Category: Economic Development
By Philip Newswanger
philip.newswanger@insidebiz.com
A small business lobby is touting big wins in this year's General Assembly session.
The measures range from increasing the Governor's Opportunity Fund, which is known as the deal closer on mammoth economic development projects, to a $500 tax credit for creating "green" jobs.
The Virginia Chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business is confident that Gov. Bob McDonnell is behind its agenda and praised his proposals to stir economic development in the state.
By Philip Newswanger
philip.newswanger@insidebiz.com
Money is pouring into low-income communities via tax credits that are sold to investors, according to a recent Government Accountability Office report.
The tax credits are doled out by community development entities to buyers, which get a tax credit of 39 percent over seven years.
The GAO report said the program is working, but it needs simplifying.
By Michael Schwartz
michael.schwartz@insidebiz.com
Tidewater Community College's new Portsmouth campus has an interesting relationship with workforce development in the region.
On the one hand, the shiny $65 million campus that opened for classes in January after 10 years in the making was constructed with specific workforce segments in mind, a strategy that helps the growing college target programs it believes will attract more students and tuition dollars by offering an avenue to those who want in on hot areas of employment.
By Philip Newswanger
philip.newswanger@insidebiz.com
Virginia Beach showed strong and steady growth in economic development in 2009 despite a national economy that is still under siege.
That's the latest report from the city's economic development department and economic development authority.
Some of the area's localities issue calendar year and fiscal year reports capping highlights in economic development.
By Philip Newswanger
philip.newswanger@insidebiz.com
A decade ago, China was a minor economic and diplomatic player on the world stage.
Today, this country of 2 billion people is a global economic and diplomatic powerhouse, which just happens to own close to a trillion dollars in U.S. Treasury bonds and which just happens to feed and clothe most Americans.
By Philip Newswanger
philip.newswanger@insidebiz.com
If you need advice about uncovering financing options, you might want to attend a small business seminar in Norfolk later this month.
With the economy wracked by tight credit and mounting job losses, small businesses need a helping hand now more than ever.
According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, small employers - those with fewer than 500 employees - in the U.S. numbered 6 million in 2006, representing 99.7 percent of the nation's employers and 50.2 percent of its private-sector employment.
By Michael Schwartz
michael.schwartz@insidebiz.com
The dream held by many to establish a viable locally based wind energy-generation industry utilizing massive windmill farms off the coast of Hampton Roads could be realized in six to 11 years.
That's an achievable time line if all the pieces come together, according a Dominion Resources executive.
By Philip Newswanger
philip.newswanger@insidebiz.com
Last year was bad for everyone, including the Hampton Roads Economic Development Alliance.
But the region's marketer hunkered down and survived the winds of rising unemployment, hesitancy by firms to invest and credit so tight that not even your mother could get a loan.
Yet the alliance ended 2009 better than the previous year if you go by the numbers.
The alliance announced five projects in 2009 for a capital investment of $18.75 million that will create 294 jobs.
By Michael Schwartz
michael.schwartz@insidebiz.com
"We knew last year it was going to rain," Vinod Agarwal said last week in presenting the annual economic forecast for Hampton Roads as calculated by Old Dominion University's Economic Forecasting Project.
The region's gross regional product declined 1.3 percent in 2009, faring better than the nation as a whole, which saw gross domestic product decline 2.5 percent.
The year, however, turned out to be worse than Agarwal and his team predicted.
By Philip Newswanger
philip.newswanger@insidebiz.com
Old Dominion University's College of Business and Public Administration has launched a 12-month Global Executive MBA (GEMBA) program that aims to help executives think globally and act locally.
Six one-week residencies include two in other countries and four in Norfolk.
