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The Hail Mary
Danville and Pittsylvania land van manufacturer
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Football isn’t the only occupation in which a wild, slim-chance pass can deliver a win. Last fall, the Virginia Economic Development Partnership and Danville and Pittsylvania County officials launched a Hail Mary economic pitch that landed a $57.89 million expansion project from Michigan-based van manufacturer Morgan Olson LLC. Morgan Olson is establishing a walk-in step
Subsea cable country
Henrico makes a play for data center dominance
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The scheduled 2020 arrival in Henrico County of a third connection to ultra-high-speed internet subsea cables should give the Richmond region bragging rights as a destination for data centers. In other words, it makes Central Virginia an alternative to Loudoun County, where 70% of all internet traffic flows but lacks a direct line to the
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Rethinking big
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Once upon a time, I worked for a big company. Not for a short time, but a decades-long time. Somewhat unfortunately, I remember those years perhaps too well. Thousands of employees, rules, policies, a big human resources department, politics and power were all concentrated inside the headquarters building. And the customers were on the outside
Feeling stronger
Big health care systems expand, launch fundraisers
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In the year since Bon Secours Health System merged with Mercy Health, the Cincinnati-based hospital group has expanded its holdings in Virginia, where it now owns and operates 12 hospitals. In January, Bon Secours Mercy Health acquired three hospitals: the 300-bed Southside Regional Medical Center in Petersburg, the 105-bed Southampton Memorial Hospital in Franklin and
On the move
People making a name for themselves throughout Virginia
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Mark Blanks, director, Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership, Blacksburg As more drones take to the skies, Blanks leads MAAP, which has built a partnership with Google parent company Alphabet to develop an autonomous drone delivery industry. Google’s Project Wing is the nation’s first FAA-approved commercial delivery service using long-distance aerial drones. Wing has partnered with
Mergers and acquisitions
Big banks consolidate, benefiting Virginia-based institutions
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In 2019, banks continued to merge and consolidate, and some closed branches in Virginia’s rural counties and small towns, a trend expected to continue well into the 2020s. The big news of last year was the completion of the $66 billion merger of BB&T Corp. and SunTrust Banks Inc. in December, creating Charlotte, North Carolina-headquartered
Where the action is
Danville’s Telly Tucker moves to Arlington Economic Development
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In the wake of Amazon.com Inc.’s late 2018 announcement that its $2.5 billion HQ2 East Coast headquarters would locate in Arlington County, there’s been a game of musical chairs taking place among Northern Virginia’s economic development offices. Last July, Victor Hoskins, Arlington’s economic development director, left to head up the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority.
The arena of politics
The hotly debated $1.5 billion Navy Hill plan dies
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A historic vote on the biggest economic development proposal in the city of Richmond’s history — the potentially transformative $1.5 billion Navy Hill downtown redevelopment plan that would have included the state’s largest entertainment venue — collapsed in mid-February amid sound and fury as seven of Richmond City Council’s nine members refused to approve the
Revisionist history
Virginia tourism draws emphasize state’s multifaceted heritage
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Virginia’s tourism industry has long banked on its history — but this time there’s more context and acknowledgement of different facets of the commonwealth’s heritage. Last year, the commonwealth held observances marking the 400th anniversaries of the first elected legislative body in the New World and the arrival of the first enslaved people from Africa.
Shifting skylines
Work starts on Amazon HQ2, while other big projects conclude
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As several economic development officials have noted wryly over the past year, the construction crane appears to be Virginia’s new state bird. Labor shortages and expensive materials still impact the industry, but by and large, construction companies are busy across the commonwealth. In January, demolition started at the site in Arlington County where Amazon.com Inc.