aCorridor Headlines

1. Saltville announces $30.33 million investment
   Virginia Cobia Farms LLC will produce millions of pounds of fish and create 60 new jobs.
2. Washington County breaks ground on shopping center
   The Highlands is a 43-acre shopping complex that will one of the largest between Roanoke and Knoxville.
3. aCorridor says farewell to longtime board member
   Dan Campbell, who has served on the Board of Directors of the Mount Rogers Development Partnership for more than 12 years, is leaving to take a new job in Floyd County.
4. Gatorade starts operation in Progress Park
   Lots of changes are taking place in Wytheville's Progress Park.
5. ABB expansion under way in Bland County
   A $3 million expansion at ABB's Bland facility is progressing.
6. Return to Roots, Dream It. Do It
   Two regional programs centered on workforce development begin in Southwest Virginia.
7. From My Perspective...
   A year-to-date report card and update from Executive Director Tom Elliott.
8. around the aCorridor...
   Bristol organic snack food maker named nation's second fastest growing Hispanic business. Wythe County establishes career coaching program. Longwall Associates of Chilhowie has teamed up with China's leading roof support manufacturer.

Saltville announces new fish farm

Announcing Virginia Cobia Farms in Saltville are, from left, David Smith, Virginia Deputy Secretary of Commerce and Trade; Bill Harris, CEO, Marical; and Bill Martin, President of Blue Ridge Aquaculture.

Governor Timothy M. Kaine announced on Oct. 18 that Virginia Cobia Farms LLC, a joint venture between MariCal Inc., a privately-held

aquatic life science biotechnology company, and Blue Ridge Aquaculture, Inc., will invest $30.33 million to develop a new technology and method of farming Cobia fish in Saltville. The project will create 60 new jobs.

Blue Ridge Aquaculture is the largest indoor Tilapia farm in the United States, and MariCal will supply the technology for this innovative method of fish farming, which uses a combined water treatment and specialty feed process in the commercial rearing of Cobia, a marine fish, in inland areas of the U.S.

"Virginia is the first state in the United States to introduce this high-tech method of fish farming," said Governor Kaine. "We are pleased that MariCal and Blue Ridge Aquaculture have selected Saltville as the site of this cutting-edge aquaculture technology."

Governor Kaine approved $100,000 from the Governor's Opportunity Fund to assist Saltville with the project. The Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission approved $100,000 in Tobacco Region Opportunity Funds. The company is eligible to receive state benefits from the Virginia Enterprise Zone Program, administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. The Virginia Department of Business Assistance will support the project with training assistance through its Workforce Services Jobs Investment Program.

"The Town of Saltville is pleased to welcome Virginia Cobia Farms as its newest corporate citizen," said Mayor Jeff Campbell. "We believe this company, through its innovative technology and forward thinking management, is positioned for phenomenal growth and will provide quality, sustainable employment for many years to come."

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Washington County breaks ground for new 43-acre retail shopping area

Washington County broke ground Sept. 18 for a new 43-acre shopping complex to be called The Highlands. Located at Exit 7 of I-81, retailers T.J. Maxx, Books-A-Million, World Market and PetSmart are among the first announced tenants who plan to open in summer 2007.

A joint venture between Newton Oldacre McDonald and local entrepreneur Mack Trammel, the 325,000 square-foot center will serve the retail needs of Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee.  The Highlands will contain more than 295,000 square feet of retail space and Newton Oldacre McDonald is presently in discussions with a number of national retailers who find the location attractive because of its proximity to a vast underserved market.

In addition to retail space, the site will also provide opportunity for freestanding restaurants and other retail on out parcels of the property.

aCorridor board says good-bye

Dan Campbell, who served as Galax city manager for nearly 16 years, was a member of the Mount Rogers Development Partnership Board of Directors for more than 12 years. During his time with the board he served as an officer and as a member of the executive committee.

On Nov. 1, Campbell started a new job as County Administrator of Floyd County. On Oct. 20, aCorridor Executive Director Tom Elliott presented Campbell with a plaque honoring him for his years of service with the Mount Rogers Development Partnership, Inc.

Gatorade, Amcor making progress

Construction continues on the new facility for Amcor PET Packaging, left in photo, and Gatorade recently began operations in its new facility at Wytheville's Progress Park. Amcor, a leading manufacturer of PET plastic packaging for the global beverage industry, announced the $105 million investment in January and broke ground in May on its new manufacturing operation. The company will supply hot fillable plastic bottles to the beverage industry and create 144 new jobs in the aCorridor.

PepsiCo, Inc. announced plans in 2005 to invest$140 million and 250 new jobs in Wythe County. PepsiCo built a manufacturing and distribution facility in Progress Park to produce Gatorade® Thirst Quencher, the world's number one sports drink, and Propel® Fitness Water. The new facility began operations in late September. Two other companies, Lane Enterprises and Coalfield Services, will begin construction in the park in the near future.

ABB in Bland is expanding

Bland County's largest employer, ABB Inc., is undergoing its second major expansion in three years. With this recent $3 million expansion, the plant's employment level will reach more than 400.

The ABB-Bland facility, which produces dry and cast power, distribution and specialty transformers, was chosen to be the site of the international company's expansion. The county successfully competed with China, South Korea and Spain for this project.

