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Old Town Business league to upgrade or dissolve

Carla Clarke credits (OTB) league with arranging events that bring new faces into Today’s Cargo, the jewelry and gift shop she co-owns on ‘s King Street.

“It’s bringing new people through your door,” says Clarke.

The 40-year-old nonprofit business league champions Old Town’s business community through events like an annual cookie crawl. It has served as a liaison between local businesses — mostly small busineses — and the city. During the pandemic, it arranged vaccine clinics for local businesses.

Membership in OTB has grown from about 40 businesses in 2019 to about 160 today. Given its recent successes, OTB is seeking to become a business improvement service district (BISD).

The Old Town Business-Business Improvement Service District (OTB-BISD) would represent about 500 businesses along King Street, from the King Street Metro station to the Potomac River. Funded by a $0.10 service district tax levied per $100 of assessed valuation, the OTB-BISD would have a budget of nearly $1 million and be overseen by three employees and a board of directors. OTB currently has a board and CEO and a budget of about $150,000 but depends on volunteers, dues and donations.

“That’s not sustainable because we can’t count on those dollars,” says OTB board member Amy Rutherford, owner of two Old Town businesses, The Red Barn Mercantile and Penny Post.

In addition to taking over more than 20 annual events run by OTB, the district would create a unified brand, develop ambassador and business mentorship and networking opportunities, and advocate for district businesses.

To meet Alexandria City Council’s guidelines for establishing a BISD, which were enacted last year, OTB must get 60% of commercial property owners to approve a petition for the proposed designation, as well as City Council’s approval.

OTB has campaigned for support, holding listening tours and public hearings. By March 31, nearly two-thirds of the 60% of required property owners in the proposed district indicated approval of the petition, which is due to the City Council by May 31. If the OTB-BISD is not approved, OTB will be dissolved, Rutherford says, citing sustainability concerns.

Visit Alexandria, the city’s nonprofit organization, supports OTB’s efforts. In a statement to Virginia Business, Visit Alexandria President and CEO Patricia Washington says the BISD “is critical for Alexandria to retain its current level of visitation that supports our local restaurants, shops and hotels.” 

Chesterfield’s new tech park already generating buzz

Economic Director Garrett Hart received an inquiry about a week after the county announced in 2020 that it had purchased the property with the intent to develop a portion of it as a technology park.

Intel Corp. hadn’t been able to find a site in Virginia for a $20 billion semiconductor facility that would generate 5,000 jobs, Stephen Moret, then president and CEO of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, told Hart. Could Hart submit Upper Magnolia Green?

“I agreed, and we sent Stephen and VEDP all the information we had on the site at that time,” Hart says.

Intel requested additional information and visited Chesterfield’s proposed 1,728-acre technology park twice before settling on a site in Ohio.

“We were one of the top three selections for Intel,” Hart says, “so that tells us … [it] was a good site for a fab plant.”

The county’s other large tech park, , in eastern Chesterfield, was running out of space long before announced plans last year to build a $1 billion manufacturing plant there, Hart says. To remain in contention for future megaprojects, Chesterfield’s economic development authority began negotiating to acquire Upper Magnolia Green in western Chesterfield in 2018.

Chesterfield is using a $25 million Virginia Business Ready Sites Program grant to design road and utilities infrastructure at Upper Magnolia Green and to perform other preliminary engineering work to demonstrate it could be site-ready within
18 to 36 months, Hart says.

Upper Magnolia Green is being built to attract megaprojects. That could be a chip manufacturer that would invest up to $25 billion and create thousands of jobs, Hart says, or a pharmaceutical manufacturer constructing a $10 billion plant.

“We’re building towards those determinations, because we have been working with companies like that on projects like that,” Hart says, though he declined to offer more detail.

Hart says he’s already receiving calls from site consultants about Upper Magnolia Green. The Greater Richmond Partnership is also promoting the site through newsletters to consultants and interested parties, says Michael Ivey, the regional economic development organization’s vice president of marketing and communications.

A property of Upper Magnolia Green’s size near a major metropolitan area is “hard to come by,” Ivey says. “We don’t have to scream from the rooftops that Upper Magnolia Green is available.”  

Virginia Business Associate Editor Courtney Mabeus-Brown contributed to this story.

Propulsion system

Madeline Davis has never set foot on a submarine, so she doesn’t get to see the products she makes in action.

Davis is a CNC (computer numerical control) machinist at Fairlead Integrated in Portsmouth, where she makes metal parts for the Navy’s silent service. The defense contractor supplies shipboard integrated parts, including for the Navy’s Virginia- and Columbia-class nuclear . Davis has worked in her position since May 2022, after she completed a 16-week CNC machining program that March at the , a Navy-funded, three-year pilot program managed by the in her native Danville.

