Play ball!
Sports teams and tourism destinations expect summer rebound
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Minor League Baseball is back for 2021, after the coronavirus pandemic canceled the 2020 season. And there’s no question that this summer will look much different than a typical baseball season. But the Richmond Flying Squirrels are optimistic. The team kicked off its season May 4. All fans who had vouchers or credits for 2020
Help wanted
Hotels, restaurants confront post-pandemic staffing crisis
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Twenty years ago, John Zirkle was just starting out in the Virginia Beach hotel business as a houseman, stripping bed sheets and doing laundry. Fast-forward to today and he is general manager of the Doubletree by Hilton at Virginia Beach and president of the beach’s hotel association. Lately, though, Zirkle’s had to recall some of
A bend in the river
Danville’s economy rushes from trickle to flow
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An out-of-town trip to visit colleges with her daughter gave Christie Wall an idea that several years later she hopes will benefit her and her hometown. For fun, Wall and her daughter tried out an escape room — an interactive adventure game that requires participants to solve a themed puzzle or challenge in order to
Better times ahead
Lodging, tourism, travel industries look ahead to recovery
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Catrina Mullins can picture the scene: A stage, musicians and a grassy lawn. People leaning back in chairs or sitting cross-legged on blankets on the ground, tapping their toes to familiar tunes. Others open windows to listen to the sound from their hotel rooms, which look out onto the lawn. This is what an outdoor
Help wanted
Valley manufacturers face workforce shortage
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Meat, coffee creamer, frozen fruits and chocolate. These commodities represent some of the bread and butter business lines, literally, of Devon Anders’ mega storage and supply chain logistics company, which is based in Mount Crawford and has other state locations. The success of InterChange Group Inc. rises and falls on the health of the Shenandoah
Lending a hand
Small businesses, community banks mutually benefited from PPP loans
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There were days during the past six months that some employees at F&M Bank in Timberville worked through the night. At 3 a.m., they were uploading loan applications for clients onto the U.S. Small Business Administration’s online portal. During the day, the site was overloaded with others applying for loans through the Paycheck Protection Program,
Slowdowns ahead
Economic crisis may catch up to construction industry in 2021
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When the COVID-19 outbreak began in March, projects at Howard Shockey & Sons, a Winchester-based commercial construction company, kept moving forward. After all, construction is considered an essential business, and unlike some other states, Virginia did not restrict construction activity at the start of the pandemic. But while Shockey’s work continued, albeit with some hiccups
California PPE supplier sues Chain Bridge Bank
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A California medical supply company is suing McLean-based Chain Bridge Bank, alleging the bank was responsible for destroying the company’s reputation and making it lose a $600 million state contract for personal protective equipment. In the lawsuit, Blue Flame Medical claims that Chain Bridge Bank told California officials that Blue Flame could be “fraudulent,” leading
Cash crop?
Hemp growers find crowded, uncertain market
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Petunias, plants, strawberries, meat, tomatoes and more have been the primary revenue sources for Rolling Meadows Farms during the past 31 years. Tim Belcher took over the 400-acre Martinsville family farm in 1989 after his father retired. Now, the farm has a new product line and Belcher has high hopes that it could run neck
Steady as she goes
Wealth pros advise clients not to be swayed by news cycles
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A presidential election. International trade conflicts. Fear of recession. There are plenty of circumstances that could shift the stock market and shake up investments in 2020. Yet consumers should not allow developments nationally and globally to influence their investment choices, say some Virginia wealth advisers who are listed as America’s Best in State for 2020