aCorridor Headlines

1. Pepsico, Inc. to build $140 million plant in Wythe
   The manufacturing and distribution facility in Progress Park will produce Gatorade® & Propel® Fitness Water, 250 jobs.
2. Food City to expand distribution center
   K-VA-T Food Stores, Inc. to invest $19.35 million, add 110 new jobs at Washington County facility.
3. Klöckner Pentaplast announces 2nd expansion
   Manufacturer of plastic film to invest $17 million.
4. From My Perspective...
   Executive Director Andy Hall welcomes readers and website visitors to the first e-newsletter for Virginia's aCorridor.
5. around the aCorridor...
   Crossroads Institute opens in Galax; Smyth company picked for state's VALET program...

PepsiCo to build plant in Wythe

Successfully competing against North Carolina and Maryland for the project, Governor Mark Warner announced on June 23 that PepsiCo, Inc. will invest $140 million and 250 new jobs in Wythe County. PepsiCo will build a manufacturing and distribution facility in Progress Park and produce Gatorade® Thirst Quencher, the world's number one sports drink, and Propel® Fitness Water.

PepsiCo already employs more than 2,000 Virginians in 22 locations - including about 200 employees at Pepsi Bottling Group's manufacturing and distribution facility that opened in Wytheville a year ago.

"The Wytheville area is a wonderful community and an important transportation hub to the Mid-Atlantic and Ohio Valley," said Gatorade's president, Chuck Maniscalco. In addition to being the official sports drink of most major sports teams, Gatorade is the official beverage for the Virginia Tech Hokies, University of Virginia Cavaliers, Richmond International Speedway, Virginia High School League and the Virginia Coaches Association.

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Food City plans local expansion

K-VA-T Food Stores, Inc., parent company for the Food City retail supermarket chain, will invest $19.35 million to expand its current distribution facility on Hillman Highway in Washington County. The company will construct a 164,000 square foot freezer distribution facility and create 110 new jobs. Virginia successfully competed against Tennessee for the project.

K-VA-T, a privately held company, is an acronym for its trade area, Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee, and is now the largest employer in the Tri-Cities (Tennessee/Virginia) region and the fifth largest employer in Virginia. Headquartered in Abingdon, K-VA-T operates 90 Food City supermarkets througout southeast Kentucky, southwest Virginia and northeast Tennessee, serving a trade area population of more than 2.5 million and 980,000 households.

"K-VA-T provides valuable employment, competitive wages and benefits for over 1,000 employees in Washington County and more than 10,500 employees total, making them the largest employer in our region," said John Roberts, chairman of the Washington County Board of Supervisors.

Company launches 2nd expansion

Klöckner Pentaplast of America, Inc., a manufacturer of plastic film and shrink wrap, announced in July it would invest $17 million to expand its Rural Retreat manufacturing facility in Wythe County, creating 54 new jobs. A previous expansion was announed in 2002. The newest expansion will focus on a film production center for the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-regulated vinyl films that will service the pharmaceutical and other FDA markets.

"Klöckner has built its success on superior products, quality, service and employees," said Michael F. Tubridy, president of Klöckner Pentaplast of America, Inc. "This opportunity in Rural Retreat has become a reality due to the dedication and work ethic of the people working in the region for the past 11 years. We are equally committed to the people here."

"With this current expansion, KPA will become Wythe County's largest manufacturing employer," said Wythe B. Sharitz, chairman of the Wythe County Board of Supervisors.

From my perspective. . . Andy Hall

If you are reading this, you've obviously found the aCorridor's newest communications tool - this electronic newsletter. I hope you have subscribed via our website and you are looking forward to future issues to keep you up to date on what's happening in our region.

Instead of receiving these periodic updates in your mailbox, once you subscribe (by submitting your email address on our website's home page) you'll now have to look no further than your computer's inbox. You can also call the aCorridor office (888-810-8343), give us your email address, and we'll make sure you get on the electronic mailing list. Switching to this format makes sense because you will be directly linked to aCorridor.com and other websites. So, with a click of the mouse you can view the aCorridor website plus any other websites that are linked in this newsletter. It's much easier to publish this e-newsletter, and we can get the news out to you quicker. Any comments or suggestions? Please let me know.