“It taught me exactly what I needed to know,” Davis, 22, says of her experience.

About 200 miles from the sea service’s largest base — Naval Station Norfolk — the program is helping transform Danville from a textile town into a critical player in national security.

ATDM, a public-private partnership between IALR, , the Navy, the and industry stakeholders, is seen as a crucial pipeline to train workers who will be essential to the nation’s defense, particularly in producing parts to repair, upfit, and build nuclear-powered nuclear-powered submarines, in coming decades. In addition to CNC manufacturing, ATDM offers four-month tracks in additive manufacturing, quality control inspection — also known as metrology — and welding. Nondestructive testing (a process by which a material is evaluated without causing damage) was added in January. With ATDM, the Navy is seeking to help meet workforce demands by condensing into four months what might otherwise take a year or two to learn.

The Navy’s nuclear submarine industrial base, which includes 17,000 suppliers and two main shipyards, including , expects to need to hire as many as 100,000 workers in the next decade just to build new submarines, says Whitney Jones, who manages the program for Naval Sea Systems Command.

“That is just to build new construction submarines, not the rest of the Navy, not in-service sustaining and service platforms,” Jones says. “It’s a huge number. And when we looked at that number, we were like, OK, technology and the scale of technology is not a nice-to-have; it is an absolute imperative that we go do that.”

ATDM started training its first students in July 2021. As of May, it has produced 217 graduates, says director Debra Holley. Starting this year, it will ramp up to train 528 students, with a goal of graduating 800 to 1,000 students each year by fiscal 2025. For now, students attend the program without charge — though some may be sent by their employers for upskilling while being paid. They also receive free housing and transportation in Danville.

The program recruits nationally and, in addition to the general population, has recruiters who focus on transitioning members and Afghan refugees who have evacuated to the United States, Holley says. About half of the participants, however, learned about the program through word of mouth, including Davis, who previously worked in retail. Another recent participant came from Texas, where she worked at a convenience store. “She heard about us … came up here, went through our program and then went to the Norfolk Naval Shipyard as a welder,” Holley says.

After applying online, applicants are interviewed and then reviewed by a committee, Holley says. While previous experience isn’t required, motivation is key, she says, adding that the program has recently received about three applications for every available slot.

The Navy-funded Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing Program is producing skilled manufacturing workers needed for projects such as building nuclear-powered submarines. Photo by Jamie Nabers, Boss Motion Picture Co.

Dropping anchor

ATDM, which currently has 25 staff members, including 10 instructors, announced plans in early March to fill an additional 38 positions, including 24 instructors, through late summer as it prepares for growth. It plans to hire even more support staff, including recruiters and employment outreach personnel, within the next year. Classes are currently held at IALR and have also previously been taught at DCC. The program is anticipated to move to a new, 100,000-square-foot facility in 2024. The $56 million is being funded through a Navy partnership with the DoD’s Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment program.

As of March, about 45 of ATDM’s 217 graduates have remained in Virginia for work, including some machinists and welders who have been hired by Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Newport News-based Fortune 500 contractor Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc. The shipyard plans to fill 2,200 skilled trade positions this year and anticipates hiring as many as 19,000 more during the next decade, says shipyard spokesperson Todd Corillo. The nation’s largest builder of military ships is “committed to continuing our participation in future cohorts,” Corillo says, adding it encourages its suppliers in Southern Virginia to take advantage of the program for their hiring needs.

As ATDM grows, so too does another Navy investment in the region. In October 2022, the Navy opened its (AM CoE) within IALR’s Center for Manufacturing Advancement. That center, adjacent to the future Regional Training Center, is working with industry and academia to grow the Navy’s industrial supplier base by establishing production-ready manufacturing standards and qualifications for 3D-printed submarine parts.

The Navy sees 3D printing as a crucial technology, and it has been testing components for several years. During 2018 and 2019, a metal drain strainer produced by Newport News Shipbuilding was prototyped aboard the Norfolk-based aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman. The shipbuilder has subsequently been certified by the Navy to use some 3D-printed metal parts on carriers and submarines.

The Navy’s current supply chain can take as long as 18 months to come up with a crucial part, leading to delays in construction and repair, says Troy Simpson, a member of The Spectrum Group, which is working with ATDM and the AM CoE.

Simpson, who also formerly directed ATDM, says the AM CoE has the potential to turn Danville into the “Silicon Valley” of additive manufacturing.

Given the Navy’s needs and its investments in Danville, it appears to have dropped anchor in the region for the long term. Holley says the program is researching a tuition model if necessary. Jones says the Navy no longer sees the program as a pilot.

“I cannot overemphasize the importance of what we’re going to do down there … [for] national security,” Jones says.  