"The county feels there are many factors that made this project possible," said David Dillow, chairman of the Bland County Economic Development Authority and a member of the aCorridor Board of Directors. "A world-class workforce, low cost of doing business, logistics, and both local and state support."

Return to Roots; Dream It. Do It.

Two new programs aimed at developing this region's workforce are developing in Southwest Virginia.

Return to Roots is a campaign aimed at the thousands of alumni from Southwest Virginia high schools who moved away for college and careers. Return to Roots, financed in its first phase by a special projects grant from the Tobacco Commission, urges those former residents to come home to the job opportunities that are exploding throughout the region. The website ReturntoRoots.org is an information portal for former residents to learn about the transition taking place in the region today and a place to post resumes and view job openings of regional employers.

Dream It. Do It. is designed to reverse the trend of a shrinking skilled workforce. The Smyth-Washington Regional Workforce Consortium received a $900,000 grant from the Virginia Works program "with an equal amount committed by local manufacturers, community colleges and county governments" to fund training and promotion of the Dream It. Do It. campaign in Southwest Virginia.

"Hundreds of manufacturing jobs are currently available in the Southwest Virginia counties of Smyth and Washington, and they need to be filled with a workforce that is regionally trained," said Bruce Kravitz, executive director of Dream It. Do It. SW Virginia and regional workforce program director for the Smyth-Washington Regional Workforce Consortium. "Filling those jobs with skilled individuals will have a big impact on the health of our economy and on economic development in the region," Kravitz said, at the Oct. 24 launch during a career fair in Abingdon.

From my perspective. .Tom Elliott

As you can see from this newsletter, there's a lot going on in the aCorridor!

Here's a year-to-date Report Card:

• 12 Expansions, 462 jobs, $23.8 million capital investment.
• 3 New Industries, 229 jobs, $140.24 million capital investment.
• A total of 691 new jobs and $164.04 million capital investment.

Let me also give you an update on three key areas of emphasis I mentioned in the previous newsletter:

       • Prospect Activity - Prospect activity has picked up considerably in the last couple of months. Much of it has been in the form of "inquiries" and opportunities to submit certain sites or buildings for project consideration. A few of these have led to actual visits, which is the first goal in the economic development process, and I think we will see more visits in the next few months. We continue to see a trend of heavier involvement by site selection consultants, who often need a lot of information in a short amount of time. The economic development professionals in the aCorridor have done a terrific job of responding to these requests. Any time we help the consultant do a better job for their client, we look good as well. That's a key objective, and I believe it will yield positive results.

      •  Private Sector Funding - We are doing OK in the area of private sector funding, but I would like to see us do much better. Besides trying to enlist new investors and retain existing investors, I'm also contacting past investors who are not currently active. I hope you will decide to renew your support, and want to thank those of you who have already done so. It's really important to our marketing efforts.

      • Lead Generation Program - This 3-month calling program, conducted by 310 Marketing, was completed in September. I would like to have seen a greater number of leads generated, but we did get some quality leads that I am continuing to pursue. All of them are projects that are one or two years down the road, but now is the time to get our foot in the door. If the program produces just one successful project, it will be well worth it.

Finally, I want to say a personal farewell and best wishes to Dan Campbell. He will be greatly missed as a valued ally, advisor, and friend. Good Luck, Dan - stay in touch!

around the aCorridor...

Prime Choice Foods of Bristol, Va is named second-fastest-growing Hispanic company in the nation by Hispanic Business magazine. The six-year-old Bristol-based company that makes organic snack foods saw its sales grow by more than 200 percent in the last five years. The company reported $10.4 million in sales in 2005. Company founder Jose Gomez said the company has grown from 25 to 45 employees with plans to add 40 more in the next three years. Eighty percent of the company's product is private-label snack foods sold to Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, Kroger, Ingles and others. Prime Choice is also preparing to launch an organic chip product for Food City stores and continues to market its own brand of Go-Mex snack chips. Gomez and his sons, Mauro and Adrian, are working with Virginia Tech to develop organically grown colored corn in this region.

Wythe County has established a career coaching program in its three middle/high school facilities. The Joint IDA and the Wythe Manufacturing Council, an association of the county's larger manufacturers, obtained a VEC grant to initiate the program. A career coach is assigned to each of the county's three middle/high school facilities. These coaches work with students to make them aware of career options and goals and to identify needed skill sets and required training to meet those goals. A second initiative in development is the creation of a manufacturing technology program at the Wythe County Technology Center. This program will introduce students to the modern industrial world and prepare them for pursuing higher education or for direct entry into the manufacturing sector.

Longwall Associates, Inc., in Chilhowie, the world's fastest growing longwall conveyor manufacturer, has teamed up with China's largest and most successful roof support manufacturer to form an alliance to offer global solutions for longwall mining systems. China-based Zhengzhou Coal Mining Machinery Co., Ltd. and Longwall Associates have signed a cooperative agreement which will promote global marketing opportunities for both companies.

The H.L. Bonham Regional Development and Tourism Center in Chilhowie opened Sept. 21. The Bonham heirs donated the house to the town several years ago and the renovated center will be managed by a new county-wide tourism association. Now among Virginia's official tourism centers, plans are to hire a full-time director for tourism development.

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