]
Crisis in Baltimore
Since the March 26 container ship collision that collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, ships previously bound for the Port of Baltimore have been diverted to other ports, including the Port of Virginia. The Singapore-flagged container vessel Dali hit the Key Bridge at about 1:30 a.m. March 26 after issuing a mayda[...]
Deep dive
The Port of Virginia has set the stage to offer the widest and deepest harbor on the East Coast by 2025, with the recent widening of Thimble Shoal Channel West allowing for two-way traffic for all vessels, including ultra-large container vessels (ULCVs). Completed in March, the shipping channel is now as much as 1,400 feet [&hel[...]
