VCEDA closed on an up to $150,000 loan to Tazewell Cinema & Entertainment. On hand for the Feb. 8 loan closing were, from left, Pam Warden, Tazewell County economic development manager; Jonathan Belcher, VCEDA executive director/general counsel; Sharon Thomas, co-owner of Tazewell Cinema & Entertainment LLC; and Maggie Asbury, a member of both the VCEDA board and the Tazewell County Board of Supervisors.
VCEDA Closes Loan to Tazewell Cinema
VCEDA closed an up to a $150,000 loan from the VCEDA Tourism Capital Improvement Matching Fund on Feb. 8 for Tazewell Cinema & Entertainment, LLC to assist with the reopening and renovation of the old theater building in North Tazewell.
The business is owned by Sharon McReynolds Thomas and John Thomas, who have plans to turn the old theater building into a full entertainment venue offering movies, theater space for live performances through a partnership with the Barter Theatre, a trampoline park and video arcade. Live streaming capabilities will allow the theater to also stream major sporting events or cultural arts events. Additionally, the theater will seek to partner with local colleges, dance studios, CART (Citizens for the Arts), and other local performers to host various other cultural events.
The business application projects three full-time and seven part-time employees within one year of its opening and four full-time and 15 part-time employees within five years of opening.
“VCEDA is pleased to be a part of the project which will provide jobs while at the same time creating a tourism entertainment venue in Tazewell which will also benefit local residents. The project has value for not only tourism creation, but also for its local economic growth potential.”
Jonathan Belcher, VCEDA Executive Director/General Counsel
Read more about the Tazewell Cinema.
VCEDA Participates in Inn at Wise Grand Re-opening
VCEDA was pleased to take part in the recent grand re-opening of the Inn at Wise on Jan. 24. VCEDA Executive Director Jonathan Belcher delivered some brief remarks at the event. VCEDA was one of the funders of the renovation of the Inn and assisted the IDA in the location of the new management group. Newport Hospitality Group, to the Inn. Pictured from left are Jonathan Belcher, VCEDA executive director/general counsel; Fred Tanzer, Cory Dotson, Amy Phillips, and Shannon Scott, all of Newport Hospitality Group.
VCEDA Attends Virginia State Chamber Day
VCEDA representatives attended the Virginia State Chamber Day activities and the Old Dominion legislative reception in January in Richmond. In photo, VCEDA board members, including Chairman J.P. Richardson, left; Harry Childress, second from left; and Josh Ball, right, spoke with Virginia chamber officials, including Virginia Chamber of Commerce President Barry DuVal, second from right, during the reception. Mary Rae Carter, VCEDA marketing ambassador, also participated in the Chamber Day activities. VCEDA Marketing Ambassadors Mary Rae Carter and Cathy St. Clair were also in attendance at the reception.
VCEDA Attends Utilities & Data Centers 2019
VCEDA Marketing Ambassador Charlotte Mullins attended the Utilities & Data Centers 2019: Partnering for Sustainable Success; The Future of Resiliency and Renewable Energy in the Data Center—Utility Relationships held in Richmond, Va., at the QTS Data Center, Jan. 28-29. The conference focused on emerging trends in technology and sustainability shaping the future of the data center industry. It also focused on how renewable energies have resulted in data centers becoming adaptable and how they have created sustainable partnerships with utilities to provide the best locations and solutions to their enterprise end-user clients.
VCEDA Attends Rural Caucus Reception
VCEDA Marketing Ambassador Mary Rae Carter, right, attended the Rural Caucus reception in Richmond Feb. 6. The event was hosted by the Virginia Association of Counties and the Center for Rural Virginia. Among the featured speakers at the event were Gov. Ralph Northam; and Joseph Mendedoth, associate regional economist, Richmond Federal Reserve Bank. Pictured with Carter is Christy Morton, with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.