A climate tech startup - and Earthshot Prize finalist - designs new method to reduce clothing

What generally happens when clothes go out of style is giving the fashion industry a bad look. "The fashion and textile industry is one of the most wasteful industries in the world," said Conor Hartman, chief operating officer of Circ, a climate tech startup trying to refashion the clothing industry. "The world is producing more than 100 million tons of textiles every 12 months. It's equivalent in weight to a million Boeing 757s."   
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Pentagon awards $12.7M to IperionX for expansion of South Boston plant

IperionX has received a $12.7 million grant award from the U.S. Department of Defense to expand its titanium recycling demonstration plant in South Boston, a step toward bolstering the nation’s supply chain for the defense industry.

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4,000+ STUDENTS CONNECT WITH EMPLOYERS AT 10TH CAREER CHOICE YOUTH EXPO

The 2023 Career ChoICE Youth Expo events – hosted at the Olde Dominion Agricultural Complex in Chatham and Hampden-Sydney College in Farmville – allowed 4,027 middle and high students to connect with employers and learn about career pathways and employment opportunities in their region. Over its 10-year history, 36,710 students have participated, allowing local employers to inspire and educate the next generation and helping students understand the opportunities available to them.

 
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Housing Summit 2023

The 2023 Southern Virginia Regional Housing Summit served as a dynamic platform for six thriving localities to showcase the latest breakthroughs in residential housing development. The primary objective of the summit was to inspire the development of fresh residential housing projects. By uniting experts from diverse sectors, our aim was to nurture partnerships that went beyond traditional boundaries and explored innovative prospects. Collectively, we charted a course toward a more vibrant and dynamic future for housing in Southern Virginia.

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Betting on Success

Betting on Success

Article by: Virginia Business | Written by: Elizabeth Cooper

Thousands of new jobs are flowing into Southern Virginia as Caesars Virginia prepares to open its permanent casino resort next year, and industries move into the region or expand.
 
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Developer proposes 600-acre mixed-use residential project in Pittsylvania County

Developer proposes 600-acre mixed-use residential project in Pittsylvania County

Article from Cardinal News | Written By: Grace Mamon 

An investment group wants to bring 1,900 new residential units to 600 acres of southwestern Pittsylvania County in a master-planned community that would be a mix of single-family homes, townhouses, apartments and senior living. 

If approved, the project by Southside Investing LLC would take a decade or longer to complete, according to a news release from the local investment group.

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Clean energy companies could get tax credits for coming to Southside Virginia megasite

Clean energy companies could get tax credits for coming to Southside Virginia megasite

Companies making clean energy products could get federal tax credits for bringing an industry to the Southern Virginia Mega Site at Berry Hill.

The 3,500-acre mega park in southwestern Pittsylvania County sits in a census tract adjacent to another area in Rockingham County, North Carolina, that has experienced job losses in a fossil-fuel-related industry.

That makes the area where Berry Hill is located an energy community.

“The Berry Hill megasite falls into one of those geographic areas,” said Janine Kritschgau, spokesperson for U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. “Therefore, should a company decide to use the site for clean-energy production or the manufacturing of products needed for clean-energy production, then that company would be eligible for the additional incentives.”

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After classification upgrades, Southside Virginia leads state in number of shovel-ready industrial sites

After classification upgrades, Southside Virginia leads state in number of shovel-ready industrial sites

Articel from the Danville Register and Bee | Written by John Crane

Southside Virginia has the most shovel-ready industrial sites in the state, thanks to recent upgrades in classification for numerous pieces of land.

A total of 19 sites in Danville and Pittsylvania County were bumped up from tier-two to tier-four or tier-five sites under classification by the Virginia Business Ready Sites Program, said Linda Green, executive director of the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance.

 

“Southside Virginia leads the commonwealth in the number of prepared sites, one of the reasons for the success they are achieving in business attraction,” the alliance stated in a news release last week. “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.”

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With casino opening and possible major industry at megasite in Dan River Region, where will workers come from?

With casino opening and possible major industry at megasite in Dan River Region, where will workers come from?
 
Article from Danville Register & Bee | Written by: John Crane
 

With major manufacturers’ eyes on the Southern Virginia Megasite at Berry Hill and the upcoming Caesars Virginia casino resort, there is the potential for thousands of additional new jobs in the Dan River Region.

That scenario brings up the question: where will the workers come from to fill those positions?
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Danville and Pittsylvania now have more industrial sites ready for development than any other locality

Danville and Pittsylvania now have more industrial sites ready for development than any other locality

Article from Cardinal News | Written by Grace Mamon

Industrial parks in four Southside localities see 25% of the state’s leads on economic development projects.
 

Almost 20 industrial sites in Danville and Pittsylvania County are being upgraded to shovel-ready status, and these localities now have the highest number of developed industrial sites in the state, according to Virginia Economic Development Partnership qualifications. 

The locality with the next-highest number of shovel-ready sites is Chesterfield County, with three sites, according to the list of certified sites on VEDP’s website. The VEDP’s Virginia Business Ready Sites Program designates industrial sites in tiers, ranked one through five, to signify the level of development. Tier 4 and Tier 5 sites are considered shovel-ready.

Four sites are being upgraded to a Tier 5 designation and 15 more will now hold the Tier 4 designation in Danville and Pittsylvania County. And in two other Southside localities, more Tier 4 and 5 upgrades mean that almost 30 sites are now considered shovel-ready in the region.  In Patrick County, two sites are being upgraded to Tier 5. And in Halifax, three sites will become Tier 5, and five more will become Tier 4.  This makes eight new Tier 5 sites and 21 new Tier 4 sites in Southside, according to a release from the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance. All these sites were previously Tier 2. 

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