Planning Distict Nineteen

ASSETS
- Fed by the James and Appomattox rivers, the Appomattox Basin has an abundant supply of water and plenty of surplus treatment capacity. The Appomattox River Water Authority can supply 46 million gallons per day. The Virginia-American Water Co. in Hopewell can provide another 33 million gallons, and secondary wastewater treatment facilities in Hopewell and Petersburg can process another 65 million gallons a day.

- The region’s location and transportation system give it a competitive edge in distribution. It boasts three interstates, a major highway in U.S. 58, two competing rail services, close proximity to Richmond International Airport, and is within a day’s drive of Florida and New York.

- The region can handle big projects, as seen in Chaparral Steel’s half-billion-dollar steel-recycling plant. The project included an incentive package of more than $44 million and marked the state’s largest economic investment of 1997.

LIABILITIES
- Proximity to Richmond has its perks, but the Appomattox Basin faces an uphill battle to develop a separate identity, economic diversity and service industry. The district’s strongest growth is not in its urban center, but in Chesterfield County, a Richmond suburb.

- There’s a chicken-and-egg problem when it comes to infrastructure and housing. Despite a $43 million medical center being built in Greensville, for instance, the hospital CEO is having a hard time getting builders to invest in new housing. Gene Faile says luring doctors and others is difficult when there is little housing to show them.

- The region needs to improve the technical skills and education levels of residents to compete with the Richmond metro area. That’s a particular challenge because although there are many educational resources nearby, the Appomattox Basin does not have a major research university within its borders.