The loan was closed July 18 on an up to $1,004,890 loan to the Dickenson County Industrial Development Authority (IDA) to be used to replace the water line serving Red Onion Industrial Park and the Red Onion State Prison. On hand for the ceremonial check presentation were, from left, Donald Baker, Mayor of the Town of Clintwood; Jonathan Belcher, VCEDA executive director/general counsel; Talbert Bolling, chairman, Dickenson County IDA, and Danny Lambert, secretary/treasurer, Dickenson County IDA.
CLINTWOOD, VA – July 18, 2018 – An up to $1,004,890 loan to the Dickenson County Industrial Development Authority to be used to replace the water line servicing the Red Onion Industrial Park and the Red Onion State Prison in Dickenson County was closed Wednesday by the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority (VCEDA).
“Infrastructure is one of the keys to successful economic development and the replacement of the water line which services the Red Onion Industrial Park and the prison is an important part of infrastructure in Dickenson County and a critical need as it relates to the prison which employs a large number of workers, as well as the marketability of the IDA’s Red Onion industrial site,” said VCEDA Executive Director/General Counsel Jonathan Belcher. “VCEDA is pleased to be able to assist with the project.”
Funds from the loan will be used by the IDA to help the Town of Clintwood replace the water line which services the Red Onion Industrial Park, also known as the Coalfield Regional Industrial Park and the Red Onion State Prison.
The Town of Clintwood originally constructed a water line to serve the Red Onion Prison when the prison was constructed in the mid-1990s. Initially, it was constructed to serve the Red Onion Prison, but since its construction, water is now also sold on a wholesale basis to the Town of Pound and the Dickenson County Public Service Authority. The water line will also serve to provide water to the Industrial Development Authority’s Red Onion Industrial Park as the park develops.
Originally constructed with ductile iron pipe, in recent months, the water line has experienced line breaks and the resulting repairs have revealed the water line has deteriorated much more rapidly than expected.
About Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority and Virginia’s e-Region: The Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority, created by the Virginia General Assembly in 1988 to enhance and diversify the region’s economy and help create jobs, markets Virginia’s e-Region and its focus on electronic information technology, energy, education, emerging technologies, and entrepreneurship. VCEDA is a unique economic development organization that manages funds for economic development projects from a percentage of the coal and natural gas severance taxes paid by coal and natural gas companies that operate in the region. Located in southwestern Virginia, the region includes Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell, and Wise counties and the City of Norton. www.vceda.us or www.e-Region.org.