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Axios returns $4.8M in PPP funding
Arlington County-based digital media company Axios Media Inc. is returning $4.8 million it received from the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), according to Axios cofounder and CEO Jim VandeHei, who said the federal relief program aimed at helping small businesses keep their workforces employed [...]
Virginia sees nearly 1K increase in COVID-19 cases in 24 hours
The Virginia Department of Health reported Friday that there are 16,109 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Virginia, as well as 572 deaths and 2,407 people hospitalized who have tested positive. This is an increase of 929 confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, not counting 792 probable cases. As of Friday, 105,648 people have been […]
Viral load
Like a canary in a coal mine, the Port of Virginia felt the impact of COVID-19 well before others in Virginia started to feel it. In February, the port saw a 9% drop in cargo compared with February 2019, a decrease attributed in part to the outbreak’s origins in China. In 2018, China was the […]
Followups: Altria CEO retires
Altria Group Inc. Chairman and CEO Howard Willard, who took a medical leave of absence in March after testing positive for COVID-19, retired from heading the Henrico County-based Fortune 500 tobacco company on April 14. Altria’s board of directors elected former Philip Morris USA President and CEO William F. “Billy” Giffor[...]
Metro trains empty, but construction continues
With service limited and thousands of federal employees teleworking during the coronavirus pandemic, Metro stations are ghost towns these days. Nevertheless, that isn’t slowing down construction on the new Potomac Yard Metrorail station in Alexandria, according to city officials. In March, the city and Metro completed pricing [...]
In & About
As businesses reacted to the coronavirus outbreak in Virginia, many employees found themselves teleworking, wearing special protective gear or even sewing masks for health care workers. Here is a sampling of contributed photos representing the “new normal.” Click on the photos to expand. Subscribe to Virginia Business. Get our daily e-newsletter.
Confronting COVID-19
Maritime shipping accounts for 90% of global trade, supplying us with many of our personal needs. The Port of Virginia is a major driver of the Virginia economy, generating 7.5%, or $39 billion, of Virginia’s gross product, $23 billion in labor income, about 400,000 jobs and $2.1 billion in state and local taxes and fees [&hel[...]
U.Va., VCU researchers battle pandemic
While health care workers scrambled to keep up with the growing number of COVID-19 cases in Virginia, researchers in Charlottesville and Richmond were working to solve the pandemic. In March, VCU Health liver specialist and cancer researcher Dr. Arun Sanyal began testing remdesivir, an antiviral medication that is showing promis[...]
Bath County hit hard by resort closures
Communities across the state are hurting from coronavirus-related layoffs and closures, but in Bath County, “it’s devastating,” says state Sen. Creigh Deeds, whose law practice is located on Hot Springs’ Main Street. “Two major employers are closed,” he says, referring to The Omni Homestead Resort and The Greenbrier [...]
Delay of game
The COVID-19 pandemic has paralyzed one of Virginia’s growing economic drivers: sports tourism. But even amid mass cancellations and lost revenue, tourism officials hold out hope that, for the sports sector at least, there can be recovery. “Over the years, sports tournaments and competitions have generally been recession-res[...]
Setting the rules of the game
In mid-March, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and two weeks later, on April 3, the Steven Mnuchin-led U.S. Department of Treasury finalized its plan to provide emergency loans to small businesses. This extraordinary action signaled a dramatic break from contemporary politics. The pr[...]
Ballad Health furloughs 200 Virginia workers
Not even health care systems are immune from the effects of COVID-19. Tennessee-based Ballad Health announced in early April it had furloughed between 200 and 250 Southwest Virginia employees to cut administrative costs and ensure it can keep critical frontline medical workers employed during the crisis. Other health systems op[...]
