Sign In
Free Newsletter
April 2023 For The Record
CENTRAL VIRGINIA Henrico County-based Altria Group Inc. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire e-vapor maker NJOY Holdings Inc. for approximately $2.75 billion in cash, with a potential additional $500 million in payments, Altria announced March 6. Part of the deal’s funding will come from an expected $1.7 billion payment plus interest from Philip […]
Shoring up
Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown are all significant parts of the nation’s foundation, and historic tourism drove the region’s economy during the 20th century. But Colonial Williamsburg hasn’t been enough to keep big crowds coming to the area consistently in the 21st century, even before the pandemic. Visitation droppe[...]
Building an ecosystem
Even though William & Mary is best known as a liberal arts “public Ivy,” it’s also a research university where professors are quietly producing innovative technology — and are less quietly trying to create an entrepreneurial network to support it. Local capital isn’t as available in the Williamsburg area as it is a[...]
Atlantic Park breaks ground in Virginia Beach
Atlantic Park, the $335 million dollar surf park development planned for Virginia Beach’s Oceanfront, has broken ground and closed on its financing, according to an announcement Thursday from Venture Realty Group, the firm developing the project with music icon Pharrell Williams. The 11-acre surf park has been in developme[...]
Smithfield Foods taps chief HR officer, general counsel
Virginia-based Smithfield Foods Inc. has named a new chief human resources officer and a new general counsel, the nation’s largest pork product manufacturer and hog producer announced Tuesday. Isham “Jay” Bennett was previously vice president of human resources at Lockheed Martin before joining Smithfield Foods[...]
ITA International names new CEO
Newport News-based government contractor ITA International LLC has promoted Mark Honecker from chief operating officer to CEO, effective April 3, the federal contractor announced Monday. Honecker succeeds outgoing CEO Mike Melo, who will transition to chairing ITA’s advisory board and will also take on the new position of ch[...]
Hampton Roads housing market appears to stabilize
The Hampton Roads housing market appears to be stabilizing, according to a new report from the Real Estate Information Network Inc. (REIN). “We expect 2023 to be similar to pre-pandemic years where inventory increases in the spring and summer, and as long as buyers have inventory to choose from, they’re going to shop for hom[...]
Naval operations building in Suffolk sells for $33M
The U.S. Fleet Cyber Command Center of Operations, a 114,045-square-foot building in Suffolk, has changed ownership. The building, part of a secure naval operations campus, sold for $33.25 million, according to Colliers Government Solutions. It is located at 115 Lake View Parkway in Suffolk. The seller of the building is Salus G[...]
Two Hampton Roads marketing agencies to merge
Norfolk-based WB Marketing’s parent company has acquired majority interest in Virginia Beach-based marketing and communications firm Meridian Group and will merge the two into one agency, Meridian Group announced Tuesday. Mike Matacunas from Norfolk-based private investment firm Five Hill Capital — WB Marketing’s parent — acquired the majority interest from Meridian Group founder Joe Takach, […][...]
Layne, Perry named to TowneBank corporate board
Suffolk-based TowneBank has named Aubrey L. Layne Jr., executive vice president of governance and external affairs for Sentara Healthcare, and Suburban Capital founder and CEO Christopher Perry to its corporate board of directors, the bank announced Tuesday. Layne, who chairs the Virginia Port Authority’s board of commissioner[...]
Ship repair contractor expanding Norfolk presence
Advanced Integrated Technologies (AIT), a ship repair contractor for the Navy, Coast Guard, Military Sealift Command and U.S. marine, industrial and commercial industries, will invest $500,000 to expand its Norfolk operations and add 76 jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Friday. The Norfolk-based company will increase capacity at its location in Norfolk Industrial Park, off Ingleside […]
Feds say Chinese cranes used at Port of Va. could be spy tools
The Port of Virginia may have as many as 30 Chinese ship-to-shore cranes that have come under scrutiny from Pentagon officials over national security concerns, and the port has five more on delivery for next year. The cranes made by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co., known as ZPMC, a state-owned company whose major sharehold[...]
