Advertisement

Header Utility Menu

  • Subscribe
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Events

LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Instagram Get Our App

  • Login

Virginia Business

Mobile Menu

  • Issues
  • Industries
    • Banking/Finances
    • Law
    • Real Estate
    • Economic Development
    • Education
    • Energy/Green
    • Federal Contracting
    • Government
    • Healthcare
    • Hotels/Tourism
    • Insurance
    • Ports/Trade
    • Small Business
    • Startups
    • Technology
    • Transportation
  • Regions
    • Central Virginia
    • Eastern Virginia
    • Northern Virginia
    • Roanoke/New River Valley
    • Shenandoah Valley
    • Southern Virginia
    • Southwest Virginia
  • Reports
    • Best Places to Work
    • Business Person of the Year
    • CEO Pay
    • COVID-19
    • Generous Virginians Project
    • Legal Elite
    • Most Influential Virginians
    • Maritime Guide
    • Site Locator
    • The Big Book
    • Virginia CFO Awards
  • Company News
    • For the Record
    • People
  • Opinion
  • Lists
  • Awards/Events
    • 2022 Virginia Business Political Roundtable
    • Women in Leadership
    • Diversity Leadership Series
    • Virginia 500
    • Legal Elite
    • CFO Awards
    • Big Book of Lists
    • 100 People To Meet
    • Best Places To Work
  • Virginia 500
    • Read The Issue
    • Power Up Virginia 500
    • Buy an award plaque
    • Suggest execs for 2023

Advertisement

Header Primary Menu

  • Issues
    • February 2023
    • January 2023
    • December 2022
    • November 2022
    • October 2022
    • Issues Archive
  • Industries
    • Banking/Finances
    • Law
    • Real Estate
    • Economic Development
    • Education
    • Energy/Green
    • Federal Contracting
    • Government
    • Healthcare
    • Hotels/Tourism
    • Insurance
    • Ports/Trade
    • Small Business
    • Startups
    • Technology
    • Transportation
  • Regions
    • Central Virginia
    • Eastern Virginia
    • Northern Virginia
    • Roanoke/New River Valley
    • Shenandoah Valley
    • Southern Virginia
    • Southwest Virginia
  • Reports
    • Best Places to Work
    • Business Person of the Year
    • CEO Pay
    • COVID-19
    • Generous Virginians Project
    • Legal Elite
    • Most Influential Virginians
    • Maritime Guide
    • Site Locator
    • The Big Book
    • Virginia CFO Awards
  • Company News
    • For the Record
    • People
  • Opinion
  • Lists
  • Awards/Events
    • 2022 Virginia Business Political Roundtable
    • Women in Leadership
    • Diversity Leadership Series
    • Virginia 500
    • Legal Elite
    • CFO Awards
    • Big Book of Lists
    • 100 People To Meet
    • Best Places To Work
  • Virginia 500
    • Read The Issue
    • Power Up Virginia 500
    • Buy an award plaque
    • Suggest execs for 2023

Home News SW Va. businesses, officials urge Northam to reopen region

SW Va. businesses, officials urge Northam to reopen region

One-size-fits-all approach doesn't work in localities with fewer COVID-19 cases, says Roanoke County board chairman

Published May 1, 2020 by Kate Andrews

Roanoke County Board of Supervisors Chairman David Radford at a May 1 news conference

Southwest Virginia elected officials and business owners are ready to reopen for business, noting that the number of COVID-19 cases in their region is considerably lower than those found in the more populated regions of the state such as Northern Virginia and Central Virginia.

“The [economic] effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have deeply impacted our citizens and businesses, and we must speak up about this,” Roanoke County Board of Supervisors Chairman David Radford said Friday during a news conference. “Our medical providers are not overrun by COVID-19 cases. We’re asking the governor [to] let us trust our citizens to reopen in a safe and sanitary manner.”

Radford said he was sending a letter signed by all of Roanoke County’s supervisors asking Gov. Ralph Northam to consider reopening the Southwest region of the state “sooner, not later.” A “one-size-fits-all” approach to public health doesn’t serve his region well, Radford adde, saying, “Our region is resilient, and it can conduct business safely.”

Roanoke County has 53 confirmed coronavirus cases, and one person has been hospitalized there since the outbreak began, according to the Virginia Department of Health. In the Alleghany Health District, which includes Alleghany, Botetourt, Craig and Roanoke counties, as well as the city of Salem, three people have died from COVID-19, as of May 1. The city of Roanoke has seen 80 confirmed cases, with five people hospitalized.

Last week, seven state lawmakers from Southwest Virginia, including Del. Terry Kilgore and Sens. Ben Chafin and Todd Pillion, sent a letter to Northam urging him to lift restrictions on businesses across Southwest Virginia. But it’s not the only region in the commonwealth where officials and businesses are champing at the bit to reopen. Northam received a similar letter on April 24 from a group of six supervisors from the Peninsula region, who requested  “phased reopening of businesses as soon as possible,” adding that they are “very concerned” that some businesses closed due to state restrictions during the pandemic may be in jeopardy of going out of business permanently.