At our most recent board meeting in August, I gave the group my perspective on the seven strategic goals we need to keep in mind for Virginia's aCorridor to be a successful economic development organization for the Mount Rogers region. Why seven? I was thinking about Stephen Covey's popular book, "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People." Our 7 goals to be a successful regional organization are:

1. Generate prospect visits/activity in region (lead generation)

2. Be a resource partner for state & local allies (prospect handling, etc.)

3. Maintain informative website & marketing materials

4. Create existing industry visitation program

5. Enhance communication/awareness of the organization in the region

6. Increase private sector funding

7. Then, ultimately, the entire region shares in the success of localities landing attractive companies

Our business plan reflects these strategic goals and action items will help the organization successfully promote the region. Activities such as increasing participation in marketing missions and trade shows, creating an active visitation program to existing industries, establishing a fund-raising plan and continuing to upgrade and add to the aCorridor website and communications efforts will help Virginia's aCorridor achieve these goals.

around the aCorridor...

The Crossroads Rural Entrepreneurial Institute opened this summer in Galax, bringing classes, new business space and the largest public computer access in Southwest Virginia. The 17,000-square-foot incubator space offers manufacturing bays and office space. Other parts of the 80,000-square-foot building include electronic classrooms allowing distance-learning classes from Wytheville Community College and other school systems. The community college, City of Galax and Carroll, Grayson, Wythe and Bland counties participate in the institute. With 100 computers, the Crossroads Institute is the largest public Internet access site "anywhere in Southwest Virginia" and the fifth largest public incubator facility in the Ninth Congressional District, according to Rep. Rick Boucher.

VISADOR Holding Corporation, a holding company for Coffman Stairs, a leading US manufacturer of stair components, with a plant in Marion, was selected by the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) to participate in the two-year VALET (Virginia Leaders in Export Trade) program. Companies selected to be VALET participants assist exporters in the Commonwealth that have firmly established domestic operations and are committed to international exporting as an expansion strategy.

One aCorridor county received an enterprise zone status in September. Governor Mark Warner announced that Wythe County is one of six new enterprise zones designated under the newly restructured Virginia Enterprise Zone program, which went into effect July 1, 2005. The zones are designated for 10 years and can be renewed for up to two, five-year periods. Localties can use state and local enterprise zone incentives to help create new jobs, promote private investment and improve overall economic growth.

Several aCorridor instrument makers participated in the Folk Festival held in Richmond in early October. Among those representing our region and demonstrating their unique craftsmanship were Audrey Hash Ham, daughter of the legendary Grayson County fiddle maker, Albert Hash. Ham continues the work of her father, who died in 1983, by teaching new generations about old-time Appalachian music and carving  fiddle heads on her father's models. Another Southwest Virginian featured at the festival was Gerald Anderson, a mandolin maker and string-band musician, who has made more than 100 mandolins in the last 28 years while working in the shop of master guitar maker Wayne Henderson of Mouth of Wilson, who also appeared at the festival. Henderson is Albert Hash's best known pupil and the recipient of the National Endowment of the Arts' National Heritage Fellowship and a 13-time prize winner of the guitar competition at the Old Fiddler's Convention held annually in Galax. Others included Walter Messick of Mouth of Wilson, who makes the standard hourglass-shaped dulcimer and the teardrop-shaped instrument peculiar to Southwest Virginia; Thomas Barr of Galax who makes banjos, fiddles, guitars and dulcimers; and Randall Eller of Chilhowie who makes fiddles and mandolins in a shop with his two sons.

The parent company of Bristol Compressors is being purchased by Johnson Controls, Inc., an automotive systems and facilities management supplier. According to news reports, the $3.2 billion all-cash purchase of York International Corporation is expected to nearly double Johnson Controls' presence in the building environments industry. With 1,650 employees, the air compressor manufacturer is one of Bristol, Va.'s largest employers.

Any suggestions or comments about this e-newsletter? Please let us hear from you. Contact us at: pr@acorridor.com.

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