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Code red
Although many business sectors focused on moving on from the COVID-19 pandemic once vaccines became broadly available in 2021, Virginia’s health care industry has remained heavily burdened by continuing caseload surges and extreme staffing shortages. In September 2021, Gov. Ralph Northam voiced frustration at a news conference[...]
Thinking big
At Virginia’s largest publicly traded companies, the past year has been a constant exercise in challenging the status quo. Some major changes could be seen at the consumer level, as Dollar Tree Inc. raised its namesake base price point to $1.25, and Capital One Financial Corp. eliminated overdraft fees for its banking customer[...]
Chambers of commerce
STATEWIDE Asian American Chamber of Commerce Tysons (571) 633-9754 asian-americanchamber.org Virginia Asian Chamber of Commerce Ashland (804) 344-1540 aabac.org Virginia Chamber of Commerce Richmond (804) 644-1607 vachamber.com Virginia Hispanic Chamber North Chesterfield (804) 378-4099 vahcc.com CENTRAL VIRGINIA Altavista Area Chamber of Commerce Altavista (434) 369-6665 altavistachamber.com Amelia County Chamber of Commerce Amelia ([...]
Stronger together
Bank acquisitions and mergers, particularly among Virginia’s community banks, continued apace in 2021. Banks sought scale for efficiency and flexibility, as well as to acquire resources in anticipation of potential new government regulation. “The recurring theme in bank mergers is scale,” Bruce Whitehurst, president and CE[...]
A sampling of Virginia’s major road projects
HAMPTON ROADS Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel Expansion Project Construction on the $3.8 billion Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel (HRBT) expansion — the largest highway construction project in Virginia’s history — began in October 2020. The project will widen the four-lane segments of the 9.9-mile Interstate 64 corridor in Norfolk [...]
Tilting toward windmills
Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy S.A.’s October 2021 announcement that it will build the nation’s first offshore-wind blade factory at Portsmouth Marine Terminal has put Hampton Roads on a trajectory to become a supply chain hub for the country’s nascent offshore wind energy industry. The Spanish wind turbine company is inv[...]
Finding new solutions
Movers and shakers in Southwest Virginia wanted to try a new approach to economic development. The stakes were (and are) high. Naturally, the decline of the coal industry had a devastating impact on Virginia’s coalfields. The Appalachian Regional Commission classifies four counties in Southwest Virginia — Buchanan, Dickenson[...]
Kicking the can
In April 2020, Savan Group LLC, a federal contractor specializing in digital transformation, information technology and management consulting, gave up its 10,500-square-foot office space in Tysons. Like many other companies, Savan Group shifted to remote work due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but by summer 2021, company President an[...]
On the line
“VMI is at a crossroads. As the world around VMI changes, the Institute must evolve or risk becoming irrelevant.” — One Corps – One VMI: A Unifying Action Plan From a distance, Virginia Military Institute seems timeless, unchanging. The rhythmic marching of the long lines of cadets, the stark outline of the barracks ag[...]
Real world learning
In 2021, colleges and universities got back to semi-normal, holding more classes in person and hosting sporting events and commencement ceremonies. Many institutions required students, faculty and other employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 last fall, and some schools also mandated booster shots. In Hampton Roads, three in[...]
Hubs and spokes
Economic conditions bounced back across many sectors in 2021, but the COVID-19 pandemic still impacted development deals occurring in Virginia. The state saw a great deal of focus on manufacturing and supply chain growth, areas expected to stay busy despite the recent change in state political leadership. In Hampton Roads, many [...]
PAE’s former head named Amentum CEO
John Heller, the former CEO of Falls Church-based contractor PAE Inc., will serve as CEO of Germantown, Maryland-based aerospace defense contractor Amentum Services Inc., which purchased PAE earlier this month. Heller, who led PAE for seven years until March 2021, will take his new post effective March 28, Amentum announced Thur[...]