One of many complicating factors for Southwest Virginia’s economy is Tennessee’s decision to allow many businesses to reopen this week. The disparity is most evident on Bristol’s State Street, which is evenly divided between Tennessee and Virginia. While stores and restaurants on the Virginia side are closed, their Tennessee counterparts are now allowed to open, under Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s orders. Retail shops and restaurants were allowed to reopen on April 29, operating at 50% occupancy under what Lee called the “Tennessee Pledge,” the Volunteer State’s economic recovery plan.

Beginning May 6, Tennessee barber shops, salons, spas, tattoo shops and other close-contact services will be able to reopen in 89 of Tennessee’s 95 counties, although Sullivan County, which neighbors the city of Bristol, is not included in that group.

Northam said Monday during his regular coronavirus news conference that he is open to considering a regional approach to reopening businesses and easing restrictions.

“To try to be consistent, is it really fair for Tennessee’s businesses to be open and Virginia’s not to be?” Northam asked. “I’m open-minded to all of that. I would say, ‘Stay tuned.'”

Northam has spoken frequently about his cooperative efforts with Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser, but Bristol Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Beth D. Rhinehart notes that he should also be paying attention and coordinating with other neighboring states such as Tennessee and North Carolina. “As a region in Southwest Virginia,” Rhinehart said, “I think what makes sense from most people’s perspective here may not be what Maryland’s doing, but more what Tennessee’s doing or North Carolina. I think taking into account the regional approach, because Virginia is so different across its different regions, would make a lot of sense.”

Rhinehart advocates for businesses on both sides of the Virginia-Tennessee line, and while Tennessee merchants are being very cautious and remain “a bit nervous … for the future of their business,” she said, some Virginia business owners and workers are feeling frustrated by the restrictions placed on them by the governor. “It’s human nature to be sitting on one side and see things happening on the other side that are seen as positive and maybe even a competitive advantage, and not to feel frustrated or disappointed by that,” Rhinehart said.

One example is the Quaker Steak & Lube restaurant, on the Virginia side of State Street.

“People in Virginia are eating on the Tennessee side,” said Brad Smith, general manager of the restaurant, which is open only for takeout and third-party delivery. The city of Bristol, Virginia, Smith noted, has had only one confirmed COVID-19 case, and that person is reported to have recovered. Across the Mount Rogers Health District, which includes Bristol and surrounding counties, there have been 86 confirmed coronavirus cases and four deaths related to COVID-19.

“Our regulars are eating at restaurants [in Tennessee],” Smith said, and he feels that it’s safe for his restaurant to reopen too, “especially when people are going into the other state. We have a pretty good plan in place,” including using disposable menus and one-use salt, pepper and ketchup packets. In Tennessee, restaurants are placing tables six feet apart and not seating patrons at bars, guidelines Smith said he would also follow when he is allowed to reopen the Quaker Steak & Lube’s dining room.

“We really don’t know what life will be like when we reopen,” Smith said. “We don’t know if we’ll be packed every day, or if people will be cautious. The priority is that people are safe, but we do have to preserve the economy that we’ve worked hard to build.”

Virginia Business Associate Editor Sydney Lake contributed to this story.

 

Subscribe to Virginia Business.

Get our daily e-newsletter.

Related Stories

Roanoke County launches small business relief grants

Applicants can receive up to $10K in funding

Virginia Business logo

Driven by SW Va., state’s COVID-19 rate rises to 6.1%

United States surpasses 10M cases since pandemic began

Virginia Business logo

Roanoke, local credit union launch small business relief fund

Grants are available up to $25K

Trending

13th annual Best Places to Work

Making strides

It’s back!

After the crisis

Fort Monroe development moving forward

Sponsored Stories

Working at Pinnacle Financial Partners

What Logistics issues will have the biggest impact on you in 2023?

In the New Year, Aim for Better Cybersecurity

4 innovative ways to create capacity

WHERE IS THE SUPPLY CHAIN WHEN YOU NEED IT?

P.A.I.N.T. Your Financial Mountain

5 Benefits of Treasury Management Services from Atlantic Union Bank

Blazing trails in the digital landscape

Advertisement

Advertisement

Trending

13th annual Best Places to Work

Making strides

It’s back!

After the crisis

Fort Monroe development moving forward

Sponsored Stories

Working at Pinnacle Financial Partners

What Logistics issues will have the biggest impact on you in 2023?

In the New Year, Aim for Better Cybersecurity

4 innovative ways to create capacity

WHERE IS THE SUPPLY CHAIN WHEN YOU NEED IT?

P.A.I.N.T. Your Financial Mountain

5 Benefits of Treasury Management Services from Atlantic Union Bank

Blazing trails in the digital landscape

Get Virginia Business directly on your tablet or in your mailbox!

Subscribe to Virginia Business

Advertisement

Advertisement

Footer Primary Menu

  • virginiabusiness.com
  • Subscribe
  • Advertise
  • About Us
  • Contact Us

Footer Secondary Menu

  • Industries
  • Regions
  • Reports
  • Company News
  • Events

Sign Up For Our Newsletter

Sign Up

LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Instagram Get Our App

Privacy Policy Cookie Policy

Footer Utility Menu

Copyright © 2023 Virginia Business. All rights reserved.

Site Maintained by TechArk