WISE — Development of a new site in the Lonesome Pine Business and Technology Park will see a $750,000 boost in progress.
The Virginia Business Ready Sites Program grant — one of 22 grants totaling $90 million — will go toward development of the Elam Farm site at the western end of the park, Wise County Industrial Development Authority Executive Director Brian Falin said Tuesday.
The Business Ready Sites program aims to improve readiness for developing industrial sites of 100 acres or, in the western end of Virginia, 50 acres.
“This will kick-start phase two of the work on the site,” Falin said.
Phase one — funded by an earlier $1.7 million federal Abandoned Mine Land Economic Recovery grant — has gone to establishing water, sewer and natural gas utility service and access road to the site, Falin said. The latest grant, administered by the state Economic Development Partnership, will help begin site clearing and grading on the area near the town of Wise’s Veldon Dotson Recreation Complex.
Falin said other grant applications to fund phase two are under review.
Attracting manufacturing or data center operations is the Lonesome Pine site project’s goal, said Falin.
“Prepared sites drive economic growth, and we have to move faster to attract new businesses,” Gov. Glenn Youngkin said in Monday’s grant announcement. “We are hitting the accelerator to build a best-in-class business environment so the commonwealth can compete to win, and I have included the necessary additional funding for the VBRSP in my proposed budget.”
VEDP President and CEO Jason El Koubi said Youngkin’s call for more Business Ready Sites Program funding in the state’s 2023-24 budget will help expand the number of sites for business recruitment.
“It is critical for Virginia to create a diverse portfolio of sites that are attractive to different industry sectors and meet varying location and infrastructure needs,” said El Koubi, “and these grants are a major step in the right direction to help the commonwealth catch up on site development.”