Hokie-hatted host

You can “take the boy out of , but I don’t think you can take Winchester out of me,” says , the anchor of ‘s new evening business and financial news roundup show, “.”

The one-hour show, which broadcasts from CNBC’s global headquarters in New Jersey on weeknights at 7 p.m. EST, premiered March 8. “Last Call” offers “the stories behind the numbers,” with one-on-one interviews with notable guests and discussions with a panel of experts to explain the day’s events.

A two-time nominee for the Gerald Loeb Award for Distinguished Business and Financial Journalism, Sullivan has reported from every continent except South America and Antarctica in his 25-year journalism career. He isn’t a stranger to adjusting to new places; Sullivan’s family moved from San Diego to the Winchester area, where his parents still reside, when he was 14.

Sullivan graduated in 1989 from James Wood High School in Frederick County. He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science and history from in 1993 and went on to earn a law degree from Brooklyn Law School. Sullivan also holds a journalism certificate from New York University’s School of Continuing Education. He has served on Tech’s alumni board as well as the Pamplin College of Business’ Finance Advisory Board.

“Brian’s deep ties to Virginia Tech and the immense financial knowledge he’s developed as one of the country’s top business journalists provide great value to our [Department of Finance, Insurance and Business Law] advisory board,” Pamplin College’s interim dean, Robin Russell, said in a statement. “We are grateful for his continued service to the university.”

Sullivan joined CNBC in April 2011 and previously anchored “Worldwide Exchange,” a 5 a.m. show covering overnight U.S. and live international market news. Before that, he co-anchored “Power Lunch,” a 2 p.m. newscast. He’s also worked as an anchor at Fox Business News and started his journalism career trimming video at Bloomberg Television, where he initially held a four-day temp job in the IT department.

“Brian is energy incarnate, in all its forms, so it’s only fitting that he’s been so interested in the sector through the years,” CNBC Senior Executive Producer Maxwell Meyers said in a statement. “We start texting first thing in the a.m. and his enthusiasm for money news is off the charts. It’s a lot of fun and exhausting! But it’s also easy to see why viewers connect with him.”

Sullivan’s “Last Call” guests so far have included Mike Rowe, host of the Discovery Channel show “Dirty Jobs”; Forward Party co-chair and former Democratic presidential primary candidate Andrew Yang; and Kyle Bass, founder and chief investment officer of Texas-based Hayman Capital Management LP and co-founder and CEO of Conservation Equity Management LP.

In his limited free time, Sullivan, 51, races cars. He holds two Sports Car Club of America divisional championships and parks his blue-and-white Spec Racer Ford, complete with the CNBC logo, in Staunton. Sullivan’s helmet is bright pink for breast cancer awareness, honoring his wife, Julie, who survived breast cancer two years ago, and her mother and grandmother, who both died of the disease. He claims Virginia International Raceway outside of as his favorite track, although he’s raced “anywhere pretty much east of the Mississippi.”

Virginia Business spoke with Sullivan two weeks after the launch of “Last Call,” discussing his Virginia ties, the real estate market and his goals for the new show.

Sullivan is a competitive sports car racer who keeps his Spec Racer Ford with a CNBC logo parked in Staunton. His favorite track is Virginia International Raceway near Danville. Photo by David A. Grogan/CNBC

Virginia Business: How often do you get back to Winchester?

Brian Sullivan: Not enough. It’s a changed town. It’s one of the fastest growing metro areas in America, so every time I do get home — I used to get home once or twice a year, mostly to race cars and to see my parents — [I’m] always amazed at the growth of Winchester. … It blows my mind how big it is now.

VB: What made you want to serve on the Virginia Tech Alumni Board and the Pamplin Finance Advisory Board?

Sullivan: Well, just to be reconnected to the school. … My parents, we didn’t have a lot of money when I was in high school and Virginia Tech at that point was — and I’m old, I’m going to date myself — like $5,000 a year. You think about the education you got for that type of money, now obviously inflation-adjusted and more expensive now, but I feel a partnership with Virginia Tech because of that. It’s a really unique, special place tucked away down there in the southwestern mountains of Virginia by itself.

How it worked out is, I hadn’t been back to Blacksburg in 10 years. Every April 16, which is the [anniversary] of the [2007 Virginia Tech] shooting, I would put on a Virginia Tech hat toward the end of whatever segment I was doing, or every show I was hosting on CNBC or any other network that I was at at the time. I started it when I got here, so it was a couple of years later. Somebody from Virginia Tech [who] was watching CNBC was like, “Who’s this guy with the Virginia Tech hat on?” I think they Googled me or something. They reached out and asked me to come give a talk and I did. Then they asked me to participate more. The finance board is business-related. Obviously, everybody on the board is pretty much involved and is a CNBC viewer. Just to be connected with a school like that makes me feel really proud.

