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Driving Economic Transformation

Southern Virginia Increases Virginia’s Inventory of Shovel-Ready Sites

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Southern Virginia Increases Virginia’s Inventory of Shovel-Ready Sites

Southern Virginia Increases Virginia’s Inventory of Shovel-Ready Sites

The Southern Virginia Regional Alliance (SVRA) is pleased to join localities of Halifax, Patrick and Pittsylvania Counties and the City of Danville in announcing twenty-one sites that will move from Tier-Two to Tier-Four sites (signifying shovel-ready sites) in the Virginia Business Ready Sites Program (VBRSP) and eight sites that will move from Tier-Two to Tier-Five (shovel ready sites with graded pad sites). SVRA received $1,534,900 from GO Virginia Region 3 and $454,100 from the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission (TRRC) to further the preparation of sites in areas identified with specific assets for transportation such as rail and highway access, utilities inclusive of significant supply of natural gas, electricity and water supply along with a demonstrated available labor shed and workforce pipeline. Southern Virginia leads the Commonwealth in the number of prepared sites, one of the reasons for the success they are achieving in business attraction. The strategy by local elected officials, government and economic development staff to keep an inventory of ready sites that serve diverse industries, leads to sites that are ready to market for prospects who need to ensure that the risks of building on the sites have been assessed and minimized. 

The SVRA service region has worked with the engineering firms of Dewberry and Reynolds and Clark to complete right-of-way; engineering and building for reliable, redundant and abundant sites across the region. The strategy for site development included meeting diverse needs and has resulted in six VBRSP Tier-4 industrial parks in the region that provide access to eight VBRSP Tier-5 graded sites that are ready for immediate construction. An additional 21 VBRSP Tier-4 sites have completed the engineering due-diligence and are ready for grading and building within 12-18 months. 

Sites range in size from 3.4 to 67 acres with from 2.5-32 acres of developable pad sites that can readily accommodate buildings from 20,000 sq. ft. to 600,000 square feet in size.  Some of the lots can be joined to accommodate larger pad sites for expansion capacity with up to double lot.

Industrial Park / Site   Current Sites

VBRSP Ranking

Developable Pad on Site

Potential Building Size

 

 

 

 

Airside Lot 2J (Airside Industrial Park – Danville)

Tier 5

17-acre pad on 50.44-acre site

300,000 sq. ft.

Recent Park Wins – Essel Propak Expansions, Lite House Expansions, Butonni (Nestle), & 2 pending announcements

 

 

 

 

Cane Creek Centre – Danville/Pittsylvania RIFA

Tier 4

 

 

Recent Park Wins – Walraven, Morgan Olson, Aerofarms, Tyson

Cane Creek Lot 1B – Rail

Tier 4

27-acre pad on 49.12-acre site

370,000 sq. ft.

Cane Creek Lot 6B

Tier 4

21-acre pad on 24.78-acre site

380,000 sq. ft.

Cane Creek Lot 6C

Tier 4

23-acre pad on 30.71-acre site

310,000 sq. ft.

Cane Creek Lot 8A

Tier 5

8.5-acre pad on 22.7-acre site

100,000 sq. ft.

Cane Creek Lot 10 – Rail

Tier 4

32-acre pad on 67-acre site

450,000 sq. ft.

Cane Creek Lot 11A – Rail

Tier 4

14-acre pad on 20.6-acre site

150,000 sq. ft.

Cane Creek Lot 11B – Rail

Tier 4

13-acre pad on 16.6-acre site

150,000 sq. ft.

Cane Creek Lot 12 A

Tier 4

4.5-acre pad on 5.2-acre site

54,000 sq. ft.

Cane Creek Lot 12 B

Tier 4

7-acre pad on 8.6-acre site

72,000 sq. ft.

 

 

 

 

Coleman Site – Rail – largest rail served site in state

Tier 4

 

 

Coleman Site Lot 1

Tier 4

13-acre pad on 30-acre site

125,000 sq. ft.

Coleman Site Lot 2 – Rail

Tier 4

44-acre pad on 50-acre site

700,000 sq. ft.

Coleman Site Lot 3 – Rail

Tier 4

25-acre pad on 78-acre site

500,000 sq. ft.

