Amazon opens new Chesapeake facility
Last week Amazon.com Inc. opened its new, 640,000-square-foot processing facility in Chesapeake, the global e-tailer’s first cross-dock fulfillment center in Virginia. About 900 of the 1,000 workers that Amazon announced it would be hiring for the facility are already on the job, an Amazon spokeswoman told Virginia Busines[...]
Hilton will expand global HQ in Fairfax
Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will expand its Fairfax County corporate headquarters, creating 350 jobs over the next five years, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Thursday. Over the next five years, the Fortune 1000 global hospitality company will add a variety of roles in areas created to support growth in the coming years, accord[...]
Norfolk’s Military Circle Mall headed for wrecking ball
Norfolk’s Military Circle Mall will close by the end of the year to make way for its demolition in the first quarter of 2023. The decision to close the mall came after Norfolk Economic Development Authority members toured the aging facility on Wednesday, Norfolk Economic Development Director Jared Chalk told Virginia Busin[...]
Greater Washington Partnership taps new CEO
The Greater Washington Partnership has named Kathy Hollinger as its new CEO, the economic development organization announced Tuesday. Hollinger is the president and CEO of the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, which she has led since 2012. She begins at GWP Oct. 3, according to a news release. “This region is [...]
Potter’s Craft Cider plans expansion
Albemarle County-based Potter’s Craft Cider will expand its production operation and add eight jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office announced Friday. The company will undertake adaptive reuse of a vacant 11,500-square-foot warehouse in the Woolen Mills District near downtown Charlottesville. The new cidery, which will [...]
Big deals
These are some of the state’s biggest economic development announcements in 2021 and 2022, expected to create at least 100 jobs each. CENTRAL VIRGINIA Chesterfield County: Lego Group, the manufacturer of the iconic brightly colored interlocking plastic toy bricks, announced in June it will build a $1 billion plant in Chesterfi[...]
AeroFarms to add 66 jobs in Pittsylvania
New Jersey-based leafy greens producer AeroFarms plans to add 66 more jobs as it increases production at its vertical farm in Pittsylvania County, the governor’s office announced this week. This is in addition to the 92 jobs promised in its operations at Cane Creek Centre, a $42 million investment in what is promoted as th[...]
Prince George County hires economic development director
Prince George County has appointed Panayiotis “Yoti” Jabri its director of economic development, effective Aug. 1. Jeff Stoke, who became the county’s administrator on April 12, selected Jabri as his successor. “We are very pleased to be able to appoint Mr. Jabri to this very important county position,” Stoke said [...]
Booz Allen Hamilton launches $100M VC fund
Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. has formed a $100 million corporate venture capital arm, the McLean-based Fortune 500 global management consultancy announced Wednesday. Named Booz Allen Ventures LLC, the arm will invest in early-stage companies and technologies across four categories: defense, artificial intelligence/machine learning, [...]
Virginia ranks 3rd in CNBC’s Top States for Business
After two consecutive years at the top, Virginia slipped to third place in CNBC’s 2022 America’s Top States for Business rankings, the business news channel announced Wednesday morning. North Carolina achieved the coveted No. 1 ranking this year. “A great education system is building a smart workforce,” CNB[...]
First Va. casino opens in Bristol
Virginia’s first casino, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Bristol, held the grand opening for its temporary casino space Friday. “We are excited to open the temporary casino in Bristol,” Hard Rock International Inc. Chief Operating Officer Jon Lucas said in a statement. “Hard Rock’s rich and storied music legacy is a [...]
Va. receives $22.7M to reclaim abandoned mine lands
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 Wednesday. The funding is aimed at redeveloping the sites so that they can be used to attract new development and job opportunities to the region. Handled[...]