VB: Are there any business stories that you think people aren’t paying as much attention to as they should?

Sullivan: I think obviously what’s going on with the banks right now has rocked much of the country. I’ve had calls and texts from friends of mine from high school and college, like, “How does this come back to me?” I think that CNBC, particularly my show “Last Call,” has … done a pretty good job of bringing back this big, complicated, scary-sounding story to how it affects the business community of Virginia, but also my mom and dad. Is it going to be harder for people to get a car loan or a mortgage loan? Is credit going to tighten? There’s a consumer aspect.

The second story I would say is really these big commercial office companies that have hundreds of billions of dollars in debt. There’s a lot of major cities that still have 50% [office] occupancy. A lot of people are working remotely, working from home where they come in the office two days a week, and you wonder how long is that sustainable, particularly in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, these major office markets? If you’re half full, what’s going to happen to these giant buildings that cost tens of billions of dollars to build? … That could be the next leg of the story because I don’t think we’re going to have 100% occupancy again for a long time ever in our modern lifetimes because … work has changed.

VB: That makes me think of Amazon’s HQ2 headquarters in Arlington. They’re pausing the second phase of construction, which seems to tie in to the challenges with remote work and office vacancies.

Sullivan: By the way, I actually broke that story [about Amazon choosing Virginia for HQ2]. … There was all this speculation about where it was going to go. Well, let’s be fair, it’s [near] a Virginia Tech campus, so I may or may not have had inside sources. … I said my sources are telling me Arlington near the Pentagon, and Crystal City is where the new HQ2 is going to go. …

Why build it or build it to where you were going to build it if you’re not going to be fully occupied? I just think employees have enough power now that if somebody says, “You got to be in the office five days a week,” a lot of people are like, “You know what? There’s a company over here that’s a great company, too, that wants me in the office two to three days a week if you won’t accommodate.” I think Amazon’s making some hard choices about what they need, but it all goes back to that story that I just referenced.

VB: Do you think putting in green space and ground-floor and trying to create more of a mixed-use development could change that, could be a way forward for Amazon?

Sullivan: Well, that’s what they’re going to have to do. Not just Amazon. I speak for all these companies. … If you come to Manhattan, what you’re going to see are these office buildings that are … either being converted or will be converted into apartments. Because we have a housing shortage. … I think there’s going to have to be some adaptation, but now you’re talking about tens of billions of dollars more.

In “Last Call,” we talk about these macro stories and bringing it all from a money lens. … If you start to see major commercial real estate players start to suffer or worse, I don’t want to use the “B” word  — bankruptcy — but if we start to see defaults, what we don’t want and what’s really bad, just in any city, doesn’t matter where you are, is empty buildings that are not being maintained, [that] become eyesores. There’s a macro-
economic story here. …. Nobody wants a giant empty building with an overgrown lawn because nobody’s tending it. It damages areas. There’s a macro story here that I think we need to stay on.

VB: You were nominated for the Gerald Loeb Award in 2007 for your work highlighting the housing bubble. Is there any similarity you see between the situation leading up to the Great Recession and today?

Sullivan: We don’t know yet, and I hate to give you a wishy-washy answer there. … Banking is all interconnected. It’s like a giant spiderweb. … Unfortunately, I think there will be a knock-on effect from this. I think as smaller banks across Virginia and other places, if they see depositors leave, they’re going to have to tighten their credit. They’re not going to make as many auto loans. They may not make as many mortgage loans. When they do make the loans, they may have to charge more for them. They have to manage their risk a little bit better.

If you’re in Winchester, Virginia, or Richmond, I think you want to have small and regional banks that are vibrant, and they’re important to the community. I’m not knocking the big banks, but I don’t think we want a Virginia or an America where all the smaller banks that we know are gone and it’s just giant banks [on every] corner.

Banking at many levels is still a relationship business. Unfortunately, I think it’s going to be the underprivileged, communities of color, blue collar, the lower income, they’re going to suffer the most. They’re going to either get loans cut off or they’re going to have to pay more for them. I think there will be a knock-on impact on the consumer with tighter and more expensive credit. I hope I’m wrong.

VB: What sets “Last Call” apart from other shows you’ve hosted?

Sullivan: [It’s a] totally new concept for CNBC. I think it’s really cool. We’re only 10 days in, so things are still evolving, and you launch your show and there’s a banking crisis that hits. Things evolve day to day. I think it’s a totally new vehicle. … CNBC does a great job during the day … then we’re able to take all the stuff that you heard from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. and synthesize it.

Also, I think one of my strengths — I don’t want to sound cocky here — is taking complex stuff and making it approachable and understandable. … You don’t need to be a Duke MBA to understand what I’m saying. … My mom didn’t graduate from high school. She got her GED later. I had a very plainspoken household. I think just with my background and just my whole life, it’s just been plain talk.