 

 

 

 

Cyber Park

Tier 4

 

 

Recent Park Wins – Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (3), EIT/Zollner, Kyocera, Overfinch, BGF, FasTech, MEP

Cyber Park Lot 5

Tier 4

13-acre pad on 39.42-acre site

200,000 sq. ft.

Cyber Park Lot 7D

Tier 5

20.5-acre pad on 62.86-acre site

250,000 sq. ft.

Cyber Park Lot 10C

Tier 4

10-acre pad on 27.96-acre site

100,000 sq. ft.

Cyber Park Lot 12 B

Tier 4

8-acre pad on 19.3-acre site

100,000 sq. ft.

 

 

 

 

Day Site – Halifax County

Tier 4

 

 

Day Site Lot

Tier 4

30-acre pad on 34 -acre site

50,000 sq. ft.

 

 

 

 

Rich Creek Corporate Park – Patrick County

Tier 5

 

 

Recent Park Wins – Ten Oaks Expansion

Rich Creek Pad Site

Tier 5

25-acre pad on70 -acre site

100,000 sq. ft.

Rich Creek site with Shell Building

Tier 5

10-acre pad on 14-acre site

20,000 sq. ft.

 

 

 

 

Ringgold East Industrial Park

 

 

 

Recent Park Wins – Axxor Expansion, Panaceutics

Ringgold East Site – Pittsylvania County – Rail

Tier 5

28.3-acre pad on 51.04-acre site

600,000 sq. ft.

 

 

 

 

Riverview Industrial Park

 

 

 

Recent Park Wins – JTI Expansion

Riverview Lot 5B – Riverview Industrial Park Danville

Tier 4

6-acre pad on 11-acre site

72,000 sq. ft.

 

 

 

 

Southern Virginia Technology Park

Tier 4

 

 

Recent Park Wins – IperionX

SVTP Lot A

Tier 4

3-acre pad on 3.4-acre site

31,250 sq. ft.

SVTP Lot B

Tier 5

11-acre pad on 14.7-acre site

122,500 sq. ft.

SVTP Lot C

Tier 4

9-acre pad on 17-acre site

97,500 sq. ft.

SVTP Lot D

Tier 4

6.5-acre pad on 29.4-acre site

31,250 sq. ft.

SVTP Lot E

Tier 5

4.5-acre pad on 6.7-acre site

48,000 sq. ft.

SVTP Lot F

Tier 5

9.5-acre pad on 12.6-acre site

106,500 sq. ft.

SVTP Lot G

Tier 4

2.5-acre pad on 7.6-acre site

20,000 sq. ft.
SOVA Task Force Offers Workforce Solutions

SOVA Task Force Offers Workforce Solutions

The SOVA Task Force offered a Workforce Solutions weekly webinar series in May as an extension of the Bridge to Recovery Grant provided by GO Virginia Region 3. The series provided employers with resources and best practices regarding today’s workforce.

“Amid all the pressures facing our businesses in the wake of COVID, solutions for workforce-related issues are repeatedly sought,” said Linda Green, Executive Director of the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance (SVRA). “Therefore, we convened experts and resources to assist with these Human Resources needs.”

The Workforce Solutions webinar series addressed Childcare, Afterschool Care and Elder Care; Recruiting and Onboarding Employees; Trainings, Apprenticeships, Internships and Re-entry Programs; Higher Education, Skill Sets, Certifications and Recertifications; and Retention, Promotion and Advancement.

During one webinar, Steve Youll of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Talent Attraction Program shared how talent attraction has evolved with increased expectations by candidates. He said “72% of job seekers report sharing negative candidate experiences online” and “55% of candidates will avoid certain companies after reading negative online reviews.”

Moderators included workforce experts Dr. Julie Brown of IALR and Robbie Knight of Virginia Career Works-West Piedmont. The series was originated, organized and marketed by the SOVA COVID-19 Task Force, which is managed by the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance.

Recordings are available at svra.org under COVID-19 Economic Resources. In the future, similar programs will be provided in the eastern part of the GO Virginia Region 3 service area.

The SOVA Task Force webinars are part of the GO Virginia Region 3 Bridge to Recovery Grant. Regional employers like Axxor have adapted to the impact of COVID while continuing safe operations.

