Virginia's First Large Solar Array to be in Halifax County

Virginia Power to build solar generating plant

By Peter Bacque | RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

Dominion Virginia Power will use a $5 million grant from the Virginia Tobacco Commission to help build a pilot photovoltaic power plant in Halifax County.

The Richmond-based utility will soon put out a request for proposals to design and build the 4-megawatt solar-power facility, said Mary C. Doswell, senior vice president for alternative energy solutions for Dominion Resources Services Inc., a sister company to Dominion Virginia Power.

"It's photovoltaic," she said of the test project, and the power produced "will go straight into the [electrical] grid."

Photovoltaic systems produce electric current directly from sunlight.

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Grand Springs Natural Spring Water Expand Services

Grand Springs Natural Spring Water is expanding! Grand Springs is now offering a distributing program for their coffee service products and their water products in the five gallon bottles and the small pack bottles to local business and to retail outlets in the Halifax County area. Two new jobs have been created in Halifax County with the potential for a third. “This is another great story of the success of small businesses in Halifax County, “according to Mike Sexton, Executive Director of the IDA of Halifax County.

The natural springs that feed Grand Springs have been a source of refreshment for centuries. Grand Springs Water was voted the best tasting water in the world in 2008 and 2009 at the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting competition.

Grand Springs Natural Spring Water was selected as the sole provider of bottled water for the House of Representatives Food Services in Washington, D. C. The bottled water supplied to the House is contained in compostable bottles made of corn and replaces water that was in petroleum-based bottles.

Grand Springs offers a private labeling service to businesses and organizations that wish to promote or advertise its products under their own name. For more information please contact Grand Springs 2140 Mount Carmel Road Alton, VA 24520 (434) 753-2515, You can also follow Grand Springs on facebook and twitter and see their video on YouTube or learn more by visiting their website at www.grandsprings.com.

Checkered Flag Goes Down on Successful Weekend

The Southern Virginia Regional Alliance with the support of Lt Governor Bill Bolling, and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) got their first regional marketing effort started at Martinsville Speedway. The Southern Virginia Regional Alliance is a partnership championed by the LT Governor that includes Halifax, Henry, Patrick and Pittsylvania counties as well as the cities of Martinsville and Danville.

The effort, that included 10 invited site selection companies as well as companies that are looking to expand or relocate operations, showcased the southern region of Virginia over the weekend of October 22 through the 25. It also included a presentation on the workforce, regional assets such as industrial parks and shell buildings, education and quality of life.

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Annin Takes Top International Honors

from the News & Record - Annin & Company's South Boston facility last week submitted four entries to the 2010 Golden Image Awards Competition held in Las Vegas, Nevada on Oct. 13-15.

The Golden Image Competition is the screen printing and graphic imaging industry's showcase of printing excellence.

Competition for these coveted awards is fierce with flag and banner entries from around the world vying for the honors.

Of the entries submitted, Annin won "Best in Category" for its digitally printed "Halifax County Fair banner".

The design and graphics for the flag were supplied to Annin by Fair coordinator Donnell Corelle.

"This is the first time we have ever won in the digital category," said plant manager Bill Kelehar.
Also Annin's entry in the screen printed category "Charlotte 49ers" captured the silver ribbon.

Photos - Top, Annin & Company's Halifax County Fair banner recently took top international honors among digitally printed banners in a competition held in Las Vegas. With the banner they created are,from left, Linda King, Joan King, Wanda Francis, Melissa Roark and Tim Bauldwin.

Bottom - Annin's Charlotte 49ers banner received a silver ribbon in Las Vegas competition. With the banner are, from left, Wanda Francis, Joan King, Melissa Roark and Linda King and in the back: Charles Edmondson, Tony Conner, Jerome Whittle and Oscar Garzon

County Agencies Clear Hurdle to Tobacco Commission Funding

At the regularly scheduled Southside Economic Development Committee meeting of the Virginia Tobacco Commission, several Halifax County agencies and one business cleared a major hurdle in their march toward funding.