For me, you take the boy out of Winchester, but I don’t think you can take Winchester out of me. … Every story I do, and I mean this sincerely, I’m speaking to my parents. By the way, they watch and they’re my biggest critics. … My mom says, “Eh, you know, your tie was crooked.”

VB: What are your favorite types of guests to ?

Sullivan: There’s so many interesting people in this country, right? Whether it’s the billionaire over here or the guy or the woman who’s going to be the next business leader. I like talking to people that are building businesses. For example … there’s a franchise called Dave’s Hot Chicken. … There’s a couple in Virginia. It’s the fastest-growing food franchise in the country — started off as one food cart in Los Angeles. … Those are the kind of people I love talking to. These are people that are younger, they’re taking risks, they’re borrowing money — it’s hard; it’s scary.

VB: What led you to switch careers and go into journalism after working as a chemical commodities trader for Mitsubishi International Corp.?

Sullivan: I didn’t intend on it at all. I actually … was going to go to grad school at UNC Chapel Hill for journalism and I needed a job for a couple of months in New York. Got a four-day temporary job at Bloomberg, and 12 1/2 years later, I left. Literally, that was it. They kept asking me to come back, week after week, at Bloomberg, and then they said, “Hey, do you want a full-time job?” … They were launching TV at the time, so I started working midnight to 9 a.m. I had the lowest-level job. I got in at 11:30 p.m. and left at 9:30 in the morning. That sort of parlayed opportunity after opportunity. Really, it was a lot of luck involved. But then when you get the opportunity, you got to make the most of it.

VB: How did you get into your hobby of sports car racing? Are you still driving?

Sullivan: Oh, yes. My dad raced cars a little bit when I was growing up. I started [racing] motorcycle, BMX bikes, go-karts when I was 9 years old and did it in high school. Couldn’t do it in college. You can’t do both. It’s just too much time. Then two years after graduating from college, I went into a racing school, won my first race in the racing school and raced full time for many years, but I would call myself semiretired. I race when I’m able. Family first, work, community obligations, then racing. I’m not done. Not done yet. It’s the one thing you can do when you’re 51 and still be fairly competitive.  

Crown jewels

The and its surrounding maritime community are the crown jewels of economic development in Virginia. Fewer than half of U.S. states have any coastline at all, not to mention the combined industrial, commercial and presence that makes Hampton Roads an enduring source of growth for the commonwealth and the nation.

Consistent investment and state-owned facilities ensure that every dollar spent goes toward the mission of growing Virginia’s import and export capabilities. Key investments are being allocated toward efficiency and sustainability to ensure future growth. Dominion Energy Inc.’s developing farm is driving ancillary supply chain development at Lambert’s Point with Fairwinds Landing. Workers are now training for new offshore wind construction and maintenance jobs.

fleets at Estes Express Lines and other firms are moving toward electric vehicles. The Port of Virginia has set a goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. As early as next year, the majority of the port’s energy consumption will come from renewable sources. These transformative environmental investments are further building Virginia’s long-established leadership position in the maritime and logistics industries.

Virginia’s maritime community is bigger than Hampton Roads, though — it’s statewide. Distribution centers across Southern Virginia on U.S. 460 and up and down the Shenandoah Valley on Interstate 81 serve as waypoints for cargo that moves across the entire U.S. The Virginia Inland Port facility in Front Royal serves as a transition point for cargo containers from rail to truck transportation. A proposed second inland port in Southwest Virginia would do the same. The Port of Virginia also manages the Richmond Marine Terminal.

Our hope is that the 2023 Virginia Maritime Guide will provide you with a wealth of information on each of these investments, opportunities, challenges and more. To compile this guide, we worked closely with the and the Port of Virginia. We thank them for their assistance and look forward to the maritime industry’s ongoing success in the commonwealth.

Bernie Niemeier
President & Publisher
Virginia Business

Port cranes: Cause for concern?

The may have as many as 30 Chinese ship-to-shore that have come under scrutiny from Pentagon officials over national security concerns. Five more cranes are scheduled for delivery next year.

Manufactured by state-owned company Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co., known as , the cranes are a possible security risk, according to a March report from The Wall Street Journal. U.S. defense and national security officials have voiced concerns that could gather information about materiel shipments supporting U.S. operations by using sensors on the cranes that can track containers’ origins and destinations. They told the Journal that the cranes also could be vulnerable to remote access attacks that could disrupt shipping.

A U.S. Department of Transportation study examining whether cranes from foreign manufacturers pose security risks is due by the end of the year.