SOVA Region Sees Six Years of Unprecedented Growth

SOVA Region Sees Six Years of Unprecedented Growth

Economic development announcements in the Southern Virginia (SOVA) Region have surpassed previous trends. Over the past six years the regional and local economic development team, including the City of Danville and Patrick, Pittsylvania and Halifax Counties, has attracted 3,216 jobs and over $700 million in capital investment, recruiting 23 industries and 18 existing industry expansions. A key factor, four metropolitan areas border the SOVA region — Roanoke, Lynchburg, Greensboro and Raleigh/Durham — and the SOVA overlapping labor sheds provide 541,388 employees in a 60-mile radius. Coupled with a strong workforce program from middle school to higher education, SOVA’s talent pool provides unique recruitment opportunities.

Tyson Foods leaders participate in the October 2021 groundbreaking on a new, fully-cooked processing plant in Danville-Pittsylvania County. Tyson’s $300M capital investment will add 376 new jobs.

The Environmental and Life Sciences Sector in food, beverage and wood products has attracted 10 new companies and seven expansions (1,187 jobs and $437M in capital investment). AeroFarms, Prolam, Golden Piedmont Labs and Tyson Foods have joined existing employers JTI, Ennis and Ten Oaks. Virginia is the second largest Southeastern food and beverage processor with vertical integration from farms and manufacturing to packaging, bottling, warehousing and distribution. Virginia Tech is the #2 college in the nation for Food Sciences and Nutrition, and the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR) participates in research and industry support. Virginia is also located within the Southeastern “wood basket” which supplies over 60% of the total volume of timber harvested in the U.S., vertically integrated from forestry to primary wood processing.

The High-performance Manufacturing Sector, including automotive, aerospace, energy and electronics, has added eight new companies and three industry expansions (1,079 new jobs and $100M in capital investment). Automotive wins have included Morgan Olson’s start-up and expansions by Amthor and TMI AutoTech, the location of aerospace manufacturers Kyocera SGS Tech Hub and Fastech, and the relocation of Netherlands-based Walraven’s North American headquarters. The Great Opportunities in Technology and Engineering Careers (GO TEC) pipeline development program (exposing middle school students to trade skills) and the Gene Haas Center for Integrated Machining have illustrated hub-and-spoke models to develop workforce pipeline capacity.

Leading step van manufacturer Morgan Olson opened their 925,000-square-foot renovated facility in Danville-Pittsylvania County’s Cane Creek Centre in August 2020, investing $57.8M in capital investment and adding 703 new jobs to the region.

The Advanced Materials Sector, including polymer, plastics, rubber, fiber and chemicals, has also grown.  It has attracted 429 new jobs and over $152M in capital investment, including two new industries — Staunton River Plastics and BGF’s headquarters and R&D —as well as six expansions like Intertape and Essel Propack. There is also a strong support sector in Information Technology and Professional Services that includes IT, logistics, distribution, data centers and back office support. This sector has added 521 jobs and over $11.9M in capital investment, including activity by PRA Group and Kegerreis Digital Marketing.

In addition to economic development recruitment, the local and regional economic development team has supported the expansion of pipeline workforce development programs as well as quality-of-life assets, including downtown amenities, housing, parks, recreation and entrepreneurism. The momentum promises higher gross domestic products, higher wages for employees and stronger capital investment trends in the region. IALR’s Economic Development division, through the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance, works with the local team to support research, marketing and recruitment of the industries.

Green Named VEDA Treasurer

Green Named VEDA Treasurer

Linda Green, IALR’s Director of Economic Development and Executive Director of the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance, has been named Treasurer for the 2022 Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for the Virginia Economic Developers Association (VEDA), a committee on which she has served for several years. The new officers were elected at the two-day annual membership meeting in December.

The Virginia Economic Developers Association is a non-profit, non-partisan membership association for individuals with a professional interest in economic development across the Commonwealth of Virginia. VEDA serves as the voice of economic development in Virginia and was founded in 1982 to increase the effectiveness of individuals involved in the practice of economic development in Virginia by encouraging cooperation, exchange of information, and professional development activities.