The Southside Economic Development Committee recommended unanimous support for applications from the Halifax County Department of Tourism, the Industrial Development Authority of Halifax County and the Halifax County Service Authority. The Committee also recommended approval for the application by Mid-Atlantic Broadband Cooperative that is region wide in scope, with committee member Connie Nyholm abstaining from the vote.

“This represents a huge step forward for Halifax County and our efforts to secure funding for these critical projects,” said Mike Sexton, IDA executive director. “Without the support of the Tobacco Commission staff and the vote of support by the committee, it would be impossible to move these projects from the idea phase to the planning phase and on to the completion phase.”

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Virginia Main Street foodies pick their favorites

from Virginia Main Street - Virginia Main Street blog readers logged on in record number to select their favorite Main Street eateries. In just over a month nearly 59,000 votes were cast for one of 25 restaurants.

Nearly half of the votes were for South Boston’s BISTRO 1888. And it’s a worthy top choice. The Bistro demonstrates what first-class food and downtown reinvestment can do for a community. Since executive  chef and co-owner Margaret Moorefield moved back east from Portland, Oregon and established the eatery with co-owner Barbara Cage, South Boston has been a dining destination. Read reviews of the American Automobile Association three-diamond rated BISTRO 1888 here.

According to Destination Dowtown South Boston director Tamyra Vest, the restaurant played an important role in stepping revitalization up to the next level when it opened in 2003. “We feel very fortunate. Really good restaurants are critical to an arts and culture based revitalization strategy. When visitors or residents come into town to see a show or an exhibit, they want to pair it with a memorable meal in a welcoming setting.  Bistro 1888 offers that.”

Building For Your Future!!!

The construction has begun for the 5 Soon to be Pad Ready Sites within Riverstone Technology Park. A Pad Ready site means that the site has been cleared, grubbed, and the mass grading has been completed. Only final grading will be necessary to begin construction on a building.

This project will improve the immediate availability of sites to build on, thus improving the competitiveness of Halifax County.  The pad ready and infrastructure ready sites will position Halifax County with sites ready to build on and increase Halifax County’s chances of success of meeting prospects’ needs by reducing the location timeline.  Being able to get time sensitive projects underway without excessive development or unnecessary unknowns is crucial for winning projects.

Also, to be completed in the Riverstone Project is the engineering for the 115kv Electrical Line extension to be brought to Riverstone Technology Park and design of the 34.5 kv loop for within the park. This will reduce the timing to make infrastructure readily available to all sites within the park. This again will make Halifax County poised for a new industry looking to locate.

For more information please contact the IDA office at 434-572-1734.

SVHEC Business of Art & Design Interns develop 3-D renderings of Halifax County Assets

Halifax County has gone 3D! Through a partnership between the Industrial Development Authority (IDA) and the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC), interns in the Business of Art & Design program at the SVHEC have developed 3D renderings of Halifax County’s most notable assets.

Interns Britteny Madine, Evan Irby, Ben Scarborough, and Russell White developed complete 3D models of the Prizery, Berry Hill, the SVHEC, Downtown South Boston, and the SVHEC’s Innovation Center (currently under construction). These full-scale computer renderings are fully explorable, and can be used to create digital tours for the Internet. This will allow the IDA to show the beauty and strength of the community before a prospective employer ever drives into town. “The collaboration with the SVHEC is one of the most important things we’re doing to differentiate Halifax County when competing for jobs,” said IDA Executive Director Mike Sexton. “We can differentiate ourselves quickly with collaboration, and that’s critical to rebounding our workforce.”

The interns used Google Sketchup to create their full-scale models. Because they did not come into the project already knowing the software, the entire process of developing the 3D models was a learning experience for them as well as BA&D coordinators. “We want to incorporate Google Sketchup into the Business of Art & Design curriculum, and this project was an opportunity to do real research and to prove out the concept of doing that,” said Business of Art & Design Coordinator Ben Capozzi.

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