The WSJ story came amid heightened U.S. concerns about Chinese spying, including the surveillance balloon saga in February and ‘s decision late last year to remove Virginia from consideration for a $3.5 billion Ford Motor Co. battery plant due to its ties to a Chinese company. Following the U.S. reports about the cranes, South Korea said it would inspect its ZPMC-made cranes.

The American Association of Port Authorities, however, disputed the existence of a threat in a statement: “There have been no known security breaches as the result of any cranes at U.S. ports, despite alarmist media reports. Further, modern cranes are very fast and sophisticated, but even they can’t track the origin, destination or nature of the cargo.”

However, a bad actor could use a crane’s camera system to view a container’s serial number and then track it, says Chris Wolski, a former information security officer for Port Houston. One could also potentially disable crane systems by overriding safety sensors or causing false readings.

Even so, gathering materiel shipments’ origins and destinations wouldn’t be very useful, says Lonnie Henley, a retired intelligence officer and a Foreign Policy Research Institute senior fellow. “If I had information like that and had all the processing power in the world, I’m still not sure what military operational benefit I can gain from it.”

Virginia Port Authority spokesperson Joe Harris declined to confirm the port’s number of ZPMC-made cranes.

In January, the Port of Virginia announced it had finalized a $61.6 million purchase of five ZPMC-manufactured cranes that will be able to handle ultra-large container vessels. Delivery is set for December 2024, and the 1,827-ton cranes will replace two units at the Virginia International Gateway and three at the Norfolk International Terminals.

The port began using ZPMC cranes in 2000. The Newport News Marine Terminal’s crane, which has been in service since 1982, appears to be the only crane at the port made by a different manufacturer.

“We are confident that all of the cranes owned and operated by the Port of Virginia are safe and secure,” Harris said in a statement. “We employ best practices and will continue to collaborate with multiple federal law enforcement agencies to ensure the equipment we purchase, own and operate is here for its intended use, which is to move cargo.”

One way port authorities can mitigate risks from foreign-made technology, Wolski says, is by conducting a post-delivery systems check of the system code. “Anything that’s connected to a computer network is vulnerable to a cyberattack. It’s a matter of how well they’ve set up the defense for the of the organization and of the equipment.”

The Port of Virginia appears to be taking these precautions, according to a statement from Harris: “Before any new cranes are put into service, they are subject to a detailed forensic cyberanalysis that is performed by one of the nation’s federal law enforcement agencies. New cranes awaiting analysis are isolated with dedicated firewalls to ensure there is no contact with port networks or the internet.”  

Executive insights

Leaders from Virginia’s maritime sector share their thoughts about building a workforce pipeline in Virginia, the growth of and how climate change impacts the industry.

Barrett

JUDY BARRETT

board president; private banking officer; Norfolk

VB: As president of VMA’s board, what’s your main priority this year?

Barrett: My main priority is to advance the initiatives that the VMA has set forth. The VMA serves over 450 companies in different sectors of the maritime industry, such as importers and exporters, ship operators, ship repairers, offshore wind interests, and warehousing, tugboats, and so much more. We are in the process of implementing and executing our updated five-year strategic plan, which includes enhancing services and activities that help our member companies grow their business.

VB: What is most important to consider in building and sustaining a maritime workforce pipeline in Virginia? 

Barrett: is a large focus as we are preparing for the next generations to continue advancing our maritime industry. We need to make sure educators and students in middle and high schools are aware of the different jobs available. We also need to make certain our graduates can gain employment in the maritime and supply chain industries and stay to work in Virginia.

VB: How do the maritime association and port work together for industry success? 

Barrett: While VMA works behind the scenes with their numerous committees to make things happen, the port is keeping commerce flowing. We are so fortunate to have such collaborative participation in this industry.

Howard

ARKETA HOWARD

Virginia Maritime Association board member; director of business and policy affairs in offshore wind, Crowley Maritime Corp.; Norfolk

VB: What is your main goal for the VMA?

Howard: My main goal as a VMA member is to ensure the association’s success, which includes efforts around advocacy for maritime and offshore wind, supporting maritime-focused educational partnerships, informing the business community about the resources and services of the VMA, and making connections between our members, the maritime and offshore wind community and supply chain. Maritime fuels Virginia’s economy, and the VMA plays an essential role in supporting its success.

VB: How does Virginia compare with other states in developing the offshore wind industry? How likely is it that Virginia will become an offshore-wind supply chain hub?

Howard: Through my national work with Crowley, I have come to appreciate and lean on the strength of each state to carry out our business strategy, feeding into the national goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030.

Virginia has a great start, thanks to our educational, workforce and economic development partners working hand-in-hand to identify funding and other resources to ensure the workforce is aware of the various roles in offshore wind and has access to Global Wind Organisation certification, as well as developing training programs and curriculums to create a robust pipeline that can feed the various facets of offshore wind.

Virginia is also home to America’s largest shipbuilding industry, a deep-rooted maritime business community, informed legislators and government, a high-quality maritime workforce — incomparable to any other state on the East Coast — as well as unobstructed waterfront land and infrastructure, and a well-established port presence with the .

All are factors establishing Virginia with the baseline needed to serve as a supply chain hub for the offshore wind industry and to explore supporting the construction of floating offshore wind farms along the East Coast in the near future. 

BERKLEY
Berkley

THOMAS S. BERKLEY

Shareholder and maritime lawyer, PC; Virginia Beach

VB: What is your outlook for Hampton Roads’ maritime industry this year? 

Berkley: The Port of Virginia set records last year, and 2023 will be even better: Dredging Norfolk’s channels to 55 feet, expanding rail capacity, modernizing the North Berth at Norfolk International Terminals, offshore wind turbines, a corporate wind farm campus at the former Portsmouth Maritime Terminal — these initiatives boost our already thriving port.

VB: What do you expect will be the most important issues facing the maritime industry in five years?

Berkley: Ships and shipyards face pressure to reduce emissions of global warming gases. Environmental regulatory agencies want new forms of compensation when dredging waters with depths 6 feet or less. No part of the maritime industry will escape the costs of these environmental initiatives.

VB: What upcoming maritime legislation should industry executives be keeping an eye on?

Berkley: Congress enacts Water Resources Development Acts (WRDAs) on a biennial basis, most recently in December 2022. As the authorizing legislation for the Army Corps of Engineers’ civil works program, it shapes our nation’s water infrastructure with profound implications for our ports. The 2024 WRDA bill is in the works on Capitol Hill.

 VB: We’ve heard about labor shortages causing supply chain delays at other U.S. ports. What is Virginia doing to prevent these problems?

Berkley: Virginia wants to create the Department of Workforce Development and Advancement to improve its workforce development programs. Budget resources are coming for the Virginia Talent Accelerator Program (which helps companies locating or expanding in Virginia), the GO Virginia Talent Pathways program and GO Virginia workforce funding (which stimulates workforce-related collaboration and builds talent pipelines).

Chesapeake preps 1,400-acre industrial park

Whenever a big economic development announcement from another state pops up in the news, President and CEO Doug Smith can count on his phone ringing.

“I get a call from somebody saying, ‘Why didn’t we get that?’” says Smith. “And the answer is real simple: We didn’t have 500 acres or 1,500 acres … or whatever the need was.”

In November 2022, City Council began addressing the problem, rezoning 1,420 acres of agricultural land for the , an industrial park. Council allocated $14.3 million to the Chesapeake Economic Development Authority for a down payment on the property. The EDA has a contract to buy the land for $37 million from Virginia Beach farmer Frank T. Williams, with an option to acquire 2,602 acres nearby.

The city landed a $750,000 state grant in January to help with preliminary surveys and environmental assessments prior to developing the industrial park. City officials expect the preliminary work to be completed this year. 

Chesapeake hopes the Coastal Virginia Commerce Park will attract a large semiconductor or microchip manufacturer, according to Brian Solis, deputy city manager for community development.

Virginia Economic Development Partnership President and CEO Jason El Koubi estimates the lack of “project-ready sites” in Virginia has cost the state more than 55,000 jobs and $124 billion in capital investment since 2016, as businesses considered Virginia for projects and then chose to locate assets in other states. In January, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced $90 million in development grants for 21 sites across the state, including the one in Chesapeake.

“The commonwealth has fewer than 10 project-ready sites (certified) above 250 acres,” El Koubi wrote in an email.

Chesapeake City Manager Chris Price says the development is part of an effort to grow the mix of industries in Hampton Roads.

“For a long time [the region has] been heavily dependent on the , but we really are diversifying that portfolio,” he says, noting Dominion Energy Inc.’s $9.8 billion Coastal Virginia project and Fortune 500 retailer Dollar Tree Inc., headquartered in Chesapeake.

Smith says federal initiatives such as the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 will make a sizable amount of federal funding available for growing high-tech manufacturing, from semiconductors to electric vehicles.

But there’s a catch: “If you don’t have a site to put them on, you’re not in the game, right?”  

German auto parts maker revamps Salem GE plant

Most everyone in the Roanoke Valley either worked at the former Co. facility in or knew someone who had, says Renée Turk, the city’s mayor.

“On some level, it meant a lot to the entire community,” she says of the manufacturing plant, which opened in 1955.

After employing more than 3,000 workers at its peak, General Electric closed the facility, which made power conversion controls, in 2019, citing a decline in orders. But 1501 Roanoke Blvd. is once again bustling — for now, with construction workers.

In March, announced that German auto parts manufacturer STS Group AG plans to establish its North American headquarters in the former GE building. Executives plan to hire 119 full-time employees and invest $32 million in the new facility.

Turk is proud the prominent building will once again be used for “manufacturing some great parts right here in Salem.”

develops, manufactures and supplies vehicle interior and exterior parts made from plastic or composite materials. The parts produced will go to in Pulaski County as well as to other facilities, according to Youngkin’s office. The company declined to offer details other than to say STS Group AG “will supply existing customers both for trucks and cars.”

STS Group AG will lease approximately 200,000 square feet of existing space at the former GE facility, which Wisconsin-based Phoenix Investors purchased in 2022 for $11.4 million. The German auto parts maker is also building a 32,000-square-foot addition to accommodate hydraulic presses.

That leaves about 300,000 square feet available for other industrial and office use, according to Tommy Miller, director of economic development for Salem. “We really want to market that heavy and continue to see how we can creatively reuse portions of the building,” he says.

In March, STS Group was preparing to install machinery at the facility. The first prototypes of “exterior components” will come off the line by the end of 2023, with production beginning in 2024, company spokesperson Frédéric Thébaud told Virginia Business. He declined to specify the type of product the company will be making.

In 2021, STS Group AG announced plans to build its $39 million manufacturing facility at Progress Park in Wythe County. Rising construction costs, however, prompted STS Group to instead look for an existing building, which led the company to Salem.  

StartVirginia: May 2023 Heard around Virginia

Richmond-based Babylon Micro-Farms Inc. raised $8 million in a series A funding round led by VentureSouth, the company announced April 4. The money will help expand go-to-market efforts and grow the company’s client base in the U.S. and beyond. Founded in 2017, Babylon enables businesses and communities to grow produce, and its software remotely manages the network of vertical farming systems. Its Galleri Micro-Farm is used in more than 150 locations within health care, education and corporate dining settings. Its clients include a cruise line, Dutch furniture retailer Ikea and Philadelphia-based food services company Aramark. (News release)

COgro Labs at the Corporate Research Center in Blacksburg is now open. The addition of 2,900 square feet of shared and flexible lab space at 2200 Kraft Drive in Blacksburg was announced in 2021 and is designed to help early to mid-stage companies and researchers work on projects that include anything from drones or battery testing to medical technologies. The space includes lab benches and equipment and is expected to generate 125 jobs with an average salary of $80,000 per year over five years. The lab’s opening was supported by a nearly $600,000 Growth and Opportunity for Virginia (GO Virginia) grant made in 2021. (News release)

Rosslyn-based Shift5 Inc., whose software protects transportation and systems from cyberattacks, has partnered with JetBlue Airways Corp. to develop systems for commercial airlines. As part of the agreement, JetBlue’s venture capital arm, JetBlue Technology Ventures, has invested in Shift5 in a funding round led by New York-based Insight Partners and participation from Arlington-based Boeing Co.’s venture capital arm. The size of JetBlue’s investment was not disclosed. The company has already raised more than $71 million to hire employees and double its office space. The company said its technology can help airlines decrease the complexity of compliance while improving fleet reliability. (Washington Business Journal)

Herndon-based Strivacity Inc. raised $20 million to push forward research and bolster its sales, marketing and engineering teams, and plans to grow the 42-person company to 70 in the next year. San Francisco’s SignalFire led the Series A2 round, joined by Ten Eleven Ventures, a Boston venture firm that focuses on cybersecurity. The round’s other investors include Kevin Mandia, CEO of Reston cybersecurity company Mandiant, now an arm of Google. Strivacity, founded in 2019, is cloud-hosted and helps clients manage and verify customer identity and access. In 2021, the company raised $9.3 million in Series A financing, bringing its total funding to date to $31.3 million. (D.C. Inno)

TwinTail Brews‘ energy drink, Superberry Power Tea, is now available in stores around Richmond. Launched through the yearlong Bench Top Innovations class at the University of Richmond, the drink is sugar-free and has caffeine and L-theanine, an amino acid that balances the effects of caffeine to take away some jitters associated with energy drinks. The drink is manufactured in Virginia Beach and available at Ellwood Thompson’s and other retailers around Richmond. (Richmond Inno)

PEOPLE

Paul Nolde, executive managing director of Lighthouse Labs in Richmond, will be the new managing director of Norfolk-based 757 Angels and 757 Collab, the organization announced April 7. He replaces Monique Adams, who will leave the organizations this summer. Nolde has been at Lighthouse Labs since April 2022 and starts his new role May 30. On April 17, Art Espey replaced Nolde as head of Lighthouse Labs. A serial , Espey recently rejoined Lighthouse Labs’ board of directors, for which he served as vice chair from 2015 to 2018. (VirginiaBusiness